Graduate Program

Director of Graduate Studies
Associate Professor Nasir Ghani

Application Deadlines

Domestic Students:
Fall semester: July 15
Spring semester: November 1
Summer semester: April 15
International and Domestic Students Requesting Financial Aid:
Fall semester: February 15
Spring semester: July 15


NOTE:
Early application is recommended.

Degrees Offered

  • Master of Science in Computer Engineering (M.S.)
  • Master of Science in Electrical Engineering (M.S.)
  • Master of Science in Optical Science and Engineering (M.S.)
  • Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering (Ph.D.)
    Concentrations: Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering

Master's Degree Programs

Course Requirements

In addition to Graduate Studies requirements for the master's degrees, the department also requires at least one credit hour of graduate seminar ECE 590. Other program information is available at the Electrical and Computer Engineering department Web site.

Plan I: Among the required courses (a minimum of 15 credit hours in ECE), there must be four courses specified by the area of focus chosen by the student. Candidates for the Plan I M.S. must also satisfactorily pass the thesis defense.

Plan III: Among the required courses (a minimum of 18 credit hours in ECE), there must be four courses specified by the area of focus chosen by the student.

Master of Science in Computer Engineering

Areas of focus are: Computer Architecture, Computer Graphics and Vision, Computer Networks and Systems, Image Processing, Computational Intelligence, and Bioengineering.

Master of Science in Electrical Engineering

Areas of Focus are: Systems and Controls, Signal Processing, Image Processing, Communications, Optoelectronics, Applied Electromagnetics, Microelectronics, Power and Energy, and Bioengineering.

Master of Science in Optical Science and Engineering

The Optics Program is jointly administered by the Department of Physics and Astronomy and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. It features an internship option under which a student can apply qualified industrial/government laboratory research along with successfully completed course work toward the degree.

Current research areas: advanced materials, atom optics, biomedical optics, fiber optics, laser physics, lithography, nanostructures, nonlinear optics, optical imaging, optical sensors, optoelectronics, photonic integrated circuits, quantum optics, spectroscopy, and ultra-fast phenomena.

See the Graduate Interdisciplinary Studies section of this Catalog for degree requirements. Other program information is available at the Optical Science and Engineering program Web site.


Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering

  • Concentrations: Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering

Course Requirements

In addition to the general University doctoral degree requirements listed in the Graduate Program section of this Catalog, students pursuing a Ph.D. must choose an area of emphasis, and take three courses (9 credit hours) from this area of emphasis, one course (3 credit hours) from another computer engineering or electrical engineering emphasis, and 36 credit hours of technical electives. The department also requires at least 2 credit hours of ECE 590 Graduate Seminar. No more than 9 credit hours of problems courses (ECE 551 or 651) may apply toward the Ph.D. Other program information is available at the Electrical and Computer Engineering department Web site.

Concentration in Computer Engineering

Computer Engineering Core Courses
ECE 516, 517, 520, 522, 533, 536, 537, 538, 539, 540, 549.

Computer Engineering Emphases:

  • Computer Architecture: ECE 520, 522, 538.
  • Computer Graphics and Vision: ECE 516, 533, 537. 
  • Computer Networks and Systems: ECE 536, 537, 540.
  • Image Processing: ECE 533, 537, 539.
  • Computational Intelligence: ECE 517, 537, 549.

Concentration in Electrical Engineering

Electrical Engineering Core Courses
ECE 500, 520, 523, 533, 534, 539, 541, 542, 546, 560, 561, 569, 570, 572, 576, 582, 584, 588.

Electrical Engineering Emphases:

  • Systems and Controls: ECE 500, 541, 546.
  • Signal Processing: ECE 500, 539, 541.
  • Image Processing: ECE 533, 539, 541.
  • Communications: ECE 500, 541, 542.
  • Optoelectronics: ECE 561, 570, 572.
  • Applied Electromagnetics: ECE 534 or 569, 560, 561.
  • Microelectronics: ECE 520, 523, 576.
  • Power and Energy: ECE 582, 584, 588.

Qualifying Examination

A student admitted into the Ph.D. program is expected to take the Qualifying examination within three semesters (excluding summer sessions) and pass the Qualifying examination within five semesters (excluding summer sessions) from his/her admittance into the program, unless otherwise determined by the academic advisor and the ECE graduate chair.

Comprehensive Examination

All candidates must pass a Final Examination (Defense of Dissertation). The Dissertation Committee conducts the defense of the dissertation.


Dual Degree Program

M.B.A. and M.S. in Computer Engineering or Electrical Engineering

This dual degree program leading to a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Science in Computer Engineering or a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering is aimed at computer or electrical engineering graduate students who have interest in a career that requires graduate level training in both business and computer or electrical engineering. The main advantage of a dual degree program is that it minimizes the time, expense and coursework for earning both graduate degrees, one from the School of Engineering (SOE) and the other from the Anderson Schools of Management (ASM). The advantage is realized by sharing courses between the two degrees as stipulated in the program. A requirement of a dual degree program is that both degrees must be earned and granted simultaneously. Hence, one degree is not awarded even if its requirements are fulfilled. Withdrawal from the program entails an application to restart down a path that leads to the completion of degree the student desires. In some cases, this may mean additional course requirements.

The 3/2 M.B.A. ECE Student

For those Electrical and Computer Engineering students pursuing the 3/2 MBA program, the double master’s program must be entered soon after becoming a graduate student. In addition to fulfilling the M.B.A. requirements from the ASM after receiving the bachelor’s degree from the SOE, the 3/2 Electrical and Computer Engineering student must earn at least 18 credit hours in ECE courses including 9 credit hours in an area of study as described in the Plan II requirements of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Student Handbook.

MGMT 501 Statistics - taken as ECE **340 equivalent
MGMT 502 Accounting - taken in senior year
MGMT 504 Microeconomics - taken ECON **300 in junior year
MGMT 506 Organizational Behavior - taken in senior year
MGMT 508 Ethics - taken in senior year
MGMT 511 Technical Communication - taken in senior year
Total 18 credit hours


Requirements to complete M.B.A.

  • 12 additional credit hours in core M.B.A. curriculum (MGMT 520, 522, 526, 598)
  • 12 additional credit hours in elective M.B.A. courses.
  • Maximum 6 credit hours (ECE) outside ASM.
  • 48 M.B.A. credit hours total.

M.S. in Electrical Engineering or M.S. in Computer Engineering Student: 9 extra credit hours must be taken to obtain the M.B.A. degree for a total of 42 credit hours. See ECE Graduate Handbook for Plan II details:

  • 18 credit hours in ECE courses (9 credit hours in area, maximum of 6 credit hours at 400-level).
  • 15 credit hours of M.B.A. courses.
  • 33 credit hours total in M.S.Electrical Engineering or M.S. Computer Engineering Plan II program.

M.B.A. student: 12 extra credit hours must be taken to obtain the M.S. in Electrical Engineering or M.S. in Computer Engineering degree for a total or 42 credit hours.

The Non-3/2 M.B.A. ECE Student

The Electrical and Computer Engineering graduate student who did not complete his/her B.S.E.E. or B.S.C.E. degree requirements under the 3/2 M.B.A. program is also eligible to enter the double master’s program. In addition to fulfilling the M.B.A. requirements from the ASM, the non-3/2 ECE graduate student must earn at least 18 credit hours in ECE courses including 9 credit hours in an area of study as described in the Plan II requirements of the ECE Graduate Student Handbook.

Requirements to complete M.B.A.

  • 30 credit hours in core M.B.A. curriculum (MGMT 501, 502, 504, 506, 508, 511, 520, 522, 526, 598, excluding waivers).
  • 12 additional credit hours in elective M.B.A. courses.
  • Maximum 6 credit hours (ECE) outside ASM.
  • 48 M.B.A. credit hours total.

M.S. in Electrical Engineering or M.S. in Computer Engineering Student: 27 extra credit hours must be taken to obtain the M.B.A. degree for a total of 60 credit hours. Waivers can be earned for ECE **340, ECON **300 and other courses taken during undergraduate/graduate programs. see ECE Graduate Handbook for Plan II details:

  • 18 credit hours in ECE courses (9 credit hours in area, maximum of 6 credit hours at 400-level).
  • 15 credit hours of M.B.A. courses.
  • 33 credit hours total in graduate M.S. in Electrical Engineering or M.S. in Computer Engineering Plan II program.

M.B.A. student: 12 extra credit hours must be taken to obtain the M.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering or M.S. in Computer Engineering degree for a total or 60 credit hours.


Other Programs

M.S. and Ph.D. in Nanoscience and Microsystems Engineering

This department participates in the interdisciplinary Nanoscience and Microsystems Engineering program; for more information, see the Graduate Interdisciplinary Studies section of this Catalog.

Doctor of Philosophy in Optical Science and Engineering

The Optics Program is jointly administered by the Department of Physics and Astronomy and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Considerable interactions occur with the Center for High Technology Materials and the optical research groups at the Air Force Research Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, Los Alamos National Laboratory and other organizations in Albuquerque that offer extensive opportunities for research work toward the degree.

Current research areas: ultra-fast optics and photonics, laser physics and engineering, optical imaging, quantum optics, optoelectronic devices, fiber lasers and amplifiers, optical communication, optical materials, optical lithography, nonlinear optics, integrated optics, quantum computing, bio-optics, non-photonics, and laser cooling.

See the Graduate Interdisciplinary Studies section of this Catalog for degree requirements. Other program information is available at the Optical Science and Engineering program Web site.


Courses

ECE 101. Introduction to Electrical and Computer Engineering. (1)



ECE 131. Programming Fundamentals. (3)



ECE 203. Circuit Analysis I. (3)



ECE 206L. Instrumentation. (2)



ECE 213. Circuit Analysis II. (3)



ECE 231. Intermediate Programming and Engineering Problem Solving. (3)



ECE 238L. Computer Logic Design. (4)



ECE 300. Advanced Engineering Mathematics. (4)



ECE **314. Signals and Systems. (3)



ECE **321L. Electronics I. (4)



ECE **322L. Electronics II. (4)



ECE 330. Software Design. (3)



ECE **331. Data Structures and Algorithms. (3)



ECE **335. Integrated Software Systems. (3)



ECE **338. Intermediate Logic Design. (3)



ECE **340. Probabilistic Methods in Engineering. (3)



ECE 341. Introduction to Communication Systems. (3)



ECE **344L. Microprocessors. (4)



ECE 345. Introduction to Control Systems. (3)



ECE **360. Electromagnetic Fields and Waves. (3)



ECE **371. Materials and Devices. (3 to a maximum of 6 Δ)



ECE 381. Introduction to Electric Power Systems. (3)



ECE 412. Introduction to Computer Graphics: Scanline Algorithms. (3)



ECE 413. Introduction to Ray and Vector Graphics. (3)



ECE 419. Senior Design I. (3)



ECE 420. Senior Design II. (3)



ECE 421 / 523. Analog Electronics. (3)



ECE *424. Digital VLSI Design. (3)



ECE **435. Software Engineering. (3)



ECE *437. Computer Operating Systems. (3)



ECE *438. Design of Computers. (3)



ECE *439. Introduction to Digital Signal Processing. (3)



ECE *440. Introduction to Computer Networks. (3)



ECE *442. Introduction to Wireless Communications. (3)



ECE *443. Hardware Design with VHDL. (3)



ECE *446. Design of Feedback Control Systems. (3)



ECE 456 / 556. Entrepreneurial Engineering. (3)



ECE 460 / 560. Introduction to Microwave Engineering. (3)



ECE *463. Advanced Optics I. (3)



ECE *464. Laser Physics. (3)



ECE 469 / 569. Antennas for Wireless Communication Systems. (3)



ECE *471. Materials and Devices II. (3)



ECE 474L / 574L. Microelectronics Processing. (3)



ECE *475. Introduction to Electro-Optics and Opto-Electronics. (3)



ECE 482 / 582. Electric Drives and Transformers. (3)



ECE 483 / 583. AC Power Electronics. (3)



ECE 484 / 584. Photovoltaics. (3)



ECE 488 / 588. Smart Grid Technologies. (3)



ECE 489 / 589. DC Power Electronics. (3)



ECE 490. Internship. (3)



ECE 491. Undergraduate Problems. (1-6 to a maximum of 6 Δ)



ECE 493. Honors Seminar. (1-3)



ECE 494. Honors Individual Study. (1-6)



ECE 495 / 595. Special Topics. (1-4 to a maximum of 9, 1-4 to a maximum of 15 Δ)



ECE 500. Theory of Linear Systems. (3)



ECE 506. Optimization Theory. (3)



ECE 510. Medical Imaging. (3)



ECE 511. Analysis Methods in Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging. (3)



ECE 512. Introduction to Computer Graphics. (3)



ECE 514. Nonlinear and Adaptive Control. (3)



ECE 516. Computer Vision. (3)



ECE 517. Machine Learning. (3)



ECE 518. Synthesis of Nanostructures. (3)



ECE 519. Theory, Fabrication, and Characterization of Nano and Microelectromechanical Systems (NEMS/MEMS). (4)



ECE 520. VLSI Design. (3)



ECE 522. Hardware Software Codesign with FPGAs. (3 to a maximum of 6 Δ)



ECE 523 / 421. Analog Electronics. (3)



ECE 525. Hardware-Oriented Security and Trust. (3 to a maximum of 6 Δ)



ECE 528. Embedded Systems Architecture. (3)



ECE 533. Digital Image Processing. (3)



ECE 534. Plasma Physics I. (3)



ECE 536. Computer System Software. (3)



ECE 537. Foundations of Computing. (3)



ECE 538. Advanced Computer Architecture. (3)



ECE 539. Digital Signal Processing. (3)



ECE 540. Advanced Networking Topics. (3)



ECE 541. Probability Theory and Stochastic Processes. (3)



ECE 542. Digital Communication Theory. (3)



ECE 546. Multivariable Control Theory. (3)



ECE 547. Introduction to Computer Graphics. (3)



ECE 549. Information Theory and Coding. (3)



ECE 551. Problems. (1-6 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



ECE 554. Advanced Optics II. (3)



ECE 555. Foundations of Engineering Electromagnetics. (3)



ECE 556 / 456. Entrepreneurial Engineering. (3)



ECE 557. Pulsed Power and Charged Particle Acceleration. (3)



ECE 558. Charged Particle Beams and High Power Microwaves. (3)



ECE 559. Internship in Optical Science and Engineering. (3)



ECE 560 / 460. Introduction to Microwave Engineering. (3)



ECE 561. Engineering Electromagnetics. (3)



ECE 562. Electronics RF Design. (3)



ECE 563. Computational Methods for Electromagnetics. (3)



ECE 564. Guided Wave Optics. (3)



ECE 565. Optical Communication Components and Subsystems. (3)



ECE 568. Avalanche Photodiodes. (3)



ECE 569 / 469. Antennas for Wireless Communications Systems. (3)



ECE 570. Optoelectronic Semiconductor Materials and Devices. (3)



ECE 572. Semiconductor Physics. (3)



ECE 574L / 474L. Microelectronics Processing. (3)



ECE 576. Modern VLSI Devices. (3)



ECE 577. Fundamentals of Semiconductor LEDs and Lasers. (3)



ECE 581. Colloidal Nanocrystals for Biomedical Applications. (3)



ECE 582 / 482. Electric Drives and Transformers. (3)



ECE 583 / 483. AC Power Electronics. (3)



ECE 584 / 484. Photovoltaics. (3)



ECE 586. Design for Manufacturability. (3)



ECE 588 / 488. Smart Grid Technologies. (3)



ECE 589 / 489. DC Power Electronics. (3)



ECE 590. Graduate Seminar. (1 to a maximum of 2 Δ)



ECE 594. Complex Systems Theory. (3)



ECE 595 / 495. Special Topics. (1-4 to a maximum of 15, 1-4 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



ECE 599. Master's Thesis. (1-6, no limit Δ)



ECE 620. Topics in Interdisciplinary Biological and Biomedical Sciences. (3, unlimited Δ)



ECE 633. Advanced Topics in Image Processing. (3 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



ECE 637. Topics in Algorithms. (3 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



ECE 638. Topics in Architecture and Systems. (3 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



ECE 642. Detection and Estimation Theory. (3)



ECE 649. Topics in Control Systems. (3 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



ECE 651. Problems. (1-6 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



ECE 661. Topics in Electromagnetics. (3 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



ECE 699. Dissertation. (3-12, no limit Δ)



Course Search:




Keyword Search:

Office of the Registrar

MSC 11 6325
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131

Phone: (505) 277-8900
Fax: (505) 277-6809