Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical Engineering (Ph.D.)

Program Overview

The Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering provides rising scholars and researchers to expand the field of electrical engineering through refined exploration into communications, power, and energy, and micro- and nano-electronics areas.

Students work directly with a faculty advisor to formulate their research focus, write and publish their dissertation, as well as participate actively in professional and research-focused conferences in the field of electrical engineering, such as IEEE.

Top research areas of the department:

• Applied electromagnetics
• Communications and networks
• Electrical power and energy
• Electronics, photonics, and MEMS (VLSI systems and microelectronics)
• Signal and image processing, systems and controls

Faculty Advisor & Research Area

We strongly recommended that prospective doctoral students determine a faculty member in the department with whom they would like to work and a research area of interest.

Ph.D. Admissions Requirements

All applicants to a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) program at the School of Engineering & Applied Science must meet the admissions requirements for entry.

Applicants must provide the following materials to be considered for any graduate program at SEAS:

1. Complete online application form
2. Transcripts
3. GRE exam scores
   • International applicants: TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE Academic scores
4. Letters of Recommendation
5. Statement of Purpose
6. Resume/CV
7. Application Fee

English Language Exam Requirements

• All visa-seeking international applicants are required to submit TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE Academic scores to SEAS to be considered for admission.
• Please provide only your most recent test scores. Scores may not be more than two years old.

Minimum Score Requirements

IELTS

• 6.0 overall with no individual score below 5.0.
• Applicants to the graduate programs in Engineering Management, Systems Engineering, or Data Analytics are required to have a minimum score of 7.0 with no individual score below 6.0.
• Applicants who would like to be considered for funding opportunities must have an overall band score of 7.0 with no individual score below 6.0.

TOEFL

• 80 on the Internet exam (iBT) or 550 on the paper exam
• Applicants to the graduate programs in Engineering Management, Systems Engineering, or Data Analytics are required to have a minimum score of 100 on the Internet exam.
• Applicants who would like to be considered for funding opportunities must have a 600 on the paper-based exam or 100 on the Internet-based exam.

PTE Academic

• 53. Applicants who would like to be considered for funding opportunities must have a minimum score of 68.

Exceptions

Exceptions are granted to applicants who:

• Hold a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree from an institution in which English is the language of instruction AND the official language of the country in which the university is located.
• Hold a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree from an institution located in a country that qualifies for the English language exam exemption.