Engineer Degree

Immediate Graduate Education Program (IGEP) Program of Study in Electrical Engineering

• Background requirements
• General Information
• Option to get a 5300 subspecialty p-code
• Programs of study samples

Naval Postgraduate School alumnus Vice Adm. Stanley Szemborski ‘72, chats with fellow electrical engineering (EE) students and his thesis advisor after he was presented the Distinguished Alumni Award. The distinction recognizes his significant accomplishments and impact on the education programs of NPS. Ensigns’ Chris Schuster, Jonathan Gilliom, Dane Brown and Prof. Jeff Knorr, chairman for the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department were included in the informal ceremony. Szemborski, like the ensigns, was selected to attend NPS’s EE curriculum through the Immediate Graduation Education Program immediately following his graduation from the Naval Academy in 1971.
U.S. Navy photo by Javier Chagoya

Graduate Program General Information

NPS has an in-residence, one-year Immediate Graduate Education Program (IGEP). Each year’s program typically begins in July and ends the following June. IGEP graduates earn a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering

The ECE Department offers graduate programs of study covering the following technical areas:

• Communication Systems
• Computer Systems
• Digital Signal Processing Systems
• Guidance, Control and Navigation Systems
• Network Engineering Systems
• Sensor Systems Engineering
• Ship Power Systems
• Solid-state Microelectronics and MEMS System

Central to the NPS MSEE’s degree program is the thesis requirement. Each student performs the underlying research and then writes an independent master’s thesis on a topic of direct scientific and technological interest to the Navy’s technical programs, DoD, and the scientific community. Students are directly involved in cutting-edge research with world-class faculty and support staff, tackling many of the most important scientific problems facing the Navy today and preparing for future assignments as key military decision makers. A sample of recent theses undertaken by MSEE students is shown here.

Background requirements

Students interested in applying to the 1-year IGEP MSEE Program should have a solid undergraduate engineering background. Students without a BSEE will need to complement their graduate level program of study to satisfy a BSEE Equivalence in order to be eligible for a MSEE degree. That program will be set-up by the Academic Associate upon arrival. Satisfying a BSEE equivalence will result in a program of study with specific undergraduate courses needed to satisfy the BSEE equivalence taken in place of some of the graduate electives. Interested IGEP students with a BS in Computer or Systems Engineering should be able to get the MSEE Degree during their 4-quarter in-residence program. Non BSEE holders interested in pursuing the MSEE Degree Program may get additional details by contacting the ECE Department Academic Associate, Prof. Monique P. Fargues

IGEP Students who do not have a BSEE Degree, or do not meet requirements for a BSEE equivalence by the end of their one-year graduate program at NPS, will be eligible for a Master of Science in Engineering Science with major in Electrical Engineering (MSES(EE)). Specific MSES(EE) program details are available here.

Option to receive a 5300 subspecialty p-code for NAVY IGEP students

Officers have the option to complete the Navy educational skill requirements (ESRs) contained in the Electronics Systems curriculum in addition to fulfilling the requirements to the MSEE Degree. Completing such ESRs will provide students a 5300 subspecialty code. The 5300 ESRs consist of: 1) satisfying the minimum requirements for the MSEE Degree; and 2) taking the following three courses, or demonstrating previous knowledge of the graduate level material covered in these three courses:

• CS2900 – Introduction to object-oriented programming (may be validated by the Program Officer for students who took a similar course during their undergraduate studies),
• ECE3850 - Computer Communication Methods (elective may be selected to be part of the minimum MSEE Degree requirements)
• ECE4010 – Principles of Systems Engineering (elective may be selected to be part of the minimum MSEE Degree requirements)

Programs of study samples

Five possible programs of study are shown below. The specific programs shown below require a BSEE degree for background. Students without a BSEE Degree need to satisfy a BSEE Equivalence, which may be set-up with the Academic Associate upon arrival. Satisfying a BSEE equivalence will result in a program of study with specific undergraduate courses needed to satisfy the BSEE equivalence taken in place of some of the graduate electives. Interested IGEP students with a BS in Computer or Systems Engineering should be able to get the MSEE Degree during the 4-quarter in-residence program. Non BSEE holders interested in pursuing the MSEE Degree Program may get additional details by contacting the ECE Department Academic Associate, Prof. Monique P. Fargues

Courses shown in bold constitute a possible core for each emphasis. Variations of these programs are possible. Specific details regarding MSEE minimum requirements are available in the MSEE Degree webpage here.