Master’s Degree Requirements

The Master of Applied Science requires 92 units of graduate credit, distributed as follows:

• 24 units from the Core Requirements list
• 54 units from Restricted Electives list; with advisor approval, up to 36 units may be substituted with other graduate subjects. For students undertaking substantial capstone projects, up to 12 units of 21M.599 may be used from this category, with advisor approval.
• 14 units of the Master of Applied Science (MASc) Requirements

Core Requirements

• 21M.585 Interactive Music Systems (fall & spring, 12 units)
• 21M.569 Tuning Attention: Creative Practices in Movement, Sound, and AI (fall, 12 units)
• 21M.589 Audio Computing: Processing Sound in Engineering, Science, and the Arts (fall, 12 units)
• 21M.586 Algorithms and Interactions for Human-AI Music Making (spring, 12 units)
• 21M.587 Fundamentals of Music Processing (spring, 12 units)
• 21M.588 Musical Acoustics, Synthesis, and Audio Effects (spring, 12 units)

Restricted Electives

• 21M.526 Advanced Seminar in Music (fall 2026, 12 units)
• 21M.527 Advanced Seminar in Musicology (spring 2027, 12 units)
• 21M.528 Advanced Seminar in Ethnomusicology (spring 2028, 12 units)
• 21M.529 Advanced Seminar in Music Theory/Analysis (fall 2027, 12 units)
• 21M.517 MIT Laptop Ensemble (fall & spring, 6 units)
• 21M.560 Introduction to Music Technology (fall & spring, 12 units)
• 21M.561 Electronic Music Composition (fall & spring, 12 units)
• 21M.570 Digital Instrument Design (fall, 12 units)
• 21M.599 Graduate Independent Study in Music Technology (fall & spring, up to 12 units, by permission only)
• 21T.523 Sound Design (fall, 12 units)
• CMS.803 DJ History, Technique, and Technology (fall & spring, 12 units)
• MAS.837 Principles of Electronic Music Interfaces (spring, 12 units)
• And, any subject listed in Core Requirements

Master of Applied Science (MASc) Requirements

• 21M.590 Colloquium in Music Technology (required both fall and spring, 2 units total)
• 21M.595 Music Technology and Computation Graduate Seminar (required both fall and spring, 6 units total)
• 21M.591 Capstone Project in Music Technology (spring, 6 units total)

With permission of your advisor, you may substitute some subjects in the Restricted Electives list with any graduate level subject taught in any department at MIT. This means you have the entire wealth of MIT subjects at your disposal. We encourage you to look around and find subjects that are relevant to your academic goals. Just note that some subjects in other departments may carry restrictions or limit enrollment.

You are also welcome to consider subjects that do not carry graduate credit so long as you otherwise complete the 92 graduate unit requirement. There is no “unit limit” at MIT. You may enroll in an undergraduate subject if you find it particularly interesting. It will appear on your official transcript even though it does not count towards your graduate degree. You may also register as a listener (i.e. attending without getting credit) for any subject so long as the instructor approves.