Use of Hierarchal Decision Modeling (HDM) for selection of graduate school for master of science degree program in engineering

The decision to select an appropriate graduate school is a critical decision for a student seeking this opportunity. This paper uses a Hierarchical Decision Model for the selection of an engineering graduate program from five graduate schools in Oregon. The paper includes a brief overview of each criterion used in the model. In addition, there is a brief description of the five universities which are considered as alternatives. The project report shows how the HDM was used to prioritize the alternatives. A Judgment Quantification Instrument (JQI) was developed to obtain pair-wise comparisons from various experts. Twelve experts responded to the instrument and their judgments were analyzed. Then, the paper explains how the calculations were made and final weights were computed. Finally, this project report also suggests future work that can be done to expand the model and to include other universities from the northwest and other states. Further modification of this model could allow it to be used for all different types of schools and programs, not just engineering or graduate programs.