Materials Science and Engineering students study the conversion of natural substances into products for structural, microelectronics, optical, and biomedical use by using chemical and physical methods.

“Materials offers a different perspective on solving almost any engineering challenge. Every other discipline needs materials to do their job, so I get to learn about a variety of applications and innovations by studying the materials innovation behind them.” – Erik Korber, Materials Science and Engineering

What makes this program unique?

• Small class sizes
• Some of the world’s most advanced facilities including the Canadian Centre for Electron Microscopy
• Annual industrial tours to some of the most advanced manufacturing facilities in Canada.
• Strong contact with local industry and excellent employment opportunities.

Program Structure

The McMaster Materials Engineering Programmes are designed to permit studies over a broad base of fundamental topics, with the opportunity to specialize in specific materials systems in the upper years of the programme.

The Materials Engineering programmes are accredited with the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board, permitting subsequent admission to “P.Eng.” status following graduation and the completion of other requirements of the profession.

Materials Engineering requires a total of four years to complete. The Materials Engineering and Management, and the Materials Engineering & Society programmes require five years of study. The materials engineering content is identical between all three programs. In each case there is a common core which emphasizes materials structure and processing fundamentals, and the underlying basic physical chemistry, thermodynamics and kinetics that enable structure and processing. Major emphasis is placed on the relationship of materials properties to processing and to their engineering function for proper materials selection in engineering design.

In Levels III and IV, students may elect to specialize in one of the following areas:

• Biomaterials
• Data Analytics & Computational Materials
• Materials for Manufacturing & Infrastructure
• Smart Materials & Devices