Administrator
Penn State’s research expenditures reached a record high for the third year in a row in fiscal year 2018-19, according to incoming Senior Vice President for Research Lora Weiss. The total figure of $968 million represents a $47 million increase over last year’s figure, and includes a record $593 million in federal funding, as well as $375 million from a combination of private funders, the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and University sources.
It’s an exciting time to be a part of the IGDP in MatSE!
Materials science is growing in so many areas that we can’t predict the future of the field—it’s wide open—and very exhilarating.
At Penn State, we offer the Intercollege Graduate Degree Program (IGDP) in Materials Science and Engineering (MatSE). Grounded by strong research and education, the IGDP encompasses the entire spectrum of materials, including inorganic and structural materials, electronic and photonic materials, polymers and biomaterials, and computational materials science. 
Through a combination of MatSE courses and a wealth of materials-related courses in the science and engineering departments at Penn State, students choose to study across the major themes of materials today. Working with IGDP faculty, students participate in research beyond MatSE including other departments within the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, the College of Engineering, the Eberly College of Science, the College of Agricultural Sciences, the Applied Research Laboratories, and other Penn State entities.
Our graduate students are studying materials in energy applications, nanotechnology, materials in medicine, materials in communications, materials for sensor applications, structural materials—just to name a few. Visit some of our research groups' websites to see the amazing discoveries happening in the MatSE IGDP.
Students who choose to complete a thesis must take at least 6 credits of thesis research (MATSE 600). A thesis describing independent research performed by the student must be written and defended at an oral examination. Bound copies will be made available for the University Libraries and the thesis adviser.
A thesis committee will administer the final oral examination of the thesis. The committee must consist of at least three Graduate Faculty members. The thesis must be accepted by the committee members, the head of the graduate program, and the Graduate School, and the student must pass the thesis defense.
At least 18 of the 30 credits for the thesis-based degree option must be formal coursework, not counting credits for research, professional development, or colloquium.
- Minimum total credits: 30 credits
- Minimum research credits: 6 credits
- Minimum formal course credits: 18 credits
- Minimum 500-level credits: 12 credits
- Core graduate course credits: 9 credits
- Seminar: 2 credits/year
- Scholarship and research integrity credits: Online training and 1 credit of MatSE 582 (Materials Science and Engineering Professional Development)
- Minimum GPA for graduation: 3.00
- Thesis requirement: A written thesis and an oral defense administered by a committee of 3 faculty members, with at least 2 from the iMatSE graduate program