Applying to the Graduate Program

Application Deadlines:

**Applications are not accepted for the Summer Session.*

Application Materials

University of Kentucky Graduate School Application for Admission:

• University of Kentucky Graduate Admissions Guidelines:
  Review first, the University of Kentucky Graduate School's Guidelines for Admissions Applications prior to applying.
• Electronic Application :
  Submit your on-line application to the Graduate School.
• Application Fee:
  Domestic Applicants: $50, International Applicants: $65 (Click here to pay electronically)
• One Official Copy of Transcripts from all Colleges or Universities Attended
• Official GRE Scores from ETS
  Institution code: 1837
  Department code: Electrical Engineering 1203, Computer Engineering 1201
• Official TOEFL Scores from ETS or Official IELTS scores
  (Only for applicants who received Bachelor's degree outside the United States)
  School code: 1837
  Department code: 66

**Send the above items to:**
Kathy Ice-Wedding
University of Kentucky
202C Ezra Gillis Building
Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0033
(859) 257-4618

Application Information Needed by the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department

Additional application materials are required for graduate admissions in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. To be considered for admission, students must submit:


• An ECE Department Graduate Appplication Form.
  
• Electronic copy of your BS and (if applicable) graduate transcripts
  
• Electronic copy of your CV (or resume)
  
• Three letters of reference. Each letter of reference must be accompanied by a signed Reference Form. The letters of reference can be emailed directly to the DGS by your references, or mailed in a sealed envelope by postal service to the DGS. ( download the reference form here )
  

Please email the above departmental items to:**
Stephen Gedney
Director of Graduate Studies
ece-dgs @ engr . uky . edu

If the above items cannot be submitted electronically, they can be mailed via postal service to:

Director of Graduate Studies
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
University of Kentucky
453 F.P. Anderson Tower
Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0046
(859) 257-8042

Note: the three reference letters can be mailed together in separate sealed envelopes signed by the references.

Financial Support

• The Ezra Gillis Tuition Scholarship
  (There will be 4 awarded per year)
• Research Assistantships
  RA positions can only be awarded by an individual professor. If you are interested in an RA position, you will have to contact our professors directly
• Teaching Assistantships
  TA position will be considered by the department automatically and no application is needed for new students. However, the TA position is very competitive because of the limited number of openings. In addition, the TA positions will be primarily used to support PhD students.
• Fellowships
  All Fall applicants who have been accepted into our program no later than January 15th will be considered for nomination for select University Fellowships . Applicants who are deemed to be most qualified will be nominated.
• Power and Energy Scholarships
  There are a number of tuition scholarships available through the Power and Energy Institute of Kentucky . These scholarships are available to MS students who are interested pursuing graduate studies in the power and energy area. For more information on the PEIK tuition scholarships click here.

Application Status

You may check the status of your application at the following address:
https://www.research.uky.edu/cfdocs/gs/admissions/logon/LogonStat.cfm

This process requires a User ID and Password. The User ID is your Social Security Number or Temporary ID Number. The password is your birthdate entered in the following format: mm/dd/yyyy.

If you require information beyond application status, such as information about application materials and I-20s, you should contact your Admissions Officer in the Graduate School:

Kathy Ice-Wedding

Email: ice@uky.edu

Phone: 859-257-4618

Office: 202C Ezra Gillis Building

Admission Information and Degree Requirements

Admission to the Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Programs normally requires a bachelor's or master's degree in electrical or computer engineering, a GPA of at least 3.0/4.0 on all graduate and undergraduate work, Graduate Record Examination scores of at least 1100 (Verbal + Quantitative) for the MS degree, or 1200 (V + Q) for the PhD degree, and 3.5 (Analytical), and Test of English as a Second Language scores of 550 (paper-based) / 213 (computer-based) / 80 (Internet-based). An undergraduate degree in physics, mathematics, or another field of engineering can be acceptable. However, core undergraduate courses in Electrical and Computer Engineering will be required prior to completing your graduate degree in Electrical or Computer Engineering.

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering provides programs for study and research leading to the Master of Science in Electrical or Computer Engineering and the Doctor of Philosophy. Graduate curricula within the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering are concentrated in the following major areas: 1) Microelectronics, 2) VLSI, 3) Electrooptics, 4) Electromagnetics, 5) Computer Engineering, 6) Communications, 7) Signal Processing, 9) Power, Power Systems, and Electromechanics 10) Manufacturing, and 11) Robotics.

The master's degree requires 24 credit hours of course work and a thesis (Plan A). A non-thesis option (Plan B) consisting of 30 credit hours is available. Enrollment in the non-thesis option requires approval of the Director of Graduate Studies and must be requested within the student's first 9 credit hours of graduate course work. All MS students must also complete 3 of the 5 core 600-level graduate courses in electrical engineering.

The Ph.D. degree is a research degree granted on the basis of broad knowledge of electrical or computer engineering and in-depth study in a specific area leading to a dissertation reflecting original work by the doctoral candidate. To obtain a Ph.D. degree in electrical and computer engineering, in addition to meeting the general Graduate School requirements, a student must:

1. Earn 42 graduate credit hours taken at the University of Kentucky while in graduate standing. This would include a MS degree earned at the University of Kentucky plus an additional 18 graduate credit hours. Alternatively, this would include a MS degree earned at another accredited institution plus an additional 24 graduate credit hours. All PhD students must also complete 3 of the 5 core 600-level graduate courses in electrical engineering.
2. Pass the Ph.D. Qualifying Examination. The Qualifying exam consists of two parts. The first part of the exam is a written examination that is to be administered by the student's doctoral advisory committee. The exam will test the student's foundational knowledge in electrical or computer engineering as well as the student's graduate knowledge in areas related to his/her research. The second part of this exam is an oral exam administered by the doctoral advisory committee. This exam will test the soundness of the student's proposed doctoral dissertation research. At least two weeks prior to the oral exam, the student must prepare and submit a written prospectus to their doctoral advisory committee outlining their research plan. On the qualifying exam date scheduled through the Graduate School, the student will then give an oral presentation of their proposed research, with sufficient evidence demonstrating knowledge of the topic, the novelty of the topic, and a research plan to complete the dissertation research plan.
3. Pass the Ph.D. Final Defense. Upon completion of the research, the PhD student will give an oral presentation before their doctoral advisory committee in defense of their dissertation research. The dissertation research will undergo the scrutiny of the doctoral advisory committee, who will be responsible to determine the novelty, completeness and success of the candidates research program. The PhD candidate should submit a completed copy of their dissertation no later than 2 weeks prior to the scheduled defense date.
4. Submission of the PhD Dissertation. Upon passing the PhD defense, the student will submit the final version of their PhD Dissertation, upon approval of their PhD Advisory committee, PhD advisor, and the Director of Graduate Studies, to the Graduate School. The PhD Dissertation must meet all formatting requirements of the graduate school.