Engineering-Concentration in Electrical Engineering, PhD

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering offers a PhD with Concentration in Electrical Engineering as part of the PhD in Engineering degree. The PhD is a research-focused degree that allows students to concentrate on a sub-topic of the field and contribute to the advancement of new ideas. Topics currently under study include:  lithium-ion batteries, electrified transportation, embedded systems, electromagnetic systems, computer architecture, next generation computing platforms, microelectronic devices and quantum computing, among others. Students in the ECE doctoral program:

• Focus on research, with only a modest amount of coursework required
• Engage in cutting-edge investigations across multiple domains
• Engage with other engineering graduate students to develop teamwork skills
• Work directly with highly accomplished faculty to make substantial contributions to their field
• Prepare for rewarding follow-on careers in industry and/or academia

• Demonstrate broad knowledge of science, math and engineering.
• Exhibit in-depth knowledge of the specific area in which the thesis research will be conducted.
• Read, understand, and evaluate professional literature on advanced topics in engineering and applied science.
• Write technical reports and project documentation.
• Give effective oral presentations on technical topics.
• Demonstrate the capability to make fundamental and significant contributions in engineering and applied science, mathematics, and engineering disciplines, along with the tools of research, to perform analysis and synthesis and to visualize potential areas of application.

The PhD degree is awarded to students who have:

1. Satisfied all program requirements
2. Submitted an acceptable dissertation and
3. Passed all prescribed examinations (PhD preliminary examination, PhD comprehensive examination, PhD dissertation defense). 

Requirements for students entering with a master's degree (60 credits):

• Complete 60 semester hours of PhD credits allocated as follows:
  • Complete at least 12 semester hours of coursework
    • At least 6 semester hours must be ECE courses.
    • At most 6 semester hours may be Independent Study courses.
    • 12 semester hours must be numbered 5000 and above. 
  • Transfer up to 18 credits from master’s degree
  • Complete 30 semester hours of dissertation research in addition to coursework. 

Requirements for students entering without a master's degree (66 credits):

• Complete 66 semester hours of PhD credits allocated as follows:
  • Complete at least 36 semester hours of coursework
    • At least 24 semester hours must be ECE courses.
    • At most 12 semester hours may be Independent Study courses.
    • 36 semester hours must be numbered 5000 and above. Cross-listed courses which are offered at the 5000/6000 levels must be taken at the 6000 level. 
  • Complete 30 semester hours of dissertation research in addition to coursework.

Requirements for all students:

1. Complete 30 semester hours of dissertation research in addition to coursework
2. Have an overall graduate GPA of 3.0 to graduate
3. Have a grade of B- or better in all courses applied toward the PhD degree
4. Pass the preliminary examination, the comprehensive examination, and the final defense of dissertation 

Prior to attempting the comprehensive examination:

• The student must pass the preliminary examination
• The student must satisfy requirement 3 above
   

Regular Admission

• Regular admission to the PhD 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 3.3 grade-point-average (GPA) on all previous college work, including both graduate and undergraduate
    • The GRE may be required by the ECE Graduate Studies Committee if the applicant’s GPA on all previous college work falls below 3.3. 
• Degrees from Non-English Institutions
  • Applicants earning an undergraduate or graduate degrees from non-English institutions are required to show proof of English proficiency. 

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.

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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