The Graduate School of Engineering at Northeastern University offers degree programs designed to help students prepare themselves for technical positions in industrial organizations, government laboratories, research laboratories, and educational institutions. The Graduate School offers extensive day graduate programs as well as Master of Science and Doctoral degree programs on a part-time basis in the evening. An interdisciplinary Doctor of Philosophy degree is also available for graduate students whose interests overlap two or more departments or programs.

Northeastern awards course credits on a semester-hour basis. The Master of Science degree comprises a minimum of thirty to thirty-four semester hours, depending on the specific program selected. A Thesis or Project/Report is required in certain cases. Refer to the degree program curricula below for more information. Doctor of Philosophy programs have varying requirements specific to each academic department as described below. In some cases, depending upon academic background, prerequisite courses are also required, but do not carry graduate credit. Part-time students who normally carry four semester hours each term can generally complete a program of study in two to four years, while full-time students, who may take eight to twelve semester hours each term, may earn their degrees in as little as one year. However, full-time students receiving some form of assistantship or who are enrolled in the Cooperative Plan of Education usually devote two years to completing a program of study.

As a general rule, Northeastern confers the Master of Science degree with specification to students who hold a Bachelor’s degree or its equivalent in the same or closely-related engineering discipline as their graduate program of study. However, students admitted to the Computer Systems Engineering, Engineering Management, Information Systems, Operations Research, and Telecommunication Systems Management programs are in general exempt from this policy and may earn the specified degree regardless of their undergraduate field. Northeastern confers the Master of Science degree without specification in certain cases to students who hold undergraduate degrees in disciplines that do not correspond to their chosen graduate program.