Northeastern University

• ResumeRequired

  Include your resume. (Graduate program page: 'Resumé'.)

• Two letters of recommendation2 letters

  Letters of recommendation may be either academic or professional in nature but should be from individuals familiar with technical, professional, and personal qualifications. The graduate program page lists 'Two letters of recommendation' under Admissions requirements.

  Two letters of recommendation are required. Letters of recommendation may be either academic or professional in nature but should be from individuals familiar with technical, professional, and personal qualifications.

• GRE (optional)Optional

  Northeastern University is GRE test-optional and does not require applicants to submit standardized testing to be considered for admission. If you decide to self-report the GRE on your application, it will be considered as part of the admissions review process, and you will need to submit official verified test scores to complete your application file.

• Duolingo English Test, IELTS or TOEFLIf your degree wasn't taught in EnglishRequired — waiver possible

  Duolingo English Test: Minimum Score Requirement: Duolingo: 105. Upon completion of the test, select College of Engineering at Northeastern University to receive your scores. Required of non-U.S. citizens and non-U.S. permanent residents who do not meet the college's waiver criteria; any one of TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo.

  IELTS: Minimum Score Requirement: IELTS 6.5 overall. Have official scores sent directly from the testing center to Northeastern University. Required of non-U.S. citizens and non-U.S. permanent residents who do not meet the college's waiver criteria; any one of TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo.

  TOEFL: Minimum Score Requirement: TOEFL 79 overall (or 4.0 on the iBT 2026 scale). TOEFL iBT and TOEFL Home Edition are acceptable. Send scores via ETS, institution code 3665; no department code is needed. Required of non-U.S. citizens and non-U.S. permanent residents who do not meet the college's waiver criteria; any one of TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo.

  Waiver / exemption: Applicants are exempt from the TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo exam requirement if they are citizens of, hold, or will hold a degree from an accredited institution located in Anguilla, Antigua, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Canada (except Quebec), Cayman Islands, Dominica, Ghana, Grenada, Greenland, Guyana, Ireland, Jamaica, Kenya, Liberia, New Zealand, Nigeria, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, South Africa, Tanzania, Tobago, Trinidad, Turks and Caicos Islands, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States of America, US Virgin Islands, Zambia, or Zimbabwe; or if they hold or will hold a complete bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree from an accredited institution and English is the only language of instruction for the entirety of the program (you may be asked to provide official documentation from your institution that states that English is the only medium of instruction).

• PTE Academic not listedIf your degree wasn't taught in EnglishNot accepted

  Not listed: the College of Engineering names TOEFL, IELTS, and/or Duolingo scores (the graduate program page: 'TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo for international applicants'). The university's international page mentions PTE in general but says exams accepted vary by college.

Who can apply

• Bachelor's degree backgroundRequired

  To be eligible for admission to any of the MS degree programs, a prospective student must hold a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering, science, mathematics, statistics, or an equivalent field. The College of Engineering's non-engineering backgrounds page adds: Applicants who hold a Bachelor's degree in any of the following fields are academically qualified for admissions consideration: Applied mathematics, mathematics, statistics, physics, chemistry, computer science, or quantitative business (e.g. economics, finance, information systems).