Discrete event simulation class for engineering graduate students

To graduate students accustomed to working with the numerical solution of partial differential equations using finite difference, finite elements, spectral methods, etc. where time generally progresses in evenly-spaced small intervals, switching paradigms to a discrete-event simulation environment is not only counterintuitive but is also difficult. The SimCenter at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga recently introduced a class in discrete event simulation with the goal of providing sufficient coverage of the topic to enable any of the SimCenter's students completing the course to work effectively in a typical industry- or government-supported simulation modeling group. The course is structured around a diverse set of engineering problems rather than traditional industrial engineering-type simulations in order to present the material in a more palatable fashion for students who come primarily from other disciplines. This paper discusses the organization of the class and serves as a good outline for another professor attempting a similar introduction.