Northeastern University Graduate Engineering Programs Guide

Northeastern Engineering Overview

Northeastern University’s College of Engineering stands as one of America’s most innovative and practice-oriented engineering institutions, uniquely combining rigorous academic excellence with the world’s most comprehensive cooperative education program. Founded in 1898, Northeastern has grown into an R1 top-tier research institution with 13 campuses worldwide, and its College of Engineering now enrolls over 10,037 students supported by 240+ tenured and tenure-track faculty members conducting research funded by $104 million in annual external awards.

What sets Northeastern apart from virtually every other graduate engineering program is its unwavering commitment to experiential learning. Ranked #1 in Cooperative Education and Internships by US News and World Report (2025) and #14 in Career Services by the Princeton Review (2024), Northeastern has built an educational model that ensures graduate students don’t just learn engineering theory — they practice it in real professional settings with over 2,420 employer partners before they graduate.

The College offers more than 60 graduate programs across six engineering departments, including Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy, and Graduate Certificate programs. All College of Engineering programs are STEM designated, and many are available in full-time, part-time, online, and hybrid formats across Northeastern’s expanding global campus network. Whether a student is seeking a traditional on-campus research experience in Boston or a flexible professional master’s degree delivered online, Northeastern provides pathways that accommodate diverse career goals and life circumstances.

Graduate Program Options and Flexibility

Northeastern’s graduate engineering programs are designed with exceptional flexibility to serve students at different career stages and with different professional objectives. Master of Science programs are available in coursework-only, project-based, and thesis formats, accommodating students who want to deepen practical skills as well as those preparing for research careers or doctoral study. Programs can typically be completed on either a full-time or part-time basis, with select programs offering online or hybrid delivery options.

The PhD program offers direct entry with a Bachelor of Science degree, meaning exceptional students can proceed directly to doctoral research without first completing a separate master’s program. Students who already hold a relevant master’s degree may receive advanced standing, potentially shortening their time to degree. The Experiential PhD program extends Northeastern’s co-op philosophy to doctoral education, providing internships, fellowships, practicums, and leadership opportunities with industry, government, academic, and nonprofit partners.

Graduate Certificates — nearly 20 in total — allow working professionals to develop expertise in specific technology or leadership areas without committing to a full degree program. These certificates can complement a graduate degree or, in many cases, credits earned through certificates can be applied toward an eligible Northeastern engineering master’s degree. The PlusOne Master’s Degrees program enables currently enrolled Northeastern bachelor’s students to use some undergraduate courses toward master’s requirements, potentially completing their graduate degree in just one additional year.

Department of Bioengineering

Northeastern’s Department of Bioengineering brings together 256 graduate students and 37 tenured/tenure-track faculty who collectively secured $34 million in external research awards between 2022 and 2024. The department offers the MS in Bioengineering (available full-time, full-time accelerated one-year, and part-time with select online courses), the MS in Bioengineering-Connect for students from life sciences, medicine, and non-engineering backgrounds, and the PhD in Bioengineering.

MS students can specialize in four concentration areas: Molecular, Cell, and Tissue Engineering; Biomechanics and Mechanobiology; Biomedical Devices and Bioimaging; and Systems, Synthetic, and Computational Bioengineering. The department’s research is supported by two major institutes: the Institute for Mechanobiology and the Institute for the Chemical Imaging of Living Systems. Boston’s extraordinary concentration of world-class hospitals, research institutions, and biotech companies provides unparalleled collaboration opportunities for bioengineering students and faculty. Similar interdisciplinary approaches to engineering education can be found at other top institutions — see our guide to UPenn SEAS undergraduate programs for another perspective.

Department of Chemical Engineering

The Department of Chemical Engineering serves 153 graduate students with 26 tenured/tenure-track faculty and $16 million in external research awards (2022-2024). Ranked among the top 50 graduate chemical engineering programs in the United States, the department offers the MS in Chemical Engineering with concentrations in general principles and applications, sustainability, and biosystems. The MS in Pharmaceutical Engineering is offered in coordination with the Bouvé College of Health Sciences, and a specialized MS in Artificial Intelligence with concentration in Continuous Process Engineering reflects the growing importance of AI in chemical manufacturing.

Research areas span Biomolecular and Biomedical Systems, Complex and Computational Systems, Energy and Sustainability, Engineering Education and Pedagogy, and Materials and Nanotechnology. The department’s PhD program in Chemical Engineering offers both direct BS-to-PhD entry and MS-first pathways, providing flexibility for students at different stages of their academic development.

Civil and Environmental Engineering

With 207 graduate students, 39 tenured/tenure-track faculty, and an impressive $39 million in external research awards (2022-2024), the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is one of Northeastern’s strongest research departments. The department offers six MS degree programs: Civil Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Engineering and Public Policy, Sustainability Engineering Leadership, Sustainable Building Systems, and the newly established Climate Science and Engineering program.

Civil Engineering students can specialize in Construction Management, Data and Systems, Geotechnical/Geoenvironmental Engineering, Structures, Transportation, or Water, Environmental, and Coastal Systems. The department’s strategic focus on urban engineering leverages simulation, smart sensing, data and network science, and urban informatics to address the challenges of modern cities. Research centers include the Academic Center for Reliability and Resilience of Offshore Wind (ARROW), the PROTECT Superfund Research Center, the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) initiative, and the Global Resilience Institute.

Electrical and Computer Engineering

The largest department in the College of Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering enrolls 1,004 graduate students and is supported by 90 tenured/tenure-track faculty who brought in a remarkable $137 million in external research awards between 2022 and 2024. The department offers seven MS programs: Electrical and Computer Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering Leadership, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Internet of Things, Semiconductor Engineering, and Wireless and Network Engineering. PhD programs are available in both Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering.

Research spans nine major areas including Communications, Control, and Signal Processing; Computer Networks and Security; Data Science; Computer Vision, Machine Learning and Algorithms; Electromagnetics and Optics; Microsystems and Devices; Power Electronics, Systems, and Controls; and Robotics. The department leads or partners in more than 10 research centers, including the Institute for Experiential AI, Institute for Experiential Robotics, Institute for the Wireless Internet of Things, Center for Hardware and Embedded Systems Security and Trust (CHEST), and the SENTRY center for soft target protection.

Mechanical and Industrial Engineering

The Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering is Northeastern’s largest by student enrollment, with 1,829 graduate students, 63 tenured/tenure-track faculty, and $39 million in external research awards (2022-2024). The department offers an extraordinary breadth of MS programs including Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Advanced and Intelligent Manufacturing, Artificial Intelligence, Data Analytics Engineering, Energy Systems, Engineering Management, Human Factors, Operations Research, Semiconductor Engineering, and Robotics.

Research themes encompass Mechanics; Materials of the Future; Complex Fluids, Multiphase, and Multiscale Matter; Energy Systems, Sustainability, and Environmental Protection; Robotics and Control Systems; Human Technology Integration; Biomechanics, Biotechnology Integration, and Mechanobiology; Intelligent and Additive Manufacturing; Networks and Complex Systems; and Data Analytics, AI, and Operations Research. The department’s faculty hold numerous young investigator awards and fellowships in professional societies, and the average annual research funding exceeds $10 million.

Multidisciplinary Graduate Engineering

The Department of Multidisciplinary Graduate Engineering is Northeastern’s most geographically distributed program, enrolling 2,803 graduate students across locations in Boston, Arlington VA, Miami FL, Oakland CA, Portland ME, Seattle WA, San Jose CA, Toronto, and Vancouver. With 50+ full and adjunct faculty members who are industry experts, the department offers MS programs in Cyber Physical Systems, Data Architecture and Management, Information Systems, Information Systems-Bridge (for non-technical backgrounds), Software Engineering Systems, and Telecommunication Networks.

Students can specialize in cutting-edge focus areas including Blockchain and Smart Contracts, Business Intelligence and Data Analytics, Cloud Computing, Cyber-Security Engineering, Full-Stack Software Engineering, Internet of Things, Machine Learning and Data Sciences Engineering, Medical Software Engineering, Mobile Computing, and User Experience Design. The curriculum combines technical depth with engineering leadership skills, and the department’s programs are constantly updated to reflect the latest technology trends and market demands.

Co-op and Experiential Learning

Northeastern’s cooperative education program is the crown jewel of its graduate engineering education, distinguishing it from virtually every competing institution. As one of the largest and most innovative co-op programs in the world — and one of only a few offering co-op for graduate students — the program provides up to 8 months of professional experience integrated directly into the academic curriculum.

The numbers speak for themselves: 2,420 employer partners participated in co-op hiring between AY2022 and AY2024, with 1,420 graduate student co-op hires in AY2024 alone. Perhaps most impressively, 52% of master’s students in the Class of 2022 received a full-time job offer from their co-op employer. Dedicated co-op coordinators support students through every phase of the process, from resume building and interview preparation to professional development during their work terms.

The Sherman Center for Engineering Entrepreneurship Education takes experiential learning even further with its Venture Co-op program, where students are funded while working full-time on their own startup. Faculty and students have launched spin-out companies from Northeastern lab research, and the multidisciplinary research community actively fosters the interdisciplinary collaboration that drives entrepreneurial innovation. For a comparison of how other elite universities integrate research with education, see our guide on the MIT School of Engineering.

Research and Innovation

As a Carnegie Classification R1 institution with very high research activity, Northeastern’s College of Engineering conducts research that addresses the world’s most pressing challenges in health, sustainability, and security, enabled by advances in robotics, AI, and the Internet of Things. The college supports 20 multidisciplinary research centers and universitywide institutes funded by 8 federal agencies, and its faculty have earned 141 Young Investigator Awards and 73 National Science Foundation CAREER Awards as of AY2024.

Research partnerships span industry, government, research laboratories, hospitals, and academic institutions both locally and globally. Graduate students benefit from extensive research opportunities including poster competitions, travel scholarships, research assistantships, conference presentations, and journal publications. The collaborative nature of Northeastern’s research ecosystem means that students regularly work across departmental boundaries, gaining exposure to multiple disciplines and methodologies that prepare them for the interdisciplinary challenges of modern engineering practice.

Admissions and Financial Aid

Northeastern’s graduate engineering admissions process is entirely electronic, with multiple terms of entry available throughout the year. Notably, the GRE is not required, removing a significant barrier for many prospective students. Some applicants may also be exempt from TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo English proficiency requirements. Most programs require an undergraduate degree in engineering or a closely related field, though several programs — including the Bioengineering-Connect and Information Systems-Bridge — are specifically designed for students from non-engineering backgrounds.

Full-time graduate students are automatically considered for competitive merit-based funding awards and prestigious fellowships. The Double Husky Scholarship provides Northeastern bachelor’s degree alumni with a 25% tuition waiver and an accelerated application process for engineering master’s degrees or graduate certificates. This financial support, combined with the earning potential of co-op placements, makes Northeastern graduate engineering education significantly more accessible than at many peer institutions.

The college supports more than 60 student organizations and provides a vibrant community for its diverse global student body. The PhD Network, regional and national competitions, research events, and university-wide activities ensure that graduate students have a rich social and professional experience beyond their academic work.