Incoming Students FAQs

What are the M.S. program requirements?

To earn your ECE M.S. Degree, you must successfully complete the following:

  1. Pass 52 units (Plan I) or 48 units (Plan II) as indicated by your degree planner and capstone requirement route.
  2. Pass the UCSD capstone requirement:
    • M.S. students must either pass a written thesis and oral defense (Plan I)
    • OR a course hosted M.S. Comprehensive Examination (Plan II) 
  3. Be in good academic standing which means that students will need to have a GPA that is a 3.0 or higher within 6 quarters of starting the M.S. Program
    • Students CANNOT repeat a course unless they earned a D, F, U, or W grade. If you would like to repeat a course, please submit the online form. More information about how to repeat a course can be found here. 
    • ONLY 100+ courses will count towards your overall GPA
    • Minimum of 12 units (Plan 1) or 16 units (Plan II) must be 201+ ECE courses that must count towards your degree. 
    • All courses counted towards the degree must be taken for a letter grade with exception of research units. 
      • Grades that are a C- or higher, can be used towards the degree requirements. 
    • In order to meet the pre-req for a class, a B- grade or higher needs to be earned in order to move onto the next course.
      • If a B- grade is not achieved, please submit an EASy request so that it can be routed to the professor. 
  4. Meet the UCSD Academic Senate Residency Requirement
    • The minimum residency requirement is three quarters. Academic Residency is established by satisfactorily completing six units per quarter, some of which must be at the graduate level.  In each of the three-quarters of residency, the student must be enrolled in at least one unit of any 200-level course, including research. 
      • Note: the one unit of 200-level does not necessarily need to count towards the degree. But it should at least be related to the program (ECE, CSE, MAE, BENG, CENG, NANO, SE, MATS, MATH, PHYS, COGS, and SIO). 
      • If you would like to waive the residency requirement, please contact your M.S. Advisor once you have started your M.S. program.

For more details on the M.S. Program Requirements be sure to complete the following:

Is it possible to complete the ECE program in less than 6 quarters?

All M.S. students must meet the following requirements: course, capstone (plan 1 thesis or plan 2 comprehensive exam), 3.0+ GPA, and academic residency. 

  • If a student is plan 2 (comprehensive exam), they will need to enroll in 3 courses (12 units) per quarter. Students are required to successfully pass comprehensive exams in three (3) courses. This is the course’s final examination or overall course grade. Students are permitted a maximum of five (5) attempts. If they pass the 48 units, pass the capstone, earn a 3.0+ GPA and meet academic residency requirements, they can complete the M.S. program in less than 6 quarters. 
  • If a student is plan 1 (thesis), they will need to take 3 courses (12 units) for 3 quarters, 4 courses (16 units) for 1 quarter and defend/pass their thesis by the end of their 4th quarter. If they pass the 52 units, pass the capstone, earn a 3.0+ GPA and meet academic residency requirements, they can complete the M.S. program in less than 6 quarters.  

Please refer to the M.S. Program Requirements page for more specific information. 

 Do I need to take any action to prepare for my capstone requirement?
  • It’s always good to get a head start in thinking about the capstone requirement. Please review the requirements for the M.S. Comprehensive Exam (Plan 2) and M.S. Thesis (Plan 1).
  • You don’t have to know at this point which capstone you’re pursuing (almost no student does at this point), but it would be good to decide by your second year (yes the choice is completely yours!).
  • If you decide to take the M.S. Comp Exam (almost all students choose this option), then just keep in mind which courses you’ll be tested on and if you need to plan to take them accordingly. 
  • If you decide to pursue the thesis, you will need to find a faculty to work with and enroll in a total of 12 units of ECE 299 throughout the 2 years of your program. Keep in mind that only 8 of the 12 units will be counted towards your technical electives. 
Where can we find information about what we are tested on the comprehensive exam?
  • Course-hosted comprehensive exams are practical exams designed to evaluate students’ abilities to apply what they have learned in the course. In order to ensure that the exam is relevant and presented in context, it will be the course's final exam or overall course grade. In most cases, the associated work serves dual purposes, contributing independently to students’ course grades as well as to their comprehensive exam scores.
  • Please review the ECE M.S. Comprehensive Exam Guidelines on our website, under “Capstone Requirement: Plan II - Comprehensive Examination”. 
When should we decide between plan 1 and plan 2? For M.S. students, can we switch easily between plans?
  • All students are defaulted to take Plan 2 - Comp Exam as their capstone requirement. Students must declare their intent to do Plan 1 (Thesis) no later than the end of the Fall quarter of their second year of study. We also recommend Plan 1 students to complete Plan 2 as a backup in case their Thesis falls through, they can still graduate with Plan 2 Comp Exam capstone requirement.
What is the quarter system and how does it work?
  • There are 3 quarters of classes per year - Fall, Winter, and Spring. Each quarter is 10 weeks long followed by a finals week for your final exams and projects. Students feel it is a generally rapid pace especially if they have not experienced a quarter system, so be prepared to ride along!
  • Each quarter has various registration deadlines you need to bookmark/be familiar with. The deadlines are usually discussed in terms of the week it is in the quarter (labeled 1-10 plus finals week) and typically deadlines are on the Fridays of a week. For example, 
    • (Friday of) Week 2 is the last day to add/drop courses on WebReg.
    • (Friday of) Week 4 is the last day to drop a course without a W. 
  • Please note the above are just examples; deadlines may change due to COVID-19 and the quarantine. Continue to read updates on campus policies and procedures as it relates to COVID-19 here.
When does the enrollment waitlist open?

The date that the waitlist opens can be found here. Look for Wait Lists Open under the Description column and view the date for each specific quarter during that specific academic year.

Can we register to be on the waitlist before enrollment time begins?

No, students can only waitlist for their desired courses once the Registrar's Office opens the waitlists for the campus. The date will be published on the Enrollment and Registration Calendar and the Registrar’s Office will notify students about the date by sending an email to their UC San Diego email address.

Can we waitlist/enroll for multiple courses and eventually drop units?

Yes, that is acceptable. Please be mindful of our ECE over-enrollment policy listed below. 

  • It is ECE departmental policy that students cannot be enrolled/waitlisted in more than 16 units.
  • Computer Engineering (EC79) Students:
    • CE students are allowed to be enrolled/waitlisted in up to 20 units for each quarter (4 more than the department-wide policy allows), provided that at least 8 of these units are waitlisted CSE courses.
Can we waitlist in maximum 16 credits or waitlist and enroll in a maximum of 16 credits? Does the 16 units count for courses from other departments as well? 
  • Students cannot be enrolled and/or waitlisted in more than 16 units. Any student that exceeds 16 units will get a hold placed on their account, which will prevent enrollment for the next quarter.
  • Computer Engineering (EC79) students are allowed to be enrolled and/or waitlisted in up to 20 units for each quarter, provided that at least 8 of these units are waitlisted CSE courses. Any CE student that exceeds 20 units will get a hold placed on their account, which will prevent enrollment for the next quarter.
  • The maximum units include courses from other departments. 
There is a class that I would like to take that is not listed on my degree planner. What is the process to have this count towards my degree? 

Students that would like to deviate from the degree planner must follow the instructions outlined on this page. The curriculum advisor will decide if the request is approved or denied. 

Is there a procedure to audit courses?

Students may audit courses only with the explicit and continuing consent of the faculty member in charge of the course. The instructor is not obligated to devote time to the work of individuals not officially enrolled in the course. Audited courses are not considered enrollment; they, therefore, do not satisfy enrollment requirements such as units towards full-time study. Additionally, audited courses cannot be used to satisfy degree requirements.

Can I take courses outside which are not counted toward my degree to extend my time at UCSD and take more classes?

All ECE M.S. students have 6 quarters to complete their program. It is the student’s responsibility to plan out their courses accordingly within the 6-quarter limit. Students are welcome to take additional courses that do not count toward their degree in any given quarter during their program. If you completed all required units and the capstone requirement before your quarter limit (for example in your 4th or 5th quarter), you are allowed to take additional courses for the remainder of your program time limit, out of interest, that do not count towards your degree. If you’ve reached your 6-quarter limit and completed all the required units and capstone requirements, you have to graduate in your 6th quarter. 

What is the "grade option" in WebReg? Can we decide by ourselves whether to take the course for a letter grade, or "satisfied/unsatisfied"?

Graduate students have the option to take a course for a letter grade or Satisfactory/ Unsatisfactory (S/U) grade. All courses counted towards the degree must be taken for a letter grade, with the exception of research units. An “S” indicates the equivalent of a B- or better according to the UCSD Grading System. If a student would like to take a course out of their interest and will not use it towards their degree, they can opt to take it for S/U grade. S/U grade will not be calculated into a student’s overall GPA, however, a student should not have more than a total of eight units of "F" and/or "U" grades in order to maintain Good Academic Standing.

What is ECE 299 research course and how does enrollment in this class work?

ECE 299 is a course where you conduct research within a lab, under the supervision of an ECE professor. Please refer to the ECE 299 Enrollment page for more specific information. 

I am interested in joining a lab or research team. Where do I begin?
  1. You can take a look at the faculty biographies for all of the engineering professors using this search tool. Additionally, on the ECE faculty page, you can take a look at the professor's biography/webpage, which showcases some of their current research work. See if their lab has any open spots/projects that are available. 
    • We recommend reaching out via email and setting up an appointment to meet and discuss your interests even further. 
  2. Once you find a professor that will allow you to conduct research in their lab, you can enroll in 299, which is a research credit course. If pursuing the comprehensive exam, you can use 4 units of 299 towards your ECE tech electives. If you are pursuing the thesis option, you can use 8 units of 299. 
Does ECE 299 qualify for the minimum units for the ECE 201+ unit requirement listed on the degree planner? 

Any ECE 201+ course that is being used towards the degree requirements can count towards the following requirement: a minimum of 12 units (Plan 1) or 16 units (Plan II) must be 201+ ECE courses that must count toward your degree.

  • If ECE 299 is being used towards the degree requirements, it will count towards the minimum units needed for the ECE 201+ requirement.
Can students enroll in research units outside of the ECE Department and use them in the technical electives?

Yes, students can conduct research in any JSOE Dept and use it towards the degree requirements: ECE 299, CSE 298 (M.S. student research) / CSE 299 (Ph.D. student research), MAE 299, BENG 299, NANO 299, SE 299

Do affiliative faculty from other departments usually have ECE 299 sections?

No, only ECE faculty can be assigned to ECE 299 courses. Students that are interested in conducting research with a professor outside of ECE, will need to enroll in their home department’s research section. For example, a Professor from the COGS Department will have a COGS 299 section. Students can search a professor’s home department by going to blink.ucsd.edu, clicking the “Search Faculty/Staff '' section on the top right-hand corner, and typing in the professor’s name. 

Where can I find information about courses that have a final exam in which it's a final project?

Information about the class structure and details about the final can usually be found on the course syllabus. After you enroll in a class, you should be receiving a syllabus from the professor. If this information is not outlined in the syllabus, please inquire with the professor who is teaching that class.

Is there a possibility to reschedule the exams, or project submission deadlines for a course in case there are conflicts between the dates?

Technically, you are able to enroll in two courses with conflicting schedules (class times), however, you may receive a warning email regarding the schedule conflict. Faculty may not be willing to make an exception to your final time if an issue arises. It is highly recommended that students discuss the schedule conflict with the both instructors at the start of the quarter. You may also want to make sure that the instructors are not expecting any participation during the listed class times.

How do we get the syllabus of courses for more clarity apart from the description on the course catalog?

Students will need to email the instructor directly to request a copy of the course syllabus before the quarter starts. The syllabus may be listed on the course website.

Will students have priority to enroll into their core courses?

During the clearing process, students are given priority based on their major, especially for their specific core courses. 

Where can we find each department's individual enrollment procedures to enroll into their courses?

This varies on each respective department's (e.g., CSE, MAE, MATH, etc.) policies. Please refer to their website for more information.

Are we eligible to enroll in data science (DSC) and other engineering courses?

Please refer to the Technical Elective section of your major’s degree planner for a list of eligible engineering departments. For DSC courses and engineering courses that are not listed, you will need to submit a course substitution request. 

Will CE students be given lower priority than CSE students for CSE courses?

CSE courses, priority enrollment is given to CSE graduate students and CSE B.S./M.S. students. Please refer to the CSE Graduate Courses and Enrollment Information page for their specific waitlist policy. 

 How can I enroll in CSE courses?

Review CSE courses offered in the academic year on their website.  If you would like to enroll in CSE courses, you will need to waitlist on WebReg and wait until late September to get cleared to enroll. Please find more information here on the CSE Dept course clearance procedure. 

  • Here is a CSE FAQ page for enrolling in CSE graduate courses.
ECE CE students are only given priority for the CSE courses that are listed on the additional core section of the degree planner. CSE has notified us that they will begin clearing students in August/September. The ECE Dept does not manage CSE course enrollment.
For CSE 249B the course offering states that its topic/seminar, what does this mean and can I check the course description?

For Topics/Seminar courses, please refer to the offering department’s website for the topic names. For detailed course information, please contact the course instructors.

Do I need to get my advisor’s approval for a course, such as from Rady’s School of Management which I’m taking out of interest?
  • You do not need an advisor's approval to take Rady School of Management (MGT) courses out of interest. However, MGT courses cannot count towards your degree. If you would like to request to have this class count towards the degree, you will need to petition to have it considered using the course substitution method. If approved, it will then count towards your degree requirements.
  • You might need to submit an EASy request if the WebReg system is not allowing you to directly enroll in a class.
MLDS (EC93) Students: One of my core courses is supposed to be an undergraduate introductory course, does the less than two core course advice still apply?

Although ECE 143 is an undergraduate level core course, it is still not recommended to take two other core courses with it during the same quarter to balance out your course load. 

When I go to Triton Link, I see an enrollment hold placed pending academic advising. The message says: “Enrollment is blocked pending ECE academic advising. Please contact the ECE Student Affairs office in person immediately at EBU1-Jacobs Hall, 2nd floor.” What should I do?

All incoming students have a hold on their account until ECE selects a date for your registration; you do NOT have to take any action to remove the hold, we will let you know when you can begin registering and remove the hold accordingly. Once the hold is released, you must waitlist for ECE graduate courses using the instructions you receive via email, so please add yourself to the waitlist on WebReg. We prioritize ECE students for ECE grad courses; then we prioritize students based on their concentrations. 

Where can I view the course schedule for all courses offered by campus?
  1. You can use the UCSD Schedule of Classes. Most of you will select “ECE, CSE, BENG, etc.” and “graduate” for the filters.
  2. Please refer to the University’s guidance and legend here to know how to distinguish if a class is remote/online, hybrid, or in-person.
  3. If you’re looking to just view the course schedule for ECE courses, you can see the ones offered in the school year here.
    • The courses are organized by each quarter. The names in the boxes are the names of the professors teaching the course that quarter. If there is no name of a professor in a box for that quarter, then the class is NOT being offered that quarter.
  4. Being in a graduate program, you are mostly required to take ECE 200+ courses. The only exception is in the technical electives section of your degree planner (will be updated for Fall admitted students in August/September) where you are able to use up to 3 undergraduate courses (ECE 111-199). Please review each degree planner as the undergraduate courses allowed towards the technical electives section varies.
  5. Please keep in mind that enrollment and waitlisting processes differ by department. For questions about enrolling/waitlisting for courses in other departments, please contact the designated staff directly. You can google UCSD, the department, staff, and email.
How can I tell if a class is remote/online, hybrid, or in-person?
  1. To view the course schedule (which courses are offered and in what mode), please see the UCSD Schedule of Classes.
  2. Please refer to the University’s guidance and legend to know how to distinguish if a class is remote/online, hybrid, or in-person.
When I go to the UCSD schedule of classes, it looks like the courses are full. What should I do?

ECE sets enrollment for each ECE graduate course to zero and manually enrolls students so they are prioritized for ECE graduate courses. You will receive an email about when you can register for courses.

How many classes should I take?
  1. Students typically take 3 classes (12 units) per quarter. Any more than this would be really challenging and we would NOT recommend you doing this.
  2. Every student has a maximum of 6 quarters to take courses and the capstone to graduate (in good academic standing - overall 3.0 GPA). There are 3 quarters (Fall, Winter, and Spring) for each academic year, so ideally you will finish the M.S. program in 2 years.
  3. There is no particular order to take courses besides making sure you meet the pre-requisite and recommended preparation for a course. Please consider any recommended preparation as required skills for the course. Even if a course does not have a required prerequisite listed, please review the catalog description of the course to ensure you have the background to succeed in the course. You can also google the course and/or email the instructor to get direct advising on if you are prepared to take the course. This is why it is especially important that you review your degree planner (will be updated for Fall admitted students in August/September) of your concentration and courses offered in the school year to plan your course schedule accordingly. You just need to make sure you complete all courses within 6 quarters upon admission. Program extensions are not granted to any students.
If I take 3 courses per quarter, won’t I finish my required courses in my fourth quarter?

Not necessarily, every student has a maximum of 6 quarters to take courses and the capstone to graduate (in good academic standing - overall 3.0 GPA) as well gain more experience and increase your GPA. Almost all students take 6 quarters because required courses are not offered every quarter, you may switch majors, or you take classes out of interest. Although a student takes 3 courses/per quarter, almost no student finishes all requirements by the 4th quarter. It is not impossible to complete the program in 4 quarters, but we are saying that with the circumstances described above, almost all students use all 6 quarters to take courses.

I don’t know what courses to take. What do I do?
  1. Please review your degree planner (will be updated for Fall admitted students in August/September) of your concentration and courses offered in the school year to plan your course schedule for Fall. Keep in mind that courses listed on the degree planner are not offered every quarter so plan accordingly. Note that we update our degree planners and curriculum advisors in the summer; you will receive the most updated one during orientation.
    • The courses are organized by each quarter. The names in the boxes are the names of the professors teaching the course that quarter. If there is no name of a professor in a box for that quarter, then the class is NOT being offered that quarter.
    • Being in a graduate program, you are mostly required to take ECE 200+ courses. The only exception is in the technical electives section of your degree planner where you are able to use up to 3 undergraduate courses (ECE 111-199). Please review each degree planner as the undergraduate courses allowed towards the technical electives section varies.
  2. Please consider any courses listed as recommended preparation as required skills for a course.
I see that all of my core courses are offered in the Fall. Should I take all of them in the Fall?
  1. Most of our students take 3 classes (12 units) per quarter. The core tends to be a bit more challenging in terms of course content. We would suggest trying to balance out your courses a little bit more by taking a combination of core, additional core, technical electives courses or with a course of interest. During their first quarter at UCSD, many students experience an adjustment period (the courses seem to be pretty tough for everyone so don’t take 2-3 CORE courses at once, especially not in the first quarter). The quarter system is 10 weeks; therefore, it goes by very rapidly. 
  2. Courses are usually offered the same quarter every year. For example, if you see that ECE 271A is only offered this Fall, it will most likely only be offered next Fall as well.  
  3. Your degree will be granted upon completing 48 units and the capstone (comprehensive exam or thesis) in good academic standing (3.0 or higher cumulative GPA), so you should take 3 courses/quarter. Almost all students take 3 courses/quarter and they complete the program in 6 quarters or less.
None of my core courses are offered in the Fall, what should I do?

There is no particular order to take courses besides making sure you meet the pre-requisite and recommended preparation for a course. Please consider any prerequisites and recommended preparation as required skills for a course. Even if a course does not have a required prerequisite or recommendation preparation listed, please review the catalog description of the course to ensure you have the background to succeed in the course. You can also google the course and/or email the instructor to get direct advising on if you are prepared to take the course. This is why it is especially important that you review your degree planner (will be updated for Fall admitted students in August/September) of your concentration and courses offered in the 19-20 year to plan your course schedule accordingly. You just need to make sure you complete all courses within 6 quarters upon admission.

I want to learn specific skills, but I don’t know what classes to take. What do I do?
  1. Use the course catalog descriptions, the ECE course offerings page, and degree planners to select your courses. Using the ECE course offerings page to fill out a degree planner is very helpful.
  2. If you are able to google "UCSD ECE #" some courses' websites may also appear. 
    • Being in a graduate program, you are mostly required to take ECE 200+ courses. The only exception is in the technical electives section of your degree planner where you are able to use up to 3 undergraduate courses (ECE 111-199). Please review each degree planner as the undergraduate courses allowed towards the technical electives section varies.
  3. For course recommendations based on your background and skills you’d like to gain, please email the curriculum advisor (will be updated for Fall admitted students in August/September).
  4. For any technical questions about courses, please email the instructor directly.
  5. Please consider any prerequisites or recommended preparation as required skills for the course.
My undergraduate degree was not in electrical engineering so how should I select courses?
  1. Use the course catalog descriptions, the ECE course offerings page, and degree planners to select your courses. Using the ECE course offerings page to fill out a degree planner is very helpful.
  2. If you are able to google "UCSD ECE #" some courses' websites may also appear. 
  3. For course recommendations based on your background and skills you’d like to gain, please email the curriculum advisor (will be updated for Fall admitted students in August/September).
  4. For any technical questions about courses, please email the instructor directly.
  5. Please consider any prerequisites or recommended preparation as required skills for the course.
 I want to take an undergraduate course, how can I enroll?

Undergraduate courses are prioritized for undergraduate students. In order to enroll in undergraduate courses as a graduate student, you must submit an EASy request. Upon space becoming available, you will be manually cleared for the course.

What does the 'N' in the subject code such as ECE225AN signify on the course catalog?

The “N” means it is a newer version of the previous course. 

When should we apply for half-time study?

EASy Requests

 I don’t meet the pre-requisite for a course. How do I clear it?
  1. Once you have received an email about enrollment from ECE Student Affairs, you’ll know when you can begin making an EASy request and registering for courses.
  2. To be cleared for a pre-requisite, please make a pre-authorization request on EASy.
    • If your EASy request is approved and there is space available, you will be emailed about taking action to enroll in the course. 
    • If your EASy request is approved and there is no space in the course, you will be added to the waitlist. 
      • Once space becomes available, you will get automatically enrolled in the course.
      • If space does not become available before the quarter begins, we advise you to prepare to enroll in 1-2 courses with space. 
  3. If you enroll in a course, do not meet the pre-requisite(s), and did not submit an EASy request, the system will automatically drop you during Week 2. So please be proactive - make and be approved for the pre-authorization request before waitlisting for a course.
Once I submit an EASy request, what do I do?

EAsy requests can take anywhere from 1 - 10 business days to be processed depending on and time of year of the request. We are trying our best to move through them. You will get an email from EASy once you are approved for the course and then can enroll or waitlist on WebReg. 

Who specifically do we contact in ECE for questions about EASy?

You can contact your primary graduate advisor for questions about EASy.

For the courses which are in the additional units course list, do we need to submit an EASy request?

It would depend on the course and if it requires prerequisites, or falls under another EASy request category.

Do we need to submit an EASy request for CSE courses that don’t have prerequisites? 

No, if it is a graduate-level CSE course with no prerequisites, you will not need to submit an EASy request unless specified otherwise. You can find more information regarding which CSE courses require an EASy request and more information on our website: CSE Course Enrollment.

Can I submit more than 20 units worth of EASy requests?

You’re only allowed to enroll/waitlist for 16 units total (20 units total for CE/EC79 students). If you submit requests over the maximum unit allowance in EASy, you will likely be contacted regarding which courses you want to take within the limit, and excess requests will not be processed.

Can we submit EASy requests to waive some courses if I took them during my undergraduate study? 

No, waiving/transferring credit is not done through EASy. You can refer to our website for information regarding waiving/transferring credit. Please click this link and navigate to “Transferring / Waiving Course Credit Information” under the “Online Graduate Student Requests” section

What do we write in the EASy request if they have no prerequisites but still require an EASy request?

Though not required for every request, for clarity you can briefly explain your interest in the course and why an EASy request is required (for example, if it’s an undergraduate-level course).

I sent an EASy request but it was denied because it says this course doesn’t require an EASy request. What should I do?

If your request was closed/denied because the course does not require an EASy request, that means that you can join the waitlist for the course and then wait for the Student Affairs office to clear you to enroll for the course. Please do not drop from the waitlist unless you are cleared by our office. If you drop, you will lose your spot in the waitlist.

How long do ECE EASy requests take to get processed before receiving an answer to the request?

Please give our office about one week to process your request. Please note that some requests may take longer than that to process, as some need to be reviewed by the instructors.

What sort of documentation do you need to attach for an undergrad CSE/ECE course request on EASy? What is the criteria for enrollment in these courses? Is it necessary to attach supporting documentation in EASy Request?

It would be beneficial to include a justification as well as a transcript in order to provide necessary information for the instructors who will be reviewing the request.

Academic Student Employment (ASE) 

I’m thinking about being a TA. When can I begin TAing and how do I apply?
  1. Beginning Fall 2020, any student (incoming or current) can apply to be a TA. Please note that since there are more students (1000+) than positions available (100+), positions are not guaranteed to any student and are extremely competitive. 
  2. Here is the page where you can find current TA, Tutor, and Reader positions across departments on campus. You must apply for every quarter you’re interested in serving as a TA, Tutor, or Reader. Therefore, if you apply in one quarter, then you will not be considered for a future quarter.
    • You are welcome to apply to any position you are qualified for based on the course name and description. For specific questions about your eligibility for a course, please email the instructor directly.
    • ECE positions are split into two applications - one for TA’s and another for Tutors and Readers. You are welcome to apply to both. The difference is TAs have a language requirement and Tutor and Reader positions do not. You will be notified of the open application via your UCSD email account. 
How am I compensated for being a TA, Tutor, or Reader
Where can I find more information about ECE Employment?
  • Please go to our website to find out more information about TA, Tutor or Reader roles. 
  • Please go to our website to find out more information about Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) roles.

Ph.D. Questions

Do PhD students with MS degrees have to take all the courses again? What if the MS degree is earned at other departments at UCSD? 

No, if you have already earned an MS degree at UCSD or another institution, you do not need to take all of the MS degree course requirements, as earning a duplicate degree is not allowed per the Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs office. 

How many courses/credits are needed to complete the PhD program?

There is not a set amount of units you need to complete for your PhD degree, but rather different time limits that you need to meet in order to keep making satisfactory progress towards your degree. For instance, you will need to take your prelim by the end of your fourth quarter (if you have earned an MS degree prior to admission into the program), or 6th quarter if you are earning your MS degree along the way to your PhD degree. If you are earning your MS degree, then you would need to complete the 48 units required per your degree planner according to your major. Next, you will need to take your qualifying exam by the end of your 4th year (you are welcome to take it prior to that though!), and then complete three quarters of academic residency after your qualifying exam in order to defend your thesis.

Can Ph.D students change their research major?

Yes, they can change their major as long as it is approved by their research advisor.