Degree Requirements

Entering students are admitted to pursue the Master of Science in Engineering only, the Master of Science in Engineering followed by the Doctor of Philosophy, or the Doctor of Philosophy only. A master's degree may be obtained with thesis, with report, or without thesis or report (coursework only). Pursuit of all degrees and options except for the master's without thesis or report requires the student to find a willing supervising professor; the master's without thesis or report can be overseen by the student's academic track adviser alone. The supervising professor, or a willing co-supervising professor, must be a member of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Studies Committee. More information about course loads, course selection, degree requirements, financial aid, and related matters is available from the Graduate Advising Office of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Master of Science in Engineering

There are three options for obtaining the Master of Science in Engineering degree: with thesis, with report, and without thesis or report. All three options require a Program of Work consisting of thirty semester hours of coursework (ten courses), with no less than twenty-four hours (eight courses) of that being graduate-level coursework. Two (three-hour-minimum) upper-division undergraduate courses not taken for preparatory reasons nor required of undergraduates may be counted toward the required degree hours. The thesis option requires original research and satisfactory completion of a written thesis and two associated three-hour thesis courses taken on the credit/no credit basis within the thirty-hour total. The report option requires satisfactory completion of a written report and one associated three-hour report course taken on the credit/no credit basis within the thirty-hour total. Otherwise, all courses that count toward the Program of Work must be regular classroom instruction courses taken for a letter grade. Students may count only one course with a letter grade less than B-, and no course with a letter grade less than C.

The master's Program of Work is divided into major work and supporting work. At least eighteen hours must be in the major area including the thesis or report courses. At least six hours must be in supporting work, including at least one three-hour graduate level course. Major work can include coursework associated with the student's academic track, as well as closely-related coursework associated with other academic tracks within the department and from other departments. Supporting work can include coursework from other departments and coursework associated with other academic tracks within the department. The track advisers and/or the student's supervisor can provide guidance regarding which courses may be counted toward major or supporting work.

Individual academic tracks may have additional requirements to those described above. Ultimately, all major and supporting coursework must be logically related, and the student’s master's Program of Work must be approved by the student's academic track adviser and/or supervising professor, the graduate adviser of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and the graduate dean of the University of Texas at Austin. Specific regulations regarding the master’s degree program are available from the appropriate academic track adviser and the Graduate Advising Office of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Alternatively scheduled master's program in software engineering. The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering also offers a Master of Science in Engineering degree with a concentration in software engineering through the Cockrell School of Engineering's Center for Lifelong Engineering Education. Designed with full-time engineers and computer professionals in mind, this Option III program is an alternative to the department's traditional master's program. Students admitted to the Option III program are held to the same standards of performance. They attend classes taught by faculty from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering once a month on Fridays and Saturdays for two full academic years. The degree requires satisfactory completion of a written report and one associated three-hour report course taken on the credit/no credit basis, and twenty-seven hours of graduate coursework taken on the letter-grade basis within the Program of Work. A minimum grade point average of 3.0 is required for the Option III coursework. Students may only count one course with a letter grade less than B-, and no course with a letter grade less than C. The Option III program and the traditional graduate program are separate; students can only register for courses offered by their program of admission. Additional information about the Option III program is published by the Center for Lifelong Engineering Education at http://lifelong.engr.utexas.edu/pme/swe.cfm .

Doctor of Philosophy

The PhD Program of Work consists of at least thirty hours of graduate-level coursework (ten courses) taken on the letter-grade basis, including appropriate coursework taken toward a master's degree at the University of Texas at Austin or, with approval, elsewhere. At least twelve hours (four courses) of those thirty must be taken in residence at the University of Texas at Austin. (Note that, although typical, having a master's degree is not required to earn a PhD.) Coursework is divided into major and supporting work, with no less than six hours (two courses) of supporting work. A minimum grade point average of 3.5 is required in the major coursework and, separately, in the supporting coursework within the Program of Work, with no course grade of less than a B- counted. Coursework beyond that required for the Program of Work consists of the dissertation courses and, more than likely, research problems courses. Individual academic tracks may have additional requirements.

The PhD is primarily a research-based degree beyond the requirements for a master's degree. Formal entry into the doctoral program is achieved when the student is admitted to candidacy for the PhD. The prospective candidate must find a willing supervising professor, and the supervising professor or a willing co-supervising professor must be a member of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Studies Committee. The Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Studies Committee considers the student's admission to candidacy upon completion of at least one full semester in residence, based on the student's performance on a doctoral qualifying examination and after a thorough review of the student's Program of Work. The qualifying examination consists of a written and oral proposal to the student's PhD qualifying examination committee. Many academic tracks also require the student to pass a pre-qualifying examination procedure prior to the qualifying examination. A detailed description of the procedure for admission to candidacy is available from the PhD coordinator of the student's academic track and the Graduate Advising Office of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The doctoral program typically requires five to seven years of work beyond the bachelor's degree.