{"id":91,"date":"2021-02-25T19:56:24","date_gmt":"2021-02-25T19:56:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/coursetest\/?page_id=91"},"modified":"2026-03-27T22:48:49","modified_gmt":"2026-03-28T05:48:49","slug":"pmp-basics","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/pmp-basics\/","title":{"rendered":"PMP Overview"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"UW Professional Master&#039;s Program in Electrical Engineering\" width=\"750\" height=\"422\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2OHPq17E71I?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The PMP is designed for students whose ultimate goal is to work in professional roles in industry. Our flexible degree accommodates both working professionals seeking advancement and full-time students who use the program and the rich networking opportunities to launch their careers in the vibrant Seattle-area tech and engineering community.<\/p>\n<h2>Student Demographics<\/h2>\n<h3>Full-time\/Part-time Status<\/h3>\n<p>We have around 250 students in the program, comprised of both full-time and part-time students. The blue sections below indicate our full-time student enrollment, a growing student demographic! Full-time students are enrolled in a minimum of 10 credits per quarter. Part-time students generally enroll in around 5 credits a quarter.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-757\" src=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"650\" height=\"226\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-1.png 512w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-1-300x104.png 300w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-1-375x130.png 375w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-661\" src=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2024\/03\/legend.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"100\" height=\"96\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Our part-time students work at a variety of companies in the Seattle area including\u00a0Amazon, ATT, Blue Origin, Boeing, Casne Engineering, Crane Aerospace, Cypress Semiconductor, Facebook, Honeywell, Kenworth, Microsoft, PACCAR, Puget Sound Energy, T Mobile, and the US Army. This provides rich networking opportunities for both our part-time and full-time students!<\/p>\n<p>Check out this video featuring part-time student Elliot who works at Microsoft!<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"PMP Student Spotlight: Elliot Barnette\" width=\"750\" height=\"422\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/N2suoxmZxx4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>Student Age Profile<\/h3>\n<p>We have a diversity of students in our program, including their age distribution. The majority of our students are in their 20&#8217;s and are either continuing on directly from their undergraduate studies or join us early in their careers.<\/p>\n<h3><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-756\" src=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"410\" height=\"394\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-2.png 410w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-2-300x288.png 300w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-2-375x360.png 375w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 410px) 100vw, 410px\" \/><\/h3>\n<h3>Student Academic Backgrounds<\/h3>\n<p>We welcome students from a variety of academic backgrounds. Last year, 60% of our new students came from EE related majors, followed by CS\/CE, ME, and Physics. Other majors represented included Chemical Engineering, Marine Engineering, Civil Engineering, Mathematics, and Aeronautical\/ Astronautical Engineering.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-663\" src=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2024\/03\/majors.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"504\" height=\"512\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2024\/03\/majors.png 504w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2024\/03\/majors-295x300.png 295w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2024\/03\/majors-375x381.png 375w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2024\/03\/majors-50x50.png 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 504px) 100vw, 504px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3>International Students<\/h3>\n<p>We accept international students on an F1 visa, as shown in blue in the graph below. Our Domestic Non-Resident students are those on H1B, H4, L4, and TN visas.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-755\" src=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"290\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-3.png 512w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-3-300x170.png 300w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-3-375x212.png 375w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The majority of our international students come from China and India, though we have also welcomed students from other countries around the world!<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-754\" src=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-4.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"391\" height=\"348\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-4.png 391w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-4-300x267.png 300w, https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/03\/unnamed-4-375x334.png 375w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 391px) 100vw, 391px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>F1 students, please check out our <a href=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/international-students\/\">International Students<\/a> page.<\/p>\n<h2>FAQs<\/h2>\n<h4>What are the main differences between the PMP and the department&#8217;s traditional master&#8217;s program?<\/h4>\n<p>The primary difference is that the PMP has a professional vs. research focus. Students in our program tend to go on to careers in industry vs. further graduate study\/ careers in academia. The PMP offers both full-time and part-time options with greater flexibility than our daytime program. Additionally, our courses are offered in the evening vs. during the day. This allows our part-time students to continue with their careers and our full-time students to pursue internship opportunities during the day.<\/p>\n<h4>Is the curriculum the same as the daytime master&#8217;s program?<\/h4>\n<p>About 25% of our coursework is also offered in the daytime master\u2019s program. These tend to be classes in the classic EE disciplines such as Digital Signal Processing and Linear Systems Theory. The remaining coursework has been developed specifically for PMP with a focus on industry trends. These classes include subjects such as The Self-Driving Car: Intro to AI for Mobile Robots, Software Engineering for Embedded Applications, Deep Learning for Big Visual Data, TinyML, and Quantum Computing and Quantum Mechanics for Engineers. Please also view our <a href=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/curriculum-and-registration\/\" data-wpel-link=\"internal\">Curriculum and Registration<\/a>\u00a0section.<\/p>\n<h4>I want to get a PhD. Is this the right program for me?<\/h4>\n<p>Research is a critical component in PhD admissions, and so our coursework-only program is not the best fit for students who want to pursue further graduate study in a PhD program. However, some PMP students have gone on to PhD programs after obtaining research experience through EE P 599 credits. Remember that our PMP does lead to the same MSEE degree as our daytime program.<\/p>\n<p>Check out this profile of one PMP\u2019s students experience with research!<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"PMP Student Spotlight: Kevin Um\" width=\"750\" height=\"422\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/de0SAcOzFEY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h4>Can I transfer to another graduate program?<\/h4>\n<p>No, there is no transfer mechanism between graduate programs. Students in the PMP who wish to be in another program must apply separately (and vice versa).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The PMP is designed for students whose ultimate goal is to work in professional roles in industry. Our flexible degree accommodates both working professionals seeking advancement and full-time students who use the program and the rich networking opportunities to launch their careers in the vibrant Seattle-area tech and engineering community. Student Demographics Full-time\/Part-time Status We&#8230;<\/p>\n<div><a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/pmp-basics\/\">Read more<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"class_list":["post-91","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/91","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=91"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/91\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":758,"href":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/91\/revisions\/758"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=91"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.ece.uw.edu\/newpmp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=91"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}