FAQ
Prospective Students
If you are looking for a professional engineering degree apply for the MS or MEng. The M.S. covers more technical courses while the MEng has a business and leadership component. Note: The MEng and the MS Programs are considered terminal degree programs and you will not be allowed to continue on for the PhD. The PhD is a research-oriented academic program for those who have a clear research goal in mind. If you apply for the PhD without an MS degree, you will earn an MS degree while progressing to the doctorate degree
The GRE is optional (not required) for all IEOR graduate programs for Fall 2021. Nothing has been determined yet for future cycles.
Applicants are expected to have their Bachelor's degree conferred by the start of the intended MEng IEOR start term, not by the application deadline.
Graduate Division policy outlines transfer credit information here.
In addition, MEng policy regarding transfer credit is that students cannot transfer in required classes to decrease the number of units taken while in the MEng program. Twenty-five units minimum must be completed 'in residence' while a degree seeking student in the program. Courses may be waived, but never units.
Beginning for the Fall 2021 application cycle, Graduate Admissions will no longer be accepting paper Test Report Forms. All IELTS scores must be sent electronically from the testing center, no institution code is required.
Our address for identification purposes is: University of California, Berkeley, Graduate Division, Sproul Hall Rm 318, MC 5900, Berkeley, CA 94720. Please do not mail any score reports to us.
No. Do not be alarmed if you are not invited to interview. If the admissions committee needs more information from the applicant, they will recommend an interview, however it does not guarantee admission.
Current Students
Students who believe that completion of INDENG 240 and INDENG 241 would be a repetition of previously completed coursework may request to enroll in an approved alternative course. Please follow these instructions.
- Receive written approval from Dr. Xin Guo. Written approval must include what other Berkeley INDENG 200-level course may be approved to complete in place of the required FinTech technical coursework.
- Forward written approval to hiwata@berkeley.edu.
- Please note that students may be asked to complete an assessment evaluation to prove proficiency.
Students may not apply independent or research courses toward their MEng degree requirements.
Students interested in participating in such courses may do so with the understanding that the coursework would be above and beyond the minimum degree requirements.
Please consult the Berkeley International Office regarding CPT eligibility.
Because one of the eligibility requirements is that students must be in valid F-1 immigration status for at least two semesters, many students will not be eligible for CPT while pursuing our full-time one-year program.
However, students eligible for CPT may pursue the course credit track given they have an IEOR faculty member willing to supervise the work and the head MEng IEOR faculty advisor approves.
Currently, we offer a full-time one-year program.
Full-time students who fail to meet degree requirements within the first year may be granted an opportunity to extend to 3 terms.
Yes. Students are welcome to take courses above and beyond the minimum requirements given the following conditions:
- There is space available in the additional courses to allow for enrollment.
- Students do not overload themselves causing their grades to drop and potentially jeopardizing graduation.
Students may take courses outside of IEOR that are above and beyond the minimum requirements for the degree.
EECS courses will not count toward the MEng IEOR degree.
Many EECS courses are impacted and students may have difficulty enrolling.
The Academic Calendar outlines the deadlines by which students must finalize their registration.
While not recommended, graduate students may be eligible to drop classes late into the term. If a class is dropped late, a 'W' will not appear on their transcript. However, we recommend that students discuss their specific situation including the date in which they intend to drop, the course they intend to drop, and their student status with the Registrar's Office directly before making a decision.
In addition, dropping courses should always be discussed with the MEng advisor prior to taking action to ensure that the student remains on track for graduation.
International students must also consider visa requirements related to full-time enrollment. In their final term, students may petition for a reduced course load with the Berkeley International Office. Petitions must be approved before classes that would drop a student below full-time enrollment are processed.
Degree Requirements
Students must register in a minimum of 12 units each term. Students must register in each term (fall and spring) until they graduate unless granted an approved leave.
In order for students to be in good standing, they must maintain an overall grade-point average of at least 3.0 on the basis of all upper division and graduate courses (100- and 200-level) taken in graduate standing.
A minimum of 25 semester units of upper division and graduate courses, followed by a comprehensive final examination. Please note that the INDENG department has a higher unit requirement for the MEng degree.
Units
Minimum of 25 units of approved upper division and graduate courses consisting of 8 breadth (leadership) units, 5 capstone units, and 12 technical specialization units.
Residence
Completed at least 2 semesters of graduate study in residence at UC.
Grading
Technical and breadth (leadership) courses must be completed for letter grade.
Students are expected to maintain an average grade of at least B in all coursework undertaken as a graduate student at UC.
Students must repeat courses for which they received a grade of C- or lower if a passing grade in the course is required as part of the degree program.
Coursework
12 units of technical coursework must be at the 200-level completed within Industrial Engineering and Operations Research department for letter grade.
Technical coursework may not be taken as individual, group study or research units.
Technical Depth
All students will complete INDENG 240 and 241. Students will select 2 additional 200-level technical electives within INDENG from an approved list. Students may choose to specialize the area of study by pursuing one of the approved tracks.
View concentration coursework requirements here.
Leadership Development
All students will complete 8 units of breadth (leadership) coursework.
Fall: ENGIN 270A, 270B, 270C, 295
Spring: ENGIN 270K, 295 and 2 from ENGIN 270D, 270I, 270J, 270G, 270H
Please note students will complete 2 units of their semester leadership coursework during the pre-semester leadership intensive week held the week before instruction begins each term.
Capstone Experience
All students are required to complete 5 capstone units.
Fall: ENGIN 296MA (1-2 units)
Spring: ENGIN 296 MB (3-4 units)
In addition to coursework, students are required to complete and successfully pass a comprehensive exam.
The comprehensive exam will be split into two parts: Leadership and Technical.
During January each year, students will complete a leadership comprehensive exam administered by the Fung Institute. And a separate technical exam based on INDENG 240 and 241 is administered by the INDENG department in December each year.
The exams may be written or oral.
Results of the exams will be reported to the Graduate Division.
Students are recommended to review their Academic Progress Report through CalCentral to ensure that the results of the exams have been properly reported to the university.
Successful completion of the comprehensive exam (both components) is required for the degree.
Resources
Important MEng IEOR Dates:
- Comprehensive tech examination
- December 9, 4 - 7 pm PST, for Fall 2020