Graduate Program - General Information

The Master of Science (MS) degree in electrical and computer engineering is designed for students desiring to advance their knowledge and skills in a field/fields of electrical and computer engineering. The doctoral degree, i.e., the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), is designed for students who want to pursue a career in research and/or collegiate teaching. The focus is on learning to perform research and to write research papers, and on making new contributions to an electrical and computer engineering topic. 

The Combined Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree (BAM) is designed for high-performing undergraduate students in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, who desire to commit to the MS program early, taking grad-level classes in their senior year. The BAM program reduces the overall amount of time spent on receiving both BS and MS degrees in electrical and computer engineering, normally completed within 5 years total. 

The Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering offers 

  • MS degree in Electrical Engineering 
  • PhD in Electrical Engineering
  • BAM: BS Computer Engineering and MS in Electrical Engineering
  • BAM: BS and MS in Electrical Engineering

Graduate students pursue their degree(s) in one of the following major specialties:

  • Applied electromagnetics and RF circuits
  • Biomedical sensor and devices
  • Communications and network science
  • Cyber security and privacy
  • Energy and power systems
  • Image processing, computer vision, and imaging
  • Integrated circuits & VLSI
  • Machine learning and artificial intelligence
  • Optics and photonics
  • Signal processing and information theory
  • Solid-state and nanotechnology

Program Overview

The MS degree program requires successful completion of 30 credits of coursework. A thesis is optional. Students admitted to the MS program may apply to the PhD program. Admission depends on academic qualifications and the availability of openings in the PhD program.

Doctoral students must have an MS degree in electrical and computer engineering or its equivalent; otherwise, the MS course requirements must be met. Students newly admitted to the Ph.D. program are precandidates. There is a PhD qualifying process, typically completed within the first one year. After all requirements except the dissertation are completed, students become candidates. The PhD degree program requires successful completion of 40 credits of coursework. 

Our graduate courses cover highly specialized and advanced topics in the following five areas:

    • Biomedical Engineering: biomedical signal processing and analysis, bioelectronics, biomedical instrumentations, biomedical systems, biosensors, biomedical micro- and nano-devices, medical imaging.
    • Computer Engineering: algorithms, artificial intelligence, computer and network security, computer architecture, embedded systems, parallel and distributed computing/systems. 
    • Electrophysics:  electromagnetics, electronic and integrated circuits, fabrication, solid-state devices, microprocessor, microsensors, optical electronics and networks, RF and microwave circuits.
    • Power & Energy: power systems, renewable energy, smart grids.
    • Systems & Data Science: control, deep/convolutional neural networks, graph theory, machine learning, information theory, optimization, pattern recognition, signal/image processing, wireless communications.

    Financial Aid

    Financial aids are available in the form of teaching assistantship, research assistantship, or scholarship