Welcome!!

The Los Angeles and San Diego chapters are hosting two independent study groups (‘Cohorts’) for the INCOSE Systems Engineering Professional (SEP) certification, one on Thursday nights and the other on Friday mornings.

This registration page is for the Friday morning Cohort that will meet from 8-10am Pacific Time.

Both Cohorts will last 10 weeks and will help students prepare for the INCOSE SEP certification knowledge exam. There will also be an optional 11th-week session focused on reviewing the type of questions found on the knowledge exam. Persons local to southern California are especially encouraged to register!

Important Information on the Friday Cohort

* The Cohort is 10 weeks long and will meet once a week using either Zoom or Microsoft Teams. (Which we use will be determined and announced beforehand.)

* Expect each session to last up to two hours, from 8am – 10am Pacific Time.

* The Cohort will cover the INCOSE Systems Engineering Handbook Version 5, of which the knowledge exam is based upon.

* The INCOSE San Diego chapter will host the Friday morning Cohort.

* The Friday Cohort begins on 11 April 2024 and ends on 13 June 2024. There will be an optional extra meeting the following week on 20 June 2025 to discuss exam questions.

* We may limit each class to 50 students. Please sign up immediately if you are interested, and only if you are serious about attending! Please be serious about taking the INCOSE Systems Engineering Professional (SEP) exam as well.

* The INCOSE Los Angeles chapter will also host a Thursday evening Cohort. Both the Thursday and Friday Cohorts the will cover the same material each week. Please choose the one that works for you. You are also welcome to join the other Cohort to listen in and/or make up for a missed session.

* The registration fee is $100. However, participants are eligible for up to a full refund:

• 50% Refund for fulfilling your participation responsibilities, including creating a presentation deck and presenting to the Cohort. Note: Every participant must present to receive this refund— no exceptions! Presentations may be done in small teams depending on the number of students.

• Additional 50% Refund upon providing proof of having taken the SEP exam (pass or fail) by December 31, 2025.

* The LA and San Diego chapters will also organize an in-person paper exam 3-4 weeks after conclusion of the Cohorts. The exact location is to be determined (TBD), but expect it to be somewhere between Los Angeles and San Diego area.

* The paper exam cost is also TBD, but we hope to make it free for all Cohort participants.

* We will apply INCOSE’s Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) adjustments to reduce the registration cost for students from smaller economy countries:

• PPP2 Countries: 25% discount ($75 total)
• PPP3 Countries: 50% discount ($50 total)

Please see each country’s PPP rating Here and CONTACT US if you have any questions at in**@sd******.org

* All students are required to pay via PayPal to join the Cohort. If you don’t have a PayPal account, you can still make payment using a credit card through the PayPal site.

About the Cohort Structure

Cohorts are largely student-led learning experiences. Each participant will be part of a small team responsible for presenting a section of the INCOSE Handbook Version 5 to the entire Cohort. To support these sessions, the LA and SD chapters will supply team leaders (typically two per meeting) to facilitate the sessions by providing introductions, managing the schedule and Zoom sessions, and addressing any challenges that arise.

Preparation and Materials

You must have your own copy of the INCOSE Handbook, Version 5.

• INCOSE members can download it for free from the INCOSE Store.
• Non-members will need to purchase a copy.

All participants are strongly encouraged to review each week’s assigned material in advance to fully engage with the presentations and ask thoughtful questions. NOTE that this Cohort is only supplemental to reading the Handbook. It is strongly encouraged to read the Handbook from beginning to end.

Before the First Session

• Please read Chapter 1: Systems Engineering Introduction of the Handbook.
• Familiarize yourself with the key Terms and Definitions in Appendix C

Technical Requirements

Please make sure your computer or network does not block access to Zoom or Microsoft Teams, as these will be our primary platforms.

Friday Cohort Schedule

WEEK	DATE	TOPICS
1	11 April 2025	Welcome, organization of Cohort, section assignments, how to use this handbook, Ch 1 – SE Intro
2	18 April 2025	Ch 2 – System Life Cycle Concepts, Models, Processes – 2.1 Life cycle terms concepts through 2.3.2.2 Supply Process
3	25 April 2025	Ch 2 – System Life Cycle Concepts, Models, Processes – Section 2.3.3 Organizational Project Enabling Processes
4	2 May 2025	Ch 2 – System Life Cycle Concepts, Models, Processes – Section 2.3.4 Technical Mgmt processes
5	9 May 2025	Ch 2 – System Life Cycle Concepts, Models, Processes – Technical Processes I, 2.3.5.1 through 2.3.5.6
6	16 May 2025	Ch 2 – System Life Cycle Concepts, Models, Processes – Technical Processes II, 2.3.5.7 – 2.3.5.14
7	23 May 2025	Ch 3 – Life cycle analysis methods – 3.1 Quality characteristics and approaches
8	30 May 2025	Ch 3 – Life cycle analysis methods – 3.2 SE analyses and methods through Ch 4 section 4.2.4 Product Line Engineering
9	6 June 2025	Ch 4 – Tailoring and Application Considerations – section 4.3 through 4.4.10 Transportation Systems
10	13 June 2025	Chapter 5 – Systems Engineering in Practice
11 (bonus)	20 June 2025	Practice questions for exam

About SEP Certification

What is Systems Engineering Professional certification? Certification is a formal process whereby a community of knowledgeable, experienced, and skilled representatives of an organization, such as INCOSE, provides confirmation of an individual’s competency (demonstrated knowledge, education, and experience) in a specified profession. Certification differs from licensing in that licenses are permissions granted by a government entity for a person to practice within its regulatory boundaries. Certification also differs from a “certificate” that documents the successful completion of a training or education program. There are three types of INCOSE SEP certification: ASEP, CSEP, and ESEP. Please read more here.

What is the Systems Engineering Professional exam? The SEP exam is a 2-hour exam designed to test your knowledge of INCOSE systems engineering practices and processes. Please read more here.

Please contact us at in**@sd******.org and/or in**@in*******.org for more information.

What Each Student Will Need for the Cohort

Each student who attends a Cohort will need the following:

• A copy of the INCOSE Systems Engineering Handbook: A Guide for System Life Cycle Processes and Activities, 5th Edition (an electronic version of this is available free for all INCOSE members. Non-members must purchase the handbook. Visit the INCOSE store here.)  Important – you must have Version 5.
• The ability to log in and participate in the weekly Zoom or Teams sessions.  (Please ensure your computer and/or network does not block access to Zoom or Teams.)
• A commitment to build a slide deck and to present the agreed-upon material to the Cohort (this might be part of a small team). Presenting will result in 50% refund of the cost of registration.
• You should have interest and intent to take the INCOSE SEP exam, though this is not mandatory. Proof of you taking the exam by 31 Dec 2025 will result in 50% refund of the cost of registration. All payments and refunds will be made using PayPal. Note that you do NOT have to have a PayPal account; you can also pay on PayPal using a credit card.

Thank you! Please contact us at in**@sd******.org and/or in**@in*******.org if you have any questions, and we look forward to meeting you on April 11th!

The INCOSE LA and San Diego Chapters