Amit Joe Lopes

Assistant Professor, Master of Science in Systems Engineering

Amit Lopes came to UTEP as a graduate student in 2001; armed with a B.E. in Production Engineering from the University of Mumbai in India, he went on to get an M.S. in Industrial Engineering in 2003 and a Ph.D. in Material Science and Engineering in 2010 at UTEP. He joined the UTEP faculty ranks as an Assistant Research Professor and since 2018, has been an Assistant Professor at the Department of Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering within UTEP's College of Engineering.  

Dr. Lopes' areas of interest are Smart Manufacturing Industry 4.0; Quality in Additive Manufacturing; and Systems Engineering Applications. 

The subjects he teaches:

• UNIV 1301 – Foundations of Engineering
• IE 3373 – Engineering Probability and Statistical Models
• SE 5344 – Integration, Verification, and Validation

On his passion for these subjects:

All courses I teach have a project-based learning component which greatly helps student engagement and learning. I've always had a passion (and curiosity) for how things are made, how data is analyzed for decision-making, and what motivates someone to learn something new. This curiosity is what led me to pursue academia with the goal of using the knowledge I gained to study and work with industry trends. 

His proudest accomplishment and biggest challenge as an online instructor: 

(My proudest accomplishment is) the moment a student realizes the benefits and end-to-end nature of systems thinking. (At that point) they truly appreciate the project-based aspect (of the courses) and the student engagement initiatives I encourage. My biggest challenge is the structured nature of online courses. Graduate students who work full-time benefit from having some flexibility with deadlines but we need to stick to a strict schedule with online programs. So some activities are affected when students are unable to comply with the schedule. 

On what makes a successful online student:

A student who is successful online is 

• Actively engaged with the course content
• Participates actively in semester projects and demonstrates good teamwork and communication
• Adheres to deadlines
• Leaves with a very good understanding of how they will apply concepts learned in the real world

His advice to his students:

• Stay on task on a weekly basis
• Manage your time very well
• Actively participate in team projects
• Care about your learning experience and communicate constantly about how it can be enhanced