The first Brazilian graduation course in Nuclear Engineering, called Specialization in Nuclear Engineering, was created at IME in 1958. The main goal was to meet the demand for specialized professionals in a progressively expanding job market. That happened immediately after the creation of the National Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN) in 1956, responsible for promoting the country's entry into the area of ​​knowledge of nuclear energy.

The Specialization course in Nuclear Engineering was offered full-time, lasting 1 year. At the end of this first year, the student was able to defend a monograph to obtain the title. It was intended, therefore, to train engineers capable of absorbing and developing the new technology, to meet the existing and future demands of specialized professionals, identified at the time. Several specialists, trained at this Institute, performed activities in the university system, in research institutions, in regulatory and normative commissions and in the Brazilian corporative sector.

After operating for few years, changes were introduced in the initial structure of the course. Combined with the continuous search for curriculum updating, the concern to resolve not only the new curricular guidelines, but also the market demands, led, in 1969, to transform the former Specialization course in the current Master's course in Nuclear Engineering at IME.

Today, the Program works in two lines of research, Environmental Control and Nuclear Reactors. They form the embryo for the development of research activities that support training in Nuclear Engineering. These lines of research incorporate measurements of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, as well as facilities where materials containing natural or artificial radionuclides are processed, making them compatible with national interests.