Graduate Studies in ECE at OSU

Admissions Requirements

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering bases its acceptance or denial of an applicant's request for admission into the Graduate Program upon several factors:

  1. A Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical or Computer Engineering or related fields is required for admission. Those with technology degrees are not eligible.

  2. Normally, an undergraduate average of at least 3.20 on a 4.00 scale is required for acceptance in the M.S. program.

  3. For the Ph.D. program, the student’s performance during the M.S. degree is the most significant factor in determining admissions; however, the performance of the student at the undergraduate level is still a factor, and it is expected that the applicant has a minimum of a 3.20 on a 4.00 scale. Evidence of research (journal papers, patents, or conference papers) is highly desirable and can favorably impact your chances for admissions. For applicants  who already have a MS degree, the M.S. advisor's or supervisor's letter of recommendation is required. If the applicant did a M.S. thesis, they must send a copy of the thesis to the ECE department.

  4. A student with a BS degree can be admitted into the direct  BS to PhD program. However, the applicant must have a minimum GPA of 3.6 on a 4.00 scale and evidence of research experience (journal papers, patents, or conference papers)  and strong letters of recommendation.

  5. Taken into consideration are the quality of the school or schools at which the student has studied (for domestic students the program should be ABET-accredited), his or her record in technical courses (vs. nontechnical courses), the desired area of specialization within electrical and computer engineering, and whether or not the applicant is a U.S. citizen.

  6. Letters of recommendation from three sources are required. Academic sources are strongly preferred. Please advise your references that letters must be on the official stationery of their institutions. Also, the references must fill out the OSU recommendation form.

  7. GRE scores are carefully considered when they are available. There is no minimum score required for admission, but obviously a low score can impact your chances of being admitted. The most important score is the quantitative score. The median quantitative score of those students we admit is 800 out of 800. Generally, we do not like to see scores less than 700 out of 800. The verbal and writing scores are less important, but we do not like to see very low scores (<400 verbal or <3 writing). If GRE scores are not available, the Admissions committee may request the scores as a precondition to acceptance. Students who graduate from schools abroad are required to present GRE scores to be considered for admission. Students who have graduated from a domestic school with a GPA below a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale are required to present GRE scores. In accordance with Graduate School requirements, all students who seek University Fellowships must have an official report of the GRE scores sent to the ECE department or the OSU graduate school.

  8. The TOEFL score in English comprehension is required for students who graduate from schools abroad. TOEFL scores above 237 on the paper-based tests are highly desirable. All students who seek University Fellowships must submit an official report of the TOEFL score to either the ECE department or the OSU graduate school.

  9. Consideration is given to whether or not our course offerings and research programs can serve the study goals and professional development of the applicant.