Admission to Major

New freshmen and transfer students should visit Engineering for Everyone for information regarding admission to major for future engineering students.

Current Engineers

Students that have started classes at Ohio State and are enrolled in an engineering/computer science major or pre-major can seek admission to an engineering major. Students not enrolled in an engineering/computer science major or pre-major should review Enroll in an Engineering Program.

Due to available capacity, many programs can accept students into the major without applying while others require students to apply through the admission application process. Below shows the current method to seek admission into each major. Please note these statuses may change as enrollment in majors change.

Regional Campus Engineers

Students wanting to major in a "space available" major will be switched into the major when they campus change to Columbus. Students wanting to major in a program indicated as "limited space" should submit an application to major as soon as they are eligible to apply.

Space Available Programs

These majors are accepting engineering students on the Columbus campus in good standing (2.0 GPA or above) into the major without the need to submit an admission application. To switch into a space available major, please visit the advisor in that major.

• Aviation* - Aviation Advisor
• Chemical Engineering - ChemE Advisor
• Civil Engineering - Civil Eng Advisor
• Electrical and Computer Engineering - ECE Advisor
• Engineering Physics - Eng Physics Advisor
• Environmental Engineering - Envr Eng Advisor
• Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering - FABE Advisor
• Industrial and Systems Engineering - ISE Advisor
• Materials Science and Engineering - MSE Advisor
• Welding Engineering - Welding Advisor

*Direct enrollment into the Aviation major is available, but is separate from enrollment in the Professional Pilot Certification (PPC) due to limited space. See Professional Pilot Specialization for additional information.

Limited Space Programs

Only Available to Students in the Pre-Major

These majors accept students into the major through the admission to major application process. Students will need to submit an application to major to seek admission to the following programs. In order to implement a transparent and equitable admission process and recognizing the challenges in meeting the demand and space availability in popular majors, only students in these pre-majors may apply to their respective major. For example, only biomedical pre-major are permitted to apply to the biomedical engineering major.

• Aerospace Engineering - AERO and MECH pre-majors may apply
• Biomedical Engineering
• Computer Science - CSE and CIS pre-majors may apply
  • Learn about the different computer science options at Ohio State.

  Prospective Ohio State students (freshmen, transfers, and regional campus) interested in one of these majors will need to apply to the major during the undergraduate admissions process.

  The Application Process

  Students can select and apply to as many as three majors of interest (ranked in order of preference), during the semester that eligibility courses are completed, which generally occurs during the second semester of enrollment.

  • Students enrolled in a pre-major program are required to apply to three major choices.
  • Students enrolled in a major program and are wishing to change majors may select one, two, or three majors choices.
  • 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 Computer Science (CSE and CIS BS options), Electrical and Computer Engineering, Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering, and Industrial and Systems Engineering will be asked to select the specialization/program of study in the major they plan to pursue. Please use the links on each major to explore each program's options. This selection is not permanent, students are able to change their choices in the future.

  The process requires students to verify their coursework, and respond to a few short essay prompts (about 250 words each). Students will address their interest in the selected majors, their experiences working with teams, and their life experiences influencing their desire to pursue engineering. Once final grades are available at the end of the semester, applications will undergo a program review. Applicants undergo a blind review by the selected major choices where the cumulative GPA and essay responses are considered (the CSE 2221 grade and Physics II grades are also considered for computer science and engineering physics applicants respectively). Applications will be reviewed in the order of the their preferred major choices. For example, if a student's preference is Civil, Chemical, Environmental, their application will be review by Civil first, followed by Chemical and Environmental if not admitted by the proceeding major.

  All students will be notified of their admission decision on the admission decision date listed below. Admitted students will be offered a place in one major. This offer must be accepted by the indicated deadline to secure a place. Failure to do so may result in cancellation of the admission offer.

  Criteria for Admission Consideration single-arrow-square

  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.

  Major Choice 1 Options

  • 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
  • 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.

      Major Choice 2 and 3 Options

      No additional criteria is required prior to applying to these majors.

      • Aviation
      • Chemical Engineering
      • Civil Engineering
      • Electrical and Computer Engineering
      • Engineering Physics
      • Environmental Engineering
      • Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering
      • Industrial and Systems Engineering
      • Materials Science and Engineering
      • Welding Engineering
      Course Options for Calculus, Chemistry, Physics, and Fundamentals of Engineering single-arrow-square
      • Calculus I options: MATH 1141, 1151, 1161
      • Calculus II options - MATH 1152, 1172, 1181H, 2162, 4181H
      • Fundamentals of Engineering options - ENGR 1182, 1282H, or all three of ENGR 1186, 1187, 1188
      • Chemistry I options - CHEM 1208, 1210, 1250, 1610, 1910H
      • Chemistry II options - CHEM 1220, 1620, 1920H
      • Physics I options - PHYSICS 1249, 1250, 1250H, 1260, 1270
      • Physics II options - PHYSICS 1251, 1251H, 1261, 1271
      What Majors are you Eligible to Apply to? single-arrow-square

      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.

      Physics I single-arrow-square

      Physics I options - PHYSICS 1249, 1250, 1250H, 1260, 1270

      • Aerospace Engineering
      • Aviation
      • Chemical Engineering
      • Civil Engineering
      • Electrical and Computer Engineering
      • Engineering Physics
      • Environmental Engineering
      • Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering
      • Industrial and Systems Engineering
      • Materials Science and Engineering
      • Mechanical Engineering
      • Welding Engineering
      Physics I and II single-arrow-square

      Physics I options - PHYSICS 1249, 1250, 1250H, 1260, 1270
      Physics II options - PHYSICS 1251, 1251H, 1261, 1271

      • Aerospace Engineering
      • Aviation
      • Chemical Engineering
      • Civil Engineering
      • Electrical and Computer Engineering
      • Engineering Physics
      • Environmental Engineering
      • Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering
      • Industrial and Systems Engineering
      • Materials Science and Engineering
      • Mechanical Engineering
      • Welding Engineering
      Chemistry I single-arrow-square

      Chemistry I options - CHEM 1208, 1210, 1250, 1610, 1910H

      • Aviation
      • Chemical Engineering
      • Civil Engineering
      • Electrical and Computer Engineering
      • Engineering Physics
      • Environmental Engineering
      • Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering
      • Industrial and Systems Engineering
      • Materials Science and Engineering
      • Welding Engineering
      Chemistry I and II single-arrow-square

      Chemistry I options - CHEM 1208, 1210, 1250, 1610, 1910H
      Chemistry II options - CHEM 1220, 1620, 1920H

      • Aviation
      • Biomedical Engineering
      • Chemical Engineering
      • Civil Engineering
      • Electrical and Computer Engineering
      • Engineering Physics
      • Environmental Engineering
      • Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering
      • Industrial and Systems Engineering
      • Materials Science and Engineering
      • Welding Engineering
      Chemistry I and Physics I single-arrow-square

      Chemistry I options - CHEM 1208, 1210, 1250, 1610, 1910H
      Physics I options - PHYSICS 1249, 1250, 1250H, 1260, 1270

      • Aerospace Engineering
      • Aviation
      • Biomedical Engineering
      • Chemical Engineering
      • Civil Engineering
      • Electrical and Computer Engineering
      • Engineering Physics
      • Environmental Engineering
      • Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering
      • Industrial and Systems Engineering
      • Materials Science and Engineering
      • Mechanical Engineering
      • Welding Engineering
      Software I single-arrow-square

      Software I options - CSE 2221

      • Aviation
      • Chemical Engineering
      • Computer Science (CSE and CIS)
      • Electrical and Computer Engineering
      • Environmental Engineering
      • Engineering Physics
      • Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering
      • Industrial and Systems Engineering
      • Materials Science and Engineering
      • Welding Engineering

      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.

      The CIS Option in Computer Science single-arrow-square

      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.
      Essay Prompts single-arrow-square

      Essay 1

      Goals, Problems to be Solved, and How the Three Discipline Areas Will Help Set You on Your Way

      1. For the program, describe how a degree in that area will help you to achieve your career goals and address the problems that interest you. (maximum1500 characters with spaces)

      *Essay 1 (the major essay) is only required when applying to Aerospace Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science (CSE or CIS), and Mechanical Engineering majors as a major choice.

      Essay 1 Grading Rubric single-arrow-square
      • 4 Points - Draws clear, well informed, accurate connections between and their interests and career goals.
      • 3 Points - Intermediate
      • 2 Points - Discusses career goals and interests and makes connections to ; some connections may be vague or inaccurate.
      • 1 Point - Intermediate
      • 0 Points - Does not communicate career goals or interests, or student makes no effort to connect goals or interests to .

      Essay 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)

      Essay 2 Grading Rubric single-arrow-square

      Reflection on teamwork and team diversity

      • 4 Points - Provides thoughtful reflection on experience(s) working in a team. Team diversity is explicitly discussed.
      • 3 Points - Intermediate
      • 2 Points - Provides limited reflection on team experience or no discussion of team diversity.
      • 1 Point - Intermediate
      • 0 Points - Provides no reflection on team experience and no discussion of team diversity.

      Lessons learned

      • 4 Points - Fully, clearly, and specifically addresses what student learned from experience that they can apply or share in their education or career.
      • 3 Points - Intermediate
      • 2 Points - Addresses in limited or vague way what student learned from experience that they can apply or share in their education or career.
      • 1 Point - Intermediate
      • 0 Points - Does not address what student learned from experience that they can apply or share in their education or career.

      Essay 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)

      Essay 3 Grading Rubric single-arrow-square

      Insight and Impact

      • 4 Points - Provides significant insight into the impact of prior experiences, challenges, or circumstances on academic performance or the desire to pursue STEM degree.
      • 3 Points - Intermediate
      • 2 Points - Provides limited insight into the impact of prior experiences, challenges, or circumstances on academic performance or the desire to pursue STEM degree.
      • 1 Point - Intermediate
      • 0 Points - Provides little or no insight into the impact of prior experiences, challenges, or circumstances on academic performance or the desire to pursue STEM degree.

      Determination

      • 4 Points - Determination to pursue STEM degree is explicitly discussed.
      • 3 Points - Intermediate
      • 2 Points - Vague or limited discussion of determination to pursue STEM degree.
      • 1 Point - Intermediate
      • 0 Points - No discussion of determination to pursue STEM degree.

      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.

      Restrictions and Conditions single-arrow-square
      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 Enroll in an Engineering Program.
      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.
      Double Major/Dual Degrees single-arrow-square

      Prospective students interested in pursuing two degrees at Ohio State, with one in specific engineering programs (Aerospace Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science and Engineering, Computer and Information Science, or Mechanical Engineering), must choose one of these programs during their initial application to Ohio State. Once enrolled at Ohio State, students can later add a second major or degree, either within engineering or from another university program. It's important to note that adding a double major or dual degree in these specified programs later on is not allowed.

      For current Ohio State Engineering students, adding a double major or dual degree in the mentioned programs is not permitted. However, they are encouraged to connect with their academic advisor to explore alternative academic opportunities aligned with their specific interests and career goals.

      Students wishing to pursue a second major or degree in any of the other 10 available engineering programs may do so by following the procedures outlined in the Current Engineering Students or Current Students Outside of Engineering sections below.

      Completing Two Engineering Programs single-arrow-square

      While students are allowed to pursue dual degrees in two engineering or computer science majors, it's important to note that they may only choose one from the list of Aerospace Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science and Engineering, Computer and Information Science, or Mechanical Engineering. Pursuing two programs from this list simultaneously is not permitted. The college does not generally recommend completing two engineering degrees (except for Aviation and Computer Science). The job market tends to favor individuals with a bachelor's degree in a single engineering discipline. Instead, students with diverse interests are encouraged to explore technical areas through a minor or certificate program, avoiding the additional time commitment needed for two degrees. Additionally, considering graduate degrees (MS or PhD) is suggested, where changing disciplines is both possible and beneficial.

      How to Add a Second Engineering Degree single-arrow-square

      For students pursuing a dual degree in engineering or computer science, the process involves applying to one major at a time in two separate admission cycles (e.g., spring cycle for major 1 and autumn cycle for major 2). The first application should be for the first major/degree during the initial admission attempt. After successfully gaining admission to the first major, the second application is submitted for the second major.

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

      Note: Students interested in adding a dual degree in one of the Space Available Programs only need to visit the advisor to declare the second degree; an application is not required.