RF Engineering Masters Degree | Distance Learning

[jr1990]

Hello all,
I've recently started working for a big defence company who are willing to send me on a Masters course and it would be most appropriate for me to find a course which focusses on RF/Wireless communications.
I have a first class Honours degree in Electronic Systems Engineering from the University of Portsmouth.
Wondering if anyone would recommend any courses which can be taken via distance learning or have minimal "on-site" training. Doesn't necessarily need to be a masters, I just want to learn as much as I can about everything RF engineering related!
Thanks in advance!

 

[berkeman]

Welcome to the PF.

Here in Silicon Valley, it is common for folks like you to do their Masters degree part-time while working full time (tuition and books are paid for by the company). Usually they will do it through Stanford or Berkeley or other larger universities in the area. Some courses can be taken online or via video feeds to the company, but others can require in-person attendance (usually in the evenings, since a number of the students may be working full time).

Also, some courses of study (like RF engineering) will generally require some lab work, which would be in the university's labs.

Have you talked with your manager and HR department about how they like to structure the Masters program for their employees? They probably have a university or two nearby that they work with to set up these programs. You need to get accepted into the Masters program at the university, but usually being sponsored by your company will almost guarantee that you get into the part-time Masters program (at least in my experience).

 

[berkeman]

BTW, I did a Google search on Boeing Employee Tuition Benefits (or similar), and got lots of good hits. You can probably substitute the name of other aerospace and defense companies to get more directed search results for your situation. Here is one of the hits for Boeing:

EDIT/ADD -- After looking into this Ashford University more, it does not look like they offer the degree you want. You should add in search terms like Electrical Engineering Masters or similar to get better hits.

https://www.ashford.edu/tuition-financial-aid/education-partnerships/boeing

 

[DaveE]

It's not really your question, but..
If you are at a large defense company, then there are probably people there who are doing (or know about) what you are interested in. Search them out and talk with them, they know the local situation. Also, there is a limit to how much practical education in RF that you can get by studying. If you can find a good mentor, ask them to let you watch or help in the lab, ask them what they really do, not just what the academic program is. However, let me be clear, to really learn this subject you will probably need the academic study also.