UMBC Free Graduate Application Week

Aging Services

Learn how to improve society by enhancing the lives of older adults through a unique interdisciplinary program.

The Aging Studies program at UMBC is the only one of its kind in the country to combine business management, public policy, and the study of human aging. It was designed to meet the real-world demand for educated, innovative leaders in the longevity market, and the curriculum includes all aspects of aging services, especially how to expand opportunities for individuals in the longevity economy. The undergraduate degree prepares students for entry-level professional positions in the management of aging services by combining public policy, healthcare management, law, financial services, real estate, consumer technology, and product design. The graduate program will give you a holistic set of skills and knowledge that integrates aging, management, and policy as well as leadership techniques, management fundamentals, understanding of individual human aging and the societal implications of aging, and research opportunities.

Biology

Explore your interests in the natural world, and gain technical and critical thinking skills that will serve you well in a range of professional roles.

The Department of Biological Sciences houses a broad-based research program spanning the biomedical sciences, from ecology and organismal biology to molecular and structural biology. Five graduate programs lead to M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in an environment that is nurturing and focused on individual student success.

Biotechnology

Join a tradition of excellence in the life sciences at UMBC, and be part of addressing some of today’s most pressing challenges.

Global challenges in human health, food security, sustainable industrial production and environmental protection continue to fuel the biosciences industry, creating new opportunities within four major subsectors: agricultural feedstock and chemicals, drugs and pharmaceuticals, medical devices and equipment, and testing and medical laboratories. UMBC’s strong academic programs in the life sciences, including its biotechnology programs, are led by a distinguished faculty of nearly 50 members spanning several interdisciplinary departments. UMBC’s established academic and research expertise in the biosciences provides a foundation for programs in biotechnology management and biochemical regulatory engineering.

Chemical, Biochemical & Environmental Engineering

This doctoral program supports students to independently conduct research and broaden scholarship in the field. A PhD is recommended for those who expect to engage in a professional career in research, teaching, or technical work of an advanced nature.

These graduate degrees also emphasize engineering principles, critical thinking, cooperation, communication skills, and lifelong learning—and, for the doctoral program, the ability to create new knowledge. Master’s students can choose a thesis, a research-based project, or a course-only pathway. The doctoral program is even more research based. The department is also committed to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Chemistry and Biochemistry

Outstanding research facilities. Close-knit community. Internationally acclaimed faculty members. All this is and more is available in UMBC’s graduate programs in chemistry.

Students with interests in a wide range of chemistry disciplines, such as medicinal chemistry, toxicology, imaging and sensors, computational chemistry, bioinorganic chemistry, and more will find a home working with expert faculty mentors at UMBC, where they will grow their knowledge, skills, and expertise. The interdisciplinary Chemistry Biochemistry Interface Program and close collaborations with regional academic institutions and government agencies brighten our students’ prospects for meaningful experiential learning options and career opportunities. The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry’s Graduate Summer Bridge program (GSBP), an eight-week program that begins in June, gives incoming graduate students a head start on their graduate studies.

Computer Science and Electrical Engineering

Gain knowledge and skills in the fields that underpin our modern, digital world.

Artificial intelligence, smart energy grids, the internet of things—you can find experts in all of these technologies in the department of computer science and electrical engineering at UMBC. The department offers master’s and doctoral degrees in computer science, computer engineering and electrical engineering. UMBC’s location in the Baltimore-Washington corridor makes a wealth of professional, cultural and recreational resources readily available. The area has the largest collection of federal government agencies and research laboratories in the country. The CSEE department has more than fifteen on-site research centers and labs and graduate students work closely with faculty members on research projects that interest them. Recent graduates have gone on to work at top universities, companies such as Google, IBM and Microsoft, government organizations such as NASA, NIST and NIH, and defense companies such as Northrop Grumman.

Cybersecurity

Get hands-on training in cybersecurity to meet the needs of the military, intelligence community, federal civilian agencies, and the commercial sector.

The dynamic and interdisciplinary field of cybersecurity is one of UMBC’s strategic priorities, focusing on not only the technical but also the social behavioral and economic elements of the field. Undergraduate students can pursue a cybersecurity track under a few majors within the Computer Science and Electrical Engineering department and take courses in computer security, forensics, network security, and malware analysis, among others. Undergraduates can also pursue a certificate in Cybersecurity Analytics, which focuses on how to solve cybersecurity-related problems in the real world, or an Accelerated M.S. degree.

Data Science

The Data Science program at UMBC prepares students to respond to the growing demand for professionals with data science knowledge, skills, and abilities.

The UMBC Data Science program brings together faculty from a wide range of fields who have a deep understanding of the real-world applications of data analytics. Undergraduate students can pursue an accelerated bachelor’s/master’s degree, and graduate students can pursue a Master of Professional Studies degree with a wide variety of pathways or a certificate, which can later be applied to a master’s degree. These programs were designed with working professionals in mind and offer courses in the evening and online to accommodate students with full-time jobs. Students are prepared to excel in data science roles through hands-on experience, rigorous academics, and access to a robust network of knowledgeable industry professionals. You will also develop an in-depth understanding of the basic computing principles behind data science, including data ingestion, curation, and cleaning. Upon completion of your degree, you will be able to demonstrate the kind of practical, industry-relevant experience that employers are seeking.

Economics

The M.A. in Economic Policy Analysis will provide students with a broad perspective on policy formulation along with focused training in economic analysis. The program places special emphasis on the tools of data analysis commonly used by economists and commonly required by employers.

UMBC’s Economics department offers excellent preparation for employment in business or government, with many students going on to become certified public accountants or studying law. You will learn a way of thinking that facilitates problem solving. Explore issues related to economics, finance, politics, and life in general.The M.A. in Economic Policy Analysis will provide students with a broad perspective on policy formulation along with focused training in economic analysis. The program places special emphasis on the tools of data analysis commonly used by economists and commonly required by employers.

Education

Master the complex and dynamic process of teaching with courses on the academic, policy, and pedagogical issues that come with teaching as well as experience in the classroom.

The UMBC Education Department offers undergraduate and graduate programs of study leading to teacher certification recognized in Maryland and many states across the nation, with a variety of concentrations. If you are interested in using your talents, skills, and knowledge in service to the greater good, love to learn, believe in the importance of public education, value the potential of children and young adults, and have a commitment to be an advocate for democracy and social justice, we hope you will consider becoming a teacher. The department aims to develop educators who are caring, thoughtful, knowledgeable, skilled, and responsive as well as who respect diversity, are leaders in their schools, and are advocates for democracy and social justice. The department offers an undergraduate degree in Middle Grades STEM Education (and supports education-focused majors in other departments), certificates with a variety of concentrations, and Master of Arts degrees in Education and in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.

Emergency and Disaster Health Systems

The Emergency and Disaster Health Systems graduate program is primarily focused on providing graduate-level training and education to healthcare providers, researchers, educators, policymakers, and administrators for leadership roles requiring skill in planning, research, development, and organizational operations.

Emergency health care encompasses agencies ranging from local rescue squads to national and international disaster and refugee health services and includes mobile (i.e., ambulances) and fixed resources (hospitals). Increasingly, emergency and disaster health systems agencies are becoming more involved in activities aimed at the prevention of injuries and sudden illness and are exploring other public health roles. In order for this work to be effective, a high degree of management capability, combined with targeted research and education, is required. Our Master’s, Certificates and Ph.D. Concentration programs are designed to address these needs.

The Emergency and Disaster Health Systems curriculum is designed to provide graduate-level training and education to healthcare providers, researchers, educators, policymakers, and administrators.

The department offers many graduate options:

1. Accelerated B.S./M.S.
2. Emergency Management Graduate Certificate
3. Healthcare Emergency Management Graduate Certificate
4. Master’s Tracks
   Track I: Administration, Planning, and Policy
   Track II: Preventive Medicine and Epidemiology

Engineering Management

The UMBC Engineering Management program will help you maximize your technical and business skills.

UMBC Engineering Management Programs offer flexible pathways to advance your leadership career in technical fields. The Master of Science in Engineering Management and its certificate counterpart provide comprehensive training in leadership, business, and management skills essential for leading people and complex projects in engineering and technology companies. The Master of Professional Studies in Technical Management takes a broader approach, preparing professionals to lead technical projects and teams through coursework in leadership, strategic management, and technical entrepreneurship. For those focused specifically on project execution, the Certificate in Project Management delivers industry-relevant technical and soft skills aligned with Project Management Institute (PMI) standards, equipping you to successfully complete projects and lead high-performing technical, virtual, and international teams.

English

Explore the vibrant and diverse world of literature, communication, writing, rhetoric, journalism, creative writing, and digital media.

Connect with the written word through UMBC’s English program. You will critically explore new ideas and points of view, strengthen your writing skills, and use what you learn outside the classroom. Choose from two tracks—Literature or Communication and Technology—and a wide variety of minors. The English Department is also affiliated with many other programs and departments, giving you the opportunity to make your degree more interdisciplinary. Master’s students can further their understanding of literature and a broad array of other texts, including digital, academic, and everyday texts, in the Master of Arts in Texts, Technologies, and Literature Program. The master’s program is great for students coming from a wide range of humanities backgrounds as well as high school teachers and those entering communications, editorial, and/or digital media professions.

Geography and Environmental Systems

Learn about the importance of coupled natural and human systems and landscape patterns in relation to human activities and their environmental consequences from a local, regional, and international perspective.

A graduate degree in Geography and Environmental Systems trains you to understand earth systems science, ecosystem science, human geography and urban geography, and human dimensions of global change by applying geospatial technology to research questions across all areas of interest. Some of the careers you will be prepared for as a graduate include careers in the natural sciences, public policy, engineering, and information technology.

History

Learn about world, continental, and even local history with classes that cover the Middle Ages to contemporary history.

As a History student, you will strengthen your skills in critical thinking, research, interpreting evidence, and analytical writing and have lots of opportunities to do original research projects.

The graduate program in Historical Studies is designed for a variety of interests and career paths, including students who are considering a future Ph.D., K-12 teachers, and students interested in the growing field of public history. Graduate specializations include United States history, pre-modern European history, modern European history, Atlantic World history, institutional and policy history, and Asian history.

Information Systems

Join or advance in the fast-growing technology field with programs designed for those with or without an educational background in technology.

UMBC’s department of information systems offers a wide selection of graduate certificates, master’s of science, master’s of professional studies, and doctoral degrees. Choose the program and the location (on-campus or online) that suits you best. Faculty in the information systems department are doing research in today’s leading areas, such as artificial intelligence, cyber, and data science.

Leadership and Entrepreneurship

UMBC’s program in Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Leadership empowers professionals to drive organizational change or thrive as they lead their own businesses, including a separate focus for those pursuing careers in the arts.

Whether you are working within an existing business or want to start your own, UMBC’s program will teach you the real-world skills needed to thrive. Led by seasoned entrepreneurs, students learn how to bring an entrepreneurial mindset, innovative practices, and thoughtful leadership to their organizations. Undergraduate students can minor in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, including a focus on Arts Entrepreneurship, or pursue accelerated options for master’s and certificate programs. Graduate students can pursue a Master of Professional Studies, as well as certificates, with pathways in Entrepreneurship, Intrapreneurship, and Socialpreneurship so that you can tailor your education to your interests and career goals.

Mathematics and Statistics

Expertise in mathematics and statistics opens a wide array of career choices in industry, government, and academia, with opportunities to contribute to pressing societal problems and foundational mathematical theory.

UMBC’s mathematics and statistics graduate programs offer experiences with outstanding faculty who are actively engaged in innovative research that applies mathematics and statistics to a variety of real-world problems. You will conduct research and take courses with these faculty in preparation for your own future as a leader ready to use mathematics and statistics to improve the world.

Mechanical Engineering

Be at the forefront of cutting edge research in the expansive field of Mechanical Engineering. Internationally recognized faculty will guide your research and discoveries using advanced technologies to benefit society.

UMBC’s Mechanical Engineering Department will prepare you to contribute, enhance, and help shape our rapidly evolving technological society. We offer an undergraduate program leading to a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering and graduate M.S. and Ph.D. programs that also lead to respective degrees in Mechanical Engineering. Become an expert in the production and usage of heat and mechanical power, and play a critical role in the advancement of transformative new technologies in our dynamic world.

Modern Languages and Linguistics

Students and faculty come from various parts of the world, and participation in the program is itself a significant intercultural experience.

The Department of Modern Languages, Linguistics and Intercultural Communication (MLLI) offers a program leading to a M.A. in Intercultural Communication. Students focusing on French and Francophone, Hispanic, and Russian studies participate in the program in the LANGUAGES AND CULTURES concentration. Heritage speakers and students with an extensive background in a different culture participate in the program in the CULTURES AND DIVERSITY concentration. Undergraduate students can enroll in an ACCELERATED BA/MA PROGRAM and take three courses at a graduate level and count them both towards the BA and the MA Degree.

Our graduate students include returning Peace Corps volunteers, (THE SHRIVER PEACEWORKER PROGRAM at UMBC), teachers, foreign language students, heritage students, international educators, university and non-profit employees, and BA/MA students.

Physics

Reveal mysteries about the cosmos, improve climate modeling, advance quantum technologies and more with a UMBC physics or atmospheric physics Ph.D.

UMBC’s traditional physics and atmospheric physics programs offer experiences with outstanding faculty who are actively engaged in innovative research, from high-tech optics to black holes. You will conduct research and take courses with these faculty in preparation for your future as a leader ready to use your expertise to learn more about the world around us and address modern technological challenges.

Psychology

Want to explore your curiosities about people, systems, and cultures? Connect with others through a deeper understanding of our behaviors.

UMBC’s Psychology Department seeks answers to why people, groups, organizations, systems, and cultures think, feel, and act the way they do. Our unique undergraduate program allows you to focus on your interests within psychology, ranging from personality theories to the biological aspects of human and animal behavior. Take your studies to the next level with our graduate psychology program focused on human services, applied developmental psychology, or applied behavior analysis.

Public Policy

Prepare for or further a career in public service and get the skills and knowledge to tackle the essential issues in our society, from poverty to health care, from housing to transportation, and more.

A degree in public policy is an investment in the future. The UMBC public policy program provides students with the tools necessary to develop and analyze public policies and influence the public policy process. The public sector emphasis and training in evaluation and analytical methods distinguishes the UMBC program from others in the region. Prepare for careers in policy analysis, public policy, public administration, planning, management, or research. Specialize in evaluation and analytical methods, public management, or health, education, environmental, or urban policy. Doctoral students can specialize in economics, emergency services, and policy history. The UMBC campus’ location between Baltimore and Washington, DC, is ideal for public policy education, internships and employment.

Sociology, Anthropology, and Public Health

The analytic skills prepare students for employment in many professional settings, including public and private organizations involved in social research, social policy, and program development.

We offer an Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s as well as special options for double majors in Sociology and Anthropology, Sociology and Psychology, Sociology and Social Work, and Public Health and Social Work. The department collaborates with three outstanding UMBC Ph.D. programs, including Gerontology, Public Policy, Language, Literacy and Culture, and hosts the Center for Health, Equity, and Aging,a research center that conducts large-scale federally-funded research.

Throughout these programs, the department emphasizes three core areas: health and aging in society; diversity, gender and culture; and applied social science research. Consistent with UMBC’s goals, the department focuses its core strengths to: Support the development of graduate education and conducting faculty research that contributes to graduate education.

Systems Engineering

Systems engineering encompasses the principles and practices that guide the engineering of complex systems—an skill set that’s ever more in-demand as technologies become more complex and integrated.

UMBC offers graduate certificates and master’s of science degrees in systems engineering. The programs accelerate the development of systems engineers by providing practical, real-world experiences that can be immediately applied on the job. Our coursework balances theoretical understanding with practical applications, preparing students with the industry-relevant skills that employers are looking for.  In 2021, INCOSE approved our updated SYST 660 Systems Engineering Principles course for Academic Equivalency.  This will allow any student who receives a final score of 80% or better to waive the Knowledge Exam for INCOSE’s SE Professional certification program, both at the Associate (ASEP) and Certified (CSEP) levels.

Visual Arts

Stretch your creativity with a collaborative community of entrepreneurially minded professionals.

UMBC’s Visual Arts Department is committed to guiding future artists and design professionals to think independently, work entrepreneurially, and implement creative solutions to real world problems. You will experiment across media and learn to move skillfully between technologies, processes, and modes of thinking. Offering BA, BFA, and MFA degree options, the Visual Arts Department provides a chance for you to explore career options in visual arts and design that will position you for finding a job in today’s market.