Degree Requirements

Requirements for the M.S. Degree in Mechanical Engineering

A minimum of 30 approved graduate credits is required for the M.S. degree.

A. Course Requirements
1. M.S. with thesis: With succesful disseration, up to  9 combined 'thesis' credits of MEC 596, 597, 599 and/or 696 may be counted toward the requirement. Note the thesis credits may be less than 9 credits but the total graduate credits must be at least 30 credits.

2. M.S. without thesis:  A minimum of 24 approved graduate ‘course’ credits and no more than 6 combined  ‘project’ credits of MEC 596, 597 and/or 696 (and also other departments' project courses such as VIP courses) may be applied toward the course requirements. (Note submission of Final Report is required for those project courses.) No credit for MEC 599 is approved for fulfilling this requirement.

3. All full-time graduate students are required to register for MEC 691 (Mechanical Engineering Seminar) each semester and obtain a satisfactory grade. Make sure to register for the course each semester.

4. A minimum of 18 graduate credits must be taken in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. No more than 3 credits of MEC 596, 597, 599 or 696 may be counted toward this minimum. All courses taken outside the department for application to the M.S. degree requirements require prior approvals of the Graduate Program Director and the student’s advisor (if applicable). See below for counting courses outside our Department.

B. Transfer Creditsfrom Other Departments/Institutions
A maximum of 12 graduate credits may be transferred from other programs toward the M.S. degree. These may include up to 6 credits from other institutions. The maximum also includes any credits received from taking Mechanical Engineering courses while having non-degree status at Stony Brook as an SPD or GSP student. Credits used to obtain any prior degrees are not eligible for transfer. All requests for transfer credits require the approval of the Graduate Program Director. Only courses directly relevant and/or serves as fundamentals to mechanical engineering may be approved.  [Note, approval of more than two outside courses requires a strong reason]

C. Thesis Requirements
A student choosing the thesis option must select a research advisor. Upon completion, the thesis must be defended in an oral examination before a faculty committee of at least three members of which at least two must be Mechanical Engineering faculty. A student choosing the thesis option may not switch to the non-thesis option without permission of the Graduate Program Committee.

• Thesis title, defense date and commitee list must be sumitted to the Graduate Program Coordinator at least two weeks before the schedule date.
• The thesis defense date must be scheduled at least two weeks before the thesis submission deadline set by the Graduate School
• Thesis format must adhered to the guideline set by the Graduate School. It must be also eletronically  submitted (ProQuest). See the Grad School website for the detailed information.

A student who has ever been appointed as a teaching, graduate, or research assistant must choose the thesis option unless otherwise approved by the Graduate Program Committee.