Graduate School: Why, What, How, When?

Brian Johnson

Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Why Graduate School? Plenty of job opportunities for BSEE….

– Good starting salaries– Good annual advancement– Moving on to management– I can’t afford more school– Besides, I’m sick of school

Why Graduate School? Different types of job opportunities

– Research and development engineer– Teaching at the college level– Patent attorney– Medical school

Why Graduate School? Other Benefits

– More likely to stay in engineering longer» Often higher pay for engineering projects (Master’s

more than Ph.D.)

– Often have more say in project assignments– More interesting and varied projects

» More likely to work near the technology cutting edge» More interesting toys

What graduate school options? Master’s Degrees in Electrical Engineering Doctoral Degrees in Electrical Engineering Degrees in Other Engineering Disciplines Non-Engineering Degrees

– Law Degrees– Master’s in Business Administration (MBA)– Master’s in Engineering Management– Medical School

Or simply for continuing education– Marketable job skills– Continuing education requirement for PE

EE Master’s DegreesTypically 24-36 credits

–Often focused in one area or two areasMaster of Science (MSEE)

–Roughly 6 credits of Master’s thesis research–Written document (~100 pages) and defense

MS Research: –Generally slightly extends existing knowledge –Or applies existing knowledge in different way –Or uses existing knowledge in a new application

EE Master’s DegreesMaster of Engineering (MEEE)

–Non-thesis Master’s–Often additional courses replace thesis

»Often 10 semester length courses

–Often geared toward part-time students–Many schools require a report/presentation–At some schools this is almost a thesis

Doctoral Degree (Ph.D.) Many Engineering Programs Require Master’s Often 15 -24 course credits beyond Master’s Many schools require breadth areas Often some form of qualifier exams Doctoral Dissertation (or Thesis)

– Key distinguishing factor– Prove you are capable of performing research at cutting

edge in a field of study, globally, not locally– Significant new contribution that field

How? Full Time Option Generally 2-3 courses per term

– Usually fewer, longer assignments– Often more interesting courses– Usually more relaxed pacing than BS courses

Time for working on research– Full time students more often doing MS or Ph.D.– Fewer courses during school year– Full time on research in summer

How? Full Time Option Graduate students often funded as TA or RA

– Not medical school or law school– 20 hrs/week during school year, 40 in summer– Pay rate approximately what get for internship

» $16/hr to $20/hr

– Fees or tuition often paid (health insurance) Approx. 2-2.5 years for MS Approx. 3-4.5 years for Ph.D.

How? Part Time Option Graduate school while working full time Employer often pays for classes

– If you get good grades Often 1 course/semester

– Figure 10-12 hours/week on average per class– Some students take 2 classes if have time

Courses delivered by DVD, Web, etc.– For example, UI Engineering Outreach

How? Part Time Option Often works better non-thesis degree

– Classes have fixed milestones and deadlines People do complete MS and even Ph.D.

– Generally very self-motivated people– In many cases research project has some

relationship to job Challenges with job related research topic

– Managers looking over your shoulder– Intellectual property issues

When? Take advice you get with a grain of salt

– People with graduate degrees typically suggest what worked for them

If part time option:– Employer may have a time limit before reimburse– Degree will take about 5 years

» Does that fit the rest of your life

– We have Engineering Outreach students just out of BS and others 25 or more years out of BS

When? Full time option Your circumstances may vary….

– Perhaps you can’t find a job you like, where you like…

– Or you have a spouse or significant other who needs one more year of school…

Some people recommend going straight to graduate school– You are used to student lifestyle (aren’t moving

paying job to a low paying one)– You have an assistantship of fellowship

When? Full time option Others recommend working for a few years

as an engineer– Learn more about real world engineering issues– Practical knowledge to help theory fit into place– Less common outside of engineering– Some employers will provide a paid leave of a

year or so to work on the thesis research– Work part time for company and full time student

When? Application process Every school has some sort of application

process– Web based applications

Some schools only admit full time students for starting in fall semester– Part time students may also be able to start in

spring– Application deadlines posted on their web pages

» Often in December January for Funded Fall Admission» Partly driven by visa requirements

When? Application requirements Minimum undergraduate GPA

– Ranges from 2.8 to as high as 3.8 depending on school

– Most will give credit for post-BS level courses if low undergraduate GPA

– Most will accept at least a few transfer credits Many schools require graduate records exam

– Score may be used for admission or – Just for determining who gets assistantships

» Especially if degree from accredited undergraduate program

When? Application requirements

Specify which area of EE for specialization– Make sure that school offers that area– Try to contact faculty researchers in that area of

study to see if they have open positions They may require some form of written

statement of personal goals Letters of recommendation (possibly a form to

complete) Resume of some form

When? Where to apply? Consider how strong the school is in your

area of specialization– Will a degree from there help your career goals– Reputation of a Ph.D. program or of your major

professor impacts job prospects significantly Can you get admitted there Can you get funding there

When? Where to apply? Generally not a good idea to get BS, MS

and Ph.D. from the same school unless the school unless they have a very strong Ph.D. program

UI ECE Department MSEE, MEEE, Ph.D. EE MSCompE, MECompE Undergraduate GPA of 2.8 or higher (3.0

preferred) for MS Letter of recommendation waived for recent

BSEE or BSCompE graduates GRE not required UI ECE BSEE/BSCompE

graduates Keep 1-2 page statement of purpose short

and to the point…

UI ECE Department 30 credits for Master’s (MS thesis is 6 credits) 78 credits past BS for Ph.D.

– Master’s counts for 30– Dissertation is up to another 30– Two breadth areas

Areas of department with funded research– Electromagnetics (Young)– Digital systems (Donohoe)– Control Systems (Edwards)– Power/Power Electronics (Hess, Johnson)– Applications of embedded systems (Wall, J. Frenzel)– Electronics (Ay, Barlow, Elshabini)

UI Resources ECE Graduate Guidelines UI College of Graduate Studies

– http://www.grad.uidaho.edu/ 2008-09 Graduate Fees:

– Idaho Residents: » Full time student fees: $5212 (2 semesters)» Part time student per credit fees: $267/credit

This would apply for taking class for graduate transcript as a senior as an Idaho resident

– Out of State Students» Full time student fees: $15,292 (2 semesters)» Part time student per credit fees: $603/credit