About the Program

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering offers three graduate degree programs: the Master of Engineering (MEng), the Master of Science (MS), and the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).

Master of Engineering (MEng)

In collaboration with other departments in the College of Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering is offering a professional master’s degree. The accelerated program is designed to develop professional engineering leaders in Materials Science and Engineering who are seeking knowledge and leadership experience in MSE.

For students wishing to concentrate in the areas of Materials for Energy Systems, Structural Materials, and Opto-Electronic Materials, the faculty have identified specific courses that would be particularly relevant. However, these “Concentrations” are suggestions only. Students are encouraged to select electives that best satisfy their specific educational objectives.

Prospective students will be engineers, typically with industrial experience, who aspire to substantially advance in their careers and ultimately to lead large, complex organizations, including governments.

You may choose to apply to either the full-time one-year program, or part-time program for working professionals. You will be asked to choose which option you will be considered for during the application process. Both options employ the same standards and criteria for admissions.

Master of Science (MS)

The MS degree is designed for students with a BS in engineering, or physical, biological, or earth science. The emphasis in this program is on technical, sociological, economic and environmental problems involved in the design, construction, and operation of engineering structures, processes and equipment.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Students pursuing the PhD may also declare a Designated Emphasis (DE) in one of the following: Communication, Computation, and Statistics; Computational and Genomic Biology; Computational Science and Engineering; Energy Science and Technology; or Nanoscale Science and Engineering.

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Admissions

Admission to the University

Uniform minimum requirements for admission

The following minimum requirements apply to all programs and will be verified by the Graduate Division:

1. A bachelor’s degree or recognized equivalent from an accredited institution;
2. A minimum grade-point average of B or better (3.0);
3. If the applicant comes from a country or political entity (e.g. Quebec) where English is not the official language, adequate proficiency in English to do graduate work, as evidenced by a TOEFL score of at least 570 on the paper-and-pencil test, 230 on the computer-based test, 90 on the iBT test, or an IELTS Band score of at least 7 (note that individual programs may set higher levels for any of these); and
4. Enough undergraduate training to do graduate work in the given field.

Applicants who already hold a graduate degree

The Graduate Council views academic degrees as evidence of broad research training, not as vocational training certificates; therefore, applicants who already have academic graduate degrees should be able to take up new subject matter on a serious level without undertaking a graduate program, unless the fields are completely dissimilar.

Programs may consider students for an additional academic master’s or professional master’s degree if the additional degree is in a distinctly different field.

Applicants admitted to a doctoral program that requires a master’s degree to be earned at Berkeley as a prerequisite (even though the applicant already has a master’s degree from another institution in the same or a closely allied field of study) will be permitted to undertake the second master’s degree, despite the overlap in field.

The Graduate Division will admit students for a second doctoral degree only if they meet the following guidelines:

1. Applicants with doctoral degrees may be admitted for an additional doctoral degree only if that degree program is in a general area of knowledge distinctly different from the field in which they earned their original degree. For example, a physics PhD could be admitted to a doctoral degree program in music or history; however, a student with a doctoral degree in mathematics would not be permitted to add a PhD in statistics.
2. Applicants who hold the PhD degree may be admitted to a professional doctorate or professional master’s degree program if there is no duplication of training involved.

Applicants may only apply to one single degree program or one concurrent degree program per admission cycle.

Any applicant who was previously registered at Berkeley as a graduate student, no matter how briefly, must apply for readmission, not admission, even if the new application is to a different program.

Required documents for admissions applications

1. Transcripts:  Upload unofficial transcripts with the application for the departmental initial review. Official transcripts of all college-level work will be required if admitted. Official transcripts must be in sealed envelopes as issued by the school(s) you have attended. Request a current transcript from every post-secondary school that you have attended, including community colleges, summer sessions, and extension programs.
   If you have attended Berkeley, upload unofficial transcript with the application for the departmental initial review. Official transcript with evidence of degree conferral will not be required if admitted.
2. Letters of recommendation: Applicants can request online letters of recommendation through the online application system. Hard copies of recommendation letters must be sent directly to the program, not the Graduate Division.
3. Evidence of English language proficiency: All applicants from countries in which the official language is not English are required to submit official evidence of English language proficiency. This requirement applies to applicants from Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Latin America, the Middle East, the People’s Republic of China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, and most European countries. However, applicants who, at the time of application, have already completed at least one year of full-time academic course work with grades of B or better at a U.S. university may submit an official transcript from the U.S. university to fulfill this requirement. The following courses will not fulfill this requirement: 1) courses in English as a Second Language, 2) courses conducted in a language other than English, 3) courses that will be completed after the application is submitted, and 4) courses of a non-academic nature. If applicants have previously been denied admission to Berkeley on the basis of their English language proficiency, they must submit new test scores that meet the current minimum from one of the standardized tests.

Admission to the Program

Admission decisions are based on a combination of factors, including academic degrees and records, the statement of purpose, letters of recommendation, test scores, and relevant work experience. The MSE department also considers the appropriateness of your goals to the degree program in which you are interested and to the research interests of the program’s faculty.

To be considered for graduate admissions in MSE you need:

• A bachelor’s degree or recognized equivalent (must be conferred prior to enrollment into our program) from an accredited institution in Engineering, Physics or Chemistry is required. We do not accept students without these types of degrees.
• Sufficient undergraduate training to do graduate work in your chosen field.
• A minimum grade-point average (GPA) of 3.0 (B). International students should be in the top 5% of their class.
• We require three letters of recommendation submitted online.
• A general Graduate Record Exam (GRE) General Test score (85th percentile or higher is desirable) in the Verbal/Analytical/Quantitative sections.

Doctoral Degree Requirements

Normative Time Requirements

Normative Time to Advancement

Step I: Pass the preliminary exam – scheduled prior to the start of the second semester. In this oral exam students must demonstrate (i) mastery of the essential components of a Materials Science and Engineering education at a level commensurate with the completion of an undergraduate MSE degree at Berkeley, and (ii) their ability to use this knowledge in ongoing research.

Step II: Complete the minimum number of semester units of formal course work (major and minors) is 28, of which 16 must be in graduate units in the major field.

Step III: Pass the qualifying exam.

Normative Time in Candidacy

Step IV: Submission of the doctoral dissertation

Total Normative Time

Total Normative Time is Five years

Time to Advancement

Curriculum

Preliminary Exams

In this oral exam students must demonstrate

1. mastery of the essential components of a Materials Science and Engineering education at a level commensurate with the completion of an undergraduate MSE degree at Berkeley, and
2. their ability to use this knowledge in ongoing research.

The examination is divided into 6 topics germane to ceramic, metallic, semiconducting, and soft materials, including their appropriate composites. Six faculty examiners are appointed each semester by the Department Chair, one examiner per topic, who conduct the exam in individual oral interviews lasting approximately 20 minutes. The examination topics are:

1. Thermodynamics;
2. Phase Transformations;
3. Bonding, Crystallography, and Crystal Defects; 
4. Materials Characterization;
5. Mechanical Properties;
6. Electronic Properties.

Qualifying Examination

The PhD qualifying exam tests the student's ability to identify a significant problem, to assemble the background information needed to grasp it in the context of the field, and to construct a technical approach that provides a plausible path to its solution. At the same time the qualifying exam will test the student's knowledge of the subject matter within the broad research field and his or her major field.

The examination consists of two parts, namely, a written proposal, and the oral examination:

1. Written Proposal. The proposal describes intended PhD research. At least two weeks before the examination date the student must submit a written research proposal to his/her committee. The proposal must include a one page abstract and be roughly five to ten pages long. It must contain a concise statement of the research problem and its significance, a discussion of the technical background, the technical approach (experimental and/or theoretical), the anticipated results, and a bibliography. This written proposal is to be prepared by the student without direct collaboration or assistance from the faculty.
2. The Examination. The student should prepare a 30-minute oral presentation of the research proposal(s). The committee will question the student on the material presented orally, the material contained in the written proposal, and on the general technical background to the research area. The student should be familiar with the relevant literature. The student must also defend the significance of the research problem and the viability of the technical approach. The second part of the examination consists of questions in the major and minor fields.

Time in Candidacy

Dissertation

Required Professional Development

Teaching

The faculty of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering considers teaching experience to be an important part of a doctoral student’s program of study and requires that all graduate students pursuing a PhD serve at least one semester as a Graduate Student Instructor (GSI) in an MSE course (usually after the first year).

Seminar

All graduate students are required to enroll (MAT SCI 298 Group Studies, Seminars, or Group Research-Sect 1) and attend the weekly department colloquium series.

Master's Degree Requirements (MS)

Unit requirements

There are two plans for the Master of Science Degree.

Plan I requires a minimum of 20 semester units are required, of which at least 8 must be strictly graduate units in the major subject (University requirement), and of these 8, there shall be no more than 2 units of credit for MAT SCI 299 Individual Study or Research while the remaining units must be graded course units. The remaining 12 units may be upper-division or graduate courses proposed by the student and research supervisor and approved by the Major Field Advisor.

Plan II requires a minimum 24 semester units is required, of  which at least 12 must be strictly graduate units in the major subject, and of these 12 units, there shall be no more than a total of 2 units of credit MAT SCI 299 Individual Study or Research. The remaining 12 units may be graded upper division or graduate courses approved by the major field advisor.

Curriculum

Capstone/Thesis (Plan I)

A thesis is required. The research topic and research supervisor must be specified on the program of study form.

The thesis committee is formally appointed by the Dean of the Graduate Division upon recommendation of the student's major field advisor and the AAC. It consists of three members: the research supervisor plus one other member from the Department, and one member either be from outside the College of Engineering or from a field of engineering not closely related to that of the candidate. The student is encouraged to consult all committee members while the research is in progress.

Capstone/Comprehensive Exam (Plan II)

Students are required to pass a comprehensive examination. This requirement is waived for students who have passed the preliminary examination. For those students who chose not to take the preliminary examination, the major field advisor will appoint a committee of two departmental faculty members to administer the comprehensive examination.

At least a month before the student intends to graduate, a project report based on MAT SCI 299 Individual Study or Research work or on a phase of his/her work as a research assistant and approved by the project supervisor, must be submitted to the committee. It is the student's responsibility to see that the final corrected report is submitted and the examination taken by the last day of the semester.

Master's Degree Requirements (MEng)

Unit requirements

Minimum units to complete the degree is 25 semester units (must be in 200 series). 12 units must be materials science and engineering units; 8 semester units must be in core leadership curriculum units; and 5 semester units in the capstone project units.

Curriculum  

These concentrations are suggestions only. Students are encouraged to select electives that best satisfy their specific educational objectives.

General Program Concentration

Materials for Advanced Energy Systems Concentration

Materials for Advanced Structural Materials Concentration

Advances in Opto-Electronic Materials Concentration

Capstone/Master's Project (Plan II)

Your team capstone project analyzes and addresses an industry challenge to integrate the core curriculum with your technical coursework.

Courses

Materials Science and Engineering

Faculty

Professors

Mark D. Asta, Professor.

Daryl Chrzan, Professor. Materials science and engineering, computational materials science, metals and metallic compounds, defects in solids, growth of nanostructures.
Research Profile

Thomas M. Devine, Professor. Synthesis of nanomaterials, nuclear power, oil production, secondary batteries for electric vehicles, computer disk drives, and synthesis and characterization of metal oxide nanowires, corrosion resistance of materials.
Research Profile

Fiona M. Doyle, Professor. Electrochemistry, mineral processing, solution processing of materials, interfacial chemistry, extractive metallurgy, remediation of abandoned mines.
Research Profile

Oscar D. Dubon, Professor. Magnetic, optical materials, processing, properties in electronic.
Research Profile

Ronald Gronsky, PhD, Professor. Internal structure of materials, engineering applications.
Research Profile

Robert O. Ritchie, Professor. Structural materials, mechanical behavior in biomaterials, creep, fatigue and fracture of advanced metals, intermetallics, ceramics.
Research Profile

Associate Professors

Andrew M. Minor, Associate Professor. Metallurgy, nanomechanics, in situ TEM, electron microscopy of soft materials.
Research Profile

Junqiao Wu, PhD, Associate Professor. Semiconductors, nanotechnology, energy materials.
Research Profile

Ting Xu, PhD, Associate Professor. Biomaterials, materials science and engineering, designed peptides, artificial proteins, copolymers, nanoparticles, functional materials.
Research Profile

Assistant Professors

Jie Yao, PhD, Assistant Professor.

Adjunct Faculty

Elke Arenholz, Adjunct Faculty.

Miquel B. Salmeron, Adjunct Faculty. Molecules, lasers, atoms, materials science and engineering, matter, scanning, tunneling, atomic force microscopies, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.
Research Profile

Yuri Suzuki, Adjunct Faculty. Nanostructures, device physics, magnetics, magnetism, magnetic oxide thin film, microphotonic structures, photonics.
Research Profile

Haimei Zheng, Adjunct Faculty.