Stanford undergraduates who wish to continue their studies for the Master of Science in Materials Science and Engineering through the coterminal program may apply for admission after they have earned 120 units toward graduation (UTG) as shown on the undergraduate unofficial transcript.
Master of Science in Materials Science Engineering
The University’s basic requirements for the M.S. degree are discussed in the “Graduate Degrees” section of this bulletin. The following are specific departmental requirements.
The Department of Materials Science and Engineering requires a minimum of 45 units for a master’s degree to be taken in residence at Stanford. A Master’s Program Proposal form should be filled out, signed by the student’s academic adviser, and submitted to the department’s student services manager by the end of the student’s first quarter of study. Final revisions to the master’s program proposal must be submitted no later than one academic quarter prior to the quarter of expected degree conferral. Stanford Materials Science undergraduates who are pursuing or who plan to pursue a Coterminal M.S. degree may have more flexibility in their programs and should consult with their academic advisers regarding appropriate core course and elective choices.
Degree requirements are as follows:
- A minimum of 30 units of Materials Science and Engineering (MATSCI) course work, including core and lab courses specified below, all taken for a letter grade. Research units, one-unit seminars, MATSCI 299 Practical Training and courses in other departments (i.e., where students cannot enroll in a class with a MATSCI subject code) cannot be counted for this requirement.
- Of these 30 units Materials Science requirements, students must include a or b.
- three classes from MATSCI 201-210 core courses and three MATSCI 171, 172, 173, 174, 175 laboratory courses. One laboratory requirement may be fulfilled by taking a lab course from another engineering department.
Units Select three of the following core courses: MATSCI 202 Materials Chemistry 3 MATSCI 203 Atomic Arrangements in Solids 3 MATSCI 204 Thermodynamics and Phase Equilibria 3 MATSCI 205 Waves and Diffraction in Solids 3 MATSCI 206 Defects in Crystalline Solids 3 MATSCI 207 Rate Processes in Materials 3 MATSCI 208 Mechanical Properties of Materials 3 MATSCI 209 Electronic and Optical Properties of Solids 3 MATSCI 210 Organic and Biological Materials 3 Total core course units 9 Select three of the following lab courses: MATSCI 171 Nanocharacterization Laboratory 3 MATSCI 172 X-Ray Diffraction Laboratory 3 MATSCI 173 Mechanical Behavior Laboratory 3 MATSCI 174 Electronic and Photonic Materials and Devices Laboratory 3 MATSCI 175 Nanoscale Materials Physics Computation Laboratory 3 One laboratory requirment may be fulfilled by taking lab courses from another engineering dept.Total lab course units 9 TOTAL 18 - four classes from MATSCI 201-210 core courses and two MATSCI 171, 172, 173, 174, 175 laboratory courses. One laboratory requirement may be fulfilled by taking a lab course from another engineering department.
Units Select four of the following core courses: MATSCI 202 Materials Chemistry 3 MATSCI 203 Atomic Arrangements in Solids 3 MATSCI 204 Thermodynamics and Phase Equilibria 3 MATSCI 205 Waves and Diffraction in Solids 3 MATSCI 206 Defects in Crystalline Solids 3 MATSCI 207 Rate Processes in Materials 3 MATSCI 208 Mechanical Properties of Materials 3 MATSCI 209 Electronic and Optical Properties of Solids 3 MATSCI 210 Organic and Biological Materials 3 Total core course units 12 Select two of the following lab courses: MATSCI 171 Nanocharacterization Laboratory 3 MATSCI 172 X-Ray Diffraction Laboratory 3 MATSCI 173 Mechanical Behavior Laboratory 3 MATSCI 174 Electronic and Photonic Materials and Devices Laboratory 3 MATSCI 175 Nanoscale Materials Physics Computation Laboratory 3 One laboratory requirment may be fulfilled by taking lab courses from another engineering dept.Total lab course units 6 TOTAL 18
- three classes from MATSCI 201-210 core courses and three MATSCI 171, 172, 173, 174, 175 laboratory courses. One laboratory requirement may be fulfilled by taking a lab course from another engineering department.
- 15 units of approved course electives to result in a technically cohesive program. Of the 15 units of elective courses:
- 12 units must be taken for a letter grade (except for those submitting a M.S. thesis report).
- a maximum of three units may be seminars.
- if writing a master’s thesis report, a minimum of 6 and a maximum of 15 units of MATSCI 200 Master's Research may be counted. Master's research units may be counted only if writing a M.S. thesis report. The final version of the thesis report must be signed off by two faculty and submitted to student services manager by last day of classes of the graduation quarter. See student services manager for details and approval.
- a maximum of three units may be undergraduate units, but not courses below the 100 level offering.
- a maximum of five units may be used for a foreign language course (not including any remedial English or courses in the student’s native language if other than English). Students must plan to enroll in an upper level designation of a foreign language course offering.
- the combination of seminar, undergraduate, and language units may not exceed six units total.
- the combination of research, seminar, undergraduate, and language units may not exceed 15 units total.
- activity units may not be counted toward M.S. degree.
- A minimum grade point average (GPA) of 2.75 for degree course work.
All proposed degree programs are subject to approval by student's academic adviser, and department’s student services manager, who has responsibility for assuring that each proposal is a technically cohesive program. The M.S. degree is expected to be completed within two years during the University’s candidacy period for completion of a master’s degree.
Master's Thesis Report
Students wishing to take this option must consult with a MATSCI faculty member initially. Out of the 45 units M.S. degree requirements, 6-15 units may be taken in Materials Science Master's research by enrolling in MATSCI 200. Students using 15 units of research toward the degree must participate in a more complex and demanding research project than those using lesser units.
The M.S. thesis report must be approved and signed off by two faculty members. In general, one is student’s research adviser, if adviser is a non MATSCI faculty member, a second MATSCI faculty is required to sign off on the thesis report. Consult with student services manager about faculty criteria, and requirements. Three copies of M.S. thesis report in final format should be submitted to two faculty advisers, and the department. The report is not an official University thesis but is intended to demonstrate to the department and faculty student's ability to conduct and report a directed research.
As a general guide line, a 6-9 units of master's research is a normal load for most students. The report should reflect the number of units taken. For instance, 3-4 laboratory reports are required for a 3-unit laboratory course. Accordingly, the level expected for 9 units of research would be at least equivalent to three such courses.
Students are advised to submit their thesis draft to faculty adviser readers by the end of fifth week of the quarter in which the units are to be assigned to allow time for faculty comments and revisions. A collated final version of the thesis report should be submitted to faculty and student services manager by last day of classes of student's graduation quarter. The appropriate grade for satisfactory progress in the research project prior to submission of the final report is 'N' (continuing); the 'S' (Satisfactory) final grade is given only when the report is fully approved and signed off by both faculty members.
In cases where students decide to pursue research after the initial program submission deadline, they should submit a revised M.S. Program Proposal at least two quarters before the degree is granted. The total combined units of Materials Science research units, seminars, language courses, and undergraduate courses cannot exceed 15. If a master’s thesis report is not submitted, units in MATSCI 200 Master's Research cannot be applied to the department’s requirement of 45 units for the conferral of the master’s degree.
Honors Cooperative Program
Some of the department’s graduate students participate in the Honors Cooperative Program (HCP), which makes it possible for academically qualified engineers and scientists in industry to be part-time graduate students in Materials Science while continuing professional employment. Prospective HCP students follow the same admissions process and must meet the same admissions requirements as full-time graduate students. For information regarding the Honors Cooperative Program, see Graduate Programs in the "School of Engineering" section of this bulletin.
Petition Process for Transfer from M.S. to Ph.D. Degree Program
Students admitted to graduate programs are admitted specifically into either the terminal M.S. or the Ph.D. program. A student admitted to the terminal M.S. program should not assume admission to the Ph.D. program. Admission to the Ph.D. program is required for a student to be eligible to work towards the Ph.D. degree.
A student in the terminal M.S. program may petition to be admitted to the Ph.D. program by filing an M.S. to Ph.D petition form. Petition must include a one-page statement of purpose explaining why the student wishes to transfer to the Ph.D. program, most recent unofficial transcript, and two letters of recommendation from members of the Stanford faculty, including one from the student’s prospective research adviser and at least one from a Materials Science faculty member belonging to the Academic Council. The M.S. to Ph.D. petition to transfer should be submitted to the student services manager by June of the first year in the M.S. program. Students who wish to submit a petition to the Ph.D. degree, should plan to complete at least six of the MATSCI 200 series (including MATSCI 203 Atomic Arrangements in Solids, MATSCI 204 Thermodynamics and Phase Equilibria, MATSCI 207 Rate Processes in Materials) core courses during their first year of admission. A grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or better in the core courses is requirement.
Transferring to the Ph.D. program is a competitive process and only highly qualified M.S. students may be admitted. Student’s original application to the graduate program as well as the materials provided for the transfer petition are reviewed. Students must adhere to requirements for the terminal M.S. degree, and plan to confer the M.S. degree in the event that the Ph.D. petition to transfer is not approved.
Coterminal Master of Science Program in Materials Science and Engineering
Stanford undergraduates who wish to continue their studies for the Master of Science degree in Materials Science and Engineering through the Coterminal program may apply for admission after they have earned 120 units toward graduation (UTG) as shown on the undergraduate unofficial transcript. Applicants must submit their application no later than eight weeks before the start of the proposed admit quarter. The application must give evidence that student possesses a potential for strong academic performance at the graduate level. Scores from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test must be reported before action can be taken on an application.
Materials science is a highly integrated and interdisciplinary subject — therefore students of any engineering or science undergraduate major are encouraged to apply.
Information and other requirements pertaining to the coterminal program in Materials Science and Engineering may be obtained from the department’s student services manager: Mara Violanti (marav@stanford.edu).
University requirements for the coterminal degree are described in the Coterminal Bachelor's and Master's Degrees section of the Stanford Bulletin. For university coterminal degree program rules and university application forms, see the Stanford Undergrad Coterm Guide.
