Admissions Requirements
Students possessing a bachelor’s or master’s degree and a strong academic background in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or similar disciplines are encouraged to apply for admission to the master’s or doctoral programs. Applicants for a certificate, MS or PhD program must submit the required application materials to the Office of Graduate Studies though the online portal at https://www.umassd.edu/graduate/apply/. In addition,
• Transcripts should show class rank if available. For the MS and PhD programs, three letters of recommendation should be submitted from persons in the field of the applicant’s academic major at the institution most recently attended or be from supervisors familiar with the applicant’s recent job performance. For PhD applicants, the recommendations must also address the student’s ability to conduct independent scholarly research. Certificate applicants do not need to provide letters of recommendation. BS/MS applicants are encouraged to include a recommendation from a department faculty member willing to advise their graduate research.
• For all programs, the personal essay should be from 300 to 600 words in length. This essay should indicate your graduate study objectives, research interests and experience, undergraduate and graduate experience, and business or industry experience if applicable. If you are also applying for a teaching or research assistantship, include any special skills or experience that would assist us in our decision on the assistantship award.
• Graduate Record Examination scores for the General Test must be submitted by MS and PhD degree seeking applicants, except by those who are or are about to be graduates of the U.S. colleges/universities or who are or are about to be recipients of an ECE graduate certificate, or who took two ECE graduate courses and received a grade of at least “B”.
• Foreign students’ scores on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) should be 550 minimum for admission and 600 minimum to be eligible for a teaching assistantship (213/250 for TOEFL computer-based scores or 80/100 for internet-based scores). Scores on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) should be 6.5 minimum for admission and 7.0 minimum to be eligible for a teaching assistantship. Admission to the MS and PhD programs is competitive. In general, students must exceed the minimum requirements stated below to gain admission. However, all students who meet the minimum requirements will be considered. In special cases, students who do not meet these minimum requirements, but who otherwise show evidence of strong academic, professional, or research ability, may be accepted upon approval of the ECE Graduate Committee.
• The applicant must possess a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or related field of engineering, science or mathematics, from a college or university of recognized standing. Applicants with backgrounds different than those for the option to which they are applying may be admitted with additional course requirements needed to meet program prerequisites.
• Applicants to the MS program must have demonstrated scholastic competence. Typically, MS applicants with an undergraduate cumulative grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 grading scale for all engineering, math and physics courses will be considered. Applicants to the PhD program must have demonstrated superior scholastic achievement.
• In addition to exceeding the minimum MS program requirements, PhD applicants must also demonstrate a potential for conducting independent scholarly research. Recommendations are very important in the evaluation of research potential and should, therefore, specifically address the subject of research potential. Master’s theses or undergraduate projects are also considered in the evaluation of research potential.
Transfer of Credit
A maximum of six credits may be transferred from another institution. A maximum of nine UMass Dartmouth credits earned prior to admission to an ECE graduate or certificate program, but all credits earned in an ECE certificate program, can be applied to a degree program.
Enrollment Without Degree Intentions
The department offers a choice of certificate programs which provide specific career benefits to working professionals. The courses in these programs are compatible with degree requirements, if students later decide to transition to a degree program. Certificate programs are described in detail in a subsequent section of this catalogue. Students accepted to one of our certificate programs may subsequently apply that coursework to a degree without restriction in the number of credits.
In addition, individuals may enroll in graduate courses as non-degree students without applying for admission to a graduate or certificate program, when space is available and with permission of the instructor. Non-degree students should have at least a 2.75 out of a 4.00 grade point average with a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering, computer engineering, other engineering disciplines, science, or mathematics. Before registering for a course, non-degree students are required to discuss their preparation with the instructor to determine that they have sufficient background to be successful. Registration may be done at the first class meeting. If the non-degree student is later admitted to a graduate or certificate program, a maximum of nine credits of these courses may be transferred by written application to the Graduate Program Director.
Additional Admissions Information
Qualified undergraduate scholars currently studying in the ECE department - typically those having a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above but not meeting the accelerated BS/MS requirement - will be identified at the conclusion of the fall semester of their junior year. The graduate committee will select nominees at the beginning of the spring semester. Students invited to participate in the program will then file an application through the online portal at https://www.umassd.edu/graduate/apply/, submitting the regular graduate application but without GRE or TOEFL scores or recommendation letters, by the end of the fall semester of their senior year.
Resources
The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering maintains and operates a wide variety of facilities for applications in engineering education and research. Some special facilities include: Acoustics Laboratory; Autonomous, Networking, Dependable Systems Laboratory; Embedded Systems, Sensors and IT Laboratory; Internet of Things (IoT) Security Laboratory; Wireless Communications and Computing; Signal Processing Laboratory; Software Intensive Systems Reliability Laboratory; Speech Processing Laboratory; RF Photonics Laboratory; Statistical Signal Processing Laboratory; and Optical Imaging Research Lab. In addition to undergraduate laboratories, the department maintains numerous Windows- and UNIX-based servers and workstations.
The School for Marine Science and Technology (SMAST); and the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE)—described elsewhere in this catalogue—offer opportunities for applied research for engineering graduate students. The region, along with neighboring Rhode Island, is host to U.S. government laboratories and major industries, many of whom hire our graduates and support their professional development through financial support.
Graduate Assistantships and Financial Aid
Financial assistance is available to full-time graduate students on a competitive basis. Many full-time students have teaching assistantships or research assistantships within the ECE department, while others may be supported by fellowships or employed in other University departments. Requests for financial assistance should be made on the admission application. Other inquiries regarding graduate student financial assistance should be made to the ECE Graduate Program Director. For information about loans or other assistance, please consult the chapter on “Expenses and Financial Assistance.”
Post-Baccalaureate Certificates
Applicants apply for acceptance to a graduate certificate program through the though the online portal at https://www.umassd.edu/graduate/apply/. Successful applicants are required to hold an appropriate undergraduate degree such as a BS in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or Electrical Engineering. Certificate applicants also follow the general procedures for graduate degree acceptance into the MS in Electrical Engineering and the MS in Computer Science, but in a curtailed form. Thus, they fill out the same application form as do degree applicants and supply an essay and official transcripts of all post-secondary work, as instructed therein. However, they are not required to submit GRE scores or recommendation letters.
Prospective students can take up to two courses for the certificate before completing their official acceptance to the certificate program, with permission of the instructor.
A faculty committee will review applications for acceptance to this certificate program. One element in the review will be to assess whether a student has met the stated prerequisites and in general has the appropriate combination of background and experience to succeed in the program. Acceptance may be offered with a contingency that the student must also take one or more undergraduate prerequisite courses.
Certificate students receive the same benefits as do degree students as regards access to the full range of university services and facilities and may register along with graduate degree students. Other graduate policies, such as those for longevity of credit, acceptable grades, and repeatability of courses, apply to certificate students as to degree students. Certificate students pay graduate tuition and fees.
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