Program Overview

Master of Applied Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering

The Master of Applied Science (MASc) in Electrical and Computer Engineering Program is for students interested in pursuing advanced studies and research in Biomedical Technologies, Communications Systems, Computer and Software Systems, Energy Systems, or Micro and Nano Technologies. Electrical and Computer Engineers develop computing systems, from chip architecture to mobile applications, to communications protocols as well as the energy systems to allow these devices and all other electrical systems to function. The discipline has a huge impact on society because it helps to design the systems we use in everything from health to finance to safety.

In this program, students can choose to contribute to research on technologies very close to or already in the market, or technologies that are in the early stages of research such as quantum computing or carbon nanotubes.

Program Details

• Faculty: Faculty of Applied Science
• Academic Unit: Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
• Specialization: Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Mode of Delivery: In person at UBC Vancouver
• Program Components: Coursework + Thesis required
• Tuition (First Year):
  • Domestic: $5,626.02
  • International: $9,883.98
• Median Funding: 50% of students receive $32,575 or more funding per year in the first 2 years, before tuition and fees

Admission Information & Requirements

Minimum Academic Requirements

The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements.

English Language Test

Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.

• TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language - internet-based
  • Overall score requirement: 100
  • Reading: 22
  • Writing: 21
  • Speaking: 21
  • Listening: 22
• IELTS: International English Language Testing System
  • Overall score requirement: 7.0
  • Reading: 6.0
  • Writing: 6.0
  • Speaking: 6.0
  • Listening: 6.0

Prior Degree Requirements

Applicants to the M.A.Sc. program must have an accredited (by UBC) four-year Bachelor's degree in Electrical or Computer Engineering or a closely related field. It is preferred that M.A.Sc. applicants have a GPA in the first-class range and show some demonstrated aptitude for research.

Other Requirements

GRE scores are not mandatory for applying to our MASc program. You are welcome to submit GRE scores if you have them, to provide further support to your application.

Research Information

Research Focus

To learn more about the wide-range research areas of our Electrical and Computer Engineering Department and our research faculty, please visit the department's website.

• Biomedical Technologies
• Communication Systems
• Computer and Software Systems
• Energy Systems
• Emerging Micro and Nano Technologies
• Optimization, Learning, Control

Tuition & Financial Support

Tuition

Fees | Canadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / Diplomat | International ---|---|--- Application Fee | $118.50 | $168.25 Tuition * | |

• Installments per year: 3 | 3
• Tuition per installment: $1,875.34 | $3,294.66
• Tuition per year: $5,626.02 | $9,883.98 Int. Tuition Award (ITA) per year (if eligible) | | $3,200.00 (-) Other Fees and Costs | |
• Student Fees (yearly): $1,144.10 (approx.)
• Costs of living: Estimate your costs of living with our interactive tool in order to start developing a financial plan for your graduate studies.

Financial Support

Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e., based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e., based on your financial situation) opportunities.

Career Options

The 24-month M.A.Sc. program Electrical and Computer Engineering prepares students for employment directly after completing the degree or to pursue further studies in a Ph.D. program. Some of our recent graduates are now working with Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Intel, Samsung, D-wave, BC Hydro, Bell Mobility, Sierra Wireless, PMC-Sierra, TELUS, Bank of Montreal, BC Children’s Hospital, The Government of Canada, Drobo, Siemens Canada, Celestica, Cisco, Alpha Technologies, etc. Many of our M.A.Sc. graduates have also gone on to pursue their Ph.D. with us at UBC.

Enrolment, Duration & Other Stats

• Enrolment Data:
  • Applications: 524 (2023), 584 (2022), 618 (2021), 629 (2020), 538 (2019)
  • Offers: 64 (2023), 68 (2022), 65 (2021), 81 (2020), 48 (2019)
  • New Enrolment: 40 (2023), 43 (2022), 43 (2021), 56 (2020), 35 (2019)
  • Total Enrolment: 134 (2023), 140 (2022), 129 (2021), 117 (2020), 103 (2019)
• Completion Rates & Times:
  • Graduation rate: 96% based on 138 students admitted between 2015-2018
  • Minimum time to completion: 1.36 years
  • Maximum time to completion: 5.47 years
  • Average time to completion: 2.71 years

Research Supervisors

Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.

Sample Thesis Submissions

• A micromachined tissue stiffness sensor based on biocompatible shape memory alloy
• Improving EV charging energy management with a minimal sufficient configurable charging system
• On the design of robust multi-path ring oscillators
• Flexible capacitive sensor arrays for human interaction and smart manufacturing
• Electric vehicle DC charger for residential infrastructure
• Cryogenic integrated photodetectors for optical-microwave downconversion
• Extended equal area criteria transient stability analysis in low inertia power systems
• Towards a unified electro-optic circuits co-simulation
• Parametric amplification and oscillation in electrical circuits: challenges and opportunities
• Learning to calibrate: graph neural network for online calibration of phase shifters in hybrid beamforming systems
• Characterization and improved lifetime management of serverless cloud systems
• A precessing-coin-like rotary actuator for endoscopic multimodal imaging
• Using Markov Chains for adaptive lifetime management of serverless applications
• Microfluidic flow rate sensing and control: from portable systems to chip-scale implementations
• Harnessing RF energy for sustainable power in Ambient IoT devices
• CubistMerge: spatial-preserving token merging for diverse ViT backbones
• Co-developing methods for lattice gauge theory simulations and qudit compilation
• Design recipe automation for silicon photonics
• Exploring trade-offs in quantum optimization with noisy qutrits
• Combating disinformation in the age of generative AI: from watermarking LLMs to persuasion analysis of memes
• The implicit geometry of language: structure, semantics, and dynamics in next-token prediction
• An integrated modeling approach for electromagnetic coupling in power and control cables
• Inverse design of silicon photonic devices
• Distributed-Feedback (DFB) laser stabilization using a ring resonator in silicon on insulator
• Two problems in dynamic graph analytics: maximum flow and online partitioning
• Torque ripple reduction control of brushless DC motor drive systems with extended switching schemes
• Low-cost scanning electron microscope
• Revisiting the steering law: curvature, complexity, and the path to a new predictive model
• An API for managing multiple distinct sets of custom instructions
• Multirate constant parameter generalized synchronous machine model for simulation of electromagnetic transients in shipboard power systems

Related Programs

• Same Specialization:
  • Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD)
  • Master of Engineering in Electrical and Computer Engineering (MEng)
• Same Academic Unit:
  • Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Computer Engineering (PhD)
  • Master of Engineering in Electrical and Computer Engineering (MEng)
  • Master of Engineering Leadership in Dependable Software Systems (MEL)
• At the UBC Okanagan Campus:
  • Master of Applied Science (MASc)
• Related Disciplines:
  • Master of Engineering in Electrical and Computer Engineering (MEng)