Brent Petersen

Director of Graduate Studies (DGS)

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

University of New Brunswick

On July 1, 2023, I became the Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of New Brunswick (UNB). I have held this role from July 1, 2006, to December 31, 2009.

• the course-based master's degree, M.Eng.,
• the thesis-based master's degree, M.Sc.E. (EE), and
• the thesis-based doctoral degree, Ph.D..

Web Resources

• The faculty members with links to their pages, research groups, and areas of interest, are listed at https://www.unb.ca/fredericton/engineering/depts/ece/faculty-staff.html .
• General admission information is at the website of the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) at https://www.unb.ca/gradstudies/admissions/index.html.
• All GAUs are listed at: https://www.unb.ca/gradstudies/programs/graduate-administrators.html.
• More specific admission information for the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering is at https://www.unb.ca/gradstudies/programs/electrical.html.
• English language requirements are described at https://www.unb.ca/gradstudies/admissions/international.html.
• The application portal is at https://unbca.elluciancrmrecruit.com/Apply/.
• The graduate handbook of the department is at https://www.unb.ca/fredericton/engineering/_assets/documents/ece-grad-handbook-2023-2024.pdf.
• General information for current students is at https://www.unb.ca/fredericton/engineering/depts/ece/current/index.html.
• Estimates of tuition fees may change, but some information is at https://www.unb.ca/finance/financial-services/graduate/fredericton.html.
• The teaching assistant application form for our department is at https://www.unb.ca/fredericton/engineering/_assets/documents/ece-ta-lab-form.pdf.
• Thesis formatting requirements are described at: https://www.unb.ca/gradstudies/current/resources/regulations-and-guidelines/thesis_preparation.html.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. UNB's SGS maintains a list of FAQs at https://www.unb.ca/gradstudies/admissions/faqs.html.
2. Question: Are Duolingo English Tests accepted for proof of English language competency for graduate degree programs in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering?
   Answer: I regret no; the Duolingo English test is not accepted in my department, updated August 3, 2023. As of 2023-July-25, at https://www.unb.ca/gradstudies/admissions/international.html are the words, Duolingo and TOEFL Home Edition are no longer accepted; it might be confusing because another website, for undergraduate students, has words that do not apply to the graduate degree programs in Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering; that undergraduate website is https://www.unb.ca/international/admission/english.html and the words are Duolingo with a minimum overall score of 115, updated August 3, 2023.
3. Question: During the application process, where do I indicate my research interests?
   Answer: First identify if any of the faculty members have matching areas of interest; a list of faculty members is shown above in Web Resources. In the application process, indicate your areas of interest and names of faculty members, updated August 3, 2023.
4. Question: If my English language scores are below the minimums suggested at https://www.unb.ca/gradstudies/admissions/international.html , will my application be accepted by your department?
   Answer: I regret no; an application with English scores below the minimum will not be accepted in the department, updated August 3, 2023.
5. Question: Could my application fee be waived?
   Answer: I regret no; your application fee cannot be waived. I am aware of a highly successful alum who chose UNB decades ago because at the time UNB did not have an application fee. It may be possible an excellent applicant goes to another university due to the application fee. The application fee is beyond my control. Even with the application fee, there are a large number of applications to process, even in my own department, updated August 3, 2023.
6. Question: Do the National Diploma (ND) or the Higher National Diploma (NHD) give me the qualifications to be admitted to one or your graduate degree programs in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UNB?
   Answer: I regret no; the normal requirements for admission to a graduate degree program in Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UNB are an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering, electronics engineering, engineering physics, computer engineering, software engineering, communications engineering, and other degree programs that have similarities to electrical engineering; applicants with an undergraduate degree in other types of engineering, computer science, and pure sciences are also considered; qualifying terms are considered after the applications are received; the ND and NHD are too far from the normal requirements of the graduate degree programs in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UNB, updated August 3, 2023.
7. Question: In the M.Eng., may I get graduate credit for more than four ECE 4000 level courses?
   Answer: No, the reference is graduate handbook described above, in the Web Resources, updated August 3, 2023.
8. Question: Must the submitted transcripts be official for your department?
   Answer: As of 2023-July-25, I recommend that official transcripts be submitted. There is a great deal of competition for a limited number of acceptances for students. Submitting unofficial transcripts may slow down your application process, updated August 3, 2023.
9. Question: How high must be my undergraduate grade-point average (GPA) be to be considered for acceptance?
   Answer: As of 2023-July-25, I recommend that it be 3.0 or higher, or a B, or higher, because these are the limits of our SGS. Over my career, I have known of a few exceptions where students have been admitted with a GPA below the limit, but it requires that a special application be made to the SGS. Each faculty member in our department will make their own decision after reviewing a student's application, updated August 3, 2023.
10. Question: Does your department require a GRE, a Graduate Record Examination?
    Answer: As of 2023-July-25, a GRE is not required in this department, updated August 3, 2023.
11. Question: To apply to a degree program, do I need to have a supervisor?
    Answer: Anyone can apply, according to the process described by the links above in the Web Resources, but to be accepted requires that a supervisor reviews your complete application and recommends acceptance to the SGS. If the SGS accepts the recommendation of the supervisor, then you are accepted into that degree program. There are some variations by degree program:
    • M.Eng. students are accepted under the supervision of the Director of Graduate Studies, in consultation with the Graduate Committee in the department, after reviewing the complete applications.
    • M.Sc.E. students require a supervisor be indicated to the SGS before an acceptance letter is issued to the student. Some departments and faculties might accept students into a general pool before they are assigned to a supervisor, but that is not the case in our department.
    • Ph.D. students require a supervisor be indicated to the SGS before an acceptance letter is issued to the student. Some departments and faculties might accept students into a general pool before they are assigned to a supervisor, but that is not the case in our department, updated August 3, 2023.
12. Question: What are the TOEFL requirements?
    Answer: See the English language requirements above in the Web Resources, updated August 3, 2023.
13. Question: May a World Education Services (WES) evaluation be submitted instead of transcripts?
    Answer: As of 2023-July-25, I see the the SGS answers that FAQ and their link is in my first FAQ above. I am learning about this evaluation. Every department will have a different culture. The faculty members in my department often talk about transcripts, not a WES evaluation. Faculty members use a variety of techniques to evaluate applications and some may be looking at WES evaluations, updated August 3, 2023.
14. Question: Can graduate students earn money as a teaching assistant (TA)?
    Answer: Yes, if the graduate student is awarded a TA position. Students apply to be TAs. This is also competitive and some students do not get to be TAs. The amount of the varies a great deal, between 10 hours of work to 130 hours of work, during a four month academic term, updated August 3, 2023.
15. Question: Is there funding to pay students in M.Eng. degree program?
    Answer: No. Teaching assistanship funding is described in an FAQ, updated August 3, 2023.
16. Question: Is there funding to pay students in M.Sc.E. and Ph.D. degree programs?
    Answer: Yes, but it depends on the supervisor's financial offer in the letter of acceptance. This type of funding is called a research assitantship (RA) or graduate academic assitantship (GAA), updated August 3, 2023.
17. Question: May I study part time?
    Answer: It depends on the degree program.
    • M.Eng. students have different rules for international students, because of the study permit.
      • For Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or recognized refugees, they may start with one course, if their application is accepted into the program. They pay tuition per course. It may be possible to take no courses in a term. If there is a consecutive 12 month block where no courses were taken, then they are no longer in the M.Eng. program and to return to the program, they would have to submit another application, which could be rejected.
      • For international students, they must maintain full-time status, which requires taking at least three courses per term, except in the last term.
    • M.Sc.E. students must start as full-time students. After the number of terms called the residency requirements, they may submit a study plan and apply to be a part-time student. The application to be part-time would have to be discussed with the student's supervisor because it may void funding arrangements. The residency requirements are listed in the graduate handbook of the department, whose link is above in the Web Resources.
    • Ph.D. students must start as full-time students. After the number of terms called the residency requirements, they may submit a study plan and apply to be a part-time student. The application to be part-time would have to be discussed with the student's supervisor because it may void funding arrangements. The residency requirements are listed in the graduate handbook of the department, whose link is above in the Web Resources, updated August 3, 2023.

Web Resources for Faculty Members

• Appointment types in GAUs are described at https://www.unb.ca/gradstudies/appointments.html .

Disclaimer

I provide this information help applicants. I will try to be accurate, but I may make a mistake. If I make a mistake, I will try to correct it. However, the department, the SGS, UNB, the Government of New Brunswick, and the Government of Canada have their rules, policies, and laws, in which I have to work. If I make a mistake, that causes you a problem, I have to state again that this page is just my opinion and you should always make your own independent verification of the situation.