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First Things First
Planning your arrival at Clemson
Registering for classes
New Graduate Student Employment
Welcome to the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering of Clemson University! We are glad you have decided to join our program. This webpage contains important links that will help introduce you to the ECE department and Clemson University.
ECE Orientation-Main Campus – Tuesday, January 7, 2025, in Riggs 100A at 10 am.
Lunch provided, Break out focus area sessions 2-3 pm
Graduate School Orientation – The in-person Graduate School orientation will be announced soon. Please review the information with the Graduate School for more information and to register for this event
Graduate Virtual Orientation: Mandatory for all NEW Graduate students. The online Graduate Virtual Orientation Program module can be found on the Graduate School's Orientation website.
International Orientation – There will be a few sessions and tours that International services will set up soon. Be sure to review their calendar for further information. Be sure to register for one of the orientations, as this will provide helpful information for your transition to Clemson University.
First, please visit the Graduate School's New Student To-Do List. This will give you information and advice on everything from accepting your admission offer and registering for classes to finding housing and learning how to get around campus.
Secondly, Once you completed the New Student To Do List, the Next Steps before classes begin for your onboarding are very important. Be sure to review this information as it includes steps on how to register for courses, how to update your immunization and, more importantly, onboarding information.
If you are an international student, please carefully read through the International Student Arrival Guide, listed under "First Things First."
All students:
Please register for and participate in the Graduate School's new student orientation sessions. You can find more information and the upcoming dates on the Graduate School's Orientation information page.
After you have arrived and gotten all the urgent matters taken care of, please stop by the ECE department to check in. You can check in with Jennifer Gooch, the Graduate Student Services Coordinator, in 102A Riggs Hall. If she is away from her office, you may also check in with 102C Riggs Hall.
Please begin checking your Clemson University email address, or have your Clemson email forwarded to an email you check regularly. All correspondence will be sent ONLY to your Clemson email. If you intend to primarily use your @g.clemson.edu email, please ensure you have your basic @clemson.edu set up to forward properly, which you can do through CCIT’s website.
US Students:
If you have an assistantship commitment, you will need to complete payroll paperwork before you can work or be paid. Jennifer Gooch, will process your I-9 paperwork to begin your employment, please come to 102A Riggs Hall to complete this document.
International students:
Please plan to arrive in the US at least 10 business days prior to the start of classes, especially if you have an assistantship commitment. This will allow for the necessary time to pass before you are able to apply for a Social Security Number, and for you to participate in orientation sessions for new international students.
The Office of International Affairs can be reached by phone (656-3614) or email (is@clemson.edu).
Please review the information in the International Student Arrival Guide & Student Orientation.
Speech Test: All international students who have been assigned a Teaching Assistantship are required to pass the Verification of English Skills Test (VEST) given by English Language Programs to teaching assistants who use English as an additional language. The ECE department will send more information about this exam before classes begin, but it is usually scheduled the week classes start.
Applying for the SSN: If you have an assistantship commitment, you will need to complete payroll paperwork before you can work or be paid. Jennifer Gooch will provide you with a letter of employment verification, so please be sure to come by and obtain that letter.
After receiving this letter, and after being in the USA for 10 days, you may then apply for the SSN. Once you have applied for your SSN, you may begin filling out your hire paperwork.
All new students should register for courses as soon as possible. Registration becomes available the semester prior to the term start, and it will close near the end of the first month of the semester. Academic calendars can be found on the Registrar's site.
We recommend that all students contact their initial advisor before registering for courses. Course registration is on the university’s iROAR system.
You should refer to Appendix A of the ECE Graduate Student Handbook for a list of courses that fall in your focus area. (Note that the lists in Appendix A are focus area requirements for M.S. students; Ph.D. students do not have to meet focus area requirements, but the lists are often helpful to them.)
Nine (9) credit hours are considered full-time.
After you have registered for classes, your bill will be created through iROAR, and that bill will need to be paid by the deadline set forth by the Bursar’s Office. You can view the University’s Tuition Calculator to get an estimate on the cost of attendance.
If you have problems logging into your registration account, please contact Clemson University’s Computer Help Desk.
If you have problems registering for ECE courses, please contact ECE Registration Coordinator, (Alyssa Accuosti).
Deficiencies:
It is common for a student to be admitted into our program with undergraduate prerequisite deficiencies. You do NOT have to complete deficiencies in the first semester, and you may register for graduate-level courses before you satisfy your deficiency requirements. However, you cannot graduate until all deficiencies are satisfied, so failure to resolve your deficiencies in a timely manner may unnecessarily delay your graduation. Please work with your academic advisor on a plan to satisfy all deficiencies as early in your program of study as possible.
There are several ways to satisfy or remove your deficiencies:
1. After reviewing your deficiencies, you may discover that you have taken a course (or courses) in your undergraduate program that covers the material. If this applies to you, please complete the deficiency removal form and make a copy of the appropriate syllabi of the course you took elsewhere and the course it applies to here at Clemson. Provide all of that to Jennifer Gooch and/or the Program Coordinator and determine if the courses cover enough material to be deemed equivalent. If more than 2 courses in your undergraduate program covered the material for 1 of your undergraduate deficiencies, then you will need to work with your advisor and your focus area chair to determine if the topics you covered are enough to remove the deficiency.
2. You may take the course, for credit, and earn a passing grade (C or better) to satisfy the deficiency