Civil Engineering, M.S.

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The Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering at Cal State L.A. prepares students for careers in specialized areas of Civil Engineering and for further study at the doctoral level.

Admission to the Program

Applicants must possess a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering or a related field with a GPA of 3.0 or better. A promising applicant with a GPA between 2.5 and 2.99 may be admitted as a special action student. Prerequisite courses may be required for students with a non-civil engineering bachelor’s degree or for special action students. These prerequisite courses are not required for classified graduate students.

Requirements for the Degree

A minimum of 30 units is required for the degree, with at least 15 units from 5000-level civil engineering courses. A thesis or comprehensive examination is required. A student’s program must be approved by the civil engineering department before enrolling in any course. All students must maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0 to remain in good standing in the program.

Degree Requirement (30 units)

Area of Specialization in Civil Engineering (15-27 units)

Select a minimum of 15 units in 5000-level civil engineering courses from the following list.
CE 5970 is restricted to those students choosing the Thesis Option.
CE 5980 is restricted to those students choosing the Comprehensive Exam Option.

Advanced Mathematics (3 units)

Select one course from the following list:

Other Courses in Civil Engineering (0-12 units)

Select from 4000-level civil engineering courses from the following list:

Electives in Related Fields (0-6 units)

Select from 4000 and 5000-level courses outside civil engineering, with adviser approval.

Culminating Experience Requirement (0 or 3 units)

Students who select the comprehensive examination should expect to take it the semester they complete all course work in their program and must comply with college and departmental requirements. The comprehensive examination can be attempted a maximum of two times.

Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement

Graduate students are required to satisfy the graduation writing assessment requirement (GWAR). Students are considered to have met the GWAR requirement upon admission to the university if they (1) earned a bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited college or university where English is the medium of instruction; or (2) attained a score of 41 or better on the writing portion of the California Basic Educational Skills Test (CBEST) or a score of 4 on the analytic writing portion of the GRE or the GMAT.

Graduate students must satisfy this requirement before completing 12-semester units. Graduate students may take the writing proficiency exam once. Students who do not pass are required to pass the designated GWAR course. Students who do not satisfy the GWAR requirement within their first 12 units may be subject to a registration hold. Students must satisfy this Graduate Writing Requirement in order to be Advanced to Candidacy.

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