Undergraduate FAQ

Admission

I have received my GED. Which requirements apply to me?
If you have a GED you must be certain to provide the following documents in support of your application:
1. An official report of your GED examination scores.
2. Transcripts from any high school you attended regardless of the length of enrollment.
3. Transcripts from any college you have attended.
Please note that courses taken in math, science, and foreign language at another college may be used to satisfy entrance requirements.
 
How can I check the status of my application?
All students who provide a valid email address on their online application will receive an immediate email response confirming its receipt. You may check the status of your application at Your Rutgers Status screen. You will need your nine-digit ID number or your assigned student identification number and your PIN to access this secure site.
 
Where do I get verification of being a full time student?
To get verification of being a full-time student, contact the Office of Verifications in ASB, Room 200L at (848) 445-7000. Students can also request full time enrollment via the Registrar's website. You can find more information on transcripts and verification here.
 
Undergraduate Admission
Please note that admissions to the School of Engineering do not take place at the departmental level. For more information and assistance in applying to the School of Engineering, please see  http://soe.rutgers.edu/undergraduate-applicants.
 
Transfer students
The School of Engineering welcomes transfer students to our community of learning and engagement. If you've attended a college or university after graduating from high school, you are considered as a transfer student. Please see  http://soe.rutgers.edu/oas/transfer_external.
 
For questions regarding the Electrical and Computer Engineering Curriculum, see Undergraduate Handbook or contact the Undergraduate Director at <ECEUndergradDirector@soe.rutgers.edu> of Electrical and Computer Engineering Department.
 
How do I go about taking summer courses outside of RU, and who pays for the tuition?
You may take certain courses at another institution over the summer or winter sessions (not during the spring or fall terms) and transfer the credit (not the grade) to be applied towards your Engineering degree at Rutgers. Tuition is paid for by the student. Click http://soe.rutgers.edu/oas_transfer_external for more information on transferring summer courses.
 
For more information on the Rutgers Summer Session, please see http://summersession.rutgers.edu.

Classes

James J. Slade Scholar program 
The details of the Slade Scholar program are described at: http://www.soe.rutgers.edu/slade.

To apply for a Slade Scholar program during junior year, one needs to have a GPA of 3.2 or better and must do six credits worth of research beyond the regular graduation requirements. The research one needs to do can be taken under special problems/independent research. Also, one must maintain a GPA of 3.2 and up all through the program.

Humanities/Social Science Electives 
Both the Electrical and Computer Engineering options require a total of 18 credits of humanities/social science electives. For a description and list of acceptable humanities/social science electives, please refer to the website: http://soe.rutgers.edu/oas/electives.

The course 14:332:301 Forces and Strategies That Shaped the Wireless Revolution counts as an upper-level Hum/Soc elective for SOE majors.

Technical Electives
Separate lists of technical electives for both Electrical and Computer options can be found in the handbook.

Category: Electrical/Computer Electives
A list of both Electrical and Computer electives can be found in the handbook.

Curricula 
Detailed curriculum requirements can be found in the handbook.

Co-op/Internship

• Can academic credits be earned for a summer internship or job?
No academic credits are given just for summer internships or jobs. One must do co-op/internship at least for six months full time, and must work on a specified technical project and not just routine maintenance.

• How can one obtain a co-op/internship position?
Every student must find his/her own position. He/she can contact the Career Services Center at Rutgers to review the listings of participating organizations/companies for possible interest. Contact the Co-Op Student Services Administrator, Career Services-Employment Center, Busch Campus Center (848) 445-6127.

• Who is eligible to enroll in co-op/internship for academic credit?
Please go to the course descriptions page and click on 332:496 or 332:497.

In brief, there are no GPA requirements to do co-op work except that the student should not be on academic probation. Students must at least be junior. No co-op credit is given for part-time work or full-time work during summer alone. In order to earn academic credit for the co-op work, the co-op assignment must last a minimum of 6 months -- normally Summer + Fall semester or Spring semester + Summer -- of full-time employment while working on the same technical project. International students need to contact the Undergraduate Director at <ECEUndergradDirector@soe.rutgers.edu>.

• What are the formalities of enrolling in co-op/internship for academic credit?
Once a co-op position is secured, the student should find a sponsoring advisor among the faculty members who are responsible in collecting the co-op reports and giving a pass/fail grade. One should write also a page or so proposal containing the title and description of the technical project he/she will be engaged in. Moreover, the sponsoring faculty advisor sends an e-mail to the Undergraduate Director at <ECEUndergradDirector@soe.rutgers.edu> agreeing to be the sponsor.

Once a page description of the project and application form are submitted (preferably electronically), the undergraduate director will give a special permission number (possibly by e-mail) to register for co-op credit, At the end of at least 6 months co-op work (normally Summer + Fall semester or Spring semester + Summer), one must write a technical report. If the report is acceptable, the student will earn one tech elective for 3 credits and one electrical or computer elective for 3 credits on a pass/fail basis. The pass/fail grade is released to the registrar once the undergraduate director receives an email from the supervisor of the student at the organization where the student worked explicitly stating in the email that the student worked full time at least for six months on a technical project. The supervisor must also fill an Employer Survey form supplied by the Undergraduate Director at <ECEUndergradDirector@soe.rutgers.edu>.

• Can a student take other academic courses for credit while doing co-op/internship full time?
When a student is pursuing full-time co-op work during a regular semester, the ECE program normally allows only one academic course for 3 credits in addition to the co-op 6 credits. However, if it can be verified by an employer's letter that with flexible work hours the student still is able to work 35-40 hrs/wk while attending two regular courses for a total of 6 credits, such a request can be considered by the undergraduate director. For further details, contact the Undergraduate Director at <ECEUndergradDirector@soe.rutgers.edu>.

Special Problems/Independent Research

The possibility of taking Special Problems/Independent Research exists only if the student is not on academic probation.

Students need to discuss the area of his/her interest with a faculty member. The interests of our faculty members can be found at http://www.ece.rutgers.edu/faculty

Once the student has a viable project after consulting a faculty member, a page or so description of the project along with its technical title needs to be submitted electronically to the undergraduate director. Also, the faculty member should send the undergraduate director an e-mail stating explicitly that he/she agrees to advise the student. The undergraduate director will then provide a Special Permission number to register for special problems/independent research.

At the end of independent research, the student will write a technical report and submit it to the undergraduate director as well as the research advisor. The research advisor is responsible for assigning a grade to the completed work.

For further details, contact the Undergraduate Director at <ECEUndergradDirector@soe.rutgers.edu>.

Download the  Application to take Undergraduate Special Problems (MS Word format)