How to apply to Marquette University for engineering: six ABET-accredited degrees in the Opus College of Engineering, with direct admission to engineering or entry as an undecided engineering student, with admission routes and prerequisites for U.S., international (including Chinese) and transfer students

At Marquette University (Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a Catholic Jesuit university), undergraduate engineering is offered by the Opus College of Engineering. Here is what you need to know, based on official Marquette information, for U.S. students, international students and applicants from China, followed by transfer students. Computer science sits in the College of Arts and Sciences and has its own guide here; computer engineering belongs to the engineering college and is covered below.

1. Engineering degrees

• Six bachelor of science degrees: biomedical, civil, construction, computer, electrical and mechanical engineering, in four departments: Biomedical Engineering; Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering; Electrical and Computer Engineering; and Mechanical Engineering.
• Majors within degrees: biomedical engineering offers biocomputing, bioelectronics and biomechanics; the civil engineering degree offers civil or environmental engineering majors; electrical and computer engineering offers electrical or computer engineering. Aerospace engineering is a concentration within mechanical engineering, not a separate degree.
• ABET: the accreditation page states that the biomedical, civil, computer, construction, electrical and mechanical engineering programs are each accredited by ABET’s Engineering Accreditation Commission.
• Co-ops and internships: the college works with more than 500 companies. Co-ops are full-time paid positions open after sophomore year; students are encouraged to do three to four work terms with the same company, do not take classes while on co-op, earn one credit per work term, and three credits can count as one engineering technical elective. Internships can be sought at any time and carry no credit.
• Other: the Excellence in Leadership (E-Lead) program leads to an Innovation Leadership concentration, and the ASCEnT supply chain, engineering and technology concentration is also offered.

2. How you are admitted: direct admission, or undecided engineering

• Direct admission: the college’s prospective-students page says Marquette is a direct admission institution, so you can apply directly to a program, and engineers begin in the engineering community on day one.
• Undecided engineering: the college home page says students may also arrive as undecided engineering majors. When and under what conditions they enter a specific major, and whether there are GPA thresholds or capped places, is not stated on the pages we read. Not published; ask the Academic Advising Center.
• Moving into engineering from another Marquette college: the bulletin only says credits earned in a previous curriculum are allocated to the new one by the Office of Academic Affairs with the department chair. No GPA or course threshold was published on the pages we read.
• For reference, graduation requirements: a 2.000 average in all Marquette work and in all Opus College of Engineering courses (2.500 for biomedical engineering), and 128 to 134 credit hours depending on the major.

3. Prerequisites

• Recommended high school preparation (the bulletin’s minimum recommended preparation table, engineering column): English 4 years; social studies 2; mathematics 4 (a footnote says pre-calculus required); biology 1, chemistry 1, physics 1 and one more year of any science; 2 other academic subjects; 16 academic units in total. The bulletin calls this table the “minimum recommended preparation”; the engineering college’s admission page only says freshmen should meet the university admission requirements.
• Math placement test: not mentioned on the engineering or admission pages we read.
• AP / IB / A-level credit: the international credit page says credit is awarded for AP, IB and A-levels; AP and IB have charts we did not read; A-levels are reviewed course by course with certificates and syllabi. Which engineering courses are covered is not published; ask the Academic Advising Center.

4. How and when to apply (first-years)

• Application: the Common App or Marquette’s application (international students have their own entry point); no application fee for undergraduates.
• Dates (no year stated; confirm for fall 2027): Early Action 15 November, decision in late December; Regular Decision 1 February, decision by 1 March; later applications are reviewed on a rolling, space-available basis. The application opens in early August. The tuition deposit is $200 and non-refundable.
• Materials: official high school transcript, essay or personal statement and an activities list are required; recommendations and extra statements are not required but are reviewed if submitted. The site does not mention an extra essay for engineering.
• Testing: SAT/ACT optional with no penalty, including for scholarships. Admitted students’ averages are listed as 3.65 GPA, 27.5 ACT and 1250 SAT, which are university-wide figures, not engineering ones.

5. U.S. students: costs and scholarships

• Cost: Marquette is private and lists one undergraduate rate, with no resident and non-resident distinction and no separate engineering fee on the pages we read. 2026-27: full-time tuition (12+ credits) $53,890, fees $1,200, housing and food $14,380–$18,790 depending on the residence hall, total $69,470–$73,880.
• Page inconsistency: the page is headed “Tuition and costs 2026-27” but also says to visit Marquette Central for “2025-26 tuition and cost information”. We use the 2026-27 figures listed; confirm with Marquette.
• Automatic: all undergraduate applicants are considered for the Père Marquette Scholarship with no application, and submitting no test score does not matter.
• Awards needing an application: the Michael R. Lovell Presidential Scholarship (full, extra application), the Honors Program, and the college-based Opus Scholars Program and Herdrich Endowed Scholarship for Engineering. The Engineering Scholars Program page says the college offers several full-tuition scholarships for incoming freshmen from populations underrepresented in engineering, some with housing and food for 2 to 4 years; numbers and types vary by year.
• Wisconsin students: there are Wisconsin Academic Excellence Awards (for Wisconsin valedictorians and others), Burke Scholars and Hometown Dean’s Scholarships; full conditions were not on the pages we read. We found no resident preference or guarantee in engineering admission.
• Need-based aid: file the FAFSA.

6. International students

• Materials: transcripts from every high school (unofficial first, official before the I-20 and enrollment); exam results or certificates appropriate to your education system; SAT/ACT optional; recommendation and activities list optional. For an I-20 you also need the sponsor form and a current bank statement showing adequate funds for the first year.
• English (one of): TOEFL total 86 with 20 in each section for tests before 21 January 2026, or a total of 4.5 for tests on or after 21 January 2026; IELTS 6.5 in each section; Duolingo 120 overall (no subscore below 115 preferred); SAT Evidence-Based Reading 560; ACT English 24 and Reading 20; at least 2 semesters of in-person study at a U.S. or Canadian university, or 4 semesters at a U.S. or Canadian high school.
• Conditional admission: applicants who meet everything except English can request conditional admission; the English study cannot be done at Marquette and requires applying separately to an English program.
• Dates: the same as for first-years, Early Action 15 November and Regular Decision 1 February; the international page also lists spring dates.
• Costs (2026-27 estimate): $26,945 tuition each for fall and spring, plus $24,950 living expenses (two terms of housing and food, 12-month health insurance, books, student fees and more), for $78,840.
• Scholarships: all applicants are considered automatically for the Père Marquette Award; others need an application. Marquette cannot award need-based scholarships and says even the largest merit scholarship does not cover all costs. The scholarships page says international students are not eligible for scholarships outside the Global Scholars Award (full tuition) and the scholars programs. Whether the Engineering Scholars Program is open to international students is not stated.
• Credit transfer: evaluated after admission; submit materials by 1 August for fall.

7. Applicants from China

• Gaokao: the application materials page asks for exam results or certificates for your system and lists the “Chinese graduation certificate” and NCEE (the gaokao) among examples. Whether gaokao results are required and what score is expected is not published; ask undergraduate admissions or the Office of International Education (414-288-7289).
• Transcripts: upload unofficial transcripts first and send official ones before the I-20 and enrollment; non-English documents need an official, exact English translation.
• English: the site does not say gaokao English can substitute; submit TOEFL (4.5 on the new scale), IELTS 6.5, Duolingo 120 and so on, or use SAT Reading 560 or ACT English 24 with Reading 20.
• If you studied at a Chinese university first: a credential evaluation by an approved agency (ECE, WES, TEC, Educational Perspectives, Scholaro, One Earth) and a CHESICC transcript verification report are required.
• Interview, country page: we found no China-specific page or interview requirement.

8. Transfer students

• Engineering transfer requirement: the bulletin says applicants who have been enrolled in higher education since high school, including at Marquette, need a minimum 2.750 average (four-point scale) in previous college work and B- or higher in MATH 1450 Calculus 1 and PHYS 1003 General Physics with Introductory Calculus 1 or equivalents; the entire academic record is evaluated. The university-wide section adds that some programs require an average above 2.500.
• Application: the Common App or Marquette’s transfer application, free; rolling review with no deadline; fall decisions begin in December and spring decisions in September (international page).
• Credit: evaluated by the Office of Academic Affairs at admission, possibly with the advising director and department representatives; evaluations are conditional until official transcripts arrive. Only credits transfer, not grades.
• Articulation: the college has dual-degree articulation agreements with Waukesha County Technical College (Wisconsin) for electrical and mechanical engineering.
• International transfers: a course-by-course credential evaluation and English scores; see section 6.

Checklist

U.S. students:

• Apply by 15 November (Early Action) or 1 February (Regular Decision); no fee; transcript, essay, activities list; test scores optional
• High school: 4 years of math including pre-calculus, and one year each of biology, chemistry and physics are recommended

International students (including applicants from China):

• Same dates; transcripts and gaokao or graduation certificate; TOEFL 4.5 (new scale), IELTS 6.5 or Duolingo 120, etc.
• How gaokao results are used is not published; ask the Office of International Education

Transfer students:

• College average 2.750 or higher and B- or better in Calculus 1 and Physics 1; rolling review, no deadline

Sources: Marquette University, Opus College of Engineering; Engineering: prospective students; Undergraduate degrees; Program accreditation; Co-ops and internships; Engineering Scholars Program; Bulletin: engineering admission requirements; Bulletin: degrees offered; Bulletin: articulation agreements; Bulletin: undergraduate admission; First-year application; Test-optional policy; Transfer; International application process and deadlines; International application materials and English; Conditional admission; Credit transfer; International tuition and costs; International undergraduate scholarships; Tuition and financial aid; Undergraduate scholarships. Deadline pages do not state a year; costs are 2026-27. Check Marquette for the latest details.