Material Science and Engineering MS Program
Program Mission:
The mission of the Master’s Program in Materials Science and Engineering is to prepare graduates to become highly skilled researchers, innovators, and problem-solvers who can apply advanced materials knowledge, preparation methods, state-of-the-art characterization techniques, and advanced engineering and computational approaches to tackle grand and complex challenges in research areas such as renewable energy, optoelectronics, nanotechnology, high-resolution imaging, critical minerals, biomaterials, semiconductors, and quantum technology to contribute to a sustainable and affluent society.
Program Goals:
• Education: Provide a rigorous graduate education that ensures students develop advanced knowledge and practical application of materials synthesis and processing, characterization, and computational methods.
• Research: Equip students with the skills to become innovative researchers and problem-solvers, capable of applying their knowledge to tackle complex research challenges in renewable energy, nanotechnology, biomaterials, and other strategic research areas.
• Community & Impact: Produce highly skilled graduates whose technical expertise and contributions to industry and research will help solve grand challenges and contribute to a sustainable and prosperous society.
Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs):
Knowledge and Understanding
• K1: Evaluate the fundamental and advanced principles governing structure–property relationships in materials, including crystallography, defects, phase equilibria, and microstructural evolution.
• K2: Analyze the thermodynamic, kinetic, electronic, and quantum-mechanical foundations that determine materials behavior across different classes of materials (metals, ceramics, polymers, semiconductors, nanomaterials and biomaterials).
• K3: Assess scientific and technological challenges associated with emerging applications in renewable energy, high-resolution imaging, energy security, nanotechnology, critical minerals, biomaterials, semiconductors, interfacial engineering, and quantum materials, including their broader societal and economic impacts.
Skills
• S1: Design, conduct, and critically evaluate experiments for materials synthesis, fabrication, processing, characterization, and performance testing using advanced laboratory techniques and instrumentation.
• S2: Apply computational, data-driven, and multiscale modeling tools to simulate, predict, and interpret material properties and behavior, integrating computational insights with experimental findings.
• S3: Communicate scientific arguments, technical analyses, and research outcomes effectively in oral presentations, written reports, and graphical representations for academic, industrial, and interdisciplinary audiences.
Values, Autonomy, and Responsibility
• V1: Demonstrate professional integrity and autonomy by selecting appropriate experimental, analytical, and computational methods, while clearly justifying their limitations and assumptions in a materials research project.
• V2: Evaluate the broader environmental, economic, and ethical implications of materials development and deployment, including issues related to sustainability, responsible resource use, and long-term societal impact.
• V3: Demonstrate effective collaboration and leadership within interdisciplinary teams, upholding high standards of research ethics, data stewardship, and professional conduct, while demonstrating commitment to continuous learning and development in the field of materials science and engineering.
Course Requirements
Students must complete the following requirements:
- Core courses (12 credits)
- Elective courses (12 credits)
- Research Courses (12 credits)
- Graduate Seminar (non-credit)
- Winter Enrichment Program (non-credit)
Core and Elective Courses must be technical courses and cannot be substituted with Research, Internship, or Broadening Courses to fulfill degree requirements.
Core Courses (12 credits)
Core Courses provide students with the background needed to establish a solid foundation in the program area. Students must complete 12 credits (4 Core Courses) and be aware that Core Courses may be offered only once per academic year. Students must complete 9 credits (3 Core Courses) from the list below:
| MSE 221 | Crystallography and Diffraction | 3 |
| MSE 225 | Electronic Properties of Materials | 3 |
| MSE 226 | Thermodynamics of Materials | 3 |
| MSE 227 | Applied Quantum Mechanics | 3 |
| MSE 228 | Materials Characterization | 3 |
| AP 220 | Statistical Physics | 3 |
| AP 228 | Advanced Quantum Mechanics | 3 |
| AP 230 | Condensed Matter Physics | 3 |
Students must complete 3 credits (1 Core Course) from the list below:
| MSE 200 | Mathematics for Material Science and Engineering | 3 |
| AMCS 202 | Applied Mathematics II | 3 |
| AMCS 206 | Applied Numerical Methods | 3 |
| AMCS 214 | Introduction to Analysis | 3 |
| AMCS 215 | Mathematical Foundations of Machine Learning | 3 |
| AMCS 231 | Applied Partial Differential Equations I | 3 |
| AMCS 232 | Weak Solutions of Partial Differential Equations | 3 |
| AMCS 241 | Stochastic Processes | 3 |
| AMCS 251 | Numerical Linear Algebra | 3 |
| AMCS 252 | Numerical Analysis of Differential Equations | 3 |
| AMCS 253 | Iterative Methods of Linear and Nonlinear Algebra | 3 |
| AMCS 255 | Advanced Computational Physics | 3 |
| AMCS 301 | Random PDEs - Modern Numerical Methods | 3 |
| AMCS 308 | Stochastic Numerics with Application in Simulation and Data Science | 3 |
| AMCS 331 | Applied Partial Differential Equations II | 3 |
| AMCS 332 | Introduction to Mathematical Modelling | 3 |
| AMCS 335 | Multiscale Modelling and Simulation for PDEs | 3 |
| AMCS 336 | Numerical Methods for Stochastic Differential Equations | 3 |
| AMCS 338 | Functional Analysis | 3 |
| STAT 210 | Applied Statistics and Data Analysis | 3 |
Elective Courses (12 credits)
Elective Courses allow students to tailor their educational experience to meet individual research and educational objectives. Students must complete 12 credits (4 Elective Courses) from the list below. With the consent of the Academic Advisor, 6 credits (2 Elective Courses) can be replaced with courses from the AP, AMCS, BioE, CE, Chem, CS, ECE, and ME programs.
Graduate Seminars (non-credit)
Students must register for 2 semesters MSE Graduate Seminar Courses (MSE 398) and must receive a Satisfactory (S) grade in all of them. Students must attend a minimum of 8 Graduate Seminars per semester to receive a Satisfactory (S) grade. The seminars can be chosen from any Graduate Seminar series offered by the PSE division. Details will be clarified each semester by the seminar committee chair.
Winter Enrichment Program (non-credit)
All students must complete the Winter Enrichment Program (
WE 100) for credit at least once during their studies at KAUST. Students who have previously completed WEP will be exempt from this requirement in their future studies.
MS Thesis
Students pursuing the Thesis option must complete 12 credits of Thesis Research (MSE 297).
Thesis Application
Students must secure a Thesis Advisor and must submit the Thesis application no later than by the end of week one of their third semester. A minimum of 3.2 cumulative GPA is required to apply. Students must select a KAUST Faculty member affiliated with the MSE program. A list is available on the PSE webpage. A KAUST Faculty member not affiliated with the MSE program can obtain the program’s approval to become affiliated for the specific Thesis project before the student commences the research work. To start the affiliation process, a research proposal of the project signed by the potential Thesis Advisor must be submitted to the GPSA.
Students who meet the graduation requirements of the non-thesis track may drop the thesis up until the end of their third Semester. Students not able to complete their thesis after this deadline will face academic dismissal.
Thesis Committee Formation
The MS thesis defense committee must include a minimum of three members and may have up to four members. The committee structure is outlined as follows:
| Member |
Role |
Affiliation |
| 1 |
Faculty
|
Primary affiliation within the student’s program |
| 2 |
Faculty
|
Primary affiliation within the student’s program |
| 3 |
Faculty |
Primary affiliation outside the student’s program
|
| 4 |
Faculty or Research Scientist |
Affiliation within or outside of KAUST |
Notes:
-
The committee must be approved by the Dean.
- Members 1-3 are mandatory, while member 4 is optional.
- The student’s advisor serves as the chair of the committee. If the advisor holds a primary affiliation within the student’s program, then they act as member 1. If the advisor has a secondary or one-time affiliation within the student’s program, then they act as member 3.
- The student’s co-advisor may serve as member 4.
- Adjunct Professors and Professors Emeriti may continue serving on existing Committees but may not serve as Chair on new Committees.
- Professors of Practice, Research Professors and Visiting Professors may serve as member4.
- Once approved, any changes to the committee require the approval of both the student's advisor and Dean.
Thesis Defense Results
The format of the Oral Defense is left to the discretion of the Thesis Committee. At the end of the Final Defense, students will be evaluated with one of the following outcomes:
- Pass: The Committee agrees with no more than one dissenting vote. The Thesis must be archived within two weeks of the defense, and the student must send the Thesis Result Form to the GPSA within two days of the defense.
- Pass with Conditions: All committee members must agree on the required conditions. If they cannot agree, the Dean will make the final decision. The student has up to three months to meet these conditions, unless the Committee unanimously agrees to change the deadline.
- Fail with Retake: If conditions cannot be met within three months, or more than one member casts a negative vote, one retake of the defense is allowed. The retake must occur within six months of the original defense unless the Committee unanimously agrees to a shorter timeline. If the student fails the retake, they will be dismissed from the University. The Committee Chair must immediately inform the GPSA to initiate the necessary actions.
- Fail Without Retake: The decision must be unanimous, resulting in the student’s dismissal from the University. The Committee Chair must inform the GPSA immediately to take the necessary actions.
Additional Guidelines:
- Students who have exceeded their duration of study must apply for an extension as per the Time Limit and Extension Policy. All conditions must be fulfilled by the end of the extension period, which takes precedence over the Committee’s set deadlines.
- The outcome of the Thesis Defense must be recorded by submitting the Thesis Defense Evaluation Form to the Office of the Registrar within two days of the defense.
- Additionally, students must submit the Defense Results Form by the deadline published in the Academic Calendar.
- The required forms are available on the webpage of the Office of the Registrar.
Thesis Document
Students must follow the Thesis and Dissertation Guidelines available from the KAUST Library when they write their Thesis. Once the Thesis is ready to be examined, students must determine the Defense date with the agreement of all members of the Thesis Committee.
Thesis Archiving
Students must archive the Thesis in the KAUST Library within 2 weeks from the Thesis Defense and not later than the deadline published in the Academic Calendar. A step-by-step guide to archive the Thesis is available on the MSE webpage.
MS Non-Thesis
Students pursuing the Non-Thesis option must complete a total of 12 capstone credits, including 6 credits of Directed Research (
MSE 299). The remaining 6 credits must be obtained from regular 200 or 300-level courses at KAUST. Replacing the courses with research or summer internship credits is not permitted.