  An introduction to the most important concepts in the subject of
supersymmetric unified theories is presented. The emphasis is on the practical
aspects leading to state-of-the-art calculations in this renascent subject. The
topics covered include: generalities of supersymmetric unified theories, gauge
and Yukawa coupling unification including the most up-to-date numerical
analyses, soft supersymmetry breaking, and radiative electroweak symmetry
breaking enforced using the tree-level and one-loop effective potentials. This
class of supersymmetric models can be described in terms of five parameters:
the top-quark mass ($m_t$), the ratio of Higgs vacuum expectation values
($\tan\beta$), and three universal soft-supersymmetry-breaking parameters
($m_{1/2},m_0,A$). Thus, highly correlated predictions can be expected for all
conceivable experimental observables. In effect, these general models provide a
basic framework upon which more constrained models can be built.
