Electrical Engineering
PhD

The PhD in Electrical Engineering provides students with the education to be researchers and leaders in their fields of specialization. The program provides both breadth and depth through a flexible structure of formal course work, independent study, and research.

The PhD program is an individualized program of study with a focus on preparing you for PhD dissertation research. The dissertation is an original scholarly contribution to the research literature of the field and is the culmination of your academic career.

The PhD program has two options, depending on the student’s previous educational background:

Electrical Engineering
Computer Engineering

Student success

David Prairie '20: The value of conducting research

David says conducting research as a PhD student prepared him to succeed and advance in his chosen field.

Degree requirements

A minimum of 18 credits beyond the MS requirement or 48 credits beyond the BS is expected (exclusive of dissertation research).

Although it is not necessary to obtain the MS degree before proceeding in the PhD program, the Graduate Academic and Research Skills components of the PhD Qualifier can be met over the course of completing an MS at UMass Dartmouth. If a student enters with a BS or an MS from another institution, he or she must explicitly meet the PhD Qualifying requirements.

PhD students should complete and pass the PhD qualifying requirements appropriate to their option (Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering):

if they enter the program with an MS: by the end of their first year of study
if they enter the program with a BS: at the completion of 30 credits

Program overview: PhD in Electrical Engineering

Research areas

Our faculty are experts in an impressive variety of fields and are engaged notable research ventures supported by public and private funding. Key research areas within the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering (ECE):

A limited number of assistantships are available on a competitive basis. This award is subject to the work needs of the position and department, your satisfactory performance of duties, your academic record, and availability of funds, and may be subject to change.

Learn more about assistantships at UMass Dartmouth

International (F-1) students who receive science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees may be eligible to apply for a 24-month extension of their post-completion optional practical training (OPT). To learn about the eligibility criteria and detailed steps to apply, please review the International Student & Scholar Center (ISSC) OPT page and USCIS resources. F-1 students must consult with the ISSC to apply for STEM OPT.

Graduate admissions requirements

University requirements for graduate admissions

Submit an application via the online portal. Be sure to provide your full legal name and to capitalize the first letter of all proper nouns.
Pay non-refundable $60 application fee (American Express, Discover, MasterCard or Visa) via the online portal. For Nursing applicants, the non-refundable application fee is $75.
Statement of Purpose, minimum 300 words. Unless otherwise indicated in the program requirement details, indicate your graduate study objectives, research interests and experience, and business or industry experience if applicable. If you are applying for a teaching or research assistantship, include any special skills or experience that would assist us in making assistantship decisions.
Resume
Transcripts for all post-secondary institutions attended (regardless of whether a credential is earned or not). Unofficial transcripts are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled a final official transcript is required. International students applying with an transcript evaluation, please submit that document with your unofficial transcripts. International applicants for Data Science must submit semester-by-semester transcripts as well as consolidated transcripts.
Many programs have specific recommendations/requirements, please see the additional program-specific requirements for more information.
International students: official TOEFL iBT, IELTS, Pearson PTE or Duolingo (if accepted by program) score. Unofficial scores are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled official scores are required and must be sent by the testing agency (copies/scans not accepted). This is required of any applicant who did not earn a bachelor’s degree or higher degree from an accredited academic institution in the U.S. or accepted English-speaking country, see exemptions for more details. We require an overall/total minimum score of 72 on the TOEFL iBT or BAND 6.0 on the IELTS or a 52 on the Pearsons PTE Academic for entrance to any program and a minimum score of 79 on the TOEFL iBT or BAND 6.5 on the IELTS for consideration for a teaching assistantship. Some programs require higher minimum scores (see program-specific requirements). Most programs also accept the Duolingo with a minimum score of 95. The following programs do not accept the Duolingo: Art Education, Biology/Marine Biology, Nursing (MS, DNP, PhD), Psychology: Clinical, and Public Policy.
All official documents are required for enrollment, please have documents (ie. test scores) sent prior to the expiration.

Program-specific requirements

Candidates must submit the required application materials, university requirements and program-specific requirements, for consideration.

Students possessing a master's degree and a strong academic background in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or similar disciplines are encouraged to apply.
Students possessing a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or similar disciplines may apply for direct admission to the PhD program if the applicants have demonstrated strong scholastic competence and great potential for conducting independent scholarly research.
Admission to the program is competitive. In general, students must exceed minimum requirements to gain admission. However, students who do not meet minimum requirements—but who otherwise show evidence of strong academic, professional, or research ability—may be accepted upon approval of the ECE Graduate Committee.
Applicants to the PhD program must have demonstrated superior scholastic achievement.

Requirements

GRE is required. The GRE is waived for students with a bachelor's or graduate degree from an institution in the United States.
1 letter of recommendation: from a person in the field of your academic major at the institution most recently attended or from a supervisor familiar with your recent job performance. BS/MS applicants are encouraged to include a recommendation from a department faculty member willing to advise their graduate research. Applicants will be required to provide the recommenders name and email address so we can contact the recommender for the letter of recommendation.
International students should have a minimum English Proficiency score of TOEFL iBT 80, IELTS 6.5, Duolingo 110 or the Pearsons PTE Academic 58.