Learn Targeted Abilities and Advance Your Career.
Develop new capabilities by completing an undergraduate certificate. Courses are higher-level and certificates can be completed on their own, or be accumulated into a degree later. These programs are built for exactly where you are right now: working, experienced, and ready to advance yourself at work. Complete courses on your schedule, at your pace, and with an RPI degree at the end.
• 100% Online • Project-Based • 12 Credit Hours (Two Courses) • Stackable Toward the B.Tech
About the Certificate
Continuous improvement is essential to every successful manufacturing and operations organization. Identify performance issues, set performance parameters and develop KPI's for project success. Through project-based learning, you'll apply Lean, Six Sigma, root cause analysis, corrective and preventive action (CAPA), and total quality management principles to real workplace challenges. By measuring results and demonstrating measurable improvements, you'll become a valued contributor to operational excellence and continuous improvement initiatives.
Prerequisite: These courses require completion of the Data Analysis and Visualization Certificate before enrollment.
What You Will Be Able to Do
- Evaluate operational performance using manufacturing and quality metrics to identify opportunities for improvement
- Map and improve processes by standardizing work, documenting workflows, and defining meaningful quality measures
- Identify the factors that drive operational performance and connect production results to broader business objectives
- Make informed production decisions that improve efficiency while maintaining quality, safety, and customer expectations
- Apply Lean, Six Sigma, root cause analysis, corrective and preventive action (CAPA), and waste reduction techniques to solve operational challenges and deliver measurable improvements
- Use statistical process control (SPC) and root cause analysis to identify variation, reduce defects, and improve process consistency
- Support continuous improvement initiatives by developing and implementing total quality management practices that drive sustainable organizational change
Required Courses
Analyze and evaluate the manufacturing process of physical products to ensure efficient and repeatable operations that produce high-quality outputs. Create process maps to standardize and refine work instructions. Using process data, you will identify and characterize the key variables that drive operational performance, examine how those variables relate to business metrics, and assess the tradeoffs required to achieve both operational and business goals.
Number of Credits: 6
Tackle the complexities of defining and managing quality in a manufacturing environment. Assess and enhance total quality management (TQM) plans and apply process improvement techniques to evaluate both process and product quality. Refine quality standards, analyze qualitative and quantitative data to investigate quality issues, and employ statistical measures to characterize and address variability. Through statistical process control strategies and root cause analysis, you will identify sources of quality problems stemming from both management practices and process-related factors.
Number of Credits: 6
Learn by Doing
Every course is built around authentic workplace challenges—not hypothetical case studies. You'll solve real operational and management problems, receive personalized feedback from faculty mentors with industry expertise, and demonstrate your progress through applied projects rather than quizzes. A small number of live evening sessions provide opportunities to engage with faculty and classmates, while the rest of your coursework is completed on your schedule. Live sessions are recorded, and all required digital learning materials are included with tuition. Courses begin each January, May, and at the end of August.
Stack Your Certificate Toward a Bachelor's Degree
Every certificate in RPI at Work's Bachelor of Technology in Production and Operations Management program is designed to stand on its own while also counting toward the degree. The credits you earn in this certificate apply directly to the bachelor's program, allowing you to build your education one credential at a time.
Complete all five undergraduate certificates and the required capstone project to earn your Bachelor of Technology degree—without repeating coursework or losing credit along the way.
Ready to Advance Your Career?
If you're ready to take on greater responsibility in manufacturing or operations, this certificate will help you build the practical quality and process improvement capabilities employers value. Whether you're improving production processes, supporting continuous improvement initiatives, or preparing for supervisory or quality-focused roles, you'll learn how to identify opportunities, implement meaningful improvements, and demonstrate measurable results.
Admissions
We've designed this program for working adults who are ready to take the next step in their careers. To be eligible for admission, you'll need a completed associate's degree from an accredited institution and at least three years of professional work experience. Every application is reviewed holistically, and our enrollment team is happy to discuss your background, answer your questions, and help you determine whether the program is the right fit. With fall, spring, and summer start terms, you can begin when the time is right for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Completion of the Data Analysis and Visualization Certificate. These courses use data analysis and statistical techniques throughout, and that certificate builds the foundations this one depends on.
This is an academic credential from RPI rather than a belt certification. The certificate is built on the standards of practice in Lean, Six Sigma, and quality management, and it prepares you to apply those tools at work and to pursue belt certifications if you choose.
Each course includes around four or five live sessions, held in the evenings roughly every two to three weeks, with all dates provided at the start of the semester. Sessions are recorded and posted with a transcript if you cannot attend. The rest of your coursework is completed on your schedule.
Start Building What's Next
Whether you're ready to earn your first certificate, complete your bachelor's degree, or simply explore your options, we're here to help you find the path that's right for your career. Connect with an enrollment specialist to discuss your goals, review your background, and take the next step with confidence.