A candidate for the Master of Science degree must complete satisfactorily the requirements specified by the major department or program in addition to the general requirements of CIT. The degree usually requires about one and a half calendar years of full-time study beyond the B.S. degree.

The general requirements include the satisfactory completion of a minimum of 96 units of academic work at Carnegie Mellon. A minimum of 60 units must be graduate level work in the major department or program including graduate project units. The satisfactory completion of a master's degree comprehensive examination may also be required according to departmental policy. A master's thesis may be required by the major department in lieu of, or in addition to, other requirements. Specific requirements can be obtained from each department or program:

If a thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of degree requirements, it must meet the approval of the instructor in charge of the work, the department head, and the dean. The completed thesis must be presented to the dean not less than two weeks before commencement. Each copy must state: "submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at Carnegie Mellon University." Any publication derived from the thesis should be prepared in consultation with the faculty advisor, and should acknowledge that the manuscript was derived from a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at Carnegie Mellon.