Electrical and Mechatronics Engineering

The Master of Science in Electrical and Mechatronics Engineering (MSEME) program aims to offer prospective students a graduate program with strong foundations in theory and practical to meet the needs of technical professionals with advanced learning in a specialized discipline of electrical and mechatronics engineering. The program will help students develop new technologies in the emerging fields such as robotics and automation, drone design, unmanned systems and control, mechatronics, computer networks, wireless communications, signal and image processing, and Internet of Things (IoT) for a wide range of applications including agriculture, health care, automobile, aerospace, and clean energy systems. The MSEME program offers two tracks: (1) Mechatronics and Control; and (2) Communications and Networks.

Program Educational Objectives:

Graduates with a Master’s of Science in Electrical and Mechatronics Engineering will be able to:

• Demonstrate in depth knowledge of the fundamental principles, concepts, terminologies and methodologies used for design and analysis of broader mechatronics and control systems or components, as well as communications and networks systems or components.    
• Demonstrate the ability to solve real-world problems in the electrical and mechatronics engineering and related field.
• Demonstrate the ability to entry research-based doctoral studies in the discipline.
• Demonstrate the ability to be in leadership positions in electrical and mechatronics engineering and related disciplines.

Students will learn interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary methods that are broadly applicable in the emerging field of communications and networks, and mechatronics and control, etc. They will also be given specific instruction and hands-on laboratory experimental leaning experiences on how to apply these methods to a large range of problems in electrical and mechatronics engineering.   

General Requirements for the MSEME Degree:

All students in the Masters of Science in Electrical and Mechatronics Engineering program will take thirty (30) credit hours with the Thesis option or thirty-three (33) credit hours with the Non-thesis option of graduate-level courses to graduate from program, not including any provisional admission course requirements, over four semesters.  A minimum overall GPA of 3.0 must be maintained. Students are also required to obtain a C or better in all courses that are to count towards graduation. Students can enroll in Electrical and Mechatronics Engineering program courses only if they have been admitted to the program or given permission by course instructor.

The time limit for completing the M.S. degree is five (5) years from the first enrollment in the graduate program. This includes any Provisional Admission course requirements to be met. Any exception to the time limit must be approved by the UMES Graduate School.

Thesis option: the student is required to take three core (9 credits) and a minimum of five engineering elective (15 credits) graduate level courses, including ENEM 688 Independent Study and ENEM 698 Graduate Seminar, and six credits of Thesis (ENEM 799). The thesis must be supervised by a member of the faculty member as a thesis advisor and the initial thesis proposal must be defended with an oral presentation (see below) and approved by student’s thesis committee (three members including advisor). The thesis must be submitted to the department in a bound form after the oral defense which will take place after the thesis research is completed. A student is required to submit at least one journal/conference paper from his/her thesis work before the defense.

Non-thesis option: the student is required to take three core (9 credits) and a minimum of seven engineering electives (21 credits) graduate level courses, including ENEM 688 Independent Study and ENEM 698 Graduate Seminar, and a 3-credit hour research project (ENEM 696) that must be approved by the project advisor. A copy of the resulting scholarly paper (if any) must be submitted to the department. A Student is advised to do scholarly activity out of his/her project work.  

All M.S. students must choose either the thesis or non-thesis option. There is no course-only option.