In order to explore the reconstruction and practical path of the course content and system of “Automatic Control Principles” in private undergraduate colleges under the guidance of new engineering demands, this paper proposes an improved Apriori algorithm for the course content and system management decision model of “Automatic Control Principles”. Firstly, establish an evaluation system for the course “Principles of Automatic Control” in private undergraduate colleges based on teaching tasks and achievements, which includes both clear and quantifiable indicators as well as subjective evaluations. Secondly, the AHP method using a hierarchical model is used to calculate subjective weights, and the comprehensive weights obtained based on the combination weighting method are used to improve the traditional Apriori algorithm. The weighted Apriori algorithm is proposed to mine and analyze the association rules of the reconstruction and practical management decision-making of the course content and system of “Automatic Control Principles” in private undergraduate colleges. Finally, through case analysis, the effectiveness of the proposed association rule model in evaluating the content and system of the course “Principles of Automatic Control” in private undergraduate colleges was verified, which has guiding significance for the management and decision-making of the course “Principles of Automatic Control” in private undergraduate colleges.