Graduation Requirements

The page listed here are only summarizes information for completing the MSET degree. For further information on any of the policies, please refer to the SJSU Graduate Student Guide and ESSC Graduation from Graduate Programs.

Brief Outline of Steps to Completing MSET Degree

• If you are Conditionally Classified Standing, schedule an appointment or email our Graduate Program Advisor for the more information on the Transition Courses to take and forms to fill. Complete these Transition Courses should be priotize over the degree courses.
• Maintain a minimum grade point average of a 3.0 ("B") in the courses listed on your candidacy form, and an overall cumulative grade point average of a 3.0.
  • If GPA in one semester drops below 3.0, you will be put on Probation.
  • If two consecutive semesters of below 3.0 GPA, you will be Disqualified from the University. Disqualified means you are no longer a matriculated student at SJSU. You need to work with your advisor to develop a Program of Study, take 2 courses with the approval of your Graduate Program Advisor, earn B+ or higher grades to improve your GPA. Then, REAPPLY to the program, like starting from the beginning.
• Satisfy the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR) requirement. Graduate students may satisfy the GWAR in one of three ways:
  • Satisfactory completion of TECH 200 course.
  • Approval by the College of Graduate Studies of a professional publication written in English for which the candidate was a primary author.
  • Completion of a master’s or doctoral program with a substantive writing requirement at an accredited university in which the primary language of instruction is English unless a department requires additional documentation of writing proficiency.
• Meet with our Graduate Program Advisor every semester to review your courses plan, so you can register for your next semester classes.
• Successfully completing a minimum of 12 graduate units, with a minimum grade point average of 3.0, and satisfied the university GWAR is the prerequisite for filing an Admission to Candidacy. Meet with our Graduate Program Advisor for more information on how to proceed.
• File a Petition for Advancement to Graduate Candidacy Form [pdf]. This form is a prerequisite for your Verification of Culminating Experience Form which is either one year long TECH 299 (Thesis) OR 295A and 295B (Project).
  • As mentioned in the SJSU Culminating Experience, your Graduate Program Advisor role is to "submit the Verification of Culminating Experience Form [pdf] on your behalf at the end of the semester for which you intend to graduate. However, it is the responsibility of the student to confirm the use of the form in conjunction with their program and ensure the form has been submitted to the GAPE Office."
  • Here are some helpful guides for MSET Thesis and Project:
    • MSET Guide Book 23-24 [docx] (Thesis and Project)
    • Thesis and Dissertation Information (Thesis)
• Complete the courses listed on your Advancement to Candidacy Form.
• Apply for graduation. See GAPE Online Graduation Application Instructions [pdf] and a video tutorial.
• Complete all the required MSET courses within the seven years limit. If you took courses outside the 7 years, you need to have those course
  "Recertified" and "Retake".