The master of engineering degree is intended to be a terminal professional degree where the candidate demonstrates advanced ability in course work and with an advanced engineering design project, or practicum. The master of engineering student must comply with the requirements on this page, the requirements of their program, and complete any necessary forms to document their progress with the Graduate School.
Campus Residency Requirement—A minimum of one-half of the course work credits must be taken in residence at Michigan Tech. (Note that this is inconsistent with the general requirement that 2/3 of the course work be taken in residence. See Senate Proposal 5-98.)
Graduate School Credit Requirements
Individual programs may have additional requirements.
Minimum requirements
- Thirty credits beyond the bachelor’s degree for a master’s degree.
- Thirty credits beyond the master’s degree are required for a PhD.
- Programs determine the distribution of credits, and may require more than the minimum.
Unallowed credits
- Courses numbered below 3000
- Audited courses
- Continuous enrollment courses (ex: UN5951, UN5953)
- Non-research pass/fail courses
- Credits used to earn another degree (see exceptions below)
Exceptions
- Maximum of 12 credits at the 3000 and 4000 level may be used with program approval.
- Peace Corps Master’s International students may use 2 credits of language courses below the 3000 level.
- Research credits are the only non-graded classes that may be counted toward a degree.
- One-third of the non-research credits may be transferred as long as they were not used to earn another degree.
- One-third of the graduate credits earned at Michigan Tech may be reused to earn an additional master's degree in accordance with Graduate School policy.
GPA Requirements
Students must be in good standing to earn a graduate degree.
Time Limits
All work for the master’s degree must be completed within five calendar years of the first enrollment in the degree program or earliest course listed on the degree schedule, whichever is earliest. All work for the PhD must be completed within eight calendar years of the first enrollment in the degree program or earliest course listed on the degree schedule, whichever is earliest. Requests for extension must be made by the advisor to the Graduate School.
Advisor
Initially the advisor may be the graduate program director, but as soon as possible, and no later than the end of the second semester in residence, a permanent advisor should be chosen. This Michigan Tech graduate faculty member advises the student on course selection and, if applicable, supervises the research experience. The primary advisor, or a co-advisor must hold a regular or adjunct appointment in the student's administrative home department or school.
- While one co-advisor may be from outside the student's administrative home department, it is recommended but not required that this co-advisor not fill the role of sole external member on the student's committee.
- Before recommending a sole advisor who holds an adjunct appointment in the student's administrative home department or school, the appropriate graduate program director should ensure that this person is sufficiently familiar with the department/school standards for research and with applicable university policies/procedures and that this person can maintain adequate contact with the student.
The advisor is an important factor in the graduate student’s timely and successful completion of the program of study. All graduate students must have an advisor.
Advisory Committee—The advisory committee is nominated by the chair of the major department, usually in consultation with the advisor, and approved by the College of Engineering. At least two of the three examiners must be members of the graduate faculty and at least one of the graduate faculty members must be from outside the major department. If co-advisors are chosen and one co-advisor is from outside the student's home department, it is recommended but not required that an additional external member be chosen.
Course Work—The minimum requirements are as follows:
| Course work | 26–30 credits |
| Practicum | 0–4 credits |
| Total (minimum) | 30 credits |
| Distribution of course work credit | |
| 5000–6000 series (minimum) | 12 credits |
| 3000–4000 level (maximum) | 14 credits |
Master of Engineering Practicum—The practicum is an advanced independent study for students in the master of engineering program. The student in consultation with the advisor develops and executes a project demonstrating capabilities in problem solving, communication, and decision making. The practicum can be completed on campus or at the site of a Michigan Tech corporate partner. Students must submit a written report and make an oral presentation related to their project to their advisory committee. In some cases, the practicum may be waived; approval of the waiver is indicated on the Final Degree Schedule.
The successful on-campus oral presentation will be evaluated by the committee on the Verification of Degree Requirements (MEng3).