Note: This course is not available in 2026.
Course overview
- Description
This Master of Semiconductor Science and Technology has been designed in consultation with industry to equip graduates with the knowledge and skills required for the contemporary and future semiconductor industry. The course covers six core areas: (i) advanced Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) technology, (ii) power semiconductors, (iii) photovoltaic semiconductors, (iv) microelectromechanical systems, (v) semiconductor nanoelectronics, and (vi) semiconductor optoelectronics.
Supported by facilities at the Australian National Fabrication Facility, the course emphasises hands-on learning and practical experience across the semiconductor lifecycle, including design, fabrication, packaging and testing. It also develops research, communication and teamwork skills relevant to professional practice.
Note: The Master of Semiconductor Science and Technology is an advanced, specialised master's program and is not accredited by Engineers Australia. Completion of this course does not qualify graduates to practise as accredited professional engineers in Australia. To obtain accreditation, a qualification recognised under the Washington Accord or a successful migrant skills assessment by Engineers Australia is required. Applicants seeking an accredited pathway should consider the Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) or the Master of Professional Engineering.
- Course title
- Master of Semiconductor Science and Technology (coursework)
- Award abbreviation
- MSST
- Course code
- 60630
- Course type
- Master's degree by coursework only
- Status
- Not available in 2026
- Administered by
- Engineering
Course details
- Intake periods
- Mid-year only
- Attendance type
- Full-time only
- Credit points required
- 96
A standard full-time load is 24 points per semester. - Standard course duration
- 1.5 years full-time (or equivalent part-time) comprising 72 points of taught units and 24 points of admission credit, as recognised and granted by the School
- Maximum course duration
- 2 years full-time (or equivalent part-time) comprising up to 96 points of taught study (see Rule 5 for further information)
- Time limit
- 5 years
- Delivery mode
- Internal
- Locations offered
- UWA (Perth)
- Domestic fee type
- Postgraduate fee-paying/FEE-HELP
- Available to international students
- Not available to international students on student visas. Available to international students on other visas if visa conditions allow (see https://www.immi.gov.au). For information on international student fees see 'Student Procedures: Fees'. (Enquiries: https://www.uwa.edu.au/askuwa)
- Course Coordinator(s)
- Professor Wen Lei
- Fees
- Visit the fees calculator.
Prospective students should see the Future Students website for details on admission requirements, intake periods, fees, availability to international students, careers information etc.
No study plans found for this course. Check your chosen major, see study plans or contact your student advising office for more information.
Specialisations
Course structure
Key to availability of units:
- S1
- Semester 1
- S2
- Semester 2
- SS
- summer teaching period
- N/A
- not available in 2026 – may be available in 2027 or 2028
- *
- to be advised
Students who have not completed the following units from this University, or equivalent, as recognised by the School, must complete 24 points of conversion units, comprising:
• ELEC3014 (6 points) and ELEC3021 (6 points);
• MATH2501 (6 points) or MATH3023 (6 points);
• STAT1400 (6 points) or STAT2063 (6 points).
| Availability | Unit code | Unitname | Unit requirements | Contact hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1 | ELEC3014 | Electronic Materials and Devices | lectures: 3 hours per week; practical classes: 1 hour per week; laboratories: 9 hours per semester | |
| S1 | ELEC3021 | Circuits and Electronics | Lecture-Tutorials: 6 hours per week; Laboratories: 6 hours per semester | |
| S1 | MATH2501 | Advanced Mathematical Methods | lectures: 2 hours per week; practical classes: 1 hour per week | |
| S2 | MATH3023 | Advanced Mathematics Applications | Lectures: 3-hours per week; Practical Classes: 2-hours per week | |
| S1, S2 | STAT1400 | Statistics for Science | Lectures: 3-hours per week; Laboratories: 2-hours per week | |
| S1 | STAT2063 | Probabilistic Methods and their Applications |
| Lectures: 2-hours per week; Laboratory/Tutorials: 2-hours per week |
Take all units (48 points):
| Availability | Unit code | Unitname | Unit requirements | Contact hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | ELEC4001 | Micro-electromechanical Systems (MEMS) |
| Lecture-Tutorials: 6 hours per week; Laboratories: 12 hours per semester |
| S2 | ELEC4405 | Photovoltaics and its Application to Power Systems | lectures: 36 hours; practical classes: 12 hours; labs: 9 hours | |
| N/A | ELEC5001 | Optoelectronic Devices | Lecture-Tutorials: 6 hours per week; Laboratories: 12 hours per semester | |
| N/A | ELEC5002 | Advanced CMOS Technology | Lecture-Tutorials: 6 hours per week; Laboratories: 12 hours per semester | |
| N/A | ELEC5003 | Power Semiconductor Devices | Lecture-Tutorials: 6 hours per week; Laboratories: 12 hours per semester | |
| N/A | ELEC5004 | Semiconductor Research Project Part 1 |
| 12 hours' lecture-tutorials for the first two weeks, and then 60 hours' lab research for the rest weeks. |
| N/A | ELEC5005 | Semiconductor Research Project Part 2 |
| Lab research: 6 hours per week. |
| S1 | ELEC5508 | Semiconductor Nanoelectronics |
|
Take unit(s) to the value of 24 points:
Note: Enrolment in option units will be determined on recommendation from the School, based on each student's background, prerequisites, and academic goals.
| Availability | Unit code | Unitname | Unit requirements | Contact hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1, S2 | BUSN5100 | Applied Professional Business Communications |
| lectures/seminars/workshops: up to 3 hours per week |
| S2 | ELEC4406 | Digital System Design |
| Lectures: 3 hours per week, Laboratories: 16 hours for semester |
| S1 | ELEC4407 | Engineering Electromagnetics |
| Lectures: 3 hours per week; Practical classes 2 hours per week, Laboratories: 8 hours per semester |
| N/A | ELEC5502 | Analogue Electronics |
| lectures, practical classes and laboratories |
| S1 | ELEC5503 | Digital Microelectronics System Design |
| lectures, practical classes and laboratories |
| S1 | ELEC5504 | Power Electronics |
| lectures: 36 hours; practical classes: 12 hours; labs: 9 hours |
| S1, S2 | GENG5505 | Project Management and Engineering Practice |
| lectures: 24 hours; practical classes: 12 hours |
| S2 | GENG5506 | Renewable Energy |
| lectures and practical classes |
| S2 | MECH4424 | Measurement and Noise |
| lectures/information sessions: 3 hours per week; practical classes: 1 hour per week; labs: 2 hours per week |
| S1 | MECH4428 | Degradation of Materials | lectures: 3 hours per week; practical classes: 1 hour per week | |
| S2 | MECH5504 | Design and Failure Analysis of Materials |
| lectures, practical classes and laboratories |
| S1, S2 | MGMT5504 | Data Analysis and Decision Making |
| lectures/seminars/workshops: up to 3 hours per week |
| S1, S2 | MGMT5507 | Management and Organisations |
| lectures/seminars/workshops: up to 3 hours per week |
| S2 | MGMT5508 | Organisational Behaviour and Leadership | None | 1-hour lecture and 2-hour workshop per week for 12 weeks |
| S1 | PHYS4020 | Frontiers in Experimental Physics |
| Lectures: 2 x 45 minutes per week; Practical Classes: 2 x 45 minutes per week. |
| S1 | PHYS4021 | Quantum Information and Computing |
| Lectures/Workshop: 3 x 45 minutes per week |
| N/A | PHYS4415 | Special Topics in Physics I | Lectures: 3 x 45 minutes per week; Practical Classes: 1 x 45 minutes per week. | |
| S2 | PHYS5020 | Quantum Measurement and Technology |
| Lectures: 2 x 2 hrs per week. |
| S1 | SCIE5516 | Materials Characterisation for Bioengineering |
| lectures: 2 hrs per week; tutorial/activity: 2 hrs per week for up to 12 weeks |
| S1 | SHPC4001 | Computational Methods for Physics |
| Lectures: 3 x 45 minutes per week; Practical Classes: 1 x 45 minutes per week |
See also the rules for the course and the Student Rules.
Rules
Note: This course is not available in 2026.
Applicability of the Student Rules, policies and procedures
1.(1) The Student Rules apply to students in this course.
(2) The policy, policy statements and guidance documents and student procedures apply, except as otherwise indicated in the rules for this course.
Academic Conduct Essentials and Communication and Research Skills modules
2.(1) A student who enrols in this course for the first time irrespective of whether they have previously been enrolled in another course of the University, must undertake the Academic Conduct Essentials module (the ACE module) and the Communication and Research Skills module (the CARS module).
(2) A student must successfully complete the ACE module within the first teaching period of their enrolment. Failure to complete the module within this timeframe will result in the student's unit results from this teaching period being withheld. These results will continue to be withheld until students avail themselves of a subsequent opportunity to achieve a passing grade in the ACE module. In the event that students complete units in subsequent teaching periods without completing the ACE module, these results will similarly be withheld. Students will not be permitted to submit late review or appeal applications regarding results which have been withheld for this reason and which they were unable to access in the normally permitted review period.
English Language competency requirements
3. To be eligible for consideration for admission to this course an applicant must satisfy the University's English language competence requirement as set out in the University Policy on Admission: Coursework.
Admission requirements
4. To be considered for admission to this course an applicant must have—
(a) a bachelor's degree in electrical and electronic engineering, engineering science, physics, applied physics, or a related cognate discipline, or an equivalent qualification, as recognised by UWA;
and
(b) the equivalent of a UWA weighted average mark of at least 50 per cent
Admission ranking and selection
5. Where relevant, admission will be awarded to the highest ranked applicants or applicants selected based on—
(a) the weighted average mark (WAM)
Articulations and exit awards
6. This course does not form part of an articulated sequence.
Course structure
7.(1) The course consists of units to a total value of 96 points (maximum value) which include conversion units to a value of 24 points.
(2) Units must be selected in accordance with the course structure, as set out in these rules.
Satisfactory progress
8. To make satisfactory progress a student must pass units to a point value greater than half the total value of units in which they remain enrolled after the final date for withdrawal without academic penalty.
9. A student who has not achieved a result of Ungraded Pass (UP) for the Communication and Research Skills module (the CARS module) when their progress status is assessed will not have made satisfactory progress even if they have met the other requirements for satisfactory progress in Rule 8.
Progress status
10. 1) A student who makes satisfactory progress in terms of Rule 8 is assigned the status of 'Good Standing'.
(2) Unless the relevant board determines otherwise because of exceptional circumstances—
(a) a student who does not make satisfactory progress for the first time under Rule 8 is assigned a progress status of 'On Probation';
(b) a student who does not make satisfactory progress for the second time under Rule 8 is assigned a progress status of 'Suspended';
(c) a student who does not make satisfactory progress for the third time under Rule 8 is assigned a progress status of 'Excluded'.
11. A student who does not make satisfactory progress in terms of Rule 9 is assigned the progress status of 'On Probation', unless they have been assigned a progress status of 'Suspended' or 'Excluded' for failure to meet other satisfactory progress requirements in Rule 8.
Award with distinction
12. To be awarded the degree with distinction a student must achieve a course weighted average mark (WAM) of at least 80 per cent which is calculated based on—
(a) all units above Level 3 attempted as part of the course that are awarded a final percentage mark;
(b) all relevant units above Level 3 undertaken in articulating courses of this University that are awarded a final percentage mark;
and
(c) all units above Level 3 completed at this University that are credited to the master's degree course.
Deferrals
13. Applicants are not permitted to defer admission to this course and are expected to commence their course in the offered intake only. Applicants seeking admission to an alternative intake must submit a new application for that intake.