Electrical Engineering, MSEE

A Master of Science in Electrical Engineering allows a student to delve deeply into a wide range of topics of interest to the electrical engineer, perform cutting-edge research, and thus prepare for advanced opportunities in industry and academia. 

Courses at the graduate level are offered in a variety of modalities (e.g., online, hybrid, etc.) to cater for the schedules of students from local industry to continue their studies. The completion of the MSEE degree is normally accomplished in one to three years, and should be accomplished in six years, commencing with the beginning of course work.

The Master of Science in Electrical Engineering prepares graduate students to:

• Read, interpret, and critically assess literature in specialized fields of electrical engineering and evaluate its impact on current issues in engineering and society.
• Write authoritative technical reports and articles.
• Give effective oral presentations on technical topics.
•  Apply advanced knowledge in science, mathematics, and engineering to perform analysis, synthesis, and design for solutions of engineering problems.

Plan of Study

Once accepted, the student must select an ECE faculty advisor and complete a Plan of Study. The faculty advisor must be Graduate Faculty of the UCCS Graduate School but need not be a member of the ECE faculty if approval has been obtained from the ECE Graduate Program Director.

The Plan of Study should be completed by the end of the first semester of coursework. Once completed, the student is expected to complete the stipulated coursework within the anticipated timeline. Changes to the Plan of Study may be made at any time in consultation with their faculty advisor via update to the original plan. 

Duration of Program (Please subordinate under Program Requirements by making a smaller size) The completion of the MSEE degree is normally accomplished in one to three years; the degree must be accomplished in six years commencing with the beginning of course work. A student becomes "inactive" if they fail to register for three consecutive semesters. An inactive student must reapply to the program to continue studies. An application fee will be charged if one or more of the following applies:

• Semester of most recent registration was more than six years prior to date of reapplication.
• Coursework completed more than six years prior to date of reapplication will be applied to the degree.
• One or more courses have been taken at another institution subsequent to the student’s most recent registration at UCCS.

If a student foresees taking extended time off from the program, it is recommended they apply for a Leave of Absence status.
 

Degree Requirements and Action Checklist

Note: The student must meet all deadlines in the Schedule of Deadlines for Graduate Degree Candidates published annually by the UCCS Graduate School

Thesis Option

If the student has chosen the thesis option, they must:

• Complete the required research and write a thesis.
• Form an MSEE Advisory Committee and select a second reader a minimum of sixty days prior to the defense.
• Notify the ECE department of plans to graduate at the beginning of the semester during which the student plans to graduate. Completed diploma card (available   online), and Application for Admission to Candidacy must be submitted at this time as well.
• Notify the ECE department of the Thesis defense date (a minimum of one month prior to thesis defense)  and schedule appropriate resources (e.g., conference room, etc.)
• Submit final draft of written thesis to Advisory Committee a minimum of one week prior to the thesis defense.
• Successfully defend the thesis in an oral defense. The student must be registered for the semester during which the defense occurs.
• Obtain approval (and signatures) from all Advisory Committee members that the written thesis has acceptable content.
• After successfully defending their thesis, students must follow the Thesis and Dissertation Submission procedures provided by the Graduate School

Thesis Option Credit Requirements:

• Complete 30 semester hours of MS credits allocated as follows:
  • Complete at least 24 semester hours of coursework
    • At least 18 semester hours must be ECE courses.
    • 6 semester hours may be by allied department courses (e.g., Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, etc.)
• Complete 6 hours of thesis credit in addition to coursework
• At most 6 semester hours may be Independent Study courses
• Transfer up to 9 semester hours of accepted course work may be transferred from another university or from course work taken as an unclassified student. Any transfer of credit must occur prior to the semester in which they will graduate. 
• All coursework must be numbered 5000 and above if ECE, or 4000 and above if non-ECE.

Non-Thesis Option

If the student has chosen the non-thesis option, they:

• Must form an MSEE Advisory Committee. 
• Notify the ECE department of plans to graduate at the beginning of the semester during which the student plans to graduate. Completed diploma card (available   online), and Application for Admission to Candidacy for an Advanced Degree must be submitted at this time as well.
• Must successfully complete a final examination consisting of two parts, an oral presentation and a written report on a subject chosen by the student and approved by the Advisory Committee

Non-Thesis Option Credit Requirements:

• Complete 30 semester hours of MS credits allocated as follows:
• Complete at least 30 semester hours of coursework
  • At least 24 semester hours must be ECE courses.
    • The remaining 6 semester hours may be replaced by allied department courses (e.g., Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, etc.)
• At most 6 semester hours may be independent study courses
• Up to 9 semester hours of accepted course work may be transferred from another university or from course work taken as an unclassified student. Any transfer of credit must occur prior to the semester in which they will graduate. 
• All coursework must be numbered 5000 and above if ECE, or 4000 and above if non-ECE.

Thesis Advisory Committee

Should the student elect to complete the thesis option, they will need to form an MSEE Thesis Advisory Committee. This committee will consist of the thesis advisor, and at least two other members of the graduate faculty, possibly including a member from an allied program or community organization. Upon the recommendation of the thesis advisor, the committee is appointed by the program director with the approval of the college/school dean and forwarded to the Graduate School. Appointment of committee members to thesis committees must follow the policies of appointment to the Graduate School Faculty.

• The chair of the advisory committee must be faculty of the ECE department, although the chair need not be the student's academic advisor. (This provision allows a student who is studying in a closely related field to Electrical Engineering, such as areas of physics, mathematics, or mechanical and aerospace engineering)

Oral Examination (Defense) 

The final oral defense on work presented for the degree takes place at the completion of the work on the thesis after the first and second readers have approved its contents. This examination is open to anyone who wishes to attend. A successful candidate must receive the affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the advisory committee. In case of failure, the examination may be attempted once more after a period of time determined by the committee.

Written Thesis

The MSEE thesis is a written, polished document reporting the results of the student's investigation into an area of research. It must be written according to the thesis/dissertation guidelines supplied by The Graduate School. See the Thesis/Dissertation Manual.

Grades

The student must have an overall graduate GPA of 3.0 to graduate. The student must have a grade of C or better in all courses applied toward the MSEE degree.

Regular Admission

Regular admission to the MSEE program requires the following:

• Graduate Record Examination (GRE): applicants whose highest degree is held from an international university or from a non-ABET-accredited undergraduate program are required to take the verbal-reasoning and quantitative-reasoning portions of the Graduate Records Examinations (GRE)
  • The GRE requirement may be waived by special petition to the Department Graduate Studies Committee. 
• A 3.0 undergraduate grade-point-average (GPA) 
  • The GRE may be required by the ECE Graduate Studies Committee if the applicant’s GPA on all previous college work falls below 3.0. 
• Degrees from Non-English Institutions
• Applicants earning an undergraduate or graduate degrees from non-English institutions are required to show proof of English proficiency. 
• Note that courses completed before admission may not all be transferable into a graduate degree program.

Provisional Admission

Students not admitted on a regular basis may be admitted on a provisional basis depending on their overall application file, including GPA, GRE, letters of recommendation, etc. Students admitted on a provisional basis are often required to take remedial courses (these are specified in the letter of acceptance). Registration for such remedial courses must commence with the first semester of a student’s program with at least three credits completed per semester until all remedial requirements are satisfied.

Streamlined Application

The Streamlined Application is designed to offer outstanding UCCS students and UCCS alumni an expedited application to graduate school by minimizing the application materials required for an admission application.

Application requirements for streamlined applications: 

• Complete the online Graduate School Application
• Submit official transcripts from all previously attended institutions (both undergraduate and graduate level work). Transcripts from UCCS do not need to be submitted.
• Minimum GPA of 3.0
• Must be about to graduate or graduated in the last 4 years from UCCS
• 1 recommendation from the Department Chair 

Application Deadlines

Applications are reviewed on a continual basis. Please visit the Graduate School’s page to review application deadlines by program. It is recommended that international students apply at least three months prior to the start of the semester to allow time to request a visa.

To learn more about admission requirements and the application process, please visit the UCCS Admissions page.

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