Comprehensive Exam Policy for New Students

New Policy for the ECE Department Plan B Comprehensive Exam
(for Plan B MS degree students who entered the graduate program after Fall 2009)

 

  1. Students will be tested in only one area of specialization. The areas currently offered for the examination are:

    2. Communications;
    VLSI & Digital Systems;
    Computer Networks;
    Electromagnetic Systems; and
    Digital Signal Processing


  2. Each student taking the Comprehensive Exam must be qualified in one of the available areas of specialization as listed in the Guidelines for Suggested Course), must declare in advance what the area of specialization is, and will receive an examination booklet that contains problems selected from just that one area of specialization.

  3. The student must answer five questions in the selected area of specialization as listed in the  Guidelines for Suggested Courses. 

  4. The set of problems in each area will include two essay questions (from which the examinee must select only one), and five technical problems (out of which they can choose four) to answer.  The five technical (non-essay) questions in the area of specialization will include one comprehensive problem from each of the graduate courses offered in that area of specialization listed in Guidelines for Suggested Courses.

  5. The scope of the questions will be of a fundamental nature testing the basic, core skills in the area of specialization. Thus students should therefore prepare themselves in course material which focuses on the foundations and basic skills in the subject.

  6. A student is permitted a maximum of three (3) attempts at the comprehensive examination. If the third attempt results in a failure, the student is dismissed from the university.

  7. The Comprehensive Exam will be administered only once in each semester.