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Master of Science (MS) Program Requirements

To obtain a Master of Science (MS) Degree in Mechanical Engineering (ME) or Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) from the Joint Institute, students must fulfill the following requirements.

  1. Complete specific Coursework.
  2. Preparation, propose, and defend a Master Thesis.

While the typical duration of the master program is of two and a half years, a student is eligible to receive a master degree when the above requirements are fulfilled. If graduating in less than two and a half years, students must go through the SJTU Early Graduation Application.
Requirements for ME and ECE degrees are identical; the term “major” refers to the ME and ECE programs.

1. Coursework

1.1 Students matriculate in the year of 2026 and after, please follow the below requirements，

To complete their coursework requirement, Master students must take a number of courses, while maintaining a minimum GPA. Specifically, students must take the following course.

  1. At least fifteen approved credit hours of engineering, math, and science at the 4xx level or higher. The GC Grade Point Average for these courses must be at least 2.7.
  2. A total of three credit hours of technical communication (ENGR6004J).
  3. And a total of three credit hours of politics for domestic students, or a total of six credit hours of Chinese Language and Chinese Culture for international students.
  4. A total of 1 credit hour of Graduate Seminar Series.
  5. A total of 0.5 credit hours of Laboratory Safety Education.
  6. The Grade Point Average corresponding to the Training Plan must be at least 2.7. If a student fails to meet this requirement, he/she must take additional courses.

The fifteen approved credit hours of engineering, math, and science are subjected to the following restrictions.

  1. At least three credit hours of mathematics must be taken at the graduate level or higher.*
  2. At least nine credit hours within the student’s major must be selected at the graduate level.*
  3. A maximum of six credit hours may be selected from graduate courses offered outside of the GC. Credits of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) courses offered by other schools (including Chinese-taught courses) will be counted towards graduation credits at a 1:1 ratio. Among the courses taken by any student, the total number of credits from courses offered by other schools that can be recognized for graduation shall not exceed the upper limit of credits for such courses specified in the student’s curriculum. To enroll in courses offered by other schools, students only need to obtain approval from their advisors through the approval of the Training Plan. If the petition is approved, the course will be counted as part of the student’s fifteen approved credit hours requirement, but will not count towards his/her GC Grade Point Average. #
  4. The total of 4xx level credit hours cannot exceed six. #
  5. *Courses from these categories cannot be double counted.
  6. #The total number of credits from these categories cannot be more than six.

1.2 Students matriculate in the year of 2025, please follow the below requirements. Click to download files.

1.3 Students matriculate in the year of 2024 and before, please follow the below requirements. Click to download files.

2. Master Thesis Proposal

Master students must write and defend of a formal master thesis. For each semester they are involved in graduate research, ME or ECE students must register for master thesis research, Vm 595 or Ve 595 Master Thesis, respectively. This course will provide feedback on their progress toward the completion of their master thesis.

  1. The candidate forms a Master Thesis Committee consisting of at least three faculty members in his major field, including his/her research advisor. The membership of the master thesis committee must be approved by GC’s degree committee; Students should submit Thesis Committee Members Application through http://bpm.gc.sjtu.edu.cn/, for approval by the degree committee.
  2. The candidate submits his/her master thesis proposal to the members of the master thesis committee for approval at least two weeks before the thesis proposal presentation. This document provides the following information: (1) the proposed content of the research work, (2) a comprehensive literature review of the state-of-the-art in the field, (3) a description of the research tasks that have been completed, (4) a discussion of preliminary results, (5) the original contribution of the proposed research, and (6) the tasks that will be completed before the thesis defense.
  3. The candidate presents his/her master thesis proposal to the master thesis committee. This presentation is open to the public. The committee provides feedback to the candidate on the progress of his/her research. The committee must approve the dissertation proposal unanimously. If a unanimous vote cannot be reached, an additional thesis proposals must be scheduled after the student’s response to the concerns raised by all members of the dissertation committee.  If unsuccessful at the second try, the student will be dismissed from the master program.
  4. A minimum of six months must separate the thesis proposal and defense presentation dates.

THESIS MAJOR STEPS AND TIMELINE