نظرة عامة على البرنامج

Doctor of Philosophy in the Field of Electrical Engineering (STEM)

Overview

The doctor of philosophy (PhD) program in electrical engineering is designed to prepare students for careers of creative scholarship by providing focused knowledge in a chosen area of specialty and guidance for research. PhD students choose from the following focus areas:

• Communications and networks.
• Electrical power and energy.
• Electronics, photonics, and MEMS (VLSI systems and microelectronics).
• Signal and image processing; and systems and controls.

The program's location in Washington, DC, provides students and faculty with access to new advances in technology through government agencies, private industry, and defense centers.

Admissions

• Admission deadlines:
  • Fall – January 15
  • Spring – September 1
  • Summer* – March 1 (non-F1 visa seeking applicants)
• Standardized test scores:
  • The GRE General Test is optional for all applicants.
  • The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the Academic International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or the PTE Academic is required of all applicants except those who hold a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree from a college or university in the United States or from an institution located in a country in which English is the official language, provided English was the language of instruction. Minimum scores:
    • Academic IELTS: an overall band score of 6.5 with no individual score below 6.0
    • TOEFL: 550 on paper-based or 81 on Internet-based
    • PTE Academic: 53; applicants requesting funding consideration must have 68
• Recommendations required: Three (3) recommendations required. If possible, one recommendation should be from your advisor at the institution from which you earned your highest degree.
• Prior academic records: Transcripts are required from all colleges and universities attended, whether or not credit was earned, the program was completed, or the credit appears as transfer credit on another transcript. Unofficial transcripts from all colleges and universities attended must be uploaded to your online application. Official transcripts are required only of applicants who are offered admission.
• Statement of purpose: Please write a comprehensive essay of 400 to 600 words, indicating your primary and supporting fields of study, your specialized interests, and the general subject area of your planned dissertation or professional project.
• Additional requirements:
  • Applicant must possess a baccalaureate or master’s degree in an appropriate area from an accredited institution.
  • Students whose highest degree is a bachelor's must have a grade point average of at least 3.3 (on a scale of 4.0); students whose highest degree is a master’s degree must have a grade point average of at least 3.4 (on a scale of 4.0).
  • Applicants must choose an area of focus that most closely matches their interests and note this on the online application.
  • All applicants must submit a resumé or CV.
  • Applicants should also identify one to three faculty members whose research interests most closely match their own and note this on the online application.

Requirements

The following requirements must be fulfilled:

• The general requirements stated under School of Engineering and Applied Science, Doctoral Program Regulations.
• Credit requirements:
  • Students with a master of science (MS) degree must take a minimum of 30 credits, of which at least 18 must be in courses available for graduate credit, and at least 12 must be in dissertation research.
  • Students with a bachelor of science (BS) degree must take a minimum of 54 credits, of which at least 36 must be in courses available for graduate credit, and at least 12 must be in dissertation research.
• Preliminary examination: The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering requires doctoral students to pass a preliminary examination.
• Doctoral qualifying examination: After passing the preliminary examination, in consultation with the research advisor, a student prepares for the doctoral qualifying examination (also known as proposal defense).
• Publication requirements: Every doctoral student is required to have a paper based on the student’s dissertation research published or accepted in a scientific journal before the student’s doctoral final examination.
• Doctoral final examination: Once the dissertation has been completed, the student schedules the doctoral final examination (also known as dissertation defense) in consultation with the research advisor.
• Doctoral proposal, dissertation and presentation guidelines: A proposal document for the doctoral qualifying exam should be provided to the committee 10 days prior to the exam and a presentation with viewgraphs during the exam is expected.
• Important timelines: The student must select a research advisor by the end of the semester following the one in which the student passes the preliminary examination.
• Colloquium requirements: Students are required to attend ten in-person colloquia during their time in the program, verified by a faculty member also in attendance.
• Graduation and scholarship requirements: Students are responsible for knowing the university’s minimum GPA requirement for graduation and scholarships.