Master of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering

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Research (Thesis) Track
Professional (Non-thesis) Track
5-Year BS/MS Program & Senior Privilege

The ECE department at Rowan University offers two different Master of Science tracks, both leading to the MS in Electrical and Computer Engineering degree. The program of study in both tracks consists of 30 credits and is available with the following options. For available courses and their descriptions, please see Graduate Course Descriptions.

To maintain minimum satisfactory academic progress in - and to successfully graduate from - MS in ECE program, students must:

• Earn no grades lower than a “B-”
• Earn an official cumulative graduate GPA of at least 3.000 on Rowan’s 4.000 scale

For the latest information, admission requirements and to apply online please visit the MS in Electrical and Computer Engineering Program Application Portal.

The application deadlines are as follows:

To start your program in Summer, apply by April 1 of that year
To start your program in Fall, apply by July 1 of that year
To start your program in Spring, apply by November 1 of the previous calendar year

Research (Thesis) Track

This track is designed for those who are interested in developing expertise within a specific area of focus within Electrical and Computer Engineering. To develop such expertise, students in Research Track perform rigorous research, supervised by an advising professor, on a specific topic of interest to solve a previously unsolved problem. The outcome of this research culminates in an MS thesis. Students who would like to excel in one of the areas of electrical and computer engineering, or those who are considering pursuing a Ph.D., typically choose this track. Students who are accepted into this track are often eligible for research assistantships or teaching fellowships that can reduce or eliminate the out-of-pocket cost of graduate education. See the Financial Assistance page for details.

MS in ECE Track 1 – Research (Thesis) Track Curriculum

• One approved graduate-level business course: 3 Credits
• One approved graduate-level math-intensive course: 3 Credits
  • Several ECE graduate-level courses have math-intensive content that is suitable to satisfy this requirement. An approved graduate-level course from the Mathematics Department can also be taken.
• Five approved ECE Graduate Electives: 15 Credits
  • At least one of the electives must include significant use of computing or programming. While several ECE courses satisfy this requirement, an approved graduate-level computer science class may also be taken, if a suitable class of interest is offered by the CS Department.
• Thesis Research: 9 Credits

Timeline for Program of Study in the Research/Thesis Track

There are two common timelines followed by students in the Research Track.

Start in Summer 

This is the preferred timeline for students who receive their BS in ECE at Rowan and continue for the MS program as it provides a seamless transition. However, the summer start is available to all students. Some summer classes (typically business and some math classes) start as early as mid/late May, whereas others start in late June.

Start in Fall

This is the timeline typically followed by students who join Rowan ECE after completing their BS degree elsewhere.

Starting in the Spring semester, while less common, is also possible. In this case, the program of study can be suitably adjusted.

M.S. Thesis Requirements  

Please visit the Thesis & Dissertation Requirements page (also available on the Navigation Menu on the left) for information on thesis format and submission requirements. 

Professional (Non-thesis) Track

This track is designed for those who are not interested in writing a thesis, but rather interested in expanding their breadth and depth of ECE knowledge by taking a larger number of courses in a wide spectrum of electrical and/or computer engineering fields. Students in this track do not work on a thesis, and instead take 30 credits of courses, typically 10 graduate-level courses. While this is a course-only track, students who wish to obtain some research experience may choose to work on a smaller-scale project that can be counted for 3 credits (or one class).

MS in ECE Track 2 – Course-only Track Curriculum

• One approved graduate-level business course: 3 Credits
• One approved graduate-level math-intensive course: 3 Credits
  • Several ECE graduate-level courses have math-intensive content that is suitable to satisfy this requirement. An approved graduate-level course from the Mathematics Department can also be taken.
• Eight approved ECE Graduate Electives: 24 Credits
  
  • At least one of the electives must include significant use of computing or programming. While several ECE courses satisfy this requirement, an approved graduate-level computer science class may also be taken, if a suitable class of interest is offered by the CS Department.
  • An independent mini research project can be used to replace one of the 8 electives.

Timeline for Program of Study in the Professional Track

Professional track is intended to be more flexible and accommodate working professionals who may complete this program on a part-time basis. Since there are no thesis requirements, the program may be completed on a more expedited or relaxed basis depending on the specific goals and objectives of the students. Part-time students in the professional track may take as few as one course a semester, whereas full-time students can take as many four classes per semester and complete the program in three semesters.

 5-Year BS/MS Program & Senior Privilege

Completing a Bachelor of Science degree program in four years, followed by the Master of Science program in one year, is possible, particularly with the Professional (non-thesis) track. To do so, you can take 12 credits of graduate-level courses in the Fall, another 12 credits in Spring, followed by 6 credits in Summer.

If you are in good standing by the time you reach your senior year, with a GPA of 3.0 or higher, you can also take advantage of Senior Privilege. Senior Privilege is a unique opportunity that allows you to take up to 6 credits of graduate-level courses during your senior year, pay the lower undergraduate tuition for them, and have them counted towards your undergraduate BS degree requirements. Then, assuming that those classes are required by the MS degree program, you can transfer those credits to your graduate MS degree program requirements. As a result, you only need to take 24 credits of graduate programs after you complete your undergraduate degree, saving you time and considerable tuition costs. With only 24 credits left, you can complete those 24 credits by taking 9 credits in each of Fall and Spring, followed by 6 credits in Summer, or even, take 12 credits in Fall and Spring, and be done in less than one year!

To take advantage of Senior Privilege, you need to fill out the Senior Privilege Registration Request Form and obtain the necessary approvals.