ECE Bridge Program to MS Information for New and Prospective Students

The ECE Bridge Program information and course planning guides are here: https://www.pdx.edu/engineering/electrical-computer-engineering-postbaccalaureate-pathway

If you have any questions, please contact Nate Rose at nrose@pdx.edu and he can help clarify policies or point you in the right direction. You can book a zoom meeting with Nate here: https://nate-rose.youcanbook.me/

Getting Started

The first step is to work on a Bridge Program course plan with Nate Rose after you have filled out the questionnaire. Don’t know what focus area to choose? It is a good idea to look at IEEE Spectrum to find what areas of ECE interest you the most. You can also look at our MS Program tracks since the Bridge Program to find out more about the different areas, and our Careers in ECE page to get an idea of what jobs are possible.

There is no formal admission to the program, you just confirm that you would like to participate in the program with the department and then begin taking Bridge courses. You will need to apply to the University, however.

Bridge students have the choice of applying to PSU as either a Non-Degree seeking student or as a Postbaccalaureate (Postbac) student. Please do not apply directly to the ECE MS Program unless directed to by the Department. We typically recommend the Postbac application for all bridge students. https://www.pdx.edu/undergraduate-admissions/pb/how-to-apply

Starting at a Community College

Some students choose to take their math, physics, or lower-division engineering courses at PCC or another local community college. That is completely acceptable as long as they are engineering and not technician courses (for example, EET courses at PCC are not acceptable, but ENGR courses are). We will just need to see unofficial transcripts showing completion of these courses each quarter and to make sure you are on track with what you plan to take the next quarter.

Course equivalencies between PSU ECE courses and local community colleges can be found here: https://www.pdx.edu/engineering/transfer-guides 

Advising and Registration

Bridge students do not get advising from the Engineering, Computer Science, Math & Physics Pathway Advisors or Dr Holtzman (ECE Undergraduate Faculty Advisor) since they only advise students in Bachelors degree programs. Bridge students instead get advising from Nate Rose who will refer them to the appropriate faculty member if necessary.

Registering for courses

Bridge students always need overrides for ECE courses that are 300+ level since they are not in the BS programs. If you ever need an override please contact Nate or eceinfo@pdx.edu

Staying eligible for the Bridge Program

Students are expected to maintain a GPA of 3.0 or better on their bridge courses to remain in the Bridge Program and become eligible for admission to the MS program. Ideally a Bridge student should have no grade below B-. This is the requirement in the MS Program. Getting a C grade will not immediately expel you from the program, especially in the beginning as you are getting used to the subject, but it should not become a regular thing   

Important note if your Bachelors GPA is less than 2.75

 If your overall GPA for your bachelor’s degree is below 2.75 you will likely need to take 3 500-level ECE courses to override the University’s graduate admission GPA policy. Please consult with Nate to see if you will need to do this or if you will be eligible for MS program admission as soon as you finish your bridge courses.

This means that you will need to complete all undergraduate-level Bridge courses and then at least 12 credits of graduate-level coursework before formal MS program admission. But you can still use these 12 credits towards the 45 credits required for the MS degree, assuming you pass them with B or better.

Resources

To see what courses ECE is planning to offer throughout the year, please see the yearly schedule: ECE Planning Guide

Python and C Programming (ECE 102 and 103 content) study guide is here.

Detailed course descriptions: https://sites.google.com/pdx.edu/maseeh-ece-internal/course-list-descriptions?authuser=0

Information on residency requirements for in-state tuition can be found here: https://www.pdx.edu/registration/residency-requirements

Financial Aid: Students in “grad prep programs” like the bridge program are typically only eligible for one year of financial aid. The Financial Aid office will be able to provide the most accurate information in case you were planning to use financial aid: https://www.pdx.edu/finaid/contact

Billing a third party for tuition: Students who will be having an employer or agency like the VA paying on their student account should visit the sponsored accounts part of this page for more information https://www.pdx.edu/student-finance/payments