OSU Navigation Bar

College of Engineering

Department of Materials Science and Engineering

Graduate Banner: Graduate banner
Home Graduate Newly Admitted Domestic Students

Domestic students

Questions?

Please contact Mark Cooper, Graduate Studies Coordinator, should you have questions about the MSE or WE graduate programs.

For our domestic students, in other words US citizens who have been admitted to the MSE or WE graduate degree programs, you may arrive on campus as early as you wish. We recommend roughly two weeks before the start of the term.

Prior to arrival, please schedule a meeting with Mark Cooper, Graduate Studies Coordinator, for a 45 min. orientation to the department and graduate studies program.

Three key items should be addressed prior to arriving on campus, 1) accept admission, 2) OSU account activation, and 3) securing temporary and long-term housing.

Accept admission

By way of your OSU application account, please follow the "Accept/Decline" link to formally accept admission.

Activate your OSU internet account

Before arriving, you may activate your OSU internet account. An e-mail/internet account is provided to all OSU students. The user name and password you establish for this account will permit on-line access to such things as course scheduling, grades, course web sites, and other important web-based resources provided by the university.

To activate your account, please go to the following web site:

  • my.osu.edu
  • Click "Activate Now!" and follow the activation process. Associated with your application account should be an OSU user name in the form of "lastname.###" (such as "cooper.73")
  • Be sure to note your OSU username and the password you established. These items will allow you to register for classes, check grades, etc.

If you are unable to activate your account from off campus, that is not a problem. Upon your arrival on campus you may use one of the public computing sites to activate your account.

Housing

It is strongly recommended that you secure housing, both temporary and long term, prior to your arrival on campus. For further information about the options available, please see the "Housing" page of this site.

Orientation

MSE - WE orientation

All new MSE and WE students are to schedule an orientation session with Mark Cooper, MSE/WE Graduate Studies Coordinator. Please contact Mark at (614) 292-7280 or by e-mail. These orientations are held in room 477 Watts Hall, 2041 College Rd. between the hours of 9:00 am to 4:00 PM Monday through Friday. The session provides information about the MSE dept. and your graduate program, including:

  • registration for GRA employment,
  • establishing a dept. e-mail account & dept. mailbox,
  • health insurance & OSU ID card,
  • enrolling in classes,
  • other general details

Watts Hall location--Watts Hall is building 107, lower right section of the map.

Graduate School orientation

The Graduate School and the Council of Graduate Students will host a university-wide orientation for all new graduate students (i.e., Spring, Summer, and Autumn arrivals). This orientation will be held on the Monday before the start of Autumn term classes, from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. This orientation is a very valuable introduction to the services provided by the Graduate School, the Graduate Student Council, and various offices across campus. Please register for this event.

Research group

Further orientation concerning office & lab space, work expectations, safety issues and more will be provided by your advisor.

Finding an advisor

We do not assign students to advisors. Rather, upon arrival in the department, new students are to meet with the faculty who have GRA openings. This process permits both the faculty and the incoming students a chance to meet and discuss matters of research interests, goals, and expectations. We prefer to have the students and professors work together by mutual agreement whenever possible.

Please note that your areas of interest may not exactly match the GRA openings available. Since the GRA position is often funded by government and/or industrial monies, the scope of one's research must be largely focused on the issue for which the funding was provided.

Registering for Courses

Before registering for classes, you must first discuss with your advisor which graded courses you should take (thus you can not register for academic classes before arriving on campus). Graduate level courses are rarely closed, so you will not be shut out of a class due to late arrival.

After establishing which courses you will take, students use the OSU Registrar's on-line registration system (BuckeyeLink) to enroll in classes--see "Course enrollment" page for further information.

Misc.

Finances

As regards finances, please note that if you were offered a Graduate Research Associate (GRA) position, you can not be paid until the start of your term of admission.

You will be responsible to supply your own funds from the date you arrive until you receive your first paycheck from the university (approximately FIVE WEEKS AFTER the start of your term of admission due to check processing time). Some additional expenses you may wish to keep in mind:

  • deposits and rent for housing (1-2 months' worth of rent),
  • misc. student fees (roughly $200 per term)
  • entertainment, etc.

Note: If you arrive on campus long before the start of your term of admission, you may face a difficult financial situation in terms of paying for lodging, meals, and recreation.

Health insurance

All domestic students are automatically enrolled in the OSU Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP) upon course enrollment. Further information about this health coverage is found on the "Health & Medical" page of this site.