Faculty for the program are drawn from the departments of Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mathematics & Statistics, Physics, and Chemistry. The faculty are committed to educating the students on the properties and applications of materials and to carry out advanced and stimulating research in these areas. The program is multidisciplinary because it is involved with the physical, mechanical, electrical and chemical properties of materials — mostly solids. It is multidisciplinary also in that it combines the theoretical and experimental capabilities of a variety of disciplines and applies them to the solution of complex scientific and engineering problems.

Typically, students entering the program have received a Bachelor's degree in physics, chemistry, metallurgy, engineering, materials science, or mathematics. Applicants with other backgrounds will be evaluated individually.