Electrical Engineering
Electrical Engineering is a Bachelors of Science program at Georgia Tech, falling under the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering and within the College of Engineering. It is a discipline of engineering dedicated to the study, design, and application of any device that uses electricity or electromagnetism. Electrical engineering is a remarkably broad field. Career paths exist in controls engineering, power engineering, microelectronics engineering, and signal processing. Exposure to concepts in computer science can also prepare electrical engineers for work more loosely connected to the field. Georgia Tech's School of Electrical and Computer Engineering boasts over 1,400 undergraduate students, over 1,100 graduate students, over 20,000 alumni, and is ranked 5th in electrical engineering.[1] [2] Of 163 degrees awarded in the 2020-2021 academic year, 142 recipients were male with the remaining 21 being female.[3]
Student Organizations[edit | edit source]
Eta Kappa Nu (HKN), the national electrical engineering honors society, founded its Beta Mu chapter at Georgia Tech in 1904.[4] Juniors with a GPA of 3.5 or higher, seniors with a GPA of 3.4 or higher, and graduate students in good standing are eligible to join HKN.[5] The organization hosts numerous social, corporate, and service events throughout the school year.[6] Two scholarships, each of $1,000, are available to one undergraduate and one junior in fall and spring, respectively.
The Hive is a student-led organization within the Van Leer Interdisciplinary Design Commons.[7] The Hive provides students with a number of tools, including 3D printers, PCB fab, wood shop, laser cutters, and electronics stations.[8] In order to use these machines, students must register for the "shared user management system" (or "SUMS") and undergo machine specific training.[9] As a student-led organization, The Hive offers volunteer positions for "Peer Instructors," who staff The Hive while general users work within the makerspace.[10]
Georgia Tech IEEE, a chapter of IEEE, provides access to the largest professional society of electrical and computer engineers.[11] Georgia Tech chapter of IEEE offers weekly tutoring sessions for 2000 and 3000-level electrical engineering courses, including ECE2026 and ECE 3040.[12] Georgia Tech IEEE offers undergraduates experience and workshops in two teams, Innovation and Hardware. The Innovation Team focuses on microcontroller programming, PCB design, and application development. The Hardware Team focuses on design and fabrication of robots, including PCB design, microcontroller programming, CAD, and manufacturing.[13] Georgia Tech IEEE is sponsored by relevant companies and organizations within the electrical engineering community, including Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, and Northrop Grumman.[14]
Women in Electrical Engineering (or WECE) provides academic support, professional development, social events, and community outreach for female electrical engineers.[15] The organization was founded in Fall 2004 and is sponsored by companies like Cisco, 3M, and Qualcomm.[16]
Other relevant organizations include the Amateur Radio Club, the Black Graduate Student Organization, Engineers without Borders, the Invention Studio, HyTech Racing Team, RoboJackets, and Tau Beta Pi.
Career Paths[edit | edit source]
The ubiquity of electronics and electricity in all fields creates a number of possible positions and fields for electrical engineers. The following list is not exhaustive, further information can be found through C2D2.
- Controls: programming and electrical design of systems used in automotive, manufacturing, and aerospace
- Embedded Systems: programming and integration of embedded systems. Dishwashers, cars, 3D printers, and WiFi routers are all examples of embedded systems
- Silicon: design and fabrication of integrated circuits and devices in personal devices or embedded systems
- Power Systems: design of electrical generation and transmission technologies, i.e. for utility companies or governments
Is Electrical Engineering right for me?[edit | edit source]
It should be noted, first off, that electrical engineers enjoy a great degree of financial security in the U.S. The number of jobs available and the limited quantity of qualified engineers to fill them has driven the median annual salary of a Georgia Tech electrical engineer to $77,000.[17]
Options outside of engineering are also available to electrical engineers. For example, a bachelor's in EE is extremely attractive to law firms because of its application in patent law.
That being said, the curriculum for Tech's electrical engineering major is notoriously strenuous. Many classes (i.e. ECE 2031, ECE 3043) have a strong reputation of taking far more than their allotted weekly lab times. If you find yourself struggling with math-heavy classes like ECE 2026 but enjoying programming-heavy classes like ECE 2036, consider changing your major to Computer Engineering or Computer Science.
Degree Requirements[edit | edit source]
| General Core [18] | |
|---|---|
| Course | Description |
| APPH 1040/1050/1060 | Wellness Requirement (2) |
| ENGL 1101, 1102 | English Requirement (2) |
| CS 1301 | Computing Requirement (2) |
| 6 credits of Humanities Classes | Humanities Requirement (6) |
| One History/Government Requirement Class | History/Government Requirement (3) |
| COE Economics Requirement | COE Economics Requirement (3) |
| 6 credits of Social Science Classes | Social Science Requirement (6) |
| MATH 1551, 1552 | Calculus Requirement (6) |
| MATH 1554 | Linear Algebra Requirement (6) |
| MATH 2551 | Multivariable Calculus Requirement (4) |
| MATH 2552 | Differential Equations (4) |
| Ethics Requirement | Ethics Requirement (3) |
| PHYS 2211, 2212 + CHEM 1310/1211K + 1 more Other Science | Lab Science Requirement (16) |
| Major Requirements [19] | |
|---|---|
| Course | Description |
| ECE 1100 | ECE Discovery Studio (1) |
| ECE 2020 | Digital System Design (3) |
| ECE 2026 | Introduction to Signal Processing (3) |
| ECE 2031 | Digital Design Laboratory (2) |
| ECE 2035 OR ECE 2036 | Programming for Hardware/Software Systems OR Engineering Software Design (4) |
| ECE 2040 | Circuit Analysis (3) |
| ECE 3005 | Professional/Technical Communication for ECE (1) |
| ECE 3025 | Electromagnetics (3) |
| ECE 3040 | Microelectronic Circuits (4) |
| ECE 3043 | Measurements, Circuits, and Microelectronics Laboratory (2) |
| 2 3xxx/4xxx level ECE Electives | ECE Elective Requirement (6) |
| Probability/Statistics Class | Probability/Statistics Requirement (3) |
Threads[edit | edit source]
Electrical engineering offers threads, or specializations, in eight different areas. Each thread acts as a specialization and also dictates the number of hours of free electives each student gets.
These include:
- Signal and Information Processing
- Robotics and Autonomous Systems
- Telecommunications
- Electronic and Optoelectronic Devices
- Circuit Technology
- Bioengineering
- Electric Energy Systems
- Sensing and Exploration
Each thread offers further specializations. For instance, the Robotics & Autonomous Systems thread offers specializations in Sensing & Exploration, Electrical Energy Systems, and Telecommunications (among many others).
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ https://www.ece.gatech.edu/
- ↑ https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-engineering-schools/electrical-engineering-rankings
- ↑ https://lite.gatech.edu/
- ↑ https://hkn.ieee.org/hkn-chapters/all-chapters/beta-mu-chapter/
- ↑ http://hkn.gtorg.gatech.edu/howtojoin.html
- ↑ http://hkn.gtorg.gatech.edu/benefits.html
- ↑ https://hive.ece.gatech.edu/
- ↑ http://wiki.hive.ece.gatech.edu/doku.php
- ↑ http://wiki.hive.ece.gatech.edu/doku.php?id=pcb-training
- ↑ https://hive.ece.gatech.edu/getinvolved.html
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20180923200517/http://pes.edu/ieee/ieee/
- ↑ https://ieee.gatech.edu/#tutoring
- ↑ https://ieee.gatech.edu/#resources
- ↑ https://ieee.gatech.edu/#sponsors
- ↑ http://www.wece.gtorg.gatech.edu/about-2/about/
- ↑ http://www.wece.gtorg.gatech.edu/sponsors/
- ↑ https://academiceffectiveness.gatech.edu/surveys/reports/georgia-tech-career-survey-salary-report-ay-2019-2020/georgia-tech-career-survey-report-ay-2019-2020
- ↑ https://www.cc.gatech.edu/future/undergraduates/bscs/corereq
- ↑ https://catalog.gatech.edu/programs/signal-information-processing-robotics-autonomous-systems-electrical-engineering-bs/
