Welcome to MSE at UT Arlington

Admission

Master's Degree
Applicants for the master's or doctoral degrees must have either a baccalaureate or master's degree in engineering or science. Applicants who have completed a bachelor's degree and wish to pursue a doctoral degree without completing a master's degree may apply for admission into the B.S. to Ph.D. Track. The minimum admission requirements to this highly competitive track are the same as those for all doctoral applicants. Doctoral candidates shall also demonstrate through previous academic preparation the potential to carry out independent research in materials science and engineering. All applicants must meet the general requirements of the Graduate School as stated in the section of this catalog entitled "Admission Requirements and Procedures." Applicants not meeting all criteria may be admitted on a provisional or probationary basis.

For applicants with no prior training in engineering or with insufficient undergraduate materials coursework, the same minimum criteria will apply. Additionally, their records will be reviewed in relation to their materials backgrounds, and probationary status with specific remedial work required may be a basis for acceptance of such applicants.

The UT Arlington Materials Science and Engineering Program uses the following guidelines in the admission review process:

Uncoditional Admission
Unconditional admission into the Materials Science and Engineering Program requires the submission of items 1 through 5 below for each degree program. To be unconditionally admitted, an applicant must meet conditions 1, 2, and 3.

Master's Program:

Minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.0 in the last 60 hours of undergraduate work in an appropriate engineering or science discipline. (For some international applicants where GPA calculation based on a 4.0 scale is not performed, a minimum performance level of 70 percentile is expected. This minimum expectation may be higher for some countries, where less stringent grading criteria are used.) Performance in core materials-related courses is of particular importance.
A GRE score of at least 400 (verbal) and 700 (quantitative). For those applicants whose GRE verbal score falls below 400, high TOEFL scores may be considered to offset the GRE verbal score.
Three favorable, veracious recommendations, via the university's recommendation form or via recommmendation letter.
A Statement of Purpose detailing the applicant's background, education, professional goals, technical interests, and research interests.
An applicant whose native language is not English must submit TOEFL, TSE, or IELTS English proficiency test scores. Minimum performance levels expected for each test are: paper-based TOEFL score of 550 with a TWE of 3.5, computer-based TOEFL score of 223, TSE-A score of 45, IELTS score of 6.5, or TOEFL iBT total score of 84 with sectional scores of 22 for writing, 21 for speaking, 20 for reading, and 20 for listening.

Doctoral Program:

Minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.3 in the last 60 hours of undergraduate work in an appropriate engineering or science discipline. (For some international applicants where GPA calculation based on a 4.0 scale is not performed, a minimum performance level of 75 percentile is expected. This minimum expectation may be higher for some countries, where less stringent grading criteria are used.) Performance in core materials-related courses is of particular importance.
A GRE score of at least 425 (verbal) and 750 (quantitative). For those applicants whose GRE verbal score falls below 425, high TOEFL scores may be considered to offset the GRE verbal score.
Three favorable, veracious recommendations, via the university's recommendation form or via recommmendation letter.
A Statement of Purpose detailing the applicant's background, education, professional goals, technical interests, and research interests.
An applicant whose native language is not English must submit TOEFL, TSE, or IELTS English proficiency test scores. Minimum performance levels expected for each test are: paper-based TOEFL score of 550 with a TWE of 3.5, computer-based TOEFL score of 223, TSE-A score of 45, IELTS score of 6.5, or TOEFL iBT total score of 84 with sectional scores of 22 for writing, 21 for speaking, 20 for reading, and 20 for listening.

Probationary Admission
Probationary admission into the Materials Science and Engineering Program may be permitted under the following conditions for each degree program:

Master's Program:

If an applicant meets any two of the items 1, 2, and 3 above for the master's program.
A Statement of Purpose detailing the applicant's background, education, professional goals, technical interests, and research interests.
An applicant whose native language is not English must submit TOEFL, TSE, or IELTS English proficiency test scores. Minimum performance levels expected for each test are: paper-based TOEFL score of 550 with a TWE of 3.5, computer-based TOEFL score of 223, TSE-A score of 45, IELTS score of 6.5, or TOEFL iBT total score of 84 with sectional scores of 22 for writing, 21 for speaking, 20 for reading, and 20 for listening.

Doctoral Program:

If an applicant meets any two of the items 1, 2, and 3 above for the doctoral program.
A Statement of Purpose detailing the applicant's background, education, professional goals, technical interests, and research interests.
An applicant whose native language is not English must submit TOEFL, TSE, or IELTS English proficiency test scores. Minimum performance levels expected for each test are: paper-based TOEFL score of 550 with a TWE of 3.5, computer-based TOEFL score of 223, TSE-A score of 45, IELTS score of 6.5, or TOEFL iBT total score of 84 with sectional scores of 22 for writing, 21 for speaking, 20 for reading, and 20 for listening.

Provisional Admission
An applicant who is unable to supply all required documentation prior to the admission deadline, but who otherwise appears to meet admission requirements, may be granted provisional admission. A student must complete.

Deffered
If an applicant does not present adequate evidence of meeting admission requirements, the admission decision may be deferred until admission records are complete or the requirements are met.

Denial of Admission
A candidate may be denied admission if he/she has less than satisfactory performance in two out of three of the first three admission criteria.

Admission Changes effective August 2010

Waiver of Graduate Record Exam
A waiver of the Graduate record Exam may be considered for a UT Arlington graduate who graduated within the past three years and has completed an engineering or science degree closely related to materials science and engineering. The student's GPA must equal or exceed 3.0 in each of two calculations: (a) in the last 60 hours of study and (2) in all undergraduate coursework completed at UT Arlington. The GRE waiver may be extended to include non-UT Arlington candidates that have undergraduate degrees (with GPA of 3.3 or above) from U.S. universities with an ABET accredited engineering program or other select U.S. universities subject to graduate advisor's approval. The waiver of the GRE applies only to applicants for the master's degree programs. Interested applicants should contact the Materials Science and Engineering Graduate Advisor.

Eligibility of Scholarships/Fellowships
Students that are admitted will be eligible for available scholarship or fellowship support. Award of scholarships or fellowships will be based on the student's relative standing with respect to other qualified applicants.

Continutaion
The Materials Science and Engineering Graduate Program, in fulfillment of its responsibility to graduate highly qualified professional engineers and scientists, has established certain policies and procedures. In addition to the requirements of the Graduate School listed elsewhere in this catalog, to continue in the program each materials science and engineering graduate student must:

Maintain at least a B (3.0) overall GPA in all coursework, and
Demonstrate suitability for professional practice.

At such time as questions are raised by materials science and engineering graduate faculty regarding either of the above, the student will be notified and will be given the opportunity to respond to the Committee on Graduate Studies for Materials Science and Engineering. The Committee on Graduate Studies will review the student's performance and make a recommendation concerning the student's eligibility to continue in the program. Appeal of a decision on continuation may be made through normal procedures outlined in the section of this catalog entitled "Grievances Other than Grades."