Mar 29, 2024  
Graduate Catalog 
    
Graduate Catalog

Electrical and Computer Engineering, M.S.


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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.

 

Program Requirements


Core Courses


Student is required to take 24 hours of graduate level courses (27 hours of Non-thesis option) subject to the following restrictions.

  1. At least 15 hours must be taken in fields associated with electrical and computer engineering
  2. Up to 9 hours can be taken from graduate programs in the following STEM areas: Physics, Mathematics, Computer and Information Sciences
  3. Up to 6 hours can be taken from graduate courses in management sciences
  4. Students enrolled in early entry Masters can count up to 12 hours of graduate course work taken as part of Bachelors in Engineering and Computer Engineering degree curriculum 

Early Entry Electives


Students who have been admitted to the early entry graduate program in the MS in Systems Engineering may use 12 hours from the following courses as electives toward BS in Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering. The same courses can then be used as electives toward MS on Systems Engineering.

Research Methodology/Ethics


This will take 1 Credit hour and students can select either of the following.

Graduate Project


This will cover 3 credit hours.

Master’s Thesis/Project Advisor


The advisor is the faculty member who supervises the student’s thesis work or project.  Any tenure-track electrical and computer engineering faculty member appointed in the Systems Engineering department may serve as an advisor. A tenure track faculty member outside the Systems Engineering department may serve as thesis/project advisor with the approval of electrical and computer engineering faculty appointed in the systems engineering department.  

Master’s Thesis/Project Committee


The Thesis/ Project Committee will guide the student’s progress towards completion of the thesis/project as well as examine students’ thesis/project in the Thesis Defense/Project Presentation. The committee shall consist of the Thesis Advisor who chairs the committee, and a minimum of two additional committee members. A majority of the committee members shall be electrical and computer engineering faculty appointed in the systems engineering department 

Thesis/Project Proposal Defense


Students choosing the thesis option must present their research proposal to their Master’s Thesis Committee one semester prior to their final thesis defense. Students choosing the non-thesis option must present their project proposal to their Master’s Project Committee well ahead of their final project defense. At the completion of the examination, the Master’s Thesis or Project Committee will vote to either pass or fail the student. Students who fail the proposal defense will have to repeat the defense. If the student fails the proposal defense for a second time, he/she will be dismissed from the program

Thesis/Project Defense


Students choosing the thesis option must submit a written thesis in accordance with the format defined by the Graduate School. Students choosing the non-thesis option must submit a final project report as per the requirements defined by their Master’s Project Committee. Students must orally defend their completed thesis research or project work to their Master’s Thesis or Project Committee. At the completion of the examination, the Committee shall vote to either pass or fail the student. If two or more negative votes are cast by the committee members, the student is considered to have failed the exam and will be dismissed from the program.

Graduation Requirements


  • Pass thesis proposal defense / project proposal defense.
  • Pass thesis final defense / project final defense.

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