Best Polymer, Plastics Engineering Masters Programs in Massachusetts

The Polymer Science and Engineering Department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is one of the largest academic centers for polymer research in the world. We’ve granted over 600 doctoral degrees since the first doctorate (1969) was awarded in the Department. Our flourishing research programs seek to expand the useful application of polymers to human needs.

Our academic focus spans all aspects of the evolving polymer field, from synthesis to engineering and physics, and our Department offers graduate studies only. Cross-discipline research is integral to our program and most often involves departments such as physics, chemistry, biology, and chemical engineering. PSE students and faculty participate extensively in collaborative research programs with other universities and at national laboratories.

Our Department is engaged in graduate teaching and research in polymer synthesis, characterization, morphology, rheology, physics, and engineering, with current emphasis in the areas of nanotechnology, biotechnology, and green technology. Our primary goal is to prepare skillful scientists and engineers to fill the need for polymer scientists and engineers in industry, government, and education.

The Department of Plastics Engineering has recently restructured its M.S.E. Degree Program. Plastics Engineering M.S.E. graduate students accepted into the program must follow either the Thesis Option Curriculum or the Non-Thesis Option Curriculum described in the following sections. Graduate students enrolled in the Thesis Option M.S.E. Program may elect to follow either the new thesis or non-thesis program requirements described below, or those in effect at the time they were accepted into the degree program.