Software Engineering Master’s Programs for 2027

Class schedules are designed for employed engineers who study part time. The degree is 33 semester units of 200-level courses with a cumulative 3.0 GPA, and at least 27 of those units must be 200-level software engineering courses. The common core includes Software Systems Engineering, Enterprise Software Platforms and Data Mining. You then take two courses from one of six specializations: Enterprise Software Technologies, Cloud Computing and Virtualization, Software Systems Engineering, Data Science, Cybersecurity or Networking Software.

Approved electives add 9 units. Every student finishes with a thesis or a project, both done under an advisor. The thesis is original research on a topic its committee approves, and the project ends with a report for department review and a presentation at a department project exposition. For classified standing you need a bachelor's degree in software engineering or computer science with a 3.0 GPA. A bachelor's degree in any engineering or science discipline can earn conditionally classified standing, and you then take a series of core programming courses first.

Full-time students finish the Master of Software Engineering in 15 months, and part-time students in 27. The program rests on four thrusts: programming breadth, software engineering principles, professional development and practice. You complete Curricular Practical Training, a two-part Capstone Project in Software Engineering and an advisement course, then take at least six courses numbered SWE 240P to 259P and at least seven more numbered SWE 260P to 277P. The final examination is a technical report and an oral presentation describing your capstone project, conducted by the faculty teaching the capstone course.

You must keep a 3.0 GPA with no grade below a B-, and to stay past the first quarter you need to complete two-thirds of your programming breadth courses with a B or higher. Admission looks for a bachelor's degree or equivalent, proficiency in at least two programming languages, knowledge of algorithms and data structures, and demonstrated interest in a career as a software engineer. A design portfolio, a GitHub profile or GRE scores are optional but strongly encouraged.

All classes at George Mason University are scheduled in the late afternoon for part-time students, and the page says many students in this master's work full time. The 30 credits split into 12 core credits, 9 software engineering-related credits and 9 elective credits. The four core courses are Object-Oriented Software Specification and Construction, Software Design and Architecture, User Interface Design and Development, and Software Testing. You can put six elective credits toward a thesis with a faculty sponsor.

Applicants need a 3.00 GPA in the last 60 credits of their bachelor's degree, a one-page statement of educational and career goals and a current resume. The bachelor's degree has to include introductory programming, an object-oriented language such as Java, C++ or C#, data structures and algorithms, and machine organization. Students who lack a foundation can use the School of Computing's bridge courses, and students in the applied computer science, computer science and information technology bachelor's programs can enter through a five-year accelerated BS-MS.

Five core courses anchor this 33-credit-hour minimum degree at UT Dallas: SE 6329 Object-Oriented Software Engineering, SE 6361 Advanced Requirements Engineering, SE 6362 Advanced Software Architecture and Design, SE 6367 Software Testing, Validation and Verification, and SE 6387 Advanced Software Engineering Project. You satisfy the core with a 3.19 minimum grade point average, or a 3.0 minimum in the five core courses plus one extra approved elective. Electives total at least 18 credit hours, and at least 12 of those are 6000 or 7000 level computer science courses that could include 6 hours of thesis with a graduate advisor's approval.

Students without an undergraduate degree in computer science or software engineering complete leveling courses first: CS 5303 Computer Science I, CS 5330 Computer Science II, CS 5333 Discrete Structures, CS 5343 Algorithm Analysis and Data Structures, CS 5348 Operating Systems Concepts and SE 5354 Software Engineering. Professional experience can be considered in place of the first two, and the graduate advisor can require a diagnostic exam. Evening courses let part-time students earn the degree. You can't pursue this degree and the Computer Science MS together.

UTEP's master's is a 30-semester-credit-hour non-thesis professional program: 15 hours of required software engineering courses, 12 hours of prescribed electives in software engineering and computer science, and a 3-hour practicum. The six core courses are CS 5374 Software Construction, CS 5385 Software Requirements Engineering, CS 5386 Software Architecture and Design, CS 5387 Software Integration and V&V, CS 5388 Software Project Management and CS 5389 Software Engineering Practicum, and you need a B average or better in them, with no more than one C. You can instead take the secure cyber-systems track, which adds CS 5352 Computer Security to the core and three electives from a list that includes Computer Networks and Software Reverse Engineering.

Applicants need a bachelor's degree in any field of science or engineering, and students without the background can be assigned undergraduate leveling courses that do not count toward the degree. The application asks for a personal statement and letters of recommendation. The curriculum was developed around the needs of the Department of Homeland Security and the National Cyber Security Division.

The thesis route at Cleveland State takes 30 credit hours: 24 of coursework and 6 of thesis. The non-thesis route takes 32, made up of 30 hours of coursework and 2 credit hours of Software Engineering Project (CIS 638). The department encourages the thesis option for anyone heading toward a doctoral degree. Courses in the Master of Science in Software Engineering cover software design, architecture, quality assurance and software project management, and the course structure accommodates both full-time and part-time learners.

The program emphasizes hands-on projects and collaboration with industry partners, and students work on real-world problems, often through partnerships with local industry. The department lists research areas in software engineering, programming and operating systems. A limited number of graduate assistantships are available each year through the Department of Computer Science and the Washkewicz College of Engineering, and you apply with a form. Employers the department names for graduates include Hyland Software, Progressive Insurance, Cleveland Clinic, Keybank and Sherwin-Williams.

You can finish Kennesaw State University's software engineering master's in one to two years. It is 30 credit hours, offered face-to-face, in a hybrid setting or fully online, with full-time and part-time options and evening classes among the schedules. Entry terms are fall, spring and summer. Admission asks for a bachelor's degree with a minimum GPA of 2.75 from a regionally accredited college or university, official transcripts from each school you attended, and a resume or professional vitae.

Fundamental knowledge of the field has to show up through relevant coursework, foundation courses or foundation modules, and students from outside computing can be assigned up to four foundation courses. Coursework covers web, mobile and cloud software through analysis, design and architecture, system verification and data management. Listed job titles for graduates include DevOps engineer, agile scrum master, software project manager and solution architect.

Every candidate in this master's program writes a thesis proposal. Once the faculty supervisor, the graduate coordinator and the department chair approve it, it becomes a contract between you and the department about the work to be done. The culminating 6 units are Directed Graduate Research and Thesis, and you defend or present the results before a three-member committee. The 30 units include five breadth courses chosen from Software Requirements Analysis and Specification, Software Engineering Management, Software Verification and Validation, Software Metrics, Advanced Topics in Software Engineering and Software Architecture and Design.

Nine elective units come from one software engineering elective (Advanced Web Engineering, Graphical User Interfaces, Object-Oriented Software Development, or a breadth course you didn't use) and two computer science courses at the 400, 500 or 600 level. Every course needs a C or better, and none can be more than 7 years old when you finish. Fully classified status takes any required prerequisite undergraduate material and a 3.0 GPA in your conditionally classified work.

You can enter Northeastern's program in the fall or spring and finish in two years, part time or full time, on the ground at the Arlington, Boston or Toronto campus. The Master of Science in Software Engineering Systems approaches software development from the analytical and methodological perspective of an engineer. You build advanced design and engineering skills, cloud computing knowledge and machine learning algorithms. Courses cover data management, advanced data management, business intelligence, column databases, data science and Big Data engineering, and the list includes advanced data science and cloud computing.

You also get advanced functional programming in Scala and multithread concurrent computing. A paired option adds a 16-semester hour Graduate Certificate in Engineering Leadership through the Gordon Institute of Engineering Leadership, with an industry-based challenge project, and you must be admitted to the Gordon Institute to take that path. Applicants submit two letters of recommendation and transcripts from all institutions attended. The program meets F-1 visa requirements. Estimated total tuition is $63,264 at academic year 2026-2027 rates.

Four optional specializations, Gaming, Robotics Software, Software Project Management and Data Mining, come beyond the core at the University of Houston-Clear Lake. The coursework addresses the foundations, methodologies and tools used in the management, planning, design and engineering of software systems, and each core area of software engineering has its own set of core and extended courses. You finish with either the capstone option or the thesis option. The degree runs in a traditional face-to-face classroom setting and fully online.

Admission asks for a 3.0 GPA and a bachelor's degree in computer science or another computing-related or engineering field, though applicants with other degrees can qualify with evidence of significant work experience in software development. You also need foundation courses: Data Structures and at least two other programming classes, such as C, C++, Java or Object Oriented Programming. GRE scores are not required. The program balances theory and practice, and the page says you are best prepared with an undergraduate degree in computer science.

Finishing this degree on your own timeline is possible at North Dakota State University, which offers the Master of Software Engineering online as well as on campus. The program goes past programming to a full, disciplined approach to software development and lifecycle management, from requirements gathering and design to testing, maintenance and project management. The curriculum builds skills in software design, software testing, project planning and more, with a strong emphasis on methodologies, tools and real-world application.

Advanced coursework is paired with hands-on experience, and you can collaborate with researchers on pressing problems in the field. Three graduate certificates sit alongside the degree, each on campus or online: building software projects, fundamentals of software engineering, and management of software engineering projects. Various departments offer graduate assistantships to help cover costs, and each student works with a dedicated academic advisor on a personalized plan.

Mercer University is a private nonprofit school in Macon, Georgia, with an enrollment of 9,196.

It admits 69 percent of applicants and reports a six-year graduation rate of 70 percent. Those figures describe the university as a whole, not the software engineering master's program.

For most students the master's ends in a team thesis project: SE 598 covers project analysis and design, SE 599 covers implementation and evaluation, and together they carry six of the 36 credit hours. Some projects are done with local firms. Before that you take 12 credits of fundamentals (Mathematics for Software Engineering, Introduction to Software Development, Formal Methods and Models, and Requirements Analysis and Software Specification), then courses in software design, software project management and software security, plus three electives.

The University of Scranton runs the program on campus over about two years, and each student works with a faculty mentor on academic planning. Tuition is $965 per credit hour, an estimated $34,740 before fees. Applicants need a bachelor's degree (computer science is preferred, not required) and knowledge equivalent to undergraduate courses in object-oriented programming, operating systems, discrete mathematics, data structures, file processing and database systems. The standard is a 3.0 undergraduate GPA, and applicants below it can be required to submit a GRE or GMAT score. You also send one letter of recommendation, a resume and a personal statement.

Thirty-three credits make up the on-campus M.S. in Software Engineering at NJIT, which sits in the Ying Wu College of Computing. The stated aim is in-depth knowledge of the entire lifecycle of software projects, along with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills to integrate quickly into software companies or businesses that develop in-house software.

You learn to analyze a problem and define the software requirements for its solution, design, implement and evaluate software projects, and show skill in the design of algorithms and programs. You also work in groups on real-life software projects and present project outcomes in written and oral form.

This Professional Science Master's is fully online and built for people already working in computing. You should have two years of computing work experience after your undergraduate degree, or be employed full time with a U.S. based organization. Applicants without the experience can still be admitted if they complete a full-time internship during the program, not counting the capstone project. The curriculum integrates 20 percent of MBA courses, so you pick up management skills alongside the software engineering, and prior industry knowledge and experience is considered for credit.

Faculty hold terminal degrees and have industrial experience in software engineering, and an industry advisory board reviews the program regularly. The GRE requirement can be waived with two years of recent full-time professional computing experience or a prior graduate degree from an accredited institution. International applicants need a TOEFL score of 100 for unconditional admission. The application asks for transcripts, a statement of intent, a resume and three recommendations.

This Master of Science in Software Engineering (MS SE) runs online through WSU's Global Campus and comes to 30 credits, which you can finish in under two years on a full-time course load. Working professionals can go part time. The courses are designed and taught by faculty in the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, including experts in computer science, data science, software maintenance and evolution, software testing and security.

Coursework covers design, development, validation, maintenance, reuse, management and security of software products, along with the tools, methods and techniques used in modern software engineering practice. You also pick up the managerial and leadership skills needed to advance in the industry. Graduates can pursue careers as software developer, software engineer, requirements engineer, quality assurance engineer or project manager. Your application needs a statement of purpose, three letters of recommendation and transcripts. International applicants face a minimum TOEFL score of 93.

Cincinnati's software engineering master's is a Master of Engineering degree offered through the College of Engineering and Applied Science.

It aims to give you a deeper understanding of software engineering and familiarity with major areas: requirements engineering, software testing, large-scale software development, and embedded and cyber-physical systems engineering. The program page points to applications across engineering, mathematics, the sciences, social sciences and bioinformatics.

The master's-level software engineering listing at Concordia University-Wisconsin belongs to a private nonprofit university in Mequon with 5,253 students.

The university admits 78% of applicants, and its six-year graduation rate is 68%. Those are institution-wide figures, so read them as a description of the school rather than of this degree.

The University of Minnesota's MSSE is built for people who work while they study. You attend one all-day visit to campus per week, rotating between Fridays and Saturdays, and classes begin at 8:00am and end between 4:00pm and 5:00pm.

Each fall, four class sessions form a Professional Seminar Series where subject matter experts share research findings and insights. The final semester is electives, and the cohort votes on which are offered.

Melbourne, Florida, is home to the master's software engineering listing for Florida Institute of Technology. The university is a private nonprofit with 8,992 students, a six-year graduation rate of 64% and an admit rate of 58%.

The same university also has a bachelor's degree in software engineering, with undergraduate tuition of $44,620.

Three semesters is the baseline for the Master of Software Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, for a full-time student with no prerequisite coursework to make up. Part-time study, if the program approves it, or an individual plan of coursework, research or capstone project can stretch that. The curriculum pairs technical skills with software project management, and the course list includes CS 744 Software Project Management and CS 745 Software Modeling, Analysis, and Verification.

Other courses cover secure software development and advances in software engineering, such as risk analysis, software architectures and software metrics. In Software Design IV, students work in teams to build a medium-scale software product of 2000 to 5000 lines. The Software Development Project is a major project that ends in a written report and an oral examination by the Project Evaluation Committee. A one-credit Software Development Internship requires nine MSE credits and a 3.5 or higher GPA, and it does not count toward the degree.