X
Home Herff College of Engineering Departments Admission Requirements

Department Requirements for Admission

Each department in the Herff College of Engineering follows certain requirements for admission into its program. For more information, please contact the Department Graduate Program Coordinator for your degree of interest.

The Department of Biomedical Engineering at The University of Memphis and the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Biomedical Engineering at The University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, participate in the Joint Graduate Program in Biomedical Engineering. The Joint Program offers graduate programs leading to the degrees of Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Engineering.
 

In addition to meeting the minimum admission requirements of the two universities and the Herff College of Engineering, applicants should meet the following criteria:

  1. An appropriate bachelor’s degree (biomedical, chemical, electrical, mechanical, or others as defined by the Joint Program);
  2. An undergraduate GPA of at least 3.00 from an accredited college or university;
  3. It is recommended to obtain a GRE score above 300 (combined verbal reasoning and quantitative reasoning) including a minimum 154 on the quantitative reasoning;
  4. Applicants whose native language is other than English and who have earned neither a bachelor’s nor a master’s degree from a college or university in an English­-speaking country must have achieved a TOEFL score of at least 213/79 on the computer­based/Internet­based exam or an IELTS score of 6.5 (earned within 2 years prior to application). Any applicant whose first language is not English but who has earned a baccalaureate or master’s degree from a college or university in an English-speaking country where instruction was in English may be exempted from the requirement for the TOEFL or IELTS examination.

These are the minimum program admission requirements. Meeting minimum requirements does not guarantee admission into the Joint Program. Applicants are further advised that the department reserves the right to deny some applications for admission because of limited availability of faculty, funding, or physical facilities to accommodate the applicant’s research interests. In unusual circumstances where the above admission requirements cannot be met, an applicant may seek exceptions by contacting the Coordinator of Graduate Studies for the Joint Program.

Please note that a student cannot be a graduate assistant (GA) until she/he has been fully admitted to the Biomedical Engineering graduate program. Questions can be directed to the program’s graduate coordinator. Students will pay IEI fees until they meet the language criterion. If courses are taken outside of IEI, the student will be charged additional tuition at the regular rate.

The following are minimum requirements for admission:

  • A bachelor’s degree in engineering or a closely related program;
  • An undergraduate GPA of at least 3.00 from an accredited college or university;
  • Three letters of recommendation from persons capable of assessing the applicant’s suitability for graduate work in civil engineering;
  • The GRE is waived for students with a GPA of 3.25 or greater; for students with a GPA of less than 3.25, the following minimum GRE scores are required:
    • Verbal = 146
    • Quantitative = 156
    • Analytical Writing = 3.0;
  • Applicants whose native language is other than English must meet one of the following minimum requirements:
    • TOEFL = 85,
    • IELTS = 6.5
    • Duolingo = 110,
    • PTE = 57.

Applicants are advised that meeting the minimum admission standards does not entitle an applicant to admission; it only insures consideration of the application. Applicants are further advised that the program reserves the right to deny some applications due to limited availability of resources.

The Master of Science in Civil Engineering is a 30-semester-hour program with three options:

  • Thesis option: 24 semester hours of coursework plus an independent research project culminating in a master’s thesis. Upon completion of the thesis, the student must successfully pass an oral examination to assess mastery of the thesis topic and to evaluate the student’s knowledge in Civil Engineering.
  • Project option: 27 semester hours of coursework plus an independent project. Upon completion of the project report, the student must make an oral presentation of their project and pass an oral comprehensive examination to evaluate the student’s knowledge in Civil Engineering.
  • Course-only option: 30 semester hours of coursework. Students electing the course-only option must pass a take-home comprehensive exam, offered at the end of their final semester, covering all of their coursework.

The Ph.D. in Engineering is a 72-semester-hour program consisting of a minimum of 48 semester hours of coursework plus an independent research project culminating in a dissertation. Applicants who already possess a master’s degree in engineering or a closely related field can get credit for 30 semester hours of coursework toward the Ph.D.

The following are the minimum requirements for admission:

  1. A bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering (EE) or computer engineering (CE) or a closely related program;
  2. One (1) letter of recommendation from persons capable of assessing the applicant’s suitability for graduate work in engineering;
  3. An undergraduate GPA of at least 3.00 from an accredited college or university;
  4. A grade of C+ or above in AT LEAST 4 of the following: Computer Programming, Differential and Integral Calculus, Differential Equations, Physics 1 (Mechanics) and Physics 2 (Electromagnetics), Linear Algebra, Probability and Statistics, Signals and Systems (was Linear Signals and/or Systems Analysis), Microprocessors or Embedded Systems.
  5. The GRE is waived for students with a GPA of 3.25 or greater; for students with a GPA of less than 3.25, the following minimum GRE scores are required:
    • Verbal = 146,
    • Quantitative = 156,
    • Analytical Writing = 3.0.
  1. Applicants whose native language is other than English must meet one of the following minimum requirements:
    • TOEFL = 85,
    • IELTS = 6.5
    • Duolingo = 110,
    • PTE = 59.

Applications can be evaluated based on unofficial transcripts and test scores; however, official test scores must be provided before the student can be formally admitted and official transcripts will have to be provided by the end of the student’s first semester of enrollment.

An applicant who lacks an electrical engineering or computer engineering bachelors degree may be required to complete undergraduate deficiency courses. If the number of deficiency courses is large, the applicant may be required to complete an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering or computer engineering before seeking admission to the graduate program.

Applicants whose highest degree is from an international university may be required to have their credentials (transcripts) evaluated. The department will accept evaluations done by any credentialing agency listed on the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services website. A course-by-course report is required.

Applicants are advised that meeting the minimum admission standards does not entitle an applicant to admission; meeting the standards only insures consideration of the application.

The Herff College of Engineering has established uniform admissions criteria for all graduate programs. Exceptions to these requirements may be addressed by the Graduate Admissions and Retention Committee of the department and must be approved by the Dean of Engineering.

The following are minimum requirements for admission:

  1. A bachelor’s degree in engineering or a closely related program;
  2. Three (3) letters of recommendation from persons capable of assessing the applicant’s suitability for graduate work in civil engineering;
  3. An undergraduate GPA of at least 3.00 from an accredited college or university;
  4. The following minimum GRE scores are required:
    • Verbal = 146,
    • Quantitative = 156,
    • Analytical Writing = 3.0;
  5. Applicants whose native language is other than English must meet one of the following minimum requirements:
    • TOEFL = 85,
    • IELTS = 6.5
    • Duolingo = 110,
    • PTE = 57.

Applications can be evaluated based on unofficial transcripts and test scores; however, official test scores must be provided before the student can be formally admitted and official transcripts will have to be provided by the end of the student’s first semester of enrollment.

In most cases, applicants will be considered for admission after completion of a masters degree. However, in certain cases, highly qualified applicants will be considered for admission to the doctoral program after the attainment of a bachelors degree. It may be suggested that the student complete a masters degree while in pursuit of the doctoral degree.

Applicants are advised that meeting the minimum admission standards does not entitle an applicant to admission; meeting the standards only insures consideration of the application.

The department of study for an applicant whose highest degree is from an international university may require that their credentials be evaluated. The department of study will accept evaluations done by any credentialing agency listed on the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services web site. A course-by course report is required.

Depending on the applicant’s educational background, the Advisory Committee for the individual graduate student may require additional coursework to prepare the student for doctoral studies. The Advisory Committee is composed of Graduate Faculty from the College. The Department Chair, the Director of Graduate Studies for the College and the Graduate School will review and approve the Committee.

In unusual circumstances where the above admission requirements cannot be met, an applicant may seek exceptions by contacting the Director of Graduate Studies for the college.

Applicants are further advised that the College reserves the right to deny some applications for admission because of limited availability of faculty and/or physical facilities to accommodate the student’s research interests.

The following are minimum requirements for admission:

  1. An appropriate bachelor’s degree in engineering or a closely related science or mathematics program;
  2. One letter of recommendation from a person capable of assessing the applicant’s suitability for graduate work in engineering;
  3. An undergraduate GPA of at least 3.00 from an accredited college or university;
  1. Applicants whose native language is other than English must meet one of the following minimum requirements:
    • TOEFL = 85,
    • IELTS = 6.5
    • Duolingo = 110,
    • PTE = 57.

Applications can be evaluated based on unofficial transcripts and test scores; however, official test scores must be provided before the student can be formally admitted and official transcripts will have to be provided by the end of the student’s first semester of enrollment.

Applicants whose highest degree is from an international university may be required to have their credentials (transcripts) evaluated. The department will accept evaluations done by any credentialing agency listed on the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services web site. A course-by course report is required.

Applicants are advised that meeting the minimum admission standards does not entitle an applicant to admission; meeting the standards only insures consideration of the application.

Applicants should follow admission requirements for the Herff College of Engineering and the prerequisites below.

Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree, preferably in an appropriate area of Engineering or Engineering Technology. However, a bachelor’s degree in an analytical field with professional experience in a related area is also acceptable.

Candidates with deficiencies in their undergraduate work may be required to pass appropriate undergraduate courses with a C or better to supplement their body of knowledge. Basic competencies are reflected as prerequisites for courses, but may be waived with appropriate professional experience. All programs emphasize technical and analytical aspects that require strong command of math and science. Key competencies that are needed depend on the student’s academic goals and possible emphasis areas. Emphasis areas are not required, just used as a guideline. Examples include:

Computer Engineering Technology courses expect students to already have competency in modern programming as well as basic electronics. Deficiencies may require additional preparation and course work. Modern programming using Java can be taken as a graduate course, TECH 6262, which can count toward the MS degree requirements. Basic electronics, however, may require preparation that includes completion of undergraduate course work that cannot be applied toward the MS semester hour requirement.

Similarly, if desiring an emphasis in Electronics Engineering Technology expects a  familiarity with fundamentals of electronics prior to enrollment in graduate classes.

Manufacturing Engineering Technology graduate courses expect a familiarity with industrial practices and operations. Course prerequisites are important, but may be fulfilled through experience or completion of appropriate 6000 level courses which may be applied to the MS semester hour requirement.

No more than 9 semester hours of 6000 level course work can be applied toward the MS degree semester-hour requirement.

The following are minimum requirements for admission:

  1. A bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering or a closely related program;
  2. Three (3) letters of recommendation from persons capable of assessing the applicant’s suitability for graduate work in mechanical engineering;
  3. An undergraduate GPA of at least 3.00 from an accredited college or university;
  4. The GRE is waived for students with a GPA of 3.25 or greater; for students with a GPA of less than 3.25, the following minimum GRE scores are required:
    • Verbal = 146,
    • Quantitative = 156,
    • Analytical Writing = 3.0;
  5. Applicants whose native language is other than English must meet one of the following minimum requirements:
    • TOEFL = 85,
    • IELTS = 6.5
    • Duolingo = 110,
    • PTE = 57.

Applications can be evaluated based on unofficial transcripts and test scores; however, official test scores must be provided before the student can be formally admitted and official transcripts will have to be provided by the end of the student’s first semester of enrollment.

An applicant who lacks a mechanical engineering bachelors degree may be required to complete undergraduate deficiency courses. If the number of deficiency courses is large, the applicant may be required to complete an undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering before seeking admission to the graduate program.

Applicants whose highest degree is from an international university may be required to have their credentials (transcripts) evaluated. The department will accept evaluations done by any credentialing agency listed on the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services web site. A course-by course report is required.

Applicants are advised that meeting the minimum admission standards does not entitle an applicant to admission; meeting the standards only insures consideration of the application.