Admission Requirements

• Completion of a bachelor’s degree in engineering or a related area of science or mathematics, from an accredited institution of higher education. Official transcripts will be required.
• Minimum cumulative GPA of 2.7 (on a 4.0 scale) or better
• Two letters of recommendation describing the applicant’s ability to undertake rigorous graduate-level work.
• Typewritten statement of professional objectives.
• Current curriculum vitae or resume
• For international students, evidence of English proficiency through any of the university recognized mechanisms.
• Submission of standardized tests, such as GRE, is not required, but can be submitted if already available.
• For nontraditional applicants, transitioning from non-engineering disciplines or from military to systems engineering, the admission committee will provide a case-by-case review, evaluation, and program planning as needed.. If the applicant has already been in the workforce for a significant amount of time, their experience – along with a letter from their direct supervisor – may be used to make accommodations to the GPA or field of bachelor’s degree requirement.

For the latest information, admission requirements and to apply online please visit the MS in Systems Engineering Program Application Portal (not yet active).

The application deadlines are as follows:

To start your program in Summer, apply by April 1 of that year.
To start your program in Fall, apply by July 1 of that year.
To start your program in Spring, apply by November 1 of the previous calendar year.

Graduation Requirements

The ECE department at Rowan University offers two options (tracks) for this program: thesis and non-thesis. Both tracks consist of 30 credits and lead to the M.S. in Systems Engineering degree. To maintain minimum satisfactory academic progress in – and to successfully graduate from – M.S. in Systems Engineering program, students must:

1. Complete 30 graduate credits from approved courses with a GPA of 2.7 or higher.
2. Grades in the required courses must be B- or better.
3. No more than two elective courses with a C or C+ may be counted towards graduation requirements.
4. Grades of C- or lower may not be used towards graduation requirements.
5. Students must maintain a GPA of 2.7 or higher. A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 is also required to graduate.
6. Thesis track students must successfully complete 6 credits of thesis work, and pass the thesis defense.

Curricular Structure of the M.S. in Systems Engineering Program

The M.S. in Systems Engineering program consists of 30 credits. For non-thesis track, all 30 credits come from 10 courses (3 credits each), including

1. four required courses that constitute the Systems Engineering core (12 credits),
2. four restricted electives constituting a focus area (obtained by selecting and completing any of the approved Certificate of Graduate Study – COGS, 12 credits), and
3. two additional Systems Engineering (S.E.) electives (6 credits).

For thesis students, the two last electives are replaced with 6 credits of ENGR 01.599 Master’s Thesis Research through which they complete a thesis.

The structure of the program allows the students to complete any of the approved certificates of graduate studies (COGS) while sampling additional electives from other COGS and/or approved courses that are outside of the COGS based on their interest. The figure below conceptually illustrates two of the many options within the overall structure of the program, consisting of the Systems Engineering core, a COGS, and additional electives to best meet the needs of your specific career goals. The complete list of currently approved COGS is also listed below.

Detailed Curriculum with Course Listings

Systems Engineering Core (4 courses / 12 credits)
Complete the two required courses, then choose one from each of the following banks

* Seat availability in MIS courses may be limited with priority given to College of Business majors

Subtotal: 12 S.H.

Certificates of Graduate Studies (4 courses, 12 credits)

Choose any of the approved COGS listed below and complete its four-course sequence.

Subtotal: 12 S.H.

Systems Engineering Electives

Choose any of the two courses from the following list. You may also choose any of the courses from any of the COGS listed above (other than those you have already taken to complete your main COGS).

Subtotal: 6 S.H.

Not all courses are offered every semester. Please check with the respective department offering the course, and/or Section Tally for course schedules. 

Total Program Credits Required: 30 S.H.