Engineering Students Now Able to Earn Masters Degrees in 1 Year at N.C. A&T

Greensboro, N.C. (May 5, 2017) - As the global technology sector expands, more highly-skilled professionals are in demand. The College of Engineering (COE) at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University is helping graduates and companies meet that demand by offering an intensive, one-year Master of Science degree for each of its engineering programs.

For complete information on the programs, including details on how to apply for admissions, visit http://www.ncat.edu/coe/prospective-students/1yearMS/index.html. (retired)

One-year master’s degrees will be offered in bioengineering, chemical engineering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, industrial /systems engineering and mechanical engineering, as well as computer science. The programs are accepting applications now for admission in the fall semester.

“Our College of Engineering departments made the decision to ensure that our degrees were cost-effective from the student point-of-view,” said engineering Dean Robin Coger. “Now that a student can earn a master’s degree in any of our departments with only a one-year commitment, it quickens the time in which students are able to graduate and apply the knowledge they gain for the benefit of their careers.”

From a student’s perspective, the benefits of enrolling in the one-year program are multi-faceted. Completing the degree roughly twice as quickly as with traditional programs minimizes the amount of time that the student is juggling academic responsibilities with work and life priorities. Students can not only use their new knowledge and degrees in the workplace more quickly, in many cases they may experience salary benefits tied to educational attainment.

Additionally, international students interested in pursuing Optional Practical Training in the U.S. can become eligible for it in only 12 months of graduate U.S. study.

These programs are ideal for continuing students with a bachelors degrees in engineering or  computer science who wish to go deeper into their fields, as well as working professionals interested in developing additional expertise and expanding their career prospects.

The one-year track is designed to follow the requirements of a course-only option and requires no thesis. Conversely, standard M.S. programs are completed in as little as 18 months and no more than six years and typically do require a thesis.

The new program offerings require students to begin in the fall semester and complete in the summer of the following year. The 30-credit programs require the completion of a total of 10 graduate courses.

Each one-year program will prepare students to work in various specialized areas of nearly every industry from manufacturing to hospitals and medical institutions to research facilities. Graduates will also find demand in such areas as software development, graphic design, water treatment, government agencies, academia, power plants, retail and cyber security.