PhD in Electrical Engineering - Degree Requirements

MS to PhD

  1. A minimum of 72 graduate credits is required beyond a bachelor's degree. A master's degree in a related field is considered equivalent to 30 credits. Students must take a minimum of 18 credits of graduate coursework beyond the master's degree and a minimum of 24 dissertation credits.
  2. Of the 18-credit minimum of coursework, a minimum of 12 credits must be Electrical Engineering courses (excluding directed independent study credits) and a minimum of 9 credits of 6000-level must be completed.
  3. No more than 3 credits of directed independent study or advanced research may be used to satisfy the minimum of 18 credits. In that case, the subject matter may not overlap the student's dissertation.
  4. Specific Focus Area coursework will be required.
  5. At least 6 credits in courses with math prefix are required as part of coursework beyond the bachelor's degree. These may include EEL 5613, Modern Control; EEE 5502, Digital Processing of Signals; EEL 6482, Electromagnetic Theory 1; EOC 5172, Mathematical Methods in Ocean Engineering 1.
  6. Students must complete two semesters of CGS 5937 Graduate Seminar.
  7. A written dissertation proposal must be accepted by the dissertation committee, at least six months prior to defending the dissertation.
  8. When the candidate submits the Application for Graduation, he/she must indicate the following as a check list: (a) Date of CE taken and candidacy filed; (b) Date of dissertation proposal presented and approved by the Ph.D. Committee and (c) Status of the Plan of Study.
  9. Draft copy of the dissertation must be submitted for review by the Ph.D. Committee at least 15 days prior to the date of defending the dissertation. And the dissertation must be completed and orally defended.
  10. It is expected that all doctoral candidates have at least one research paper published or accepted for publication in a fully refereed conference or journal prior to graduation. A patent relevant to the Ph.D. research topic/dissertation as approved by the U.S. Patent Office with an assigned number can substitute for the journal or conference publication requirement.

 

BS to PhD

  1. A minimum of 72 graduate credits is required beyond a bachelor's degree. Students must take a minimum of 42 credits of graduate coursework and a minimum of 30 dissertation credits.
  2. Of the 42-credit minimum of coursework, a minimum of 27 credits must be Electrical Engineering courses (excluding directed independent study credits) and a minimum of 18 credits of 6000-level must be completed.
  3. No more than 6 credits of directed independent study and/or advanced research graduate courses may be used to satisfy the minimum of 42 credits. In that case, the subject matter may not overlap the student's dissertation.
  4. Specific Focus Area coursework will be required.
  5. At least 6 credits in courses with math prefix are required as part of coursework beyond the bachelor's degree. These may include EEL 5613, Modern Control; EEE 5502, Digital Processing of Signals; EEL 6482, Electromagnetic Theory 1; EOC 5172, Mathematical Methods in Ocean Engineering 1.
  6. Students must complete two semesters of CGS 5937 Graduate Seminar.
  7. A written dissertation proposal must be accepted by the dissertation committee, at least six months prior to defending the dissertation.
  8. When the candidate submits the Application for Graduation, he/she must indicate the following as a check list: (a) Date of CE taken and candidacy filed; (b) Date of dissertation proposal presented and approved by the Ph.D. Committee and (c) Status of the Plan of Study.
  9. Draft copy of the dissertation must be submitted for review by the Ph.D. Committee at least 15 days prior to the date of defending the dissertation. And the dissertation must be completed and orally defended.
  10. It is expected that all doctoral candidates have at least one research paper published or accepted for publication in a fully refereed conference or journal prior to graduation. A patent relevant to the Ph.D. research topic/dissertation as approved by the U.S. Patent Office with an assigned number can substitute for the journal or conference publication requirement.