Master of Science in Engineering (MSE) Degree

Three options are available in the master’s program: master's with thesis, master's with report, and the no thesis/no report option (see the Graduate Catalog). If you are supported on a research or teaching assistantship, you must complete a thesis. If you are self-supporting, you may pursue any of the three master’s options, provided that you have approval of the graduate advisor. You must have a faculty supervisor for either the thesis or report options.

At least one full year is required to complete the master’s degree program.

Master of Science in Engineering with thesis. For students electing this option, 30 semester hours of credit are required, consisting of 24 hours of organized coursework and six hours in the thesis courses. Students begin the program by completing deficiency courses, but they may petition to waive these courses if they have equivalent credit. Nine hours in core courses and 9 to 15 additional hours in advanced-level courses must then be taken. A maximum of 6 hours of upper-division coursework may be counted toward the required 30 hours.

The student should choose a thesis research topic and begin research during the first semester.

Master of Science in Engineering with report. This option requires 33 semester hours of credit, consisting of 30 hours of organized coursework and three hours in the report course. The program must be approved by the graduate adviser. At least 9 hours in core courses and an additional 15 to 21 hours of advanced-level coursework must be taken. Up to 9 hours of upper-division coursework may be counted. Enrollment in this option must be approved by the graduate adviser.

Master of Science in Engineering without thesis or report. For students electing this option, 36 semester hours of coursework are required. Nine hours in core courses and an additional 18 to 24 hours in advanced-level courses must be taken. The program must be approved by the graduate adviser. Up to 9 hours of upper-division coursework may be included. No research is required, but the level of academic performance is the same as that required for the master’s degree with thesis.

It is possible to apply Credit/No Credit (CR/NC) courses, but only up to 20% of the Program of Work (typically about 2 courses, or 6 hours).

If you are planning on writing a thesis, that means that you need to take, at a minimum, 24 credit hours of graded courses, with your MSE 698A and MSE 698B counting as the last 6 hours (they do not count toward the 20% CR/NC limit). If you are doing a report, you need to take 30 hours of coursework and 3 hours of the report course and may use up to 2 CR/NC courses towards your degree. If you will be leaving and doing a MSE with no thesis and no report, you need to take, at a minimum, 30 hours of graded coursework, and may use up to 2 CR/NC courses towards your degree.

The basic course requirements for the MSE degree are as follows:

a) Deficiency courses (credit hours vary)

b) MSE Seminar (3 credit hours)

b) Core courses (9 credit hours)

c) Thrust Area courses (9 credit hours)

d) Advanced electives (6-12 credit hours)

e) MSE Research/Thesis/Report courses (Ungraded coursework, i.e. CR/NC)