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Admission Requirements

Master of Science in Software Engineering

Prospective students who are already familiar with the Master of Science in Software Engineering and who wish to proceed with the admission process, please apply online through RIT's Grad Enrollment office.

We recognize that there are two large groups of individuals who may be interested in an advanced software engineering degree. The first group consists of professionals without a formal baccalaureate degree in computing but who may otherwise have sufficient experience (3 years or more) developing software professionally. The second group includes recent graduates from accredited baccalaureate computing degree programs who have at least one year of software development experience.

The program's admission requirements are as follows:

  • Prospective students with a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution must have a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher. Prospective students from institutions that do not use the GPA scale are expected to demonstrate an equivalent level of academic accomplishment. Formal academic background in software engineering, computer science, or computer engineering is a plus.
  • All students will be required to submit transcripts documenting their undergraduate studies.
  • A Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score of at least 570 on the paper-based test, 230 on the computer-based test, or 88 on the Internet-based test is required for all applicants for whom English is not their native language.
  • International applicants must provide Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores. Domestic students are encouraged to provide GRE scores.
  • Professional experience developing software is preferred, but not required. Student's without prior experience may need additional bridge coursework, and increased time to graduation.
  • All applicants must submit a short professional essay (1-4 pages) describing their current job (if any), relevant experience, and career plans.
  • All applicants must submit a current resume, which should include a description of significant software projects in which they have participated.
  • All applicants must provide 2 letters of recommendation

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Based on our evaluation of academic and relevant experience, some applicants may be required to successfully complete (with a grade of B or better) some or all of the following bridge courses. Successful completion of bridge courses is necessary for registration in graduate-level courses.

4010-361 Introduction to software engineering Required
4010-362 Engineering of software subsystems Required
4010-555 Software requirements and specification Required
One of the following courses
4010-441 Principles of concurrent software systems
4010-442 Principles of distributed software systems
4010-443 Principles of information systems design
4010-549 An eligible software design seminar course

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