Materials Science and Engineering is an integrated discipline of chemistry, physics and engineering. Students receive a foundation of basic chemistry, physics and engineering coursework during their first two years. These courses are then woven into a Materials Science and Engineering framework.

The detailed Program of Study is shown below. This must be used as a guideline to complete the degree requirements. Most courses have prerequisites that must be completed first. Also, many courses and all Materials Science & Engineering courses are only offered one semester per year, so please plan carefully. The Program of Study is a roadmap to be used in planning your degree. It is necessary that students follow the Program of Study as closely as possible; any deviation must be arranged in advance with the Academic Advisor. Taking courses out of sequence may result in a conflict, particularly if a student is planning to continue in the combined BS/MS program.

2022-23 flowchart:

Materials Science & Engineering BS Program of Study (Engineering Calculus)2022-2023*

Materials Science & Engineering BS Program of Study (Traditional Calculus) 2022-2023

2021-22 flowchart:

Materials Science & Engineering BS Program of Study (Engineering Calculus)2021-2022*

Materials Science & Engineering BS Program of Study (Traditional Calculus) 2021-2022

2020-21 flowchart:

Materials Science & Engineering BS Program of Study (Engineering Calculus)2020-2021*

Materials Science & Engineering BS Program of Study (Traditional Calculus) 2020-2021

2019-20 flowchart:

Materials Science & Engineering BS Program of Study (Engineering Calculus)* 2019-2020

Materials Science & Engineering BS Program of Study (Traditional Calculus) 2019-2020

Materials Science & Engineering Transfer Articulation Guide 

*Engineering Calculus only available at University of Utah (Engineering Calculus classes are geared towards engineering majors, whereas traditional Calculus classes may include students from many majors. The Engineering classes would be less theoretical and more applied towards engineering type problems).  Please see the Materials Science & Engineering advisor if you’ve only taken Calculus I and would like to switch to Engineering Calculus (one week Math boot camp required).

Pre-Major StatusMajor StatusGeneral EducationFoundational RequirementTechnical ElectivesSenior Design ProjectHow to Transfer Credits

Any student may be admitted to pre-major status in Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) by requesting Pre-MSE on their application for admission or applying through the Materials Science & Engineering Academic Advisor. Students must meet with the MSE Academic Advisor to gain major status. Major status requires students to complete the following courses with a C- grade or better, except for math, which requires a C. Courses required for this major may only be taken twice. To take a class a third time, students must petition and justify how they will be more successful.

  • CHEM 1210 - General Chemistry I (4 credits)
  • CHEM 1215 - General Chemistry Lab I (1 credit)
  • CHEM 1220 - General Chemistry II (4 credits)
  • CHEM 1225 - General Chemistry Lab II (1 credit)
  • CHEM 2310 - Organic Chemistry (4 credits)
  • MATH 1310 - Engineering Calculus I (4 credits)
  • MATH 1320 - Engineering Calculus II (4 credits)
  • MATH 2250 - Differential Equations and Linear Algebra (4 credits)
  • MATH 3140 - Vector Calc. & Partial Differential Equations for Engineers (4 credits)
  • MSE 1800 - Contemporary Materials Science & Engineering I (2 credit)
  • MSE 2010 - Introduction to Materials Science & Engineering (4 credits)
  • ME EN 2010 - Statics (3 credits)
  • COMP 1010 - Programming for All: Beginning Programming (3 credits)
  • PHYS 2210 - Physics for Scientists and Engineers I (4 credits)
  • PHYS 2220 - Physics for Scientists and Engineers II (4 credits)

 

Students are required to meet with the Materials Science and Engineering Academic Advisor to be moved from pre-major to major status. Major status can only be awarded when students are planning their schedule for the fall semester of their junior year. Students admitted to major status are required to complete the following Materials Science and Engineering courses with a C- grade or better, except for math, which requires a C.

  • MSE 3061 – Transport Phenomena in MSE (3 credits)
  • MSE 3010 – Materials Processing Laboratory (3 credits)
  • MSE 3011 – Structural Analysis of Materials (4 credits)
  • MSE 3032 – Introduction to Thermodynamics (4 credits)
  • MSE 3210 – Electronic Properties of Solids (3 credits)
  • MSE 3310 – Introduction to Ceramics (3 credits)
  • MSE 3410 – Introduction to Polymers (3 credits)
  • MET E 5450 – Mechanical Metallurgy (3 credits)

*Students are not allowed to count both MSE 3061 and MET E 5750 – Transport and Rate Phenomena towards their MSE BS program of study. Only one of the two courses will fulfill the major requirement. MET E 5750 cannot be taken as a tech elective.


Students must fulfill the University of Utah's General Education and Bachelor Degree requirements in addition to the Materials Science and Engineering degree requirements to graduate.

General Education Requirements:

  • American Institutions (AI)
  • Writing (WR)
  • 2 Fine Arts (FF)
  • 2 Humanities (HF)
  • 2 Social/Behavioral Science (BF)

*QA and QB requirements are automatically fulfilled by the MSE Program.

Bachelor's Degree Requirements:

  • Diversity (DV)
  • International Requirement (IR)

*CW and QI requirements are automatically fulfilled by the MSE Program.

Graduation Requirement Worksheet

If you have students that need to have a general education credit from another institution reviewed, please complete the College of Engineering General Education Exception Form.

Materials Science and Engineering Foundational Requirement

Students choose one of the following 2000-level classes. This requirement is one 1.5 to 3 credit class that prepares students for advanced technical electives and their unique interests in materials science. Students using a catalogue year older than Fall 23 automatically have ECE 2200/2210 as a requirement on their Degree Audit and will need an exception applied to their Degree Audit so that the class fulfills their graduation requirements. To those students, please email the academic advisor to request a class (other than ECE 2200/2210) to be added to your Degree Audit. *Note: Several of these courses require major status within the related department. To register for the class, you may have to request a permission code from the department that teaches the class. You can find the permission code request forms here.

Foundational Requirement

 

ECE 2200/2210 - Electrical and Computer Engineering

BIOL 2020 - Principles of Cell Biology

BIOL 2021 - Principles of Cell Science

ME EN 2650 - Manufacturing for Engineering Systems
ME EN 2450 - Numerical Methods for Engineering Systems
CH EN 2450 - Numerical Methods
CHEM 2320 - Organic Chemistry II
ME EN 2550 - Probability and Stats for Engineering
CVEEN 2750 - Computer Tools

 

Materials Science & Engineering Technical Electives

Students are required to complete a minimum of five credits from Section 1, minimum of two credits from Section 2, and minimum of three credits from Section 3. All courses must be passes with a "C-" grade or better.

Complete a minimum of 5 credits from the approved course list.

Students should plan accordingly when picking Section 1 tech electives. The following credit combinations will fulfill the Section 1 requirement: 3+3; 3+2; 2+2+2; 3+2+2. Students will not be penalized for taking more than the required credits.

MSE 5050 courses are special topics and will vary each semester. Students may take multiple sections of MSE 5050 to fulfill the tech elective requirement, so long as the topic is not repeated.

Offered fall semester (not guaranteed)

  • MSE 5073 – Nanostructures Materials: Science & Technology
  • MSE 5074 – Photovoltaic Materials & Solar Cells
  • MSE 5050 – Nanoscale Probing and Imaging
  • MSE 5050 – Optics for Energy
  • MSE 5201 – Semiconductor Device Phy I (odd years only)
  • MSE 5520 – Single Crystal Growth and Crystallography (odd years only)

Offered in the spring semester (not guaranteed)

  • MSE 5040 – Introduction to Modern Biomaterials
  • MSE 5055 – Microsystems Design & Characterization
  • MSE 5050 – Polymers: Chemistry*
  • MSE 5050 – Materials for Energy
  • MSE 5540 – Materials Informatics (even years only)
  • MSE 5530 – Polymers: Materials (even years only)
  • MSE 5510 – Materials Innovation (odd years only)
  • MSE 5050 – Recycling (odd years only)

Offered spring or fall, but not consistently

  • MSE 5072 – Thin Film Techniques
  • MSE 5353 – Physical Ceramics
  • MSE 5354 – Processing of Ceramics
  • MSE 5475 – Introduction of Composites
  • MSE 5050 – Def & Frac Nanocomposites
  • MSE 5050 – Biomaterials Engineering
  • MSE 5050 – Fundamentals of Nanofabrication

Complete a minimum of 2 credits from the approved course list.

Offered in the fall semester (not guaranteed)

  • MET E 5260 – Physical Metallurgy I
  • MET E 5300 – Alloy and Material Design
  • METE 3480 – Steelmaking
  • METE 5250 – Principles and Practice of X-ray Diffraction
  • METE 5260 – Physical Metallurgy
  • METE 5420 – Mineral Surface Chemistry (even years only)
  • MET E 5270 – Powder Metallurgy (even years only)
  • METE 5320 – Materials Engineering and Environment (odd years only)
  • MET E 5680 – Mineral Processing II (odd years only)

Offered in the spring semester (not guaranteed)

  • MET E 5600 – Corrosion Fundamentals
  • MET E 5670 – Mineral Processing I
  • MET E 5760 – Process Synthesis, Design & Economics
  • MET E 5780 – Metals Processing
  • MET E 5600 – Corrosion Fundamentals and Minimization
  • METE 5470 – Practical Digital Image Analysis
  • MET E 5210 – Nuclear Materials (even years only)
  • METE 5300 – Alloy and Materials Design (even years only)
  • MET E 5720 – Molten Salt Engineering (odd years only)

Offered spring or fall, but not consistently

  • MET E 5800 – Special Topics Metallurgy Engineering
  • MET E 5800 – Nuclear Safeguards
  • MET E 5280 – Magnetic Materials and Devices
  • MET E 5290 – Principles and Practice of Nanoscience and Technology
  • MET E 5040 – Introduction to Modern Biomaterials
  • MET E 5330 – Energy Conversion Storage Materials
  • METE 5230 – Biomedical Devices and Sensors

Complete a minimum of 3 credits from the approved course list.

Complete a minimum of three credits with an internship/research experience or an engineering course. Courses listed in Section 1 and 2 can also be used to fulfill the Section 3 requirement. All course not listed below must be approved by the Materials Science and Engineering Academic Advisor to count toward a Section 3 technical elective.

Students may use one 3-credit internship to fulfill the Section 3 tech elective. Students may not use multiple types of internships to count for credit. Internships only fulfill a Section 3 tech elective and cannot be used to fulfill a Section 1 or 2 tech elective. Internships must be approved by the MSE Department two weeks before the semester of the internship/research experience. For information on how to register for MSE 5800/ MSE 5061, click here.

  • MSE 5800 – MSE Industry/MCL Internship
  • MSE 5061 – MSE Research Internship

Students who do not complete an internship may choose from the following approved courses:

  • CHEM 3000 – Quantitative Analysis
  • CHEM 3070 – Thermodynamics and Chemical Kinetics
  • CHEM 3100 – Inorganic Chemistry
  • CH EN 3353 – Fluid Mechanics
  • CH EN 3453 – Heat Transfer
  • CH EN 3553 – Chemical Reaction Engineering
  • CH EN 3603 – Mass Transfer and Separations
  • CH EN 4203 – Process Dynamics and Control
  • CH EN 5308 – Electrochemical Systems for Energy Storage and Beyond
  • CH EN 5310 – Renewable Energy
  • COMP 5360 – Introduction to Data Science
  • CS 5962 – Programming for Engineers*
  • CVEEN 5730 – Project Management and Contract Administration
  • EAE 3600 – 3D Modeling
  • ECE 5250 – Introduction to Quantum Computers
  • ENGIN 5030 – Patent Law and Strategy
  • GEO 3070 – Mineralogy and Petrology for Engineers
  • PHYS 3740 – Introduction to Quantum Theory and Relativity
  • ME EN 5110 – Industrial Safety
  • ME EN 5160 – Fundamentals of Systems Engineering
  • ME EN 5170 – Systems Engineering and Integration
  • ME EN 5520 – Mechanics of Composite Materials
  • ME EN 5000 – Law for Engineers and Scientists
  • ME EN 5050 – Fundamentals of Micromachining Processes
  • ME EN 5055 – Microsystems Design and Characterization
  • ME EN 3000 – Design of Mechanical Components
  • ME EN 3650 – Heat Transfer
  • ME EN 3710 – Fluid Mechanics
  • ME EN 5200 – Classical Control System
  • ME EN 5510 – Applied Elements
  • MG EN 5030 – Materials Handling
  • MG EN 5080 – Sustainable Resource Development
  • NUCL 3000 – Nuclear Principles in Engineering and Science
  • NUCL 3200 – Radiochemistry with Laboratory I

The senior design project is a capstone project that prepares the student for engineering design practice. It provides an avenue to determine if the student has an integrated understanding of the scientific and engineering principles.

Senior Project Guidelines 2018-2019

Senior Project Guidelines 2017-2018

 

Office of Registrar Transfer Articulation

Transfer credit will not automatically transfer to the University of Utah. Students must request that an official transcript be sent to the University of Utah – Office of Admission.

Please ensure that your transcripts are sent to the Admission Office, not the Department of Materiel Science & Engineering. The Admissions Office processes all credit transfers. For the purpose of sending your official transcripts to the University of Utah, if you have any questions about the process, or to determine if your transcripts have been received, please see the contact information below.

Email (for online transcripts orders): admisstranscripts@sa.utah.edu

Mailing Address (for paper transcript orders):

University of Utah Admissions Office
201 S. 1460 E, RM 250-S
Salt Lake City, UT
84112-9057

Phone number: (801) 581-8761

For information on how to transfer credit from Salt Lake Community College, please click here.

Transferology

Students wanting to see how specific classes will transfer to the University of Utah should use the tool Transferology. To log into Transferology, please click here. 

It is the policy of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering that every student who aspires to become an engineer should have an opportunity to obtain that goal. Students admitted to the University of Utah may designate Materials Science and Engineering as a major and begin a program under the Pre-Materials Science and Engineering classification. The first step for prospective students is to apply for admissions to the University of Utah, please click here for more information. Any student may be admitted to pre-major status in Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) by requesting Pre-MSE on their application for admission or applying through the Materials Science and Engineering Academic Advisor. Students must meet with the Materials Science and Engineering Academic Advisor to gain major status. Major status requires students to complete the prerequisite courses listed above with a “C” grade or better and a minimum 2.3 GPA. Courses required for this major may only be taken twice.
Grading Policy
Undergraduates are required to take all Materials Science and Engineering courses and receive a grade of “C-” or better in order to advance to higher level MSE courses. If a student does not receive a “C-” or better in a Materials Science and Engineering course they will be required to retake the course. Students must petition to retake an MSE Department course a third time. A cumulative grade point average of 2.3 or higher must be maintained for all courses completed towards a degree in Materials Science and Engineering. Students who fall below the GPA of 2.3 will be put on probation. Students on probation must raise their cumulative GPA above a 2.3 within 12 months or they will be dropped from the program.
Adding, Dropping, and Withdrawal Procedures
Students should meet with both the Materials Science and Engineering Academic Advisor and a Financial Aid Advisor before dropping and withdrawing from a course. Dropping and withdrawing from a course can effect a student’s financial aid. Adding Classes – All classes must be added within two weeks of the beginning of the semester. Adding classes after the deadline is not permitted in the College of Engineering and requires a petition letter. Dropping Classes – A drop implies that the student will not be held financially responsible and a “W” will not be listed on the transcript. Student may drop any class without penalty or permission during the first ten calendar days of the term. Withdrawing from Classes – means that a “W” will appear on the student’s transcript and tuition will be charged. Withdrawal from Full Term Length –Beginning the eleventh calendar day and continuing through the midpoint of the term, students may withdraw from a class or the University without instructor/department permission. After midpoint of the term, students may petition the deadline for withdrawal if they have a nonacademic emergency. For more information about the petition process, please contact your Academic Advisor. Check the academic calendar for specific add, drop, and withdrawal dates.
Repeating Courses
All courses required for the MSE majors must be passed with a grade of “C-” or better, except math courses, which require a C. When a College of Engineering class is taken more than once, only the grade for the second attempt is counted. Grades of W, I, or V on the student’s record count as having taken the class. The Department of Materials Science and Engineering enforce these guidelines for other courses as well (e.g., math, physics, chemistry). Attempts of courses taken at transfer institutions count as one attempt. This means a student may take the course only one time at the University of Utah. Courses taken at the University of Utah may not be taken a second time at another institution. If a second attempt is needed, it must be at the University of Utah. Students should note that anyone who takes a required class twice and does not have a satisfactory grade the second time may not be able to graduate or continue in the declared major. It is the responsibility of the student to work with the department determine how this policy applies in extenuating circumstances. It is the responsibility of the student to complete the form Repeating Course Petition and meet with the MSE Academic Advisor for each course repeated after a second attempt. Failure to submit a completed petition before the start of the semester, for which a repeated course is taken, may result in a denied petition. This could significantly affect a student’s ability to continue in the MSE major or graduate. If the Course Repeat Petition is approved, students may be placed on Academic Probation by the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Academic Probation letters will be sent by the MSE Academic Advisor and will state clear academic expectations that students must perform to during the following semester.
Major Declassification
It is the goal of the Materials Science and Engineering Department to successfully graduate all Materials Science and Engineering students. However, any student who does not perform satisfactorily may be dropped from the program. “Satisfactory performance” must be evaluated individually, but generally consists of meeting the standards of professional and ethical conduct that are expected of engineers (and hence engineering students), and maintaining satisfactory academic progress. While it is impossible to give an exhaustive list of actions that could cause us to revoke Major Status, examples include:
  • Cheating or plagiarizing
  • Abuse of faculty or teaching assistants
  • Other serious violation of the student behavior code
  • Failing to pass major required courses within the boundaries of the repeat policy
  • Allowing your cumulative GPA to drop below a 2.3
Leave of Absence
A Leave of Absence allows degree-seeking undergraduate students who have registered for and completed university credit classes to request an extension of their enrollment eligibility for a maximum period of seven consecutive semesters (including summers). Requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and may be granted for the following reasons: illness (personal or familial), military service, humanitarian or religious service, or participation in a University of Utah sponsored program. To apply for a leave of absence and for more information click here.
Appeals Procedures
If a student believes that an academic action is arbitrary or capricious he/she should discuss the action with the involved faculty member and attempt to resolve. If unable to resolve, the student may appeal the action in accordance with the following procedure.
  1. Appeal to the Department Chair (in writing) within 40 working days; chairs must notify student of a decision with 15 days. If the faculty member or student disagrees with decision then,
  2. Appeal to Academic Committee, see II Section D, Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities for details on Academic Appeal Committee hearings.
Americans with Disabilities Act
The University of Utah seeks to provide equal access to its programs, services, and activities for people with disabilities. If you will need accommodations in classes, reasonable prior notice needs to be given to the instructor and to the Center for Disability and Access.
Academic Standings
Academic Warning A student whose cumulative GPA falls below 2.0 from good standing shall be placed on academic warning and have a hold placed on their account preventing course registration. To clear this hold, the student must complete the academic success workshop, which includes a workbook and a quiz. Detailed instructions on how to complete the workshop are emailed to the student’s university email account after grades are posted. Second Warning A student who goes back to academic warning and who has already completed the academic success workshop must now meet with an Academic Advising Center advisor. In order to remove the registration hold, please contact the Academic Advising Center to schedule a second warning appointment with an advisor. Please schedule an appointment by calling 801-581-8146 Academic Probation A student already on academic warning whose cumulative GPA and most recent term GPA are below 2.0 will be placed on academic probation. A registration hold is placed on the student’s record until they meet with their department advisor AND an Academic Advising Center advisor. Prior to meeting with an Academic Advising Center advisor: 1) Print the attached form to take to both of your advising appointments, (you may also click here for the form) 2) Make an appointment with your major program advisor, and 3) Meet with them to discuss your department requirements and have them fill out the major form. 4) Once you have met with your department advisor, schedule and keep an appointment with an Academic Advising Center advisor. If you are undecided, you will need to meet twice with an advisor in the Academic Advising Center. Call our office if you have any questions of who you are required to meet with. Please contact the Academic Advising Center to learn more about the specific requirements a student will need to complete in order to remove their registration hold. For more information on Academic Standings and how to remove an Academic Warning, visit the Academic Advising Center website.
Department of Materials Science and Engineering Forms University of Utah Forms
Transfer students are those who have already attended any other universities or colleges. The applications process for transfer students is different than for freshman. For information on the admission process, application requirements, deadlines, and how to transfer credit, please click here. The College of Engineering offers many scholarships for transfer students, please apply here. Students with transfer credit must meet with an Academic Advisor as soon as they are admitted to the University of Utah and have declared Materials Science and Engineering as their major. In-State Transfer Credit is evaluated using the State Articulation Guide. Out-of-State Transfer Credit is evaluated on a case-by-case basis using course descriptions from the transfer school.
Transferology
Students wanting to see how specific classes will transfer to the University of Utah should use the tool Transferology. To log into Transferology, please click here. 
The following process is recommended to help students prepare for graduation:
  • During the semester before your graduation date, students should generate a degree audit on CIS in My Degree Dashboard. For more information on how to generate an audit click here.
  • If students have questions or issues surrounding graduation, they should make an appointment with the MSE Academic Advisor. It is important that you communicate with the Academic Advisor about your intended graduation date and progress.
In order to graduate, students must meet all of the University of Utah requirements as well as the department requirements for graduation. For graduation deadlines and how to apply click here. Students can also find information on the Commencement Ceremony here.
Our students’ success and well-being are paramount in providing a world-class education. Take advantage of the numerous resources and services created to help students of all kinds prosper during their time at the U. For a list of complete resources click here.

Campus Resources

Tutoring Resources

Safety and Wellness
Your safety is our top priority. In an emergency, dial 911 or seek a nearby emergency phone (throughout campus). Report any crimes or suspicious people to 801-585-COPS; this number will get you to a dispatch officer at the University of Utah Department of Public Safety (DPS; dps.utah.edu). If at any time, you would like to be escorted by a security officer to or from areas on campus, DPS will help — just give a call.
The University of Utah seeks to provide a safe and healthy experience for students, employees, and others who make use of campus facilities. In support of this goal, the University has established confidential resources and support services  to assist students who may have been affected by harassment, abusive relationships, or sexual misconduct. A detailed listing of University Resources for campus safety can be found at https://registrar.utah.edu/handbook/campussafety.php
Your well-being is key to your personal safety. If you are in crisis, call 801-587-3000; help is close.
The university has additional excellent resources to promote emotional and physical wellness, including the Counseling Center (https://counselingcenter.utah.edu), the Wellness Center (https://wellness.utah.edu), and the Women’s Resource Center (https://womenscenter.utah.edu). Counselors and advocates in these centers can help guide you to other resources to address a range of issues, including substance abuse and addiction. [/su_column]
All students should be familiar with My Degree Dashboard. My Degree Dashboard is a platform that helps you stay on track for graduation. In My Degree Dashboard, there are two very handy tools, audits and plans. Audits show you what classes you still need before you can graduate! Your degree audit is an automated report that matches the courses you have completed with the requirements of the major. Your degree audit will also show any test scores or transfer courses, you have sent to the University of Utah in addition to your U of U course history. Plans can help you plan your semesters in advance so you can rest easy knowing you're on track for graduation! You can avoid that last minute scramble to figure out which classes you should register for by creating a semester-by-semester plan. Once you have built your plan, your advisor can review it with you to make sure you're on the right path. You can even run an audit with your planned courses! To learn more about each tool and how to run and read the reports, please visit: https://mydegreedashboard.utah.edu/