I am currently recruiting enthusiastic and hard working graduate students with an interest in computer engineering to join my lab. Interested parties should read one of my research papers before contacting me via email with a copy of your CV/resume, academic transcript, and cover letter.
As general advice, I recommend that aspiring graduate students have a look at Philip Guo’s “The PhD Grind”. He gives a good outline of what it’s like to get a PhD at a research school in the US. He is in computer science, but the experience is largely the same for studies in engineering (he has a shorter summary here). He also offers some good advice on preparing a competitive admissions application as well.
Another good resource is Marie desJardins’ “How to Succeed in Graduate School”.