South Dakota Mines Online

Mining Engineering and Management MS

The Master of Science degree in Mining Engineering and Management (MEM) is a flexible, user friendly, and affordable online master’s program that allows participants to maintain employment while advancing their knowledge and skills. Program coursework is designed with industry input and provides students with essential technical and management skills required by professionals in the industry today.

Students can enter the program at any one of the three semesters during the year and choose core classes and electives to match their individual interests and career goals. Students participate in classes face-to-face, streamed live, or watch recorded classes at their convenience.

Program Overview

Designed to meet the growing need for mining engineers, this program offers advanced study in the Minerals Industry Management, Mining Engineering, or Mining Industry Applications specialization for professionals in mining, mine management or underground construction.

The Minerals Industry Management specialization is a non-thesis option designed for those employed within the Mining (Minerals) Industry who are currently working in administrative departments, moving into management positions, and those who will move into management positions that desire additional and specific education.

The Mining Engineering specialization is a thesis or project option that provides advanced level mining and other engineering courses to engineering professionals in the United States and around the world. It is designed for those employed within the Mining (Minerals) Industry who are currently working in a variety of departments on or off a mine site. Entry to this specialization is available to students who have earned a BS or MS in Mining Engineering, and to those from Engineering degrees other than Mining Engineering.

Applicants with an Engineering degree must have taken or complete leveling classes in Calculus I, II, and III, Differential Equations, General Chemistry I, Statics and Dynamics, Fluid Mechanics, General Physics I and II, Mechanics of Materials.

The Mining Industry Applications specialization is a non-thesis option designed for those employed within the Mining (Minerals) Industry who are currently working in a variety of mining departments on or off a mine site, and for those employed in associated industries.

This specialization allows a Mining (Minerals) Industry employee who has a BS degree to further their education in the mining industry where they can add to their experience with a degree from a top-rated engineering school. 

Admission Requirements

• Completed graduate application form
• $35 application fee
• Official transcript of prior academic work, sent directly to South Dakota Mines by the issuing institution, showing the undergraduate degree awarded
• 1 page statement of purpose, describing your goals in the program
• 3 letters of recommendation
• Additional requirements exist for international students, including a third-party foreign transcript evaluation and evidence of English proficiency
  

The mining engineering coursework is geared primarily toward the working professional in the mining industry who requires distance delivery of the courses, although students can be admitted to the on-campus program. In either case, the student should have completed an appropriate undergraduate engineering degree, and for those holding a non-mining engineering undergraduate degree the applicant should have significant experience in the mining or underground construction industry. Additionally, an undergraduate course in probability and statistics is highly recommended. Admission Requirements

*Based on 2020/21 costs. See online price table for details.

Program Requirements

The student selects one of the specializations. Each specialization requires completion of 33 credit hours.

1. Minerals Industry Management specialization
2. Mining Engineering specialization
3. Mining Industry Applications specialization

Program Summary

Tuition

The Mining Engineering and Management MS requires 33 credits. Other than the onetime application fee of $35, there are currently no other costs except for books. Click here for the current: graduate tuition and fee rates. 

Accreditation

The South Dakota School of Mines and Technology is accredited by the regional Higher Learning Commission (HLC), a commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA). For more information, please visit ncahlc.org. 

Offered through the Department of Mining Engineering and Management.
For more information, contact Dr. Kelli McCormick, Graduate Program Coordinator of the Mining and Engineering Management Department: (605) 394-1971 or Kelli.McCormick@sdsmt.edu .

For admissions questions, contact the Office of Graduate Education: (605) 355-3468 or email Graduate.Admissions@sdsmt.edu.

Recognized in the Top Ten Nationally

South Dakota Mines online engineering programs were ranked #1 in 2015 by bestmastersprograms.org and #7 for 2016 in the Value Colleges ranking. South Dakota Mines online is listed as one of 2019's most affordable online colleges by onlineu.