What is Operations Research? FAQ | Future Students | NC State OR

The Simple Answer: Operations Research (OR) is a discipline of problem-solving and decision-making. It uses advanced analytical methods to help management run an effective organization. Problems are broken down, analyzed and solved in the following steps.

• Identify a problem
• Build a model around the real-world problem
• Use the model and data to arrive at solutions
• Test the solution and analyze its success
• Implement the solution

The Technical Answer: Operations Research, also known as management sciences, uses scientific methods to study systems that require human decision-making. Consequently, OR helps make the most effective systems design and operation decisions. Moreover, OR’s strength and versatility come from its diagnostic power through observation and modeling and its prescriptive power through analysis and synthesis.

Additionally, Operations Research is interdisciplinary, drawing on and contributing to techniques from many fields. These include mathematics, engineering, economics and physical sciences. Furthermore, OR practitioners have solved various real-world problems. These range from optimizing telecommunications networks to planning armed forces deployment

YES

• The Bureau of Labor predicts that operations research jobs will grow by over 32% between 2022 and 2032. This growth rate is faster than the average for all other occupations.
• There will be about 10,200 new openings for operations researchers each year, on average, over the next decade.

• Operations researchers work in many industries, including:
  • Aerospace
  • Automotive
  • Banking
  • Communications
  • Consulting
  • Government
  • Health Care
  • Insurance
  • Military
  • Petroleum
  • Pharmaceuticals
  • Transportation
  • And much more
• Operations researchers do not need to specialize in one industry. They can keep their options open, making them immune to the ups and downs of any single industry.