Dec 22, 2024  
General Catalog 2024-2025 
    
General Catalog 2024-2025

Construction Management, M.S.


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The Department of Construction Management  

Admission: The requirements for graduate admission to California State University, Fresno must be met. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores must be received by the application deadline for International Student applicants and within 30 days after the application deadline for Domestic Student applicants. A score of 300 or better is highly recommended. Applicants must have completed College Algebra, Trigonometry, and general statistics, or equivalent level math courses. Also, applicants should possess a bachelor’s degree in construction management from an accredited program; or a bachelor’s degree in a related field from an accredited program with a minor or a certificate in construction management. Applicants must have a minimum overall GPA of 2.8 in their undergraduate education AND a minimum GPA of 3.0 in the construction management related courses attempted, on the basis of 4.0 being A; or the approval of the Graduate Committee of the Department of Construction Management. In addition, applicants also need to submit the following: (a) a personal statement explaining their motivation for pursuing the MSCM degree, (b) a resume detailing their professional and academic achievements, and (c) two letters of recommendation.

International applicants should also refer to the International Student Services and Programs (ISSP) for further graduate admission requirements: http://fresnostate.edu/academics/issp/future/graduate.html.

If an applicant’s preparation is deemed insufficient by the Graduate Committee of the Department of Construction Management, the applicant is required to take additional courses which are specified in writing to remove the deficiency. Such courses, taken as an unclassified student, are in addition to the minimum of 30 semester hours credit for the MSCM degree. The department graduate program coordinator shall appoint an interim graduate adviser for each student when that student is accepted into the graduate program. The coordinator will take into account student interests and correlated faculty interests when making this appointment.

Foundation Courses: Students without a bachelor’s degree, a minor, or a certificate in construction management are required to complete the following foundation CM courses prior to entering the MSCM program: CM 17S , CM 18 , CM 20 , CM 110 , CM 116 , CM 170 .

Please also note that ACCT 4A   is highly recommended as it is the prerequisite for several business electives included in the MSCM curriculum.

In some cases the course requirements may be modified or waived by the Graduate Program Coordinator or the senior faculty responsible for the course area of study.

Criteria for student continuation: Students should select a graduate adviser before completing 9 units of graduate study and advancing to candidacy. Other members of his or her graduate committee shall be selected in consultation with the graduate adviser if the student has selected Plan A. This committee shall consist of a total of three members, two of whom must be tenured/tenure track faculty.

A graduate student may change graduate advisers. He or she needs to fill out a form and have it signed by the advisers and the department Graduate Coordinator.

A student must pass CE 210  with a grade of B or higher and satisfactorily complete a written examination (typically administered in CE 210 ) before being eligible for Advancement to Candidacy: this satisfies both the university’s graduate writing requirement and demonstrates the student has sufficient technical proficiency to continue in the program.

Any semester for which the grade point average falls below 3.0 shall result in placing the affected graduate student on probation. A second offense shall lead to disqualification. For additional information, please refer to the Division of Research and Graduate Studies, Administrative Academic Probation, Academic Disqualification.

A student can take the comprehensive exam no more than three times.

Master of Science Requirements in Construction Management

The M.S. in Construction Management program provides the technical competencies, financial knowledge, and entrepreneurial skills that are essential to today’s leaders in the construction industry.

The program is a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) program. It is designed for recent college graduates as well as working professionals with architecture, engineering, construction (AEC), business or related backgrounds.

It aims to prepare graduates to (a) fill upper management positions in the AEC industry; or (b) pursue Ph.D. studies in construction related fields, and eventually fill teaching and/or research positions in colleges and universities.

The program requires the completion of 30 semester units of coursework and a culminating experience following one of the three study plans below:

Plan A (Thesis)


Plan B (Project)


Plan C (Comprehensive Exam)


Culminating Experience (6 units)


Total: 30 Units


Advising Notes


  1. Courses that are not listed here but are well suited to the student’s graduate program may be taken as electives upon approval by the supervising faculty and Graduate Program Coordinator.
  2. For electives, a minimum grade of B is required. Similar courses previously taken and counted towards another degree are excluded. Below is a summary of all required courses for graduation including electives. Students without a bachelor’s degree, a minor, or a certificate in construction management are required to complete the foundation CM courses (i.e. CM 17S , CM 18 , CM 20 , CM 110 , CM 116 , CM 170 ) before taking the following courses.
    Summary of Courses: CE 210 , MBA 210 , CM 230 , CM 230 , CM 240 , CM 144 , CM 150 , CM 151 , CM 177 , CM 291T , CE 206 , FIN 120 , FIN 123 , FIN 131E  , FIN 186 , MBA 212 , MBA 213 , MBA 232 , CM 290 , CM 293I  , CM 298 , CM 299 , Comprehensive Exam

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