Department of Technology and Construction Management

Admission Requirements

Persons with the following qualifications will be considered for the Master of Science in Project Management  program:

1. The student must have received a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university.
2. A GPA of at least 2.75 for the last 60 hours of academic work.  In addition, students must have attained a score of at least 400 on the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) or a comparable percentage rank score on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).
3. A background in project management including industry experience.  These requirements will be waived if the student has an undergraduate or graduate degree in business administration, engineering, or similar curricula.  The Graduate Director will determine if the student has the necessary background.
4. All of University and Graduate College requirements for admission to a degree program will also apply.  Qualified applicants may enter the program at the beginning of any semester.  For information on the GMAT or GRE, please contact the Graduate College (836-5335) or the Missouri State University Counseling and Testing Center (836-5116).

Students who do not meet the normal admission requirements, but who possess high promise (usually based upon a successful record of managerial performance at increasing levels of responsibility) will be considered for probationary admission.

Computer Application Competency

Students entering the MPM program are expected to be proficient in the use of word processing, database, and spreadsheet software.  No course work is required to fulfill this criteria.  Knowledge derived from professional or personal experience will qualify.  If a student feels that he or she does not have the necessary base of knowledge to fulfill this requirement, there are various resources available on campus, such as self-paced tutorials and hands-on programs that would be helpful to increase computer knowledge and experiences. 

Degree Requirements (minimum of 33 hours)

The project management program requires 18 hours of Core Courses.  The Core Courses are comprised of six graduate-level courses which are designed to provide accelerated coverage of the project management body of knowledge.

With Core courses met, the degree Thesis Option requires 33 semester hours of total graduate credit while the Seminar Option requires 36 semester hours of total graduate credit.  No more than 50% of the coursework completed for the program may be at the 600-level. 

The requirements are composed of the following:

1. Advisor/Advisory Committee.  Initially, each student will be advised by the graduate studies Program Coordinator.  As soon as possible, the student will select a graduate faculty member from the Technology and Construction Management Department to serve as their program advisor.  Students electing to pursue the thesis option must also select two other faculty members to serve on their graduate advisory committee.  The student’s program advisor will chair the graduate advisory committee which must minimally consist of two additional faculty members including a faculty member from the student’s secondary emphasis area and a faculty member from outside the Technology and Construction Management department.  This committee will supervise the remainder of the student’s program.
2. Course Requirement
   1. Core Courses                                                         18 hrs
      
      

      Course Code	Course Title	Credit Hours
      TCM 701	Project Management	3 hrs
      TCM 710	Project Leadership	3 hrs
      TCM 645	Project Control Systems	3 hrs
      TCM 651	Cost Analysis for Project Management	3 hrs
      TCM 740	Management of Innovation and Technology	3 hrs
      TCM 750	Advanced Project Management	3 hrs

      All of the Core Courses are now available at least once each year via the Internet.  These online courses do not have a campus component and can be completed entirely from the student’s location.

   2. Cognate Electives                                        9-15 hrs

      Approved cognate courses include both on-campus and online courses.  All cognate coursework must be approved by the student’s advisor prior to completion of the coursework.  Cognate coursework should be selected which supports the degree program and the student’s career goals.                                        

3. Research
   
   For the thesis option, the student is required to give a final oral presentation of his/her work.
   
   Thesis Option.                                                                   6 hrs
   
   Completion of a satisfactory thesis in the candidate’s discipline is required.  The thesis is a complete document that describes the student’s work on a research topic.  TCM 798 – Research, is completed prior to the semester of graduation and in any semester the student is working on research.  A minimum of 3 hours of TCM 798 must be completed.  Students must register for TCM 799 in their final semester and may not count more than a total of 6 semester hours combined, TCM 798 and TCM 799 towards their degree course requirements.
   
   Seminar Option                                                                 3 hrs
   
   Completion of two significant graduate-level research papers based upon seminar work and directed research are required.  Seminar students must prepare at least one of these papers as part of the course requirements for TCM 726.  No more than 3 semester hours of TCM 726 shall be counted towards the degree requirements.                                   

GPA Requirements

Students must attain a grade point average of at least 3.00 on all graduate course work at Missouri State University. 

Accelerated Master of Project Management Option

Exceptional undergraduate students may apply for preliminary acceptance into the Master of Science in Project Management degree program their junior year after admission requirements for the accelerated program have been satisfied. If approved, up to 12 hours of 600-level or 700-level TCM courses may be designated as “mixed credit” and counted toward both the undergraduate and graduate degree programs. See the Graduate Catalog or contact the program director for further information and guidelines.

For courses to be designated as Mixed Credit, the graduate advisor, undergraduate department head, and Graduate College dean must approve by signing the Permission for Mixed Credit form. This form must be provided to the Office of the Registrar in Carrington Hall, room 320 no later than the end of the Change of Schedule Period for the semester.

Admission requirements for the Accelerated Masters Option:

1. Junior standing and an overall GPA of 3.00 or better;
2. Acceptance of applicant by Masters of Project Management graduate advisor:
3. A supportive recommendation from the student’s undergraduate advisor or undergraduate department head.

Program Description

The Certificate for Project Management provides a 12 hour graduate-level experience with application in such diverse industries and organizations as defense, construction, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, banking, hospitals, accounting, advertising, law, state and local governments.  The certificate is designed to meet the needs of individuals who are established in careers and are seeking professional growth and advancement within their professions.  The project management approach adapts special management techniques with the purpose of obtaining better control and use of existing resources.

Entrance Criteria

To be considered for the program, a student must apply and be admitted to the Graduate College. 

Required Courses

Recommended sequence: TCM 701, two electives, TCM 645.

GPA Requirements

Students must attain a grade point average of at least 3.00 on all graduate course work at Missouri State University.