Program Overview

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Master of Molecular Science and Software Engineering (MSSE)

The Master of Molecular Science and Software Engineering (MSSE) is an online professional master’s program focused on teaching scientists to use computation and machine learning to solve real-world problems in the molecular sciences and beyond.

Program Overview

The MSSE program is designed to train scientists and engineers in Software Engineering and Machine Learning, with a focus on Computational Molecular Science. This prepares students for roles in high-demand fields such as Computational Chemistry, Cheminformatics, Computational Biology and Biochemistry, Bioinformatics, Computational Neuroscience, Computational Physics, Computational Material Science, Quantum Computational Chemistry, Nanotechnology, and other Computational Science fields.

Career Opportunities

The skills learned in the MSSE program are directly transferable to other science and non-science based industries that require advanced machine learning, complex mathematical modeling and simulations, software engineering, or high-performance computing. Some potential career paths and average starting salaries include:

• Computational Scientist: $157,000
• Machine Learning Engineer: $149,742
• Software Engineer: $144,144
• Computational Chemist: $107,168
• AI Engineer: $119,930
• Bioinformatics Engineer: $145,573
• Simulation and Modeling Engineer: $142,900
• Computational Neuroscientist: $158,656

Skills You Will Learn

The MSSE program teaches a range of skills, including:

• Software Engineering
• Computational Science
• Machine Learning
• Deep Learning
• Data Visualization
• Computational Quantum Chemistry
• High Performance Computing
• Leadership, Management, & Entrepreneurship

A Berkeley Quality Education

The University of California, Berkeley’s Colleges of Chemistry and Engineering are consistently ranked among the top in the nation and the world. The MSSE program features small classes taught by world-renowned faculty.

Online Learning

MSSE courses are taught online, except for one on-campus bootcamp. Online Learning at Berkeley means students can receive a Berkeley-quality education from anywhere in the world—no visa application required.

Full-Time or Part-Time

The MSSE degree can be completed in 9 months when taken full-time, or two years when taken part-time.

Transform Science-Based Industries

The MSSE curriculum teaches computational molecular science with a focus on advanced machine learning, complex mathematical modeling and simulations, software engineering, and high-performance computing. These skills are increasingly used across a wide range of science-based industries, including:

• Biotech & Pharmaceutical: $3.8 Trillion
  • Drug discovery and new therapeutics
  • Vaccine development
  • Individualized medicines
  • Improved testing and screening
• Materials: $1.9 Trillion
  • Reliable, durable materials for renewables
  • Metamaterials
  • Biocompatible materials
  • Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs)
• Energy: $3.5 Trillion
  • Renewable energy & biofuels
  • Eco-friendly materials & chemical processes
  • Improved solar cells
  • New battery technologies
• Food & Agriculture: $1 Trillion
  • Food and water security
  • Decarbonizing the synthesis of chemical feedstocks
  • New water treatment technologies
• Semiconductors: $1.9 Trillion
  • Developing advanced semi-conductor materials
  • Thermal conductivity improvements
  • Improving yield and cost
• Aerospace: $.7 Trillion
  • Lighter, stronger, more durable materials
  • Superalloys and exotic materials
  • Shape memory and superelastic alloys

Solving Global Challenges

Computational molecular science will be a key component in addressing some of the world’s largest challenges, including:

Climate Change

• Eco-friendly materials and chemical processes
• Low-carbon generation of hydrogen and other related energy carriers
• Renewable bioplastics
• Carbon Capture technologies
• Decarbonising the synthesis of chemical feedstocks
• Exascale computing to better model the world climate system

Food and Water Security

• Increased crops yields
• Reduced pest associated losses
• Increased nutritional values of foods
• New water treatment technologies to meet the growing demand for dwindling supplies

Health & Aging

• Drug discovery
• New therapeutics
• Vaccines
• Individualized medicine
• Biocompatible materials
• Improved testing & screening
• Better understanding of biological processes

Renewable Energy

• Improved solar cells
• New battery technologies
• Biofuels

Key Concepts

Computational Science

Harnesses computers and mathematical modeling to understand and solve complex problems in science and engineering.

Molecular Science

Seeks to explore the properties and interactions of molecules at atomic, molecular, supramolecular, and system levels to develop new materials and useful interactions that solve real-world issues.

Computational Molecular Science

Combines software engineering and theoretical molecular science to model, analyze, and simulate molecular structures, properties, and interactions.

High Performance Computing (HPC)

Enables the processing of complex calculations that use large amounts of data at high speeds, typically involving hundreds or thousands of computers or processors in parallel.