Admission Requirements

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Note: The program does not accept students residing in the following US States: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Oregon, and Wyoming.

The admission requirements for the MSSE Degree Program are as follows:

• A STEM-focused bachelor’s degree from a fully accredited institution.
• Good standing at the last institution attended.
• A grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.5 on the last degree completed or at least 2.5 in the last 60 semester (90 quarter) units attempted.

Depending on the type of the undergraduate degree held, the applicants may be admitted with either a classified or conditional admission status:

• Classified Admission: In order to be admitted with a classified status, the applicant must meet all general admission requirements and hold a bachelor’s degree in a STEM field.
• Conditional Admission: Applicants holding bachelor’s degrees in the fields not related to STEM may be considered for a conditional admission and may have to fulfill additional requirements before they attain a classified status. These additional requirements will be determined by evaluating applicant’s transcripts and work-related experience. The student must earn a minimum grade point average of 3.0 during the first semester of attendance.

Admission Procedures

The following materials are required for admission review by the submission deadline: Please note that the cut-off dates for Admission to the Fall Term is June 1. Applications are not accepted for the Spring or Summer Terms. 

Please note: do not be confused by the Admissions Office dates; the dates they state apply for on-campus courses only. Internet Terms are not the same as the on-campus terms. The applicant must have been accepted to the university before the first class meeting in order to be considered a graduate student in the MSSE program rather than an open enrollment student or a College of Continuing and Professional Education student. Students accepted after the first class meeting will not be able to enroll in courses, and their acceptance will be revoked for non-attendance by the Admissions Office. At this point you will need to re-apply with a new application for the next term.

• Apply via Cal State Apply ►
  (Need help? Watch the  CSU Apply Overview Video below to see how!)

• Contact your previous college(s) to request official transcripts.
  Applicants must provide 1 official transcript from each post-secondary institution attended (post-baccalaureate course work included) be sent to the Admissions and Records Department at CSUDH at admissions@csudh.edu. If the institution providing the transcript can only mail the transcript, mail it to:

  MSSE Program Office
  College of Continuing and Professional Education
  California State University, Dominguez Hills
  1000 E. Victoria St.
  Carson, CA 90747

After an application has been successfully submitted, notifications from the CSUDH Office of Admissions & Records will be sent with instructions for logging in to the MyCSUDH portal and learning how to track your application status.

Special Instructions Regarding Transcripts

• If you are applying and have used other names on your transcripts be sure to include a list with your current name (as on the application) and include all names on your transcripts so that we can group the transcripts when presenting them to the Admissions and Records office with the prospective student’s application ID number.

• Transcripts that have been faxed, accidentally opened, or are unofficial/student copies are NOT acceptable. Compilation-style transcripts (such as those from University of New York Regents, Thomas Edison State College, or similar programs) are not sufficient for evaluation because these schools tend to delete pertinent academic information from the student's records. Therefore, individual transcripts from ALL schools are required.

• International Students: See special instructions below regarding transcript submission.

International Student Admission

Students residing in foreign countries:
READ THIS CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU APPLY – IT MAY DETERMINE YOUR ELIGIBILITY:

English Proficiency

Graduate applicants, regardless of citizenship, who do not possess a bachelor's degree from a postsecondary institution where English is the principal language of instruction or who have not attended schools at the secondary level or above for at least three years full-time where English is the principal language of instruction must present one of the following:

• A minimum score of 80 on the internet-based TOEFL exam (iBT)
• A minimum score of 213 on the computer-based TOEFL exam
• A score of 6.5 or higher on the IELTS Academic Test
• A score of 105 or higher on the Duolingo English Test (DET)
• A score of 53 or higher on the Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic

Graduate applicants who have met all admission requirements except English Proficiency may apply for conditional admission through the CSUDH American Language and Culture Program (ALCP). Once they have improved their English skills and pass TOEFL/IELTS OR qualify for an ALCP English Proficiency Waiver, they can start their degree program.

Duolingo English Test (DET) is accepted by CSUDH to measure English proficiency. Before taking the exam, please select "CSUDH" in the dropdown list of institutions in order to have your results shared with us. If you've already taken the exam, please provide us with a copy of the Duolingo results with the URL printed at the bottom and request for Duolingo to share your results with CSUDH.

Students Educated Outside of the United States

Students who attended institutions outside the U.S. must have earned an undergraduate degree, which has equivalency to a four-year degree program in an accredited U.S. institution.

International Transcript and Credential Evaluation Services

The Admissions Office requires official transcripts from all previously attended institutions. If the transcripts are in a language other than English, they will need to be translated by a certified translator.

Note: If you are a student from outside of the United States, please apply to the program as an "Internet Student," not an "International Student."

The GRE, GMAT or other entrance exams are not required.