Electrical Engineering (MSE)
Overview
The Master of Science in Engineering degree has a thesis option and a non-thesis option.
Coursework is offered in areas including computer engineering, power and energy, systems and controls, communications, digital systems, electronics, nanotechnology, signal processing, microwave engineering, and electromagnetics.
For thesis topics, research opportunities are available in power systems, renewable energy, smart grids, computer architecture and high-performance - computing systems, computer networks and cybersecurity, multimedia processors, VLSI/IC design and implementation, wireless communications, microwave and antenna engineering, radar imaging, electromagnetic applications, metamaterials, robotics and autonomous systems, signal and image processing, advanced digital system design and testing, biomedical engineering and devices, sensors/electronics and detection, photonics and optics, nanotechnology and MEMS, big data, IoT, and machine learning.
Admission Requirements
To be admitted to the graduate program in electrical engineering with clear admission status, prospective candidates must first meet all requirements for graduate admission to the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, as well as the other requirements listed below:
- Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Physics, Mathematics, or a similarly named program with content equivalent to an Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET)-accredited BS in Electrical Engineering.
- Admitted applicants that do not have an undergraduate degree in Electrical or Computer Engineering or in a similar field are usually required to take undergraduate leveling courses as prerequisites of our graduate courses.
- Undergraduate GPA of at least 3.0 in the last 60 semester credit hours.
- Letter of Intent detailing professional goals and reasons for pursuing the graduate degree.
- Resume.
Domestic Applicants Who Attended Foreign Universities
Visit the Additional Documents for Domestic Applicants who Attend Foreign Universities on the Graduate College How to Apply website for additional requirements.
Application for admission must be submitted before the published deadline. The application is available at www.utrgv.edu/gradapply.
Prospective students with a BS degree in other areas or having transcripts showing a lack of background courses, as in a typical BS in Electrical Engineering curriculum, may also be required to take undergraduate leveling courses. Students with conditional admission status must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 for the first nine graduate hours toward the MSE-EE degree at UTRGV.
Program Requirements
Leveling Courses
Students whose undergraduate major is not electrical and computer engineering may be required to take one or more of the leveling courses from the list given below with the approval of the Graduate Program Coordinator. These courses will not count toward the 30 credits required for the MSE degree.
Leveling courses are determined for each student by the Graduate Program Coordinator based on their course background and experience in electrical and computer engineering. Students must also have the prerequisites required to take the leveling courses. Students who lack only a few leveling courses may be permitted to start graduate ECE coursework in parallel with their leveling courses
General Electrical and Computer Engineering Leveling Courses
Non-Thesis Option:
Required Courses - 30 Hours
Students can elect which courses they would like to register for, but they MUST have the consent of their faculty advisor and the Graduate Program Coordinator.
Choose from the following:
Students can select up to 3 credit hours of graduate coursework from any other departments within the College of Engineering and Computer Science or College of Sciences. Still, they MUST have the written consent of the Graduate Program Coordinator.
Capstone Requirement
Written Comprehensive Exam - Students MUST successfully pass a written comprehensive exam in three subjects selected by the candidates.
If the comprehensive exam is not passed, the students must register for EECE 6100 Comprehensive Examination to retake the exam the following semester.
Thesis Option
Required Courses - 24 Hours
Students can select which courses they would like to register for but they MUST have the consent of their faculty advisor and the Graduate Program Coordinator.
Choose from the following:
Students can select up to 6 credit hours of graduate coursework from any other departments within the College of Engineering and Computer Science or College of Sciences. Still, they MUST have the written consent of the Graduate Program Coordinator.
Thesis - 6 Hours
Note: Students in this option MUST produce a written thesis in a relevant Electrical and Computer Engineering topic of study and defend their thesis in front of their formed Thesis Committee. Once taken, EECE 7301 Thesis II must be repeated each semester until the thesis is successfully defended. If the student has successfully defended and the thesis manuscript is under corrections, the student must register for EECE 7100 Thesis II Extension next semester.
Total Credit Hours: 30