Institutional Requirements for Master of Arts and Master of Science Degrees
The master's degree may be awarded for successful completion of a curriculum, which has the approval of the Academic Council as meriting the degree. Such curricula shall conform to current practice in accredited institutions and shall contain a well-defined major.
General Naval Postgraduate School minimum requirements for the master's degree are as follows:
- 32 quarter-hours of graduate level credits of which at least 24 quarter-credits must be earned from NPS*.
- A thesis or its equivalent is required.
*NPS generally allows a maximum of 12 graduate-level, quarter-credits to be transferred for purposes of earning a graduate degree. However, an additional 12 quarter-credits may be transferred from the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) in Dayton, Ohio. This is in addition to the normal transfer allowed (12), bringing the total to a maximum of 24 quarter-credits transferable from AFIT to NPS. Permission to transfer a specific course to serve as a substitute for a degree requirement will be determined by the Department Chairman or equivalent person responsible for nominating candidates for degrees at NPS and must be pre-approved in a coherent plan of study for the student. Regardless of transfer credits allowed, all NPS master's degrees still require at least 24 quarter-credits be earned directly from NPS.
To be eligible for the master's degree, the student must attain a minimum average quality point rating of 3.00 in all of the 3000 and 4000 level courses in his/her curriculum a 2.75 in all courses of the curriculum.
For specific degree information, see Degree-Specific Requirements.