Computer Engineering Area Graduate Advising

How do I get an RA?
Individual faculty make RA decisions based on their research grants. Go down the list of all EE faculty sorting the list according to your research interests. Then you should start contacting faculty directly about RAs. A list of Computer Engineering faculty can be found at
http://www.ece.utexas.edu/grad/compeng.php
http://www.ece.utexas.edu/faculty/directory/research_list.php
Most have websites describing their research. You choose your research area by asking a professor currently doing research in an area you are interested in.

How do I get a TA?
1) Dr. Jacome handles the TA offers for new graduate students.
2) Some existing graduate students get TA offers by applying to the department TA job request and then contacting professors who teach classes with TA vacancy. If you have a thesis supervisor, and ask the supervisor to help you get a TA. Go see the professors that teach classes that have TA’s when they are making the selections (1 month before and up to 5 days into each semester.) You could also try other departments like Computer Science (TAY), Math (RLM) and General Engineering (Meyer’s office in ECJ)

What are my chances of getting financial support?
These are the statistics for the Spring 2004 semester. In the CE area, there are 204 graduate students (118 full-time, 86 part-time), 93 working on the MS, 108 working on the Ph.D. There are 37 TAs+graders (31% of full-time), 30 RAs (25% of full-time), 23 fellowships (19 % of full-time).

What courses do I need for a Masters Degree?
Thesis Option: 8 courses; 4 to 6 courses in Major Work and 2 to 4 courses in Supporting Work, excluding EE 698A and B. You take EE 698A only once, & in a separate semester before taking EE 698B. You must take EE 698B in the semester you file to earn the MSE degree, even if you have to repeat it. You can not use any EE 397K, Topic-1 Conference Courses for the thesis option.
Report Option: 10 courses; 5 to 8 courses in Major Work and 2 to 5 courses in Supporting Work, excluding EE 398R. You take EE 398R in the semester you file to earn the MSE degree, even if you have to repeat it. You use one EE 397K, Topic-1 Conference Course for the report option.
No-Thesis/No-Report Option: 12 courses: 6 to 10 courses in Major Work and 2 to 6 courses in Supporting Work. You can count two EE 397K, Topic-1 Conference Course courses as Major Work.

What courses do I need for a PhD Degree?
• At least 30 hours of "regular classroom instruction," all classes at the graduate level
• no individual instruction classes count towards the 30 hours of "regular classroom instruction"
• at least 12 hours of the 30 should be taken in residence at UT-Austin
• 6 hours should be "outside the principal area of study" (no requirement for inside or outside of department; student's qualifying committee will examine appropriateness of courses indicated as "supporting work")
• GPA in each category ("major" and "supporting") should be at least 3.5

I want to graduate. How do I get my MS degree?
1) Go to http://www.utexas.edu/ogs/pdn/. Type and print the MS Degree Candidate Form and MS Degree Certification Form due in Main 101, get supervisors’ signatures as needed, & bring forms to ENS 101.
2) Go to the ECE web site and get the Program of Work form
http://www.ece.utexas.edu/grad/MS_prgm_of_wrk.pdf
Make a copy of this form, and fill the copy out in pencil.
3) Bring the ECE form with your unofficial transcript to Valvano’s office.
4) Valvano decides what courses are major/supporting work.
5) You type up the Program of Work form.
6) Valvano signs the Program of Work
7) You turn in the packet to ENS101 for Dr. Neikirk's signature.

How do I tell if a course is a major or a supporting work?
1) If you are a MS student, look it up in the major/supporting work guidelines, or
2) If you are a PhD student, which courses are major and which are supporting is determined by your PhD qualifying committee.

Can I take undergraduate courses for my master’s degree?
Yes with the limitations (regardless of the thesis/report/NT-NR option)
1) You must take it for a letter grade
2) There is a limit of 3 total undergraduate courses allowed
3) There is a limit of 2 in the major work category
4) There is a limit of 2 in the supporting work category
5) There must be at least one graduate course in the supporting work category
6) The course cannot be required by all ECE undergraduates
   (see the major/supporting work guidelines for specific classes which are OK)
7) It cannot have a 0,1 as the middle number in the course number
8) It must be a class that students in that department use for their degree. It cannot be a survey class for nonmajors.
Under most situations it is a good idea to get approval before you take it

Can I transfer classes into my master’s degree?
Yes, even courses taken as a non-degree seeking student
with the limitations (regardless of the thesis/report/NT-NR option)
1) Up to 2 graduate classes
(course must be strictly for graduate students, not open to undergraduates)
2) You must have taken it for a letter grade at an accredited university
3) You must not have counted it towards another awarded degree

How do I transfer classes into my master’s degree?
Go to the ECE graduate office and ask for the forms.

Can policies be changed/waived for me?
If you have a thesis supervisor, have that professor petition to the appropriate
body (computer engineering faculty, ECE graduate studies committee, or
the Graduate School) for the change/waiver. Without an official supervisor, any
ECE professor can be your advocate.

How do I qualify for PhD program?
Discuss the PhD qualifying process with Dr. Garg.

How do I transfer into Computer Engineering?
Transferring is like the original admission process. You will need a transcript, letters of reference, statement of purpose, GRE scores etc. Transfers are evaluated at specific times during the year along with the regular new admissions. Discuss the transfer process with Dr. Jacome.

I want to register for classes but can’t find Valvano in his office. What do I do?
1) Any professor can sign your advising form (but only Valvano signs the Master’s degree graduation form.)
2) Contact him by email valvano@mail.utexas.edu, or by fax 471-5532. List all the courses you have taken, what you wish to take next semester, and when you plan to graduate. After you and Valvano agree on your courses, then fax/email him the completed ECE registration form.

How do I get advising by email and register by fax?
1) email (valvano@mail.utexas.edu) to Valvano
     a list of all courses you have taken so far including this semester.
     Please include the course number, course name, semester, and your grade.
2) Then fax/email Valvano the advising form. Valvano will sign and give it to the graduate office.

Can I take business classes for my supporting work?
Yes, as long as they are regular business classes meant for business majors.

Can I take computer science classes for my supporting work?
Yes, as long as they are regular CS classes meant for CS majors.

Does the supporting work have to be concentrated in a single area?
No, but it could be concentrated if you wanted it to be.

How many EE397K.1 Conference Courses can I count towards my MS degree?
You may take as many EE397K.1 classes that organized classes (regularly scheduled lectures, a book, exams etc.) as you want. NT/NR students can count up to two EE397K.1 independent study classes. Report-option students can count one EE397K.1 independent study class. Thesis-option students can count no EE397K.1 independent study classes.

What do I do to work off campus full-time during a long semester?
This applies only to full-time graduate students, not part-time students. First, you find a computer engineering job with a commitment for the entire semester. Second, you find a CE faculty member in an area close to the job functions you will be performing. You must register for EE397M under the supervision of that CE faculty member. To be a full-time student, you need to take 9 hours. If you are working in Austin you could take regular courses. You could also register for EE397M three times.

What if I am a foreign student and want to work off campus full-time during the summer semester?
This applies only to full-time graduate students, not part-time students. First, you find a computer engineering job with a commitment for the entire semester. Second, you find a CE faculty member in an area close to the job functions you will be performing. You must register for EE397M under the supervision of that CE faculty member. Under some circumstances, you have the option of registering for EE397M either in the summer or the next fall. No other registrations are required. If you register for EE397M covering work performed over the summer, you register for EE397M in addition to the 9-hour full-time course load. All full-time students must register for at least 9 hours for both the Fall and Spring semesters.
Questions regarding full-time status should be referred to the Office of the Registrar or the Office of Graduate Studies. Certification of full-time status, when needed, is provided by the Office of the Registrar.

What is a full-time course load during the summer semester?
The Graduate School recognizes three hours during a summer term as a minimum full-time course load. Individual graduate programs may require more, but the ECE Department approves 3 hours as full-time in the summer. The three semester credit hour minimum course load for the summer session may be satisfied in one six-week term, or in the nine-week or twelve-week terms. Under various circumstances, graduate students must be registered for and must remain registered for a full-time load, including: holders of Graduate School-administered fellowships and scholarships; assistant instructors, teaching assistants, assistants (graduate), and graduate research assistants; and students living in University housing or receiving certain student loans. In conclusion, bear in mind that outside agencies that grant loans or provide for educational funding can set their own requirements about what constitutes full-time status. Students need to be familiar with the regulations of any agency to which they have an obligation.
Questions regarding full-time status should be referred to the Office of the Registrar or the Office of Graduate Studies. Certification of full-time status, when needed, is provided by the Office of the Registrar.

What is a report?
There are two types of reports. A regular report is a project that typically takes 1 semester at 20 hours/week to complete. The scope can range from any engineering process: research, design, implementation and/or evaluation. Reports, unlike theses, do not usually include all four of the above processes. The second type of report is an industrial report, which is available only to full-time employees working in a computer engineering field. For this you get approval from your boss at work and a professor at UT. You write a report about a project for which you made a major engineering contribution. You work out some way to convince the professor at UT that you personally performed enough design, implementation and testing to be classified as a major engineering design project without having to disclose into the UT library the company secrets. The official report may be short and contain general statements about the project. This report follows all the format specifications defined by the University and is recorded in the library. If you perform all the efforts at the outside company, then the University of Texas will not attempt to obtain ownership. On the other hand, if some of the creative ideas come from the professor, or if any of the design/development/testing occurs on campus, then this is not an industrial report and the usual collaborative arrangements will apply. Your boss at work and the professor at UT are cosupervisors of the industrial report.

What do you think that I need to know as a Grad student?
Get to know other students. Be careful about advice from students, because the rules can change semester to semester. Although a good source of ideas to think about, please verify the specific information with a faculty advisor or someone in the ECE Graduate Office.

Where could I find information as regards which courses are being offered? Which Professors will be teaching? Which books will be required?
What you ask is not readily available. But if you start with the ECE web page, you can find the up to date list of exactly what classes will be taught in the next semester. If you wish to plan for subsequent semesters, use last year's listing as a starting point. Most of the classes offered last fall/spring/summer will be offered next fall/spring/summer. Then, if there is a professor defined, contact them directly. If no professor is defined, look at last year's page to see who taught it last year.

I would also like to know if I would have to take up any deficiency courses and if yes then which ones?
The only two deficiency classes we make sure everyone has are: 1) EE360C Algorithms, and 2) EE360N Computer Architecture. Both are undergraduate level computer engineering classes. If you have not had substantial classes like these, then you will have to take them here. I strongly suggest that every CE student discuss their particular academic preparation with an EE360C instructor and an EE360N instructor to check whether or not they need to take them. If you have to take them, most people can count these classes in their program of work towards the MS and/or PhD degree.

Can GRS 389T be counted towards the MS degree in the CE area?
Although worthwhile, GRS 389T can not be counted towards the MS degree. It does count towards your hours as a full-time student

I don’t have an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering. What do I do?
If your undergraduate degree is in a related field like Computer Engineering, then you are exempt from the usual preparatory class requirements. If your undergraduate degree is in Computer Science and you are going into a Software Engineering graduate program, then you are exempt from the usual preparatory class requirements. If your undergraduate degree in not in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering or Computer Science, then you must fulfill the Computer Engineering undergraduate deficiency BEFORE you can take graduate courses. Go to the ECE graduate office for the appropriate form/procedure.

Can I defer enrollment?
You can request deferment for one long semester. Make a written request to Dr. Jacome or Dr. Valvano. To defer more than one long semester will usually require readmission via the normal application process.