The validity and contributions of the dissertation work are then defended in a final oral examination. Completion of the Ph.D. degree usually takes three years beyond the M.S. degree. The University of Pittsburgh has extensive computational facilities that include VMS and UNIX services. A very powerful computing capability is also available through CRAY and Alpha machines, which is located in one of the five National Science Foundation Supercomputer Centers in the United States. Access to the University's computers is provided by a fiber-optic network with ports located in numerous points around the campus, including the Benedum Hall of Engineering.
All students have access to the central computing facility.
The Department of Electrical Engineering has numerous personal computers and workstations. The department has research and instructional laboratories in computer vision and pattern recognition, VLSI design and CAD, optical computing, lasers and nonlinear optics, microprocessor systems, neural networks, optoelectronics, and signal processing. The University Library System maintains collections totaling more than 7.7 million volumes and microforms, as well as a digital library with a large number of databases and other electronic resources. Financial Aid Teaching assistantships are available from the department and are awarded on the basis of scholastic record, GRE General Test scores, and letters of reference. Research assistantships are typically awarded to graduate students who have been in the department for at least one term and who have distinguished themselves by superior performance in course work or project work.