The Master of Science program in Electrical and Computer Engineering (MSECE) consists of a minimum of 31 credit hours beyond the baccalaureate degree, of which a maximum of six hours can be transferred from a graduate program from another university with the graduate coordinator’s approval.

In addition, students are required to maintain acceptable performance; all master’s coursework must be completed with a minimum GPA of 3.0. A student receiving one “C’ in the course work will be warned that his/her performance is unacceptable and that the student will be reviewed by ECE faculty, which will also suggest corrective. A student receiving two “C’s” will be dismissed from the program, pending review by the ECE faculty.

Students enrolled in the non-thesis option are required to do a graduate project supervised by an ECE faculty member. The student’s plan of study must be developed in conjunction with his/her thesis/project advisor or Graduate coordinator and filled with the Graduate Coordinator.

Students enrolled in the ENGR Ph.D. program (ECE Track) with a BS degree, if they have no MS degree, will be eligible for an MS ECE degree (Non-thesis option) after they have completed 30 credit hours of graduate course work, completed Research methodology/Ethics requirement, and passed their Ph.D. candidacy examination.

Admission Requirements

In addition to the UALR Graduate School admission requirements, the applicants for the M.S. program in Electrical and Computer Engineering must also meet the following criteria:

Education:  An applicant must have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited Electrical and/ or Computer Engineering program with an undergraduate GPA of at least 3.0 or 3.3 on the last 60 credit hours. An applicant with a bachelor’s degree in a closely related discipline with an undergraduate GPA of 3.3 on the last 60 credit hours may be admitted upon recommendation of the electrical and computer engineering faculty.

Standardized test scores: An applicant may submit the GRE  scores in support of the application. A 60% percentile on quantitative reasoning will be expected.

English language requirement: International students must satisfy the Graduate School TOEFL or IELTS test requirements.

Statement of purpose: An applicant must submit a statement of purpose (not to exceed two pages in length) that indicates the applicant’s intended area of research and the desired outcomes upon completion of the program

Recommendation letters: An applicant must submit at least two letters from referees who are qualified to evaluate the applicant’s academic potential

Applicants who do not meet all the admission requirements may be recommended for conditional admission. Conditionally admitted students must fulfill the requirements of the UALR Graduate School and those specified in their letter of admission to achieve regular admission.

Early Admission Requirements

Undergraduate students may apply and be accepted provisionally into the MS program at any time after completing 75 or more hours of undergraduate coursework. However, at least 90 hours of undergraduate coursework must have been completed by the time the first graduate Electrical and Computer Engineering course is taken. 

1. Students must satisfy the minimum university requirements for admission to an early graduate program:
   • All applicants must have at least a 3.2 overall GPA.
   • All applicants must complete an application for and be accepted into the desired graduate program.
   • All applicants must complete an Early Entry Program form and have it approved by the graduate coordinator and the Graduate School. This form must be approved before the student begins graduate coursework. Failure to obtain prior approval negates the ability to “double count” courses.
   • Specific programs may have more rigorous admissions criteria.
2. Students must be majoring in the BS in Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering
3. Students must have completed 40 hours of ECE Courses with a GPA of 3.3 in those courses 
4. Students must be recommended for admission by the Electrical and Computer Engineering faculty

Transfer Credit

A maximum of six hours can be transferred from a graduate program from another university with a graduate coordinator’s approval.

Prior Learning Assessment Credit

A maximum of six hours of PLA credit may be requested for having successfully completed two ECE-related specializations (three credit hours for each specialization) on Online learning platforms (such as Coursera and EdX) subject to the UALR Prior Learning Assessment acceptance policy. These include Robotics, Digital Signal Processing, and Machine Learning specializations offered on Coursera.org and graduate-level ECE courses offered on EdX.org.