Catalog Index Course Descriptions Search the 1997-1998 Catalog:

Electrical and Computer Engineering

• Faculty
• Electrical Engineering, B.S.
  • Specializations
  • Advising
  • Change of Major
  • Required Courses in a Sample Schedule for B.S. in Electrical Engineering
• Electrical Engineering, M.S.
  • Admission Requirements
  • Admission Categories
  • Non-ECE Students
  • Transfer of Credit
  • Student Advising
  • Degree Requirements
  • Options
    • Thesis Option
    • Scholarly Paper Option
• Certificate in Communications and Networking
  • Admission Requirements
  • Program Requirements

Faculty

Associate Professors: Athale, Baraniecki, Beale, Berry, Ceperley, Chang, Ephraim, Haney, Hintz, Jabbari, Orsak, Schaefer, W. Sutton

Assistant Professors: Olurotimi, Paris

Adjunct Professors: Gorman, Gurfein, Hartman, Lake, Lyons

URL: http://ece.gmu.edu

Electrical Engineering, B.S.

The bachelor's program in electrical engineering at George Mason is accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology and is staffed by 23 full-time professors, including five fellows of IEEE or other professional societies. The curriculum provides a strong background in the fundamentals of electrical engineering as well as senior-level courses in the important areas of electronics, communications, computer engineering, and controls and robotics. Further, the curriculum includes nine hours of senior technical electives, two hours of advanced engineering labs, and three hours of Advanced Design Project, which may be used for further specialization in one of these areas.

Career opportunities exist in the areas of basic research, product design, software engineering, project engineering, engineering management, engineering consultancy, technical sales, and many others. The program provides a strong preparation for graduate study.

The requirements for the degree may be satisfied on a part-time or co-op basis. Cooperative education provides students with the opportunity to integrate paid, career-related work experience with classroom learning.

Specializations
Computer engineering, communications/signal processing, control systems, and electronics options are available within the electrical engineering dgree program. Completion of specific senior-level courses leads to one of these designations on the student's transcripts upon graduation. Details are available in the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department.

Advising
All electrical engineering students are required to see their major advisers before course registration each semester. Students interested in engineering who are not declared majors are also invited to obtain advising at the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department office.

Change of Major
Students who want to change their major to electrical engineering must have at least a 2.75 GPA in all math, physics, and engineering courses, and should have successfully completed MATH 114.

Required Courses in a Sample Schedule for B.S. in Electrical Engineering

First Semester MATH 113 ENGR 107 CS 112 ENGL 101 ECON 103 Total Hours	4 2 4 3 3 16	Second Semester MATH 114 ECE 101 PHYS 250 CS 211 Total Hours	4 3 4 3 14
Third Semester MATH 213 MATH 203 PHYS 350 PHYS 351 ECE 201 Literature Total Hours	3 3 3 1 3 3 17	Fourth Semester MATH 214 PHYS 352 PHYS 353 ECE 280 ECE 220 Total Hours	3 3 1 5 3 15
Fifth Semester ECE 331 ECE 332 ECE 333 ECE 334 ECE 320 STAT 344 ENGL 302 Total Hours	3 1 3 1 3 3 3 15	Sixth Semester ECE 421 ECE 433 ECE 445 ECE 460 Humanities or social science Total Hours	3 3 3 3 3 15
Seventh Semester ECE 305 ECE technical elective Advanced ECE lab ECE 491 ECE 492 Literature COMM 100 or ENGL 410 Total Hours	3 3 1 1 1 3 3 15	Eighth Semester ECE 493 Advanced ECE lab ECE technical elective ECE technical elective Humanities or social science Total Hours	2 1 3 3 3 12

1. The two humanities/social science electives and the two literature electives should be selected from the department's list of approved courses. Three credit hours of humanities/social sciences electives must be in the disciplines of sociology, psychology, anthropology, economics (excluding the required ECON 103), history, geography, or government. Students must either take at least two humanities/social science courses from within the same academic area (i.e., two ECON courses [ECON 103 plus another], two history courses, two psychology courses, etc.) or they must take at least one of the humantities or social science or literature electives at the 300 level or above.
2. The ECE technical electives should be selected from the department's list of approved courses. The required design content must be satisfied by these electives. Specialization options in electronics, communications/signal processing, computer engineering, and controls systems/robotics are available. A nonspecialization option is also available. Specialization options are annotated on student transcripts.
3. For electrical engineering majors, the university writing-intensive requirement is satisfied by completion of ECE 492 and 493, Senior Advanced Design Project.

Electrical Engineering, M.S.

The department is firmly committed to high standards of teaching and research excellence in the traditional areas of communications and signal processing, control and robotics, computers, and electronics. The department recognizes the need to augment and enhance these areas through the use of modern information technology. Graduate students are offered a progressive environment with ample opportunities for the type of multidisciplinary research that will be needed to confront the complex realities of the 21st century.

The courses in this program are offered during the evening or late afternoon hours to permit persons who are employed full-time to enroll in the program. For those who enter the program on a full-time basis, some financial aid may be available in various forms such as teaching assistantships, research assistantships, work-study, or co-op agreements with local industry.

Students may take courses through the Commonwealth Graduate Engineering Program. Appropriate courses may be transferred, with adviser approval, into this George Mason degree program.

Admission Requirements
Admission is strictly competitive. The department's policy is to admit only those students who have demonstrated a potential for outstanding performance in their graduate work. To be considered for admission to the master's program, an applicant should have the following:

1. An earned baccalaureate in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or a closely related discipline from an accredited program with a reputation for high academic standards
2. A grade average of B or better during the last 60 semester hours
3. Three letters of recommendation, preferably from academic references, or from references in industry or government who hold advanced degrees and are familiar with the applicant's professional accomplishments
4. A detailed statement of career goals and aspirations
5. For a student who has not earned a bachelor's degree from a U.S. university, satisfactory performance on the Graduate Record Examination; and for a student whose native language is not English, a score of 575 or higher on the TOEFL. (A minimum score of 600 is required for applicants who wish to be considered for a graduate teaching assistantship.)

Admission Categories
Students may be admitted into one of the following categories: degree, provisional, or nondegree. Provisional admission is for students whose past performance provides reasonable, but not strong, evidence of their ability to pursue graduate work. To advance to degree status, provisional students must achieve a 3.0 GPA after 12 semester hours, remove all undergraduate deficiencies (by taking the corresponding courses with a B or better), and receive a grade of B or better in specific courses representing two of the four graduate core areas:
ECE 521, 528, 546, or 548, and ECE 584 or 565. The nondegree category is used primarily by students who wish to take courses but not necessarily pursue a degree. Nondegree students who wish to enter the degree program must formally apply for admission.

Non-ECE Students

1. Circuit Theory (ECE 285, 286)
2. Digital Electronics (ECE 331, 332)
3. Linear Electronics (ECE 333, 334)
4. Signals and Systems (ECE 360)
5. Matrix Algebra (MATH 203)
6. Differential Equations (MATH 214)
7. Probability (STAT 344 or MATH 351)
8. Data Structures C++ (CS 211)

1. Control Theory (ECE 421)
2. Device Theory (ECE 430)
3. Computer Architecture (ECE 445)
4. Communications (ECE 460)

Transfer of Credit
Up to 12 hours, the maximum credit hours permitted, may be transferred from schools that are part of the Commonwealth Graduate Engineering Program. Up to six hours may be transferred from other graduate programs.

Student Advising
Newly admitted graduate students must consult with the ECE graduate coordinator before they register for classes. Students should make an appointment by calling the ECE office. Each student is expected to select a major area of concentration from one of the department's four specialty areas: communications and signal processing, computer engineering, control and robotics, or electronics and electromagnetics. The student then is assigned an academic adviser from that area. Before the end of the second semester, each student must submit a plan of study (approved by his or her academic adviser) to the graduate coordinator's office.

Degree Requirements
Course Work¬Each student must complete a minimum of 30 semester hours of graduate-level credits beyond the bachelor's degree. A minimum GPA of 3.0 is required. The plan of study for the degree includes the following:

1. 1. A minimum of two core courses (with B or better in each) from the following list:
   1. a. ECE 521 Modern Systems Theory
   2. b. ECE 528 Random Processes in Electrical and Computer Engineering
   3. c. ECE 546 Parallel Computer Architectures or ECE 548 Sequential Machine Theory
   4. d. ECE 584 Solid State Device Theory or ECE 565 Introduction to Optical Electronics
2. 2. A minimum of three courses with a grade of B or better at the 600 or 700 level (not including ECE 798 or 799) from a chosen area of specialization
3. 3. A maximum of six credit hours of non-ECE courses, subject to prior departmental approval

Seminar Requirement¬All degree candidates must attend a minimum of 10 department seminars.

Options
To complete the requirements for graduation, students may select one of the following options:

Thesis Option
Thesis students must complete ECE 799 Master's Thesis (6 credit hours) and 24 hours of course work. The thesis is particularly recommended for those students who wish to develop and document their research skills, and/or who contemplate subsequent enrollment in a Ph.D. program. The thesis involves a research effort, which is conducted under the guidance of a faculty adviser. In some cases, permission may be granted to complete a portion of the work at the student's place of employment. The final written thesis and oral defense are approved by the student's advisory committee. This committee consists of at least three full-time faculty members, including two from the student's major area and one from outside the area. Thesis students may not register for ECE 798 Research Project.

Scholarly Paper Option
Students who select this option must complete 30 credits of course work or 27 credits of course work plus ECE 798, Research Project, and must present a scholarly paper. The scholarly paper is a technical report on an independent study, laboratory or computer experimentation, or literature search done by the student on a current scientific or technological topic, such as a survey of some new technologies, or new methodologies, or a case study of new applications, on a theme selected under the guidance of a faculty adviser. The student must demonstrate knowledge of the topic and make a satisfactory technical presentation of the paper in the graduate seminar. The scholarly paper and the final presentation must be approved by the student's advisory committee.

Certificate in Communications and Networking

The certificate program provides the opportunity for in-depth study of one of five concentration areas in communications and networking. The concentration area is indicated on the certificate.

Admission Requirements
The certificate program in Communications and Networking is open to all students who hold a B.S. degree in any scientific or engineering discipline from an accredited university.

Program Requirements
The certificate will be awarded upon completion of five graduate-level courses (15 credits) in the area of communications. A cumulative GPA of 3.0 is required, and at most one course with a grade of C may be applied toward the certificate. The certificate courses comprise two required foundation courses, one core course, and two elective courses. The latter three courses are to be in the chosen area of concentration.

Foundation Courses:

* ECE 528, Random Processes in Electrical and Computer Engineering, and
* ECE 542, Computer Network Architectures and Protocols or CS 555, Computer Communications and Networking

Concentration Areas: After completing the foundation courses, students can choose among the five areas of concentration described below by taking three courses in that area, one of which is to be the corresponding core course. In rare cases, with prior approval from the chairman of the graduate committee, one elective course may be substituted with a course from a different concentration area.

1. 1. Communication Networks: Core Course: ECE 642

   
   Electives: ECE 643, 742, OR 635, 643, 647, INFT 834, 886

2. 2. Optical Communications: Core Course: ECE 667

   
   Electives: ECE 565, 630, 631, 642, 665

3. 3. Mobile Communication Systems: Core Course:
   ECE 732

   
   Electives: ECE 630, 631, 637, 639, 642, 663

4. 4. Communication Theory: Core Course: ECE 630

   
   Electives: ECE 633, 636, 734, 735, INFT 886

5. 5. Digital Communications: Core Course: ECE 631

   
   Electives: ECE 535, 630, 636, 637, 639, 734, 738, INFT 886+