Transcript ECE-453 Lecture 8

Should I Consider Going
to Grad School?
September 17, 2008
Dr. Itamar Elhanany
College of Engineering
Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
The University of Tennessee at Knoxville
Fall 2008
1
The EECS Graduate Programs
The priorities of the University have changed …
• The University, the College of Engineering and the EECS
Department want to move up in the “rankings”
• Increased emphasis on graduate education and research
• New opportunities emerge from the ECE/CS merger
The ECE faculty has changed
• About 14 faculty have retired in recent years
• New faculty are energetic/motivated to meet new
standards
• Senior faculty have several well-established research
programs
• Now is a good time to be a graduate student EECS @ UTK
2
EECS now covers more areas than ever …
Robotics and computer vision
Electromagnetic
Power Systems Engineering
Analog circuit design
Computer architecture
Embedded systems
VLSI
Networking
Machine learning and Artificial Intelligence
Communications
Data mining
Bioinformatics
3
Graduate Student Recruitment & Retention is Crucial
• Faculty productivity is reflected in the number and quality
of graduate students
• Presently we have 170+ graduate students
60% are MS students
Two-thirds are international students
• An increase of at least 50% in graduate student
enrollment would benefit the department
• Reversal of MS/PhD student ratio would benefit the
department
• Increasing the domestic component in our graduate
student population is highly desirable
The department offers all three degrees, but let’s talk
about the ECE side …
4
Financial support through grad school
Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GRAs) are offered
in units of ¼-time and faculty offer additional ¼-time
RA position

Great opportunity to do teaching and research
The number of GTA positions is limited (33 at the
moment), the number of RA positions is limited only
by research contracts provisions
There are now 6 Bodenheimer Fellowships
Min Kao fellowships
Several fellowships are available through the COE
5
Programs offered
MS and PhD degrees in Computer Engineering have
been approved by THEC, effective Fall 2005
Masters programs

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“Courses only” MS option has been approved
A non-thesis, project option MS has been
added
MS/MBA program offered
Ph.D. programs

A “Direct PhD” program has been approved
Exceptional student

Avoid the need for “double-thesis” writing
6
Admission Requirements
3.0 Cumulative GPA plus 3.0 in senior year
Exceptions can be made (see the chair of the
Graduate Committee – Dr. Blalock)
GRE
7
MS Graduation Requirements
Thesis Option
24 course hours
6 thesis hours
Project Option
27 course hours
3 hours for project-in-lieu of theses (ECE 501)
Courses Only Option
30 course hours
8
Differences between M.S. and Ph.D. degrees
Ph.D. degree necessitates novelty

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Your work needs to be new (not done before)
You need to prove it via publications
You spend greater % of time on research
Expected to be an “expert” in your field of work
Math component is stronger (required 6 credit)
M.S. degree

Require to contribute to a focused area
However, in smaller capacity than Ph.D.
No formal publication record required (although
encouraged)
9
What do I do as a grad students?
You study

Graduate courses, seminars etc.
You work on your research topic
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Read papers to help identify research goals
Develop a thesis with advisor
Write papers (conferences, journals, etc.)
Present work at conferences
You teach and mentor
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As a TA
Often as an RA (to more “junior” students)
Summer internships
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Great work/research experience
e.g. Cisco, Broadcom, Google, NEC …
10
Reasons for Going to Graduate School
Advance career
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Better-paying jobs
More interesting jobs
Jobs that require graduate degrees (e.g.
research-oriented positions)
Increase depth in area of concentration and
add breadth
Change area of concentration
Personal satisfaction
Delay entry into job market
11
Is Graduate School Right for You?
It is a personal decision—get the information you
need to make an informed decision
Ask faculty about research opportunities in your
area/s of interest
Talk with graduate students about their
experience
Consult with your personal advisors (parents and
others)
12
Questions ?
13