Admission Requirements 

General requirements for admission are described in the Admissions section of the Graduate Catalog. Specific admission requirements for the Master’s Program in Electrical Engineering are described below.

1. Undergraduate or graduate degree in Electrical or Computer Engineering or a related field from an ABET accredited institution in the United States, or proof of equivalent education from an international institution.
2. Demonstration of academic achievement and potential as indicated by the results of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), and upper-level undergraduate and graduate coursework.  The GRE requirement is waived for students from UTEP.
3. Three letters of recommendation and any other evidence of background, knowledge, research, or work experience in Electrical and Computer Engineering that may be available.
4. A written statement of intent, describing his/her career goals and describing his/her vision of the path to those goals (including a summary of previous preparation and of his/her expectations from the graduate program).
5. Submission of a CV/resume summarizing, professional and academic experience and any other evidence of background, knowledge, research, or work experience in Electrical or Computer Engineering that may be available.
6. Applicants from countries where English is not the first language are required to demonstrate English proficiency. Please consult the graduate school website for required scores.

Depending upon selected areas of concentration and academic background, students may need to complete leveraging undergraduate course work. Conditional admission may be offered to students who do not meet all of the specific criteria for admission but who show promise of success in graduate studies.

The Department will recommend to the Graduate School acceptance, conditional acceptance, or rejection of the application after all required documents have been received and reviewed by the Graduate School.

Degree Requirements

Two options are available for students: Thesis and Non-Thesis (Project or Course Only). Master of Science students are normally admitted into the Non-Thesis Option, but can transfer to the Thesis Option if approved by the student's Thesis Advisor and Graduate Advisor. All students must take at least 21 hours in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering courses of which twelve credit hours must be in a concentration area. In addition, the degree plan can include at most, six (6) credit hours of approved senior-level undergraduate coursework, six (6) credit hours of approved coursework in areas outside the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and at most, three (3) credit hours of Individual Studies. Credits in graduate research cannot be used to satisfy course requirements for the Master degree.

Specific Requirements for Thesis Students

Students  in  the  Thesis  Option   must   take   30   credit   hours,   that   include ECE 5398 Thesis  and ECE 5399 Thesis . ECE 5399 Thesis  must be repeated until the thesis is defended and submitted to the Graduate School for approval. The thesis courses cannot be counted towards requirements in the Non­ Thesis Option.

Specific Requirements for Non-Thesis Students

Students in the Non-Thesis Project Option must take 33 credit hours approved by the Graduate Advisor, which include ECE 5396 Graduate Projects Graduate Projects and, if approved by the project instructor, ECE 5397 Graduate Projects. A written report must be submitted to the supervising project instructor. The project courses cannot be counted towards requirements in the Thesis Option or the Non-Thesis Course-Only Option.

Students in the Non-Thesis Course-Only Option must take 36 credit hours of course work approved by the Graduate Advisor.

Degree Requirements Summary