ACCELERATED BS/MS PROGRAM
Program Availability with the College of Engineering
Civil and Environmental Engineering, Computer Science and Engineering, and Electrical and Biomedical Engineering: As shown with both thesis and non-thesis options available for MS portion.
Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering: As shown except only the thesis option will be available.
Admission Requirements
Students apply for the Accelerated Program after completing at least 75 credits towards their BS degree with a 3.2 GPA (all UNR courses complete on the Engineering Degree Checklist are included in the GPA calculation). This will typically occur during the spring of their junior year. Students must have completed their Basic Science courses and at least 30 credits of Engineering Science or Design courses (see Engineering Degree Checklist for each program). At least 24 credits of the Engineering Science or Design classes must have been earned at UNR at time of application. As part of the admission process, a student must select a faculty advisor for their graduate degree.
Program Requirements
Students that are admitted into the program will be allowed to take up to 6-credits of technical electives for their BS degree as 600-level graduate courses. The 600-level courses selected for this purpose must be approved by the student’s BS program department and graduate advisor, and permission granted by the Graduate School. 700-level courses cannot be taken as long as you are considered an undergraduate student. The student must receive a B (3.0) or better in the course for it to be considered for the program. The graduate academic advisor must be in the area of specialization that the student has selected for their graduate degree. Upon completion of all BS requirements, a student will receive her/his BS degree. A student must complete the BS degree at UNR to be part of the Accelerated BS/MS Program.
During their senior year, student will apply for admission into the Graduate School. The student must be admitted by the MS degree granting department and the Graduate School. Requirements can include but are not limited to a GPA and/or GRE minimum. If a student is not admitted by the MS degree granting department or the Graduate School, the 600 level courses completed will apply as technical electives within the BS degree program. Only 9 credits of graduate work can be completed before entering into the Graduate School. The GRE should be taken before or during the 1st semester of the student’s senior year. The Accelerated BS/MS Program Application must be done before completing the BS degree. Students will complete all MS degree requirements and may apply the 6 credits of 600-level courses towards both the BS and MS degree requirements. For the MS degree, the student must meet the Graduate School requirement of an average of a 3.0 GPA in courses applied to the MS degree. Courses and/or thesis requirements will be established by the department graduate advisor.
Continuation in the Program
Continuation in the program requires that students maintain a grade point average of 3.2 or higher in their UNR degree required courses. If a student’s GPA drops below 3.2, the student will be placed on academic probation within the program for one semester. If the student raises their GPA to 3.2 or higher, he or she will be removed from probation and returned to good status to the program. If after one semester the student is not able to raise their GPA sufficiently, she/he will be removed from the Accelerated Program. At which point she/he may pursue a BS and MS degrees through normal requirements.
Financial Impact
Students should note that graduate courses do not apply towards the 12 credits required for full-time undergraduate standing. In most cases, 12 credits of undergraduate credit are required for undergraduate financial aid. Therefore during the senior year, each semester a student should have at least 12 undergraduate courses in addition to the 600-level courses. The 600-level courses will require payment of graduate credit tuition. Certain scholarships cannot be used for graduate credits. Financial support may be available through the graduate program.
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For further information, please contact the department offices.