Future Students

Materials Science and Engineering is a student-focused department. We offer high-value research opportunities, smaller class sizes, hands-on labs, world-renowned faculty, and real-world senior design projects.

Admission

Application for admission to NC State is handled at the university level.

I’m a high school student:

You should apply to the College of Engineering First Year Program and select MSE as your intended major on your admissions application. After completing the standard set of engineering first-year courses, you may apply to join MSE as a degree-seeking student via the CODA process.

NC State Admissions

I’m a transfer student:

If you are interested in transferring to the MSE department at NC State from another institution, you should apply directly to NC State Undergraduate Admissions. For additional information and deadlines, please consult the Undergraduate Admissions website for transfer students.

Transfer Admissions

Visit Us. Learn More.

The College of Engineering provides information for future engineering students and invites you to visit the college or take a campus tour.

Curriculum

The MSE curriculum includes fundamental courses in thermodynamics, kinetics, and structure, followed by more applied courses that cover mechanical, thermal, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties of materials.

Two concentration options: Nanomaterials and Biomaterials

Two laboratory courses introduce students to analytical methods used to characterize the structure of materials at all length scales and to measure properties of all classes of materials.

Cutting-edge technologies in materials science and engineering such as nanotechnology, biomaterials, computer modeling, and forensics (materials degradation and failure analysis) are covered.

Five technical electives are included, which allow students to select from a broad range of courses in materials processing, engineering, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and other disciplines.  The flexibility afforded by these technical electives allows students to customize their education to prepare them for careers in industry or for graduate school.

The two-semester capstone senior design sequence provides a bridge between concepts learned in the classroom and the practical application of these concepts in an industrial setting.  Teams of students work on real-world materials problems supported by local industrial sponsors.

The Materials Science and Engineering program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org.

Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s Program

The 5-year accelerated bachelor’s/master’s (ABM) program gives NC State’s top-performing undergraduate Materials Science and Engineering majors the opportunity to earn an additional master’s degree in one year. The major benefit is that up to four graduate courses (12 credit hours) taken while the student is still an undergraduate may be counted towards both their bachelor’s degree and master’s degree. 

Minor

The minor in Materials Science and Engineering is available to and useful for students in any engineering discipline, as well as students from chemistry, physics, and textiles. It also provides non-MSE majors planning to attend graduate school in Materials Science and Engineering a meaningful and useful way to prepare themselves. 

To be admitted to the program, a student must have a GPA of at least 2.0 and a C or better in MSE 200 or MSE 201.  Application for admission to any University minor program is now available via MyPack Portal. Admission will be based upon the student’s academic record, and in most cases no longer requires departmental review.  

Completion of the MSE minor requires a minimum of 15 credit hours, which includes 9 credits of required courses and at least 6 credits of elective courses. The minor must be completed no later than the semester in which the student expects to graduate from their degree program.