Electrical and Computer Engineering

GRADUATE ADMISSIONS

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DEADLINES

PhD applications received by the PhD first priority deadline will be considered first for funding. All graduate applications that are received after the MS priority deadline will be charged an additional $30 late fee for processing. All applications received after the final deadline may be rejected without consideration or recommended for admittance or re-application to a later semester.

FALL 2024

Dec. 30th PhD 1st Priority
Feb. 20th PhD 2nd Priority
Apr. 1st MS Priority
Jun. 30th Final with Late Fee

SPRING 2025

Applications will
open in August

APPLICATION FEE

The application will not be considered complete and eligible for review until the application fee has been paid online during the application process. All applications received after the MS priority deadline will be charged an additional $30 late fee for processing.

Domestic International
MS $55 $65
PhD Free w/ waiver – see below $65

Application Waiver Qualifications:
– Domestic PhD applicant (defined as a US citizen, PR card holder, asylee, or refugee). Unfortunately, fee waivers are not available to international applicants at this time.
– Applicants that have graduated / will graduate with a 3.5+ GPA from an ABET Accredited Engineering Program
– If you meet these qualifications, email the Graduate Student Coordinator to request a fee waiver

DEADLINES

Semester Domestic Students International Students Online MS Program
SPRING
2024
Closed Closed Closed
FALL
2024
PhD Priority – Dec 30
MS Priority – Apr 1
Final – Jun 30
PhD Priority – Dec 30
MS Priority – Apr 1
Final – May 1
Priority – Apr 1
Final – Jun 30
SUMMER Not Admitted Not Admitted Not Admitted

Applications for Fall and Spring 2025 will open in August

PROGRAM GPA REQUIREMENTS

A 3.0+ GPA is required by the University of Utah. The following GPAs are highly recommended by the ECE department:

Program GPA International
MS
PhD
3.2+
3.5+
China: 86+ percentile
India: 80+ percentile
Iran: 16.0+ GPA

Records are not pre-evaluated. If your GPA and/or test scores are slightly below the cutoffs, please do not email asking about your scores. Applicants must make their own decision about whether or not to apply. Domestic applicants that do not meet required university scores should use the process detailed in the FAQ section below.

ACADEMIC HISTORY

You must upload a separate transcript for each institution you have previously attended. Do not upload grade summary reports, degree audit reports, or credential evaluations. For schools that do not issue transcripts, please upload a mark sheet (and degree certificate, if applicable). All documents must be in English. If your original documentation is in a language other than English, please provide a certified English translation in addition to the original documentation.

If you are still in the process of completing a degree during the application process you must upload the most up-to-date transcript possible that show that you are currently enrolled in courses otherwise the system will hold your application and request that you submit a degree certificate.

Each transcript must contain the following information:

    • Name of student
    • Name of institution
    • All semesters of enrollment
    • Course numbers and names
    • Credit hours
    • Awarded grades
    • Translations for non-English transcripts

All transcripts submitted with your application are considered unofficial and are used for initial admissions evaluation only. If you are admitted to the University of Utah, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to the end of your first semester of enrollment. Students will not be permitted to continue their enrollment until all official transcripts are received by the Office of Admissions (sent to us directly from the institution). The University of Utah reserves the right to require the submission of official credentials at any time during the admission review process.

Test scores will not be paired with an application until it has been submitted. The process of receiving and pairing official test scores with an applicant’s file can take 10-15 business days from the time that an application is submitted and/or the time that  the applicant requests their test scores be sent to the University of Utah.

GRADUATE RECORDS EXAMINATION (GRE)

The GRE is waived for all applicants with a prior STEM degree. If a PhD applicant still chooses to submit GRE results, we recommend the following scores:

    • Quantitative = 158+
    • Analytical = 3.5+
    • Verbal = 150+

Scores may be sent directly to the University of Utah using ETS Code 4853

ENGLISH PROFICIENCY (INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS)

English proficiency test scores must be submitted for all International Applicants.

Test Scores How to Send Scores Exemptions
Duolingo Required: 105+ Select Send Results (next to test results), and select the University of Utah as the receiving institution – Native English speaking citizens of specific countries

– Applicants that have graduated with a BS, MS, or PhD from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university within two years of admittance. This includes University of Utah students moving from one degree to another. READ MORE

If you qualify for an exemption: Please email Graduate Admissions (graduate@utah.edu) to waive this requirement once your application has been submitted

IELTS Required: 6.5+
Recommended: 7.5+
Contact your testing center to have the score sent directly to the University of Utah
TOEFL Required: 80+
Recommended: 100+
Scores may be sent directly to the University of Utah using ETS Code 4853

If your test scores are slightly below the cutoffs, please do not email asking us acceptance likelihood. Records are not pre-evaluated. After reading our application information, applicants must make their own decision about whether or not to apply.

The following are options that our graduate program accepts:

    • Self-Pay
    • Employer Reimbursement
    • Palace Acquire Program at Hill Air Force Base

Teaching and research assistantships are available, but they are highly competitive and cannot be guaranteed for every prospective student. Priority is given to PhD students who have been selected by faculty to fill these positions. All potential teaching assistants must complete our department TA training the semester before applying to become a TA. International students must also complete additional training and meet spoken English proficiency requirements prior to being cleared for the role (TOEFL speaking 25+ / IELTS speaking 7.0+). Read more TA qualifications.

PhD Applicants: If your application makes it past the first round of review the faculty will select which PhD applicants they would like to hire as research assistants in their labs. If you are selected by a member of the faculty you will be accepted to our program and will be guaranteed funding through tuition benefits and a stipend. Please do not contact faculty prior to being accepted.

FACULTY ADVISORS AND AREAS OF INTEREST

Required for PhD applicants, optional for MS applicants – The application will ask which research areas interest you and with whom you might like to work. Applicants may list any ECE faculty members here. Applicants will be considered for assistantships based on the faculty member(s) and/or research interests indicated on the online application. Applicants may contact a research group website with coursework questions. Please do not contact faculty members prior to being accepted into the program. View all ECE professors organized by research area

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

A .5 – 2 page statement or essay describing the applicant’s background, research interests, and reasons for pursuing a graduate degree in the University of Utah’s electrical and computer engineering department.

Applicants whose test scores are below, but close to the recommended score cutoffs, are allowed to use this space to petition the graduate committee for an admission exception by explaining the reasons for their low scores, how they have improved, and plans for how they will meet department graduate expectations if admitted. This process does not guarantee that applicants will be admitted as the department. Applicants that do not meet required university scores should use the process detailed in the FAQ section below.

RESUME / CV

The online admission system will request a resume or curriculum-vitae (CV) detailing your relevant work history and research experience – see student resume samples

RECOMMENDATION CRITERIA

    • Contact information for 3 recommendation providers
    • Recommendations should come from current or former professors who have direct coursework or research experience with the applicant, or a direct supervisor who from a field related to electrical and computer engineering
    • Letters of Recommendations can be submitted, but are not required

Our system will contact your recommendation providers directly to submit a recommendation on your behalf through our online system. All recommendations must be completed online.

You are required to have at least 3 individuals submit recommendations on your behalf. If you are concerned that any of the individuals may not complete their recommendation forms in a timely manner, you are welcome to provide contact information for more recommenders. When at least 3 recommenders have completed their online forms then your application will be allowed to move through the system.

APPLICATION PROCESS AND TIMELINE

PhD Decision Deadline: March 18

Please note that our decision deadline applies to all applications received by the ECE department by March 15. Our decision deadline allows our department to support preferred candidates with the April 15 Resolution and allows international candidates the time needed for I-20 processing.


FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Students with allied STEM degrees (All other Engineering, CS, Math, & Physics) are welcome to apply! Here are the steps to ensure you are admitted and properly prepared to be successful in our ECE graduate program:

  1. Schedule an appointment with the Graduate Student Coordinator to discuss your background and review the proficiency requirements.
  2. Based on your background, you will either be recommended to apply to our graduate program or apply as a non-matriculated student
  3. The Graduate Student Coordinator will enroll you in ECE courses
  4. After completing the proficiency courses with a B+ grade or higher you may apply to the program.
  5. Any 5000- level or above courses that have been taken (including non-matriculated credits) can be counted toward your MS degree requirements. See Graduate Transfer Credit page for more detail

If do not meet initial admissions requirements (3.0 GPA or higher) there is an alternative pathway that you can take to be considered for the MS Program. This option is only available for domestic applicants or international applicants already residing in the United States on an F2 or H4 visa (we cannot sponsor an F1 visa for non-matriculated students).

  1. Please schedule an appointment with the Graduate Student Coordinator
  2. Apply as a non-matriculated student for the upcoming semester
  3. After being accepted, the Graduate Student Coordinator will enroll you in 6 credits/2 courses of ECE graduate coursework
  4. After completing the courses with a B+ grade or higher you may apply to the program.
  5. Any 5000- level or above courses that have been taken (including non-matriculated credits) can be counted toward your MS degree requirements. See Graduate Transfer Credit page for more details

Please do not contact faculty members prior to being accepted into the program. Sending multiple emails to faculty asking for support before admission does not advance the process of their application or help in funding decisions. The application will clearly ask you which research areas interest you and with whom you might like to work and applicants will be considered for assistantships based on the preferences indicated on the online application. Applicants may contact a research group website with coursework questions only. For all other program questions it is recommended that you contact the Graduate Student Coordinator.

No, please read through the information below regarding transcript requirements and information.
All credentials uploaded to the online application are considered unofficial and should only be submitted through the online application portal. You will only be asked to submit official or attested credentials if you are admitted. These must be submitted during your first term of enrollment at the University of Utah.

Please do not mail or fax a copy of the credentials which you have uploaded to your online application. Instead, use only the upload feature of our online application at this point. This saves you the time, effort, and expense of mailing transcripts to us during the initial processing and review of your application. It also avoids any delays resulting from the non-receipt of transcripts and assures you that your documents have been successfully submitted, since you can view them yourself online.

Below are some suggestions on how to proceed with uploading a transcript:

Please obtain an electronic version of your unofficial transcript / academic record (and diplomas or certificates of degrees if your degree is awarded and not listed on your transcript) or scan a copy of the document you may already have and that is current, at the lowest resolution that results in a legible document (we recommend to use under 200 dpi whenever possible).

You may upload an institutional web based transcript / academic record as long as the institution has put your name on the transcript/record.

You must ensure that your name, the institution name and other identifying marks are not missed during the scanning process and that your scanned copy is clearly legible and can print on letter size paper – 8.5 by 11 in (21.5 by 30 cm)

Please include a copy of the transcript legend or university key (back page in most cases) for each institution.

All credentials to be uploaded for each institution (transcripts and diplomas/certificates) must be uploaded in one file per institution listed.

Please be certain that your document is saved as a PDF file or Word document, and that its size does not exceed 1500kb. Scanning in “gray scale” or black and white may produce the best results.

If the scanned file is too large you may want to make a photocopy first (experiment with different settings until you find one that results in the smallest file size) then scan the photocopy.

Once you have uploaded the document into the online application, you will be able to click the “view document” button to verify whether the uploaded document is legible. If it is not legible, try again. (NOTE: The system automatically converts your uploaded document into a standard PDF file.)

The University of Utah reserves the right to require official academic credentials at any time during the admissions process, and rescind any offer of admission made if discrepancies between unofficial and official transcript(s) are found.

No, an application will be considered by the ECE Graduate Committee unless the application file is complete. All application materials must be received by the application deadline or the application will not be reviewed.

We are looking for applicants with strong academic backgrounds who have demonstrated a potential to perform creative and innovative research in the research areas represented by the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department.