Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus

Engineering

PhD/ScD Mechanical Engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States

Programme overview

The highest academic degree is the Doctor of Science, or Doctor of Philosophy (the two differ only in name). This degree is awarded upon the completion of a program of advanced study, and the performance of significant original research, design, or development. Doctoral degrees are offered in all areas represented by the department's faculty.

Department: Mechanical Engineering  |  Study mode: full-time  |  Location: Cambridge, MA, United States

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

Department-level graduate admission text (applies to the department's graduate programmes): Applications to the mechanical engineering graduate program are accepted from persons who have completed, or will have completed by the time they arrive, a bachelor's degree if they are applying for a master's degree, or a master's degree if they are applying for a PhD. Most incoming students have a degree in mechanical engineering or ocean engineering, or some related branch of engineering. The department's admission criteria are not specific, however, and capable students with backgrounds in different branches of engineering or in science may gain entry.

USD 66,720 a year (2026-27). Standard MIT graduate tuition for 2026-27, 9-month academic year ($33,360 per fall/spring term; the 12-month figure including the summer session is $89,775). Same rate for all graduate students; excludes the $420 fee, health insurance, housing and living Source

Graduate applications are made to individual departments, which run their own admissions processes and timelines; online applications open in early fall and most deadlines fall around the end of the fall semester.

Graduate deadlines vary by department; most departments use the unified portal at apply.mit.edu/apply. Fee waiver requests are due November 18 for programmes with a December 1 deadline, December 1 for deadlines of December 15-23, and December 15 for deadlines in January or later. Funding offers are honoured until April 15.

Apply through the official page: https://oge.mit.edu/graduate-admissions/

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