Artificial Intelligence (M.S.)

Application Process

Michigan State University uses a decentralized admissions process for graduate studies. Visit the College of Engineering Graduate Admissions page for details on the overall process.

Enrollment in the Artificial Intelligence Master of Science program is limited. The application for admission, application fee, and all the required supporting documents should be received at least one month prior to your desired semester of enrollment (see the deadlines below). All outstanding applicants are automatically considered for graduate assistantships (teaching and research) and fellowships.

Applicants with Fellowships/Scholarships

If you have an external fellowship or scholarship of some kind, please specify what you have applied for in the "Other Information" tab in the application. You can specify any external support you have or have applied for in the Financial Aid section.
There are three main steps you must follow to complete your application.

1. Complete the Online MSU Application for Graduate Studies.
   • On the "Other Information" tab in the application, there is a question for "Major Preference". The majors are organized by College. The Artificial Intelligence major is within the College of Engineering. You need to scroll down about halfway through the long list to find our majors. In the future, the application will have a text search box which will take you to the major name more quickly. 
   • Enter information for references who will then be asked to submit letters of recommendation using the References tab in the application.
     • You need 3 references.
     • Ideally, at least two references should be college faculty who know you well.
     • You can complete this step prior to submitting your MSU graduate application. You are strongly encouraged to do so to give your references more time to complete their letters.
   • Upload your full academic and personal statements in the Other Information tab. Please follow the guidelines below when completing your statements.
     • Statement of Purpose
     • Enter relevant test scores in the Test Scores tab. The only required test score is a test score for English language proficiency for international applicants whose native language is not English. Visit the MSU Graduate School English Language Competency for information. Note that some applicants may be able to waive the English language proficiency requirement due to a variety of reasons. In the application, if you feel might meet the conditions for waiving the English language proficiency requirement, please describe why and enter supporting information in the "ELP Waiver" tab section.
   • The general GRE test is highly recommended but not required. Note that different faculty weigh GRE scores differently, and we do not use GRE scores to eliminate any applicants from consideration.
   • For review purposes only, upload PDF copies of your test score results in the portal that you will access after officially submitting your application.
   • Have your official test scores sent directly to MSU using the codes below. Electronic submissions of test scores can be sent directly from the testing authority to admis@msu.edu. Please note that test scores sent directly from the applicant will not be accepted.
     • GRE and TOEFL Institution Code for Michigan State University -- 1465
     • GRE Department and Major Field Code for Computer Science -- 0402
     • TOEFL Department Code for Computer Science -- 78
   • Feel free to skip the Employment and Activities tabs. Just make sure to upload your CV later in the portal.
   • Be sure to enter each college or university you attended in the Academic History tab. For each institution, you will need to have official transcripts sent to MSU. Also, please do enter your Grade Point Average (GPA) in the corresponding text boxes.
   • International applicants will see a tab labeled "Financial Support". Use this tab to specify any dependents who would accompany you if you do enroll at MSU. You can also fill out the full affidavit of support information in case you are not awarded any support from MSU, but you can fill out this information later after admission.
2. After submitting your application, pay the application fee.
3. After paying the application fee, upload additional materials into the application portal.
   • Transcripts and Degree Certificates
     • Unofficial transcript for review
       • For review purposes only, you must upload an unofficial transcript of all college work (undergraduate and graduate) in the graduate student portal.
       • For this uploaded unofficial transcript, do NOT upload a secure transcript. This complicates review of your application as our program will not be able to automatically concatenate all the uploaded files into a convenient PDF. Just upload an unofficial transcript in regular PDF format with no security features.
       • Please ensure that you include the back side of one transcript page (this back side often includes critical rating/scale information); no need for more than one back side page.
   • Official transcript(s) and degree certificate(s) for admission
     • We also will need official transcripts for admission. The documents needed depend on the following scenarios:
       • You will have received a Bachelor's degree (or Master's degree) prior to April 15 for Fall applications or August 15 for Spring applications.
         • In this case, you must arrange for delivery of official transcripts and proof that you have received your degree before you can be admitted to our graduate programs. This proof might be your official transcript if it includes language that your degree has been conferred. For international students especially, this proof often is in the form of a certificate. You must submit both an English language certificate plus an original language certificate. These documents must be sent directly from your institution to MSU
     • You will NOT have received a Bachelor's degree prior to April 15 for Fall applications or August 15 for Spring applications.
       • In this case, you must arrange for delivery of official transcript(s) directly from the institution(s) to MSU.
     • All official documents must be sent directly from each university in a sealed envelope. These documents should be sent to the following address:
       • Office of Admissions 
         Michigan State University 
         Hannah Administration Building 
         426 Auditorium Road, Room 250 
         East Lansing, MI 48824 
         U.S.A.
   • If you are applying for admission in fall semester and will graduate in December, please submit the unofficial transcript online as early as possible but wait to submit your official transcript and certificate until it reflects that you have graduated as MSU will require these documents before processing your admission and giving you an I-20 if you are an international applicant.
   • In general, applicants should have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale.
   • Upload your CV or resume, CV preferred.
   • Upload any published papers (optional).

Admission decisions are based on your overall record including grades, academic background, research experience and previous publications, test scores (GRE, TOEFL), letters of recommendation, work experience, and other information. Weaknesses in one area (e.g. test scores) may be compensated by strengths in another area (grades or previous research experience).

Application Deadlines

Spring

December 15th - Application acceptance closing date for both domestic and international applicants 

Fall

March 31 -  Application acceptance closing date for both domestic and international applicants 

We continue to accept complete applications after these deadlines, but there is no guarantee a late application will receive full consideration.

Transfer Applicants

If you are not a current Michigan State University student, Michigan State University does not have a separate transfer application to either the Masters or Doctoral program. You must submit a complete application to our program. If admitted to our Master’s program, the maximum number of credits you can transfer is 9 credits which means you would still need to take a minimum of 21 credits at Michigan State University. Approval of transfer credits is subject to the approval of the Graduate Director and will be evaluated after admission decisions are made.

If you are a current Michigan State University student enrolled in a different graduate degree program, you should send the following materials to CSE.graduate.studies@msu.edu:

•  CV which includes a summary of your GRE scores and TOEFL scores if you are an international student
• Transcripts from previous universities (unofficial copies ok, but we will verify against originals held by your current department) as well as an unofficial transcript from MSU
• Personal Statement
• Academic Statement
• Contact information for three references who will be asked to provide recommendation letters.

Requirements for Graduate Program in MS in AI

For admission in the MS in Artificial Intelligence program, students must have a strong background in programming, mathematics and statistics. Students are expected to have a degree in STEM or related field with experience in Computer programming (e.g., CSE 231 and CSE 232) and algorithms (e.g., CSE 331), Linear Algebra (e.g.,MTH 314), Probability and Statistics (STT 441) and Multivariable Calculus (e.g., MTH 234).