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Master of Science Program Guide

Updated June 2023

The Department follows the Institute requirement for a Master of Science (SM) degree. The student
must have satisfactorily completed a program of study of at least 66 units of graduate level subjects,
approved by the department in which s/he is enrolled. If 34 units of graduate level subjects and the
thesis are in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the degree will be recommended
with specification in this program.

In the following document you will find specific information pertaining to:

1. Responsible Conduct of Research

2. Summer Tuition Subsidy
3. Thesis Supervision
4. Research Requirement, 1.THG and Annual Review
5. Content of Master’s Thesis
6. Thesis Submission

Responsible Conduct of Research

Each SM student is required to complete MIT’s online course on the Responsible Conduct of
Research within the first year, i.e., by the end of Spring term AY1. If you are paid on an NSF grant,
you are required to complete the course within 60 days of being assigned to the grant. You can
access the course from this web site and following the instructions below. You will need an MIT
certificate.

https://research.mit.edu/integrity-and-compliance/citi-training-courses/take-citi-courses

1. In the center of the page, slick “Log into CITI (Touchstone Required)”

2. Set up your account

3. Select “My Courses” 5. Select “Add a Course”

4. Select “Add a Course”

5. Go to question 4 and select “RCR for Engineers”

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6. Complete the Integrity Assurance Statement before beginning the course.

7. Once you have completed the course (10 modules with 80% or better on the individual quizzes)
send a screen shot of your completion report to the Academic Programs Office (cee-apo@mit.edu)

Summer Tuition Subsidy

Graduate students who are enrolled in a research degree program and who are not taking subjects
are eligible to have their summer tuition subsidized from Institute general funds.

The subsidy applies to new or continuing graduate students in normal resident status during the
preceding spring term, and who are only registered for thesis or pre-thesis research credit during the
summer.

Some key points to remember:

• Graduate students who register for other summer subjects will be charged tuition on a per unit
basis up to the maximum tuition.
• Students registering for summer internship subjects are not eligible for the tuition subsidy and
will be charged the per unit rate, up to a maximum of four units.
• Be sure to confirm with your advisor before registering for any summer subjects.

Tuition rates can be found here: https://registrar.mit.edu/registration-academics/tuition-fees/graduate

Thesis Supervision

A student’s thesis supervisor can be a 1/MIT CEE Faculty member(s), 2/CEE Senior Research
Scientist/Engineer, or a student can be 3/ co-advised by a CEE and other MIT faculty member. A
thesis supervisor is responsible for certifying and signing the thesis. In the case of co-supervisors,
both must certify and sign thesis.

Research Requirement and 1.THG

1.THG is a subject associated with a program of research leading to the writing of a graduate thesis.
Research plays an integral role in the graduate degree, and research effort is tracked through
enrollment in 1.THG. This subject is associated with the laboratory, field, computational, or theoretical
research undertaken by each student working with a faculty advisor in CEE at MIT.

Graduate students are required to register for 1.THG every semester, and as part of this, meet with
their supervisors on a regular basis. First-year students are required to register for 24 units of 1.THG
and should meet with their supervisors on a weekly basis. Beyond first year, the number of credit
hours is determined in consultation with your advisor. If a student is registered only for 1.THG during a
term, the department recommends a load of 48 units. Through enrollment in 1.THG, students are
formally graded on research performance each semester, in accordance with MIT Faculty Rules and
Regulations 2.62.3.
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http://facultygovernance.mit.edu/rules-and-regulations

CEE Graduate Student Annual Review of 1.THG

The annual review is an opportunity for (1) advisors to provide formal feedback (both positive and
negative) on student performance and progress toward graduation and (2) for students to discuss their
professional development goals, and to provide positive and negative feedback on their mentoring
needs, and/or group climate. In particular, the questions here are designed to promote self-reflection
and to facilitate an annual conversation between a faculty advisor and a graduate advisee. The annual
review meeting will occur in the spring term and is associated with the 1.THG grade for that term. The
student and advisor submit a signed form to attest that a meeting has occurred, but the review itself
remains confidential between student and advisor to promote frank feedback and discussion.

Content of Master’s Thesis

A Master of Science Thesis must provide a comprehensive description of a substantial research

project. The thesis must include the following elements:

1) a clear description of and motivation for a specific research question or objective;

2) a description of the methods used to address the research question or objective;
3) a detailed presentation of results;
4) a discussion of results with comparisons made to similar studies/data/models in the literature; and
5) a conclusion chapter describing implications, new questions raised, and future directions.

If appropriate, the SM thesis may be comprised of a collection of accepted and/or submitted journal
and/or conference papers. The thesis author must be the first author on at least one of the
submitted/accepted papers. In addition to the individual papers, the thesis MUST ALSO include:

1) an introductory chapter that covers the topic in more detail than the introduction of a paper;
2) a conclusion chapter discusses of how the work impacts the field
3) an appendix which includes (as appropriate) annotated tables with raw data collected during the
experiments; more detailed description of experimental set up and methods; copy of numerical code

Checklist for Submission of Master of Science Thesis

MIT has three degree-granting cycles per year: February, June and September. Approaching the
time when you will submit your thesis, you should register to be on the appropriate degree list. To
register for the degree list go to student.mit.edu, select “online degree application” and follow the
instructions. Once registered for the degree list you will receive a detailed email from the Graduate
Administrator outlining the steps needed to complete your degree.

Submitting your Thesis to the Academic Programs Office

You are required to submit two copies of your thesis electronically to the Academic Programs Office
(cee-apo@mit.edu). The final copies must be submitted by 5 pm on the department’s deadline and
follow the electronic submission instruction which are provided by the academic administrator.
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Check with the Graduate Academic Administrator to find out the date for your degree list.

When the final thesis is submitted to the department:

o the APO will confirm receipt via email
o the final thesis will be submitted by the APO to the MIT libraries.

No substantive changes can be made to the final thesis after it is submitted to the department. Only
minor modification (e.g., replacing a single page with an incorrect figure) will be considered after
thesis is submitted to APO and prior to submitting the thesis it the MIT library. These changes must be
approved by the Graduate Officer.

Congratulations! You have finished!

We look forward to seeing you at commencement!