All prospective undergraduate students must first apply to Michigan State University. Once accepted, students interested in applying to the College of Engineering must complete a secondary admissions process. Specific admissions criteria apply in all cases.
Admission Criteria
First-Year Applicants
When you first apply to Michigan State University, you are applying to the university in general, not to a specific college or program. MSU allows all of our incoming students to declare a major in whatever they wish. Once you are enrolled at MSU, each college has different requirements to be admitted to their program.
Apply as a first-year applicant if you are currently in high school (regardless of total college credits completed while in high school) or if you have graduated from high school but haven’t enrolled at a college, university or any other school after high school.
For information regarding admission requirements for the College of Engineering, review current MSU students and transfer students detail.
You also can learn more about our programs and resources by visiting Future Undergraduate Students and First-year Engineering CoRe Experience.
Email future-engineer@egr.msu.edu or call (517) 353-7282 for additional assistance.
Current MSU Students Secondary Admission
Meet with Advisor – for Current MSU students
Current Students who declared an Engineering Preference major must meet the following criteria for admission AND apply (see link below) DURING the semester they expect to complete the requirements below. Further, students who are declared an Engineering Preference major must apply and be admitted prior to reaching 56 total credits, or they will need to change their major to a major outside the College of Engineering. Applications may still be submitted after a student earns 56 credits for students who are not currently declared an Engineering Preference major. Students who are already admitted to an Engineering major who want to change to a different Engineering major must also submit an application.
Minimum criteria for admission to all programs except Technology Engineering are:
- Completion of at least 28 credits earned after matriculation to Michigan State University.
- Completion of Mathematics (MTH) 132 and 133 with a minimum grade of 2.0 in each course.
- A minimum grade-point average of 2.0 in all mathematics courses.
- Completion of Chemistry (CEM) 141 or 151 or approved substitution or waivers.
Note: CEM 151 is requested for Chemical Engineering, and Materials Science and Engineering.
Computational Data Science and Computer Science majors are not required to fulfill this requirement.
- Completion of Physics (PHY) 183.
- Computer Science (CSE) 231 for Computer Engineering, Computer Science, and Mechanical Engineering majors only.
- Computer Science (CSE) 220 for Electrical Engineering majors only.
- Computational Math Science Engineering (CMSE) 202 for Computational Data Science majors only.
- Computational Math Science Engineering (CMSE) 201 for Materials Science and Engineering majors only.
- Engineering (EGR) 102 for Applied Engineering Sciences, Biosystems Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, and Environmental Engineering.
- Completion of Engineering (EGR) 100.
Minimum criteria for admission to the Technology Engineering program:
- Completion of at least 28 credits earned after matriculation to Michigan State University.
- Completion of Mathematics (MTH) 116 and 132 with a minimum grade of 2.0 in each course. *MTH 116 is not required if math placement is higher.
- A minimum grade-point average of 2.0 in all mathematics courses.
- Completion of Chemistry (CEM) 141 or 151 or approved substitution or waivers.
- Completion of Physics (PHY) 183 or 231.
- Completion of Engineering (EGR) 102 or Computer Science (CSE) 231.
- Completion of Engineering (EGR) 100.
Attain the specific combination (combo) GPA requirements for their declared major.
- 3.1 - Mechanical Engineering
- 3.0 - Applied Engineering Sciences, Computer Science
- 2.9 - Biosystems Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computational Data Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, and Technology Engineering.
Your cumulative GPA is an average of the grades you have received for all courses you have taken for credit at MSU. Your cumulative GPA can be found on your grade report each semester.
Your technical GPA is an average of the grades you have received for all your technical courses. Technical courses teach STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) foundation topics and are often courses taken from the College of Engineering, College of Natural Science and from Lyman Briggs College. For example, STT 351 and ENT 205 are considered technical courses that are used in calculating your technical GPA.
Courses in the colleges of Engineering and Natural Science that are NOT INCLUDED in the technical GPA include:
- Courses beginning with ISB, ISP, or NSC
- EGR 100, EGR 160, EGR 291
- MTH 1825, MTH 101, MTH 102, MTH 103A
- CSE 100, CSE 101
- LB 300 or higher courses, LB 126, LB 133, LB 181
- ME 280, ME 285, ME 300
- CE 274
Your combo GPA is the average of your cumulative GPA and your technical GPA. To calculate, add your cumulative GPA and your technical GPA, then divide by two. Your combo GPA is used for admission to the College of Engineering.
Download Excel file to aid in calculating combo GPA
IMPORTANT: Use current version of Microsoft Excel
An Example:
J. Spartan has taken the following courses with the following grades (t=technical GPA course):
Course Credits Grade Credits x Grade = Point total
| Course | Credits | Grade | Credits x Grade | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENT 205 | 3 | 3.5 | 3 x 3.5 | 10.5 |
| CEM 141 | 4 | 2.5 | 4 x 2.5 | 10 |
| CEM 161 | 1 | 3.5 | 1 x 3.5 | 3.5 |
| ISS 215 | 4 | 3.5 | 4 x 3.5 | 14 |
| MTH 132 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 x 3 | 9 |
Total: 15 cr / 47. 0 pts
- Cumulative GPA: Multiply credits by the grade for each course, add these together, and divide by the total number of credits:
- (47 pts / 15 crs) = 3.1333 gpa
- Technical GPA: Multiply credits by the grade for each technical course, add these together, and divide by the number of technical credits:
- (33 pts / 11 crs) = 3.000
- Combo GPA: Average the cumulative and technical GPAs:
- (3.1333 + 3.000 = 6.1333 / 2) = 3.0666
Note: Students should be aware that technical courses are counted twice, once in the cumulative GPA and then again in the technical GPA. Also, remember that numeric grades at MSU include 4.0, 3.5, 3.0, 2.5, 2.0, 1.5, 1.0, and 0.0, so to attain at least a 2.9000 Combined GPA, you need to earn mostly 3.0 or better grades in your courses.
The Fall 2026 application for the College of Engineering is now OPEN. Applicants will receive admission decisions via Confidential Message after the end of the fall semester.
Please note:
- Apply DURING the semester in which you expect to complete the above admission courses.
- The above admission link will become active during the sixth day of class and will be taken down after the above deadline dates.
- If the admission requirements are not met by completion of 56 credits (junior standing), the University requires changing out of the engineering major and then re-applying to the College of Engineering DURING the semester you expect to reach the admission criteria
Current MSU students apply to College of Engineering via the College Secondary Admission Application System
Due to COVID-19 and the change to remote/online learning, S/NS grades were available for Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, and Summer 2021. Per University Policy, the College of Engineering WILL use the underlying grades in Fall 2020 and Spring 2021, and Summer 2021 for all admissions GPA calculations, even if S/NS grades were selected. Underlying grades from Spring 2020 will not be used in admissions, per policy in place at that time.
Transfer Students
Transferring to Michigan State University is competitive, but all majors accept transfer students each year. Highly qualified students wishing to become a Spartan engineer are encouraged to apply! Most admission decisions will be made in late January and February, with priority usually given to early applicants. Students interested in transferring to MSU as an engineering major should contact Drew Kim or Luis Donado at (517) 353-7282 to make an appointment.
Apply as a transfer student if you have attended a postsecondary institution after graduating from high school (except attendance during the summer term immediately following graduation) OR if you have earned a bachelor’s degree at another college or university and are seeking to earn another bachelor’s degree or teaching certificate. Early/middle college or dual-enrolled students are considered first-years.
Transfer students with junior standing who entered MSU in a major other than engineering must complete at least 12 credits of Michigan State University courses to be admitted to a major in the College of Engineering. These students are then considered for admission to an engineering major based on MSU grades using the criteria for internal students.
While MSU also utilizes the Common App and Coalition for College application, transfer applications are made only through the MSU application. Additionally, there are no early-action/regular admission windows for transfer applicants; applications are evaluated as they are received by the university (rolling admission). Once an application is submitted and all application materials are received (transcripts and the application itself), transfer applicants can expect to wait eight to 12 weeks for their admission decision. Transfer students are encouraged to apply at least six months before their desired semester of enrollment.
Depending on the number of credits, Engineering prerequisites may include completing equivalents for the following courses:
- Writing: Writing as Inquiry (WRA 101)
- General Chemistry (CEM 141) and Chemistry Lab I (CEM 161)
- Exceptions: Computer Science Majors are exempted from the requirement; Chemical Engineering and Materials Science and Engineering students are required to take CEM 151. Students with CEM 141 credit need to take an exam that, if passed, would waive CEM 151. Without a passing score, students must take CEM 151 at MSU.
- Intro to Engineering Modeling (EGR 102)
- Note: Mechanical Engineering, Computer Engineering, and Computer Science students complete CSE 231. Electrical Engineer majors take CSE 220 instead. Technology Engineering students complete CSE 231 in addition to EGR 102. CSE 231 credit may cover EGR 102 credit for majors that require it.
- Calculus I (MTH 132)
- Calculus II (MTH 133) (Technology Engineering students are not required to take MTH 133.)
- Calculus III (MTH 234)
- Physics for Scientists and Engineers I (PHY 183) (Technology Engineering students may complete PHY 231)
- Physics for Scientists and Engineers Il (PHY 184) (Technology Engineering students may complete PHY 232)
For an accessible version of the chart, please view the Transfer Guide PDF.
Mechanical Engineering majors must have an overall GPA of 3.6 and 3.4 GPA in all technical courses. Computer Science, Chemical Engineering, and Material Sciences and Engineering majors must have an overall GPA of 3.4 and a 3.2 GPA in all technical courses. All other engineering majors require an overall GPA of 3.2 and a 3.0 GPA in technical coursework.
Your technical GPA is an average of the grades you have received for all technical courses. For example, MTH 132 is considered a technical course and is used in calculating your technical GPA; WRA 101 is not. Here is how to calculate your technical GPA.
Courses will be accepted according to the Transfer MSU page as well as based on grade earned. Grades lower than a “C” will not be transferrable as credit. All credit will be reviewed on a 4-point scale and grades will follow according to the grading scale that is used at the institution you completed the course at.
Your cumulative GPA is an average of the grades you have received for all courses you have taken for credit at MSU. Your cumulative GPA can be found on your grade report each semester.
Your technical GPA is an average of the grades you have received for all your technical courses. Technical courses teach STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) foundation topics and are often courses taken from the College of Engineering, College of Natural Science and from Lyman Briggs College. For example, STT 351 and ENT 205 are considered technical courses that are used in calculating your technical GPA.
Courses in the colleges of Engineering and Natural Science that are not included in the technical GPA include:
- Courses beginning with ISB, ISP, or NSC
- EGR 100, EGR 160, EGR 291
- MTH 1825, MTH 101, MTH 102, MTH 103A
- CSE 100, CSE 101
- LB 300 or higher courses, LB 126, LB 133, LB 181
- ME 280, ME 285, ME 300
- CE 274
Your combo GPA is the average of your cumulative GPA and your technical GPA. To calculate, add your cumulative GPA and your technical GPA, then divide by two. Your combo GPA is used for admission to the College of Engineering.
An Example:
J. Spartan has taken the following courses with the following grades (t=technical GPA course):
Course Credits Grade Credits x Grade = Point total
| Course | Credits | Grade | Credits x Grade | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENT 205 | 3 | 3.5 | 3 x 3.5 | 10.5 |
| CEM 141 | 4 | 2.5 | 4 x 2.5 | 10 |
| CEM 161 | 1 | 3.5 | 1 x 3.5 | 3.5 |
| ISS 215 | 4 | 3.5 | 4 x 3.5 | 14 |
| MTH 132 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 x 3 | 9 |
Total: 15 cr / 47. 0 pts
- Cumulative GPA: Multiply credits by the grade for each course, add these together, and divide by the total number of credits:
- (47 pts / 15 crs) = 3.1333 gpa
- Technical GPA: Multiply credits by the grade for each technical course, add these together, and divide by the number of technical credits:
- (33 pts / 11 crs) = 3.000
- Combo GPA: Average the cumulative and technical GPAs:
- (3.1333 + 3.000 = 6.1333 / 2) = 3.0666
Note: Students should be aware that technical courses are counted twice, once in the cumulative GPA and then again in the technical GPA. Also, remember that numeric grades at MSU include 4.0, 3.5, 3.0, 2.5, 2.0, 1.5, 1.0, and 0.0, so to attain at least a 2.9000 Combined GPA, you need to earn mostly 3.0 or better grades in your courses.
- Students transferring from two-year institutions may transfer a maximum of 60 semester credits for use toward a bachelor's degree.
- Students transferring from four-year institutions may transfer all credits that they have received.
- Note that students must earn at least 30 credits in courses given by the university in order to earn a bachelor’s degree from MSU.
Course work assigned a grade of 2.0 or higher may be recognized in transfer. Any courses taken that resulted in a grade below a 2.0 are not eligible for transfer credit. - Students with 42 or more completed credits must select a major.
- It is recommended for students majoring in Chemical Engineering to take Organic Chemistry.
- It is recommended for students majoring in Biosystems Engineering to take BS 161 equivalent.
Visit the Transfer MSU website to determine the number of credits transferrable to MSU. There are also additional resources for international transfer students.
- The MSU College of Engineering offers more than 150 scholarships to incoming first-year and transfer students each year for a total of approximately $220,800 in amounts ranging from $1,000 to $3,000.
- Note: There is no separate application form and no need to apply as scholarship decisions will be made based on your MSU application, academic merit, and financial need. Scholarship offers will be made during the first week of April.
- The following guidelines govern the selection process:
- Academic excellence is the primary criterion, but financial need is considered for some awards.
- For the past several years incoming freshmen scholarships were offered to students with minimum 32 or higher ACT composite or 1460 SAT, and 3.8 or higher HS GPA, with financial needs.