Admission to Major

Students must have a cumulative Ohio State GPA of 2.0 or better, be enrolled in an engineering/computer science major or pre-major, and meet the criteria for each major choice by the end of the semester in which they are applying.

• Aerospace Engineering - Calculus II; Fundamentals of Engineering; Physics I; and enrollment in the aerospace or mechanical pre-major
• Biomedical Engineering - Calculus II; Fundamentals of Engineering; either Chemistry II or both Chemistry I and Physics I; and enrollment in the biomedical pre-major
• Chemical Engineering - Calculus II; Fundamentals of Engineering; and either Chemistry II or both Chemistry I and Physics I
• Civil Engineering - Calculus II, Fundamentals of Engineering, and one of Chemistry I or Physics I
• Computer Science - Calculus I; CSE 2221 (grade of C or better); enrollment in a computer science pre-major; and
  • CSE option - Calculus II; and Fundamentals of Engineering*
    • *CIS pre-majors applying to the CSE option will not be required to meet the Fundamentals of Engineering criteria. However, if admitted to CSE, students are expect to complete ENGR 1181/1182 during their first year in the major.
  • CIS BA option - GE Foundations: Writing and Information Literacy
  • CIS BS option - Physics I; and GE Foundations: Writing and Information Literacy
  • Learn about the different computer science options at Ohio State.
• Electrical and Computer Engineering - Calculus II, Fundamentals of Engineering, and one of Chemistry I, Physics I, or CSE 2221
• Engineering Physics - Calculus II, Fundamentals of Engineering, and Physics II (grade of C+ or better)
• Environmental Engineering - Calculus II, Fundamentals of Engineering, and one of Chemistry I or Physics I
• Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering -  No additional criteria prior to applying to this major
• Industrial and Systems Engineering - No additional criteria prior to applying to this major
• Materials Science and Engineering - No additional criteria prior to applying to this major
• Mechanical Engineering - Calculus II; Fundamentals of Engineering; Physics I; and enrollment in the aerospace or mechanical pre-major
• Welding Engineering - No additional criteria prior to applying to this major

Students are eligible to apply to different majors based on completion of the program requirements. Find which majors you are eligible to apply to based on the science and technical courses you will have completed. You are eligible to apply to the majors listed in each group that you will be completed by the end of application semester.

 What if Degree Audit

Students are encouraged to generate a What If Degree Audit to show which majors they are eligible to apply to. Students should choose Run Selected Program and select School - ENG - Engineering, College - ENG, Major - ENGPRE-PRE, Degree - NONE INDIC, and Catalog Year - AU 2022. 

Students selecting the CIS option in Computer Science as their first choice are not required to select a choice 2 or 3 engineering major but are welcome to do so.

• Students selecting the CIS option in Computer science are not required to have credit for Calculus II and Fundamentals of Engineering to be eligible for choice 2 and choice 3 engineering majors. Applicants will still need to meet the science/technical course requirement for their choice 2 and 3 options.
• Students not admitted to Computer Science and who accept an admission offer to their choice 2 or 3 engineering major will be required to complete the engineering common requirements (Calculus II and ENGR 1181/1182) during their first year in the major.
• Engineering majors are assessed a program fee each semester. CIS pre-majors should be aware their cost of attendance may increase by switching from the CIS pre-major to an engineering major by accepting a choice 2 or 3 offer.

1. Goals, Problems to be Solved, and How the Three Discipline Areas Will Help Set You on Your Way
   1. For the {major choice 1} program, describe how a degree in that area will help you to achieve your career goals and address the problems that interest you. (maximum 1500 characters with spaces)
   2. For the {major choice 2} program, describe how a degree in that area will help you to achieve your career goals and address the problems that interest you. (maximum 1500 characters with spaces)
   3. For the {major choice 3} program, describe how a degree in that area will help you to achieve your career goals and address the problems that interest you. (maximum 1500 characters with spaces)
      
      *Essay 1 (the major essay) is not required for applicants to the Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering major and the Welding Engineering major.
2. Problems in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) are inherently complex.  Solving them requires extensive teamwork and collaboration.  Research shows teams that are diverse in terms of how members process information, in social perspectives, and lived experience tend to be more creative, faster, and effective in their problem solving.
   With this definition of diversity in mind, reflect on and discuss your experiences working in teams. What have you learned from those experiences that you can apply or share as you progress in your education and career? [Here, ‘team’ refers to any group of people working together; could be family members, co-workers, students, neighbors, etc. ] (maximum 1500 characters with spaces)
3. Pursuing a degree in a STEM field  requires determination, as well as the ability to master coursework.  With this in mind, please describe any experiences, challenges, or circumstances that have influenced or affected your academic performance or your desire to pursue a degree in STEM. (maximum 1500 characters with spaces)

View the Essay Grading Rubrics.

Note to Students: Please write and save your essays outside of the application system. Do not write your essays in the application. If the application system times out, you will lose your progress. When you are prepared to submit your application, copy and paste your essays into the system.

1. Students must be enrolled in an engineering or computer science pre-major to apply for admission to major. Students not enrolled in an engineering or computer science pre-major/major will first need to change into one before going through the admission to major process. Students should follow the Change to an Engineering Pre-Major process.
2. Students have two attempts to seek admission to a major through the Admission to Major process. Applications reviewed at the end of term will be considered an attempt. Students not awarded admission to a major after the second attempt, and students who do not wish to accept an offer during their second attempt will not be permitted to apply a third time. Applications with a status of "Withdrawn" or "Cancelled..." do not count as an attempt.
3. Application Cancellation. Students may cancel their application by the 10^th week of the semester. Applications cancelled by the deadline listed below will not count as an application attempt. Applications not cancelled by the deadline will be assessed for admission eligibility at the end of the semester and therefore deemed an attempt.
4. Students who accept an admission to a major offer are not permitted to reapply to a different major during the next admission cycle. Accepting an offer demonstrates the intent to complete the major program. Students who wish to reapply to a new major will need to wait one academic year to reapply. For example, if a student submits an application in Spring 2024 for Autumn 2024 admission and accepts the offer, the student would not be permitted to reapply during the Autumn 2024 cycle.

If students are interested in pursuing two engineering/computer science degree programs, this is referred to as pursing a dual degree (for example, a BS in Biomedical Engineering and a BS in Chemical Engineering).

Students who pursue a dual degree in engineering/computer science must apply to one major at a time in two separate admission cycles (for example, spring cycle for major 1 and autumn cycle for major 2). The first application submission should be to the first major/degree during the first admission attempt. Upon successful admission to the first major, the second application is submitted to the second major.

When applying to the second major/degree students should indicate on the application they are seeking a dual degree. This will ensure they are not switched out of their current major upon admission to the second major.

Note: Students wishing to add a dual degree in one of the Space Available Programs only need to visit the advisor to declare the second degree. And application is not required.