FAQ

You are a senior when you reach 88 total credits (includes MSU and transfer credits).  When you reach senior standing, you should schedule an appointment with your academic advisor to make sure you're on track for graduation. You should also be sure to see the Career Services and Placement coordinator for engineering Ms. Jennifer Jennings in room 1340 Engineering Building to get started on your career search and for resume preparation.

No college admission action will be taken until you have declared an engineering degree-granting major.  If you reach 56 credits and your major is still Engineering No-Preference, you will be denied admission and you will have to change your major to another degree-grating program at MSU.

The list is posted in the MSU Union and on the web.

The GPA requirements for each engineering major are reevaluated every year.  The current requirements can be found on our College Admission page. 

You are welcome to see your adviser as often as is necessary to have your questions answered!  We strongly encourage you to meet with your adviser once a semester.  The better your adviser knows you, the better she/he can help you. Your adviser can assist you with concerns about classes, admission to your major, repeating classes, course selection, finding learning resources across campus, exploration of engineering and some other majors, possible careers in engineering, information on co-op, internships and Study Abroad, contacts for engineering student groups, tutoring, volunteer opportunities, and placement resources (to name just a few).

If you need any override for a class that is taught outside of the College of Engineering (such as Math, Physics, ISS, or IAH) you need to contact the department or college that teaches that class.For engineering courses visit the course override page for instructions.  Your engineering adviser will be able to point you in the right direction if you're not sure where that department or college is located, but will not be able to do the override for you.

Your diploma will be sent to the mailing address you provided on your Application for Graduation, and will be mailed to you approximately four weeks after the end of the semester that you graduate.

Yes.  Fill out a new graduation application.

If your name has changed, you may have your diploma and records adjusted.  Visit the Registrar's Office with documentation or mail your request.  The replacement diploma will cost $50.  Payment by cash, check, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express is accepted.  The original diploma needs to be returned to the Registrar's Office.

Freshmen and sophomores currently in majors outside Engineering who wish to pursue an engineering major should complete a major change at the UUD Office at the location serving your housing location.After your major is changed to Engineering, you will automatically be considered for admission at the end of every semester.  If all requirements are met, you will be admitted into the College in your current major preference.  If you do not meet the criteria for admission you will continue to be reviewed each semester until you reach 56 credits, at which time you must be admitted to an engineering major or you will be denied admisson and required to change out of engineering to another degree-granting program at MSU.

The Dean's Honors List honors all full-time undergraduates in the University who earn a 3.50 or better grade-point average for the courses totaling 12 or more numerically graded credits for a given semester.

We will notify you by email about a week after final exams end for the current semester. Students who meet specific criteria may be granted or denied early admission to the College.

You can graduate with an engineering degree in four years, but this requires eight semesters averaging 16 credits per semester.  Engineering courses are time intensive as well as academically challenging.  Both your grade point average and your co-curricular experiences are critical in a competitive job market; therefore for engineering students take 4 1/2 or 5 years.

Consult with your academic adviser regarding requirements for your degree and use Degree Navigator.  Guest can also use Degree Navigator to search for degree requirements and navigate through "What if..." scenarios.

Go to room 150 Administration Building and complete a paper form there, or just fill out the form online.  In order for your name to be printed in the commencement program you must complete your application very early in your last semester (or in the spring semester prior to summer graduation --see the web application form for the exact date each semester).

You need 56 total credits (including MSU and transfer credits) to be a junior.  You are not required to have 56 credits at the end of your second year.  The most important thing to remember is that you must apply for admission to the College during the semester in chich you will reach 56 credits, whether that is after three, four, five or even six semesters at MSU.

All students must be admitted to a major upon reaching junior standing (56 credits). So if you are not admitted to engineering but intend to continue your enrollment at MSU, you will need to be admitted to another major ASAP. You have until the 5th day of classes in the following semester to complete your major change. Meet with your adviser to discuss why you were not admitted though you should have some idea already. You may need to explore other majors or other colleges/universities with engineering schools. Ideally these conversations would occur before you are denied admission.

You should email your adviser only when you have a question that you think your adviser can answer in a couple of sentences, and your adviser will normally get back to you within 2 business days. If you are unsure if your adviser can give you a "quick answer," go ahead and email us. If we believe the topic requires further discussion, we will suggest you schedule an appointment.And by the way, "what classes should I take next semester?" is not a question we will answer over email. Each student is different and there are many variables that must be taken into account when you choose your courses. We suggest you start by reviewing the curriculum requirements and course prerequisites.

As soon as all requirements are satisfied.

If you have been admitted to the college in your current engineering major and wish to change to another engineering major, you must complete an application.  Your request for major change will be reviewd at the end of the semester which you applied.  If you meet the admission criteria you will be admitted to the new major.  If you are denied admission, you will remain admitted to your current major.

Students who are already admitted to an engineering major who wish to change majors within engineering must submit an application.  If all requirements are met, you will be admitted into the College in your major choice.  If you do not meet the requirements of admission and are denied admission, you will remain in your current major.

MSU and the College of Engineering have many services for students experiencing academic difficulties. Free tutoring is offered through the Learning Resources Center in 209J Bessey Hall, visit their web site for hours and course availability. The Math, Physics and Chemistry departments all have help rooms available for courses offered by those departments. In addition the Guided Learning Center in 1108 Engineering Building has tutoring available for students. You should also check with your course professor and teaching assistant for additional help.

Diploma sizes are as follows:

• Bachelor, Masters, EDS: 8 1/2" x 11"
• PhD, DMA, Medical: 12" x 15"

Switching sections is considered a Drop/Add.  "Free adds" (you go to computer enrollment and add any course for which you are eligible and which is open) occur during the first week of class.  After that, its up to the discretion of the department/professor.  Many feel that if you missed the first couple of weeks of class that you will not be able to catch up, or it may disrupt on going group activities.

To be admitted, you must have the following core courses completed:

• MTH 132 and MTH 133.  Students have a minimum 2.0 grade point average or higher in all mathematics courses completed at the time of admission (this does not include MTH 1825)
• Chemisry 141 or 151, except for Computer science majors
• Physics 183 or 183B
• Engineering 100 and Engineering 102. Students in Computer Engineering and Computer Science are required to take EGR 100 only.
• Computer Science 231 for Computer Engineering and Computer Science majors only.

And you much achieve the necessary GPA requirements:

• There are specific GPA requirements that you need to meet for admission to each Engineering program. Admission is based on a combined cumulative/technical grade point average calculation, please click here for more information.
• Students attaining the required GPAs are guaranteed admission.  In certain majors, additional students may be considered for admission. on a space available basis.
• The average combined cumulative/technical GPA required for upper school admission to each degree program changes from year to year depending on the demand for that program

Students in the Honors College, Academic Scholars, and students who graduate with honor or high honor are recognized in the commencement program.  More information can be found on the Office of the Registrar's Graduation Honors web page, click here.

You need 28 total credits (including MSU and transfer credits) to be a sophomore.  If you do not have 28 credits at the end of your first two semesters, it is not a problem.  You are not required to have 28 credits within any specific time frame.

You need to first check on the transfer equivalency web page to see if the course transfers to MSU. You also need to fill out a guest student application form and take it to the Registrar's Office in 150 Administration Building. If your institution does not appear on the transfer page see your academic adviser. It is suggested that you check with your academic adviser before taking any classes at another institution. If you do not see a course you were thinking about taking see your academic adviser.

The College of Engineering admits students at whatever time they meet the academic requirements in the university catalog ("Academic Programs"), without waiting to complete 56 credits.At the end of every semester, the records of all freshmen and sophomore engineering students will be reviewed to determine if they:

• have completed 12 MSU credits, including at least six technical credits;
• have declared a specific engineering major (other then Engineering No-Preference);
• have completed core courses or equivalents (MTH 132 and PHY 183, CEM 141, and a computing course specific to the major; CEM not required for computer science); and
• have the required combined cumulative/technical GPA for admission to the declared major.

Transfer students with junior standing who entered majors other than engineering must complete a minimum of 12 total credits, including a minimum of 10 technical credits, with the sum of total and technical credits no less than 24 (e.g. 14 credits with 10 technical, or 12 credits all technical).The application is available on our College Admissions page.