Admission is competitive among students who fulfill admission requirements for graduate study at the Computer Science Department of George Mason University.

Students seeking admission to the MS in Software Engineering program must satisfy the following requirements:

  • Hold a four-year (120-credit) baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution
  • Have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 for the last two years of undergraduate work (60 credits)
  • Submit transcripts of all post-secondary education
    • Unofficial copies of transcripts are acceptable for application review. However, upon admission, applicants will need to provide official transcripts before enrolling in the program.
  • A one-page goals statement, and a work résumé
    • Your goals statement should be one to two pages, including a statement of career goals.
  • The MS in Software Engineering program does not require letters of recommendation.
  • Complete the self-evaluation section of the online application
    • This information is used by the admissions committee to assess an applicant’s academic preparation for the MS program. In some cases, students with deficiencies in preparation may be admitted provisionally. See “Foundation Requirements” below for more information.
  • Submit an official GRE General Test score report
    • The GRE requirement is waived for all applicants through Spring 2024 onwards
  • TOEFL or IELTS is required of all applicants whose native language is not English, and who have not received a degree from a university in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, or New Zealand.
    • Required TOEFL iBT score: 80 points total overall with no section minimum
    • Required IELTS score: 6.5 overall

Foundation Requirements

To ensure that students have an adequate background in mathematical methods and computer science, the program requires the following four foundation courses, or their equivalents:

  • INFS 501 Discrete and Logical Structures for Information Systems
  • INFS 515 Computer Organization
  • INFS 519 Program Design and Data Structures
  • SWE 510 Object Oriented Programming in Java

Prospective students are asked to indicate on their application if previously taken courses may satisfy these foundation requirements. Provisional admission is offered if a student has some deficiencies in preparation, but is otherwise a strong applicant. (Note: Due to federal requirements, students on F1/J1 visas are not eligible for provisional admission.) In such cases, students are advised of the necessary foundation courses to be satisfactorily completed with a grade of B or better before beginning the core curriculum. Foundation courses do not earn credit toward the MS degree.

Students have one opportunity to test out of their required foundation courses before beginning their first semester. The exams are given before classes begin in January and August and may only be taken once. Students failing any one of the exams must take the equivalent course before enrolling in the core curriculum courses.

More information regarding the foundation courses and test out exams can be found on this page.