{"350791":{"#nid":"350791","#data":{"type":"news","title":"EE Evolution","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u003Cem\u003E(This article was written by Tom Zind and originally appeared in the November 2014 issue of \u003C\/em\u003EElectrical Construction \u0026amp; Maintenance Magazine.)\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA decade ago, Erhan Kudeki, Ph.D, then a 20-year member of the electrical engineering (EE) faculty at the University of Illinois, looked on as student interest in one of the nation\u2019s premier EE programs softened.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIn 2004, 2005, and 2006, our enrollments were hurting,\u201d says Kudeki, professor of electrical and computer engineering and now the department\u2019s associate head for undergraduate affairs. \u201cBasically, there was a scare of outsourcing in the minds of parents. Computer science and electrical\/computer engineering were not all that popular. Parents were sending their kids into things like mechanical and aerospace.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThose fears of EE jobs migrating overseas proved baseless, and by 2007, EE enrollment was heading back up. Today, the program is flourishing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThere\u2019s a huge demand now on anything related to computing and electrical engineering,\u201d Kudeki says. \u201cThe numbers we have now are larger than ever. It\u2019s a terrific problem to have.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe campus at Champaign-Urbana isn\u2019t alone. Students are surging into other EE programs across the country, lured by the prospect of a big payoff in good jobs and the chance to be in one of engineering\u2019s most dynamic and versatile specialties.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn 2013, full-time undergraduate enrollment in EE surged by almost 6,000 over the previous year, hitting 91,336, according to statistics from the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE). That marked the largest number of enrollees since 2004 \u2014 and 25% more than the 2007 low-water mark.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMore EE degrees are also being awarded. ASEE data show 10,662 undergraduate EE degrees were earned in 2013. That\u2019s the highest number in 10 years and 6% more than in 2012. Another 2,518 degrees classified as electrical\/computer engineering (E\/CE) were awarded as well. On top of that, amazingly, more than 10,000 master\u2019s degrees were obtained in 2013 in both EE and E\/CE.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003EMore to know\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe recovery of student interest in pursuing an EE degree partly reflects the growing stature of the discipline and its value in the marketplace. Even during a perceived downtime, EE was one of the top engineering specialties and remains so today. But its popularity translates to a host of challenges for college EE programs. If growth trends persist, greater selectivity may come into play. Programs may also need to invest in more instructional resources. And all of that may take place amidst the ceaseless struggle of how best to prepare students for the real world.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ENoting that \u201celectrical engineering has to reinvent itself every 10 to 20 years,\u201d Kudeki emphasizes the importance of carefully crafted curriculum design, course timing, and teaching methodologies.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe have to be more efficient in teaching electrical engineering because there\u2019s so much more to teach,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s a question of how we best deliver the larger amount of knowledge we have.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Illinois program keys on early undergraduate exposure to core EE classes and flexibility in course selection and specialization in the junior and senior years. Incorporating extensive lab components and coursework that is both broad and deep, program design aims to both weed out weak prospects early on and keep survivors engaged and challenged. On that score, it\u2019s succeeded, Kudeki says; three out of four entering freshmen end up earning an EE degree.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EKeeping students on track in an ever-demanding discipline requires more innovative teaching techniques. More EE programs are responding by shaking up how subjects are taught, employing technology-aided instruction tools and different teaching methodologies. Bridging the gap between theory and practical applications is the goal.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003ETurning education inside out\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDigitally enabled devices are becoming central to a more hands-on approach to instruction in EE programs like that at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The Atlanta institution\u2019s School of Electrical and Computer Engineering has been a leader in incorporating more technology-enabled devices and tools into instruction, allowing students to better understand electrical fundamentals through experience.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cOur approach is driven by the knowledge that everyone feels the need to integrate hands-on learning, the more practical side of electrical and computer engineering theory that\u2019s taught in class,\u201d says the school\u2019s Dr. Bonnie Ferri, associate chair for undergraduate affairs and professor in systems and controls. \u201cNow that the technology has moved forward, everyone is just embracing that.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EConnecting devices like Digilent, Inc.\u2019s Analog Discovery and National Instruments\u2019 MyDAQ with a laptop, Ferri says, students interact with oscilloscopes, function generators, dynamic spectrum analyzers, embedded microcontrollers, logic analyzers, and a host of other tools that animate EE concepts. Integral to the learning process, their beauty lies in anywhere\/anytime accessibility, she says.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESuch tools help form the spear of efforts to shake up the very nature of the EE instructional process. Ferri and other EE educators note the emerging trend of \u201cflipping classes,\u201d whereby instructors have students view lectures digitally, opening up precious classroom time for higher-value engagement.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn a traditional lecture format, she explains, \u201cClass time kind of runs out when they\u2019re getting to the more interesting things, leaving students to deal with applications or difficult problems on their own after class.\u201d But in a flipped class, students come in more prepared to tackle them. \u201cEvery Friday in my circuits class, we have \u2018bring your devices,\u2019 and we devote that time to working with them.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003EShowing the big picture\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile the \u201chow\u201d of teaching EE is evolving, so is the \u201cwhat.\u201d Exposure to the core fundamentals is a given, although there\u2019s more focus on timing and sequencing to ensure adequate retention and timely deployment of key concepts. But as EE\u2019s scope expands, programs are offering more options on classes and areas of emphasis.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA 2013 graduate of the Georgia Tech program, Layla Marshall was drawn to the study of EE because of its versatility. She zeroed in on control systems and audio engineering in her studies, and now works as a contract hardware engineer for Siemens Industry, Inc., in Johnson City, Tenn. Marshall remains attracted to the audio\/acoustics field and is mulling a master\u2019s level study of that or mechanical engineering.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI struggled at first to pick a major, but the more I learned about electrical engineering and how broad it is \u2014 and the number of areas you can pursue with a degree \u2014 the more I was drawn to it,\u201d she says.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe EE program at Tufts University in Medford, Mass., is structured around that perception. Dr. Karen Panetta, associate dean for undergraduate affairs and professor of electrical and computer engineering, says students should be able to understand EE\u2019s many practical applications and close relationship to other engineering specialties \u2014 from mechanical to design to biomedical.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cPrograms are introducing students to a variety of what I\u2019ll call \u2018interdisciplinary applications\u2019 of electrical engineering,\u201d she says. \u201cWe recognize now that there\u2019s no such thing as a pure electrical engineer in a sense.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAnother 2013 Georgia Tech EE graduate, Adam Kitain, offers proof. After graduation, Kitain found his way into a job as an analytics and database strategy consultant for IBM. An internship with now-defunct Research In Motion (RIM) convinced him that his interests lay more in the business development side of technology than the technology itself. While completing his EE degree, he took classes in the Georgia Tech business school and earned a certificate in finance.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIt was more interesting to me to understand why RIM was losing market share than \u2018how can I help develop a more efficient RF antenna?\u2019\u201d he says.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003EReal-world emphasis\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETomorrow\u2019s EEs are also learning the practical skills they\u2019ll need to perform their jobs. One is programming, which is not just for EEs with a computer engineering focus anymore; it\u2019s increasingly essential in a world where embedded controls and computer simulation are commonplace.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIt\u2019s very rare you\u2019re going to find an electrical engineer who doesn\u2019t know how to program,\u201d says Panetta. \u201cWe have to simulate everything before we build anything, and simulation is coding.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAt the other end of the skill-building spectrum, EE programs are hitting the softer notes harder. As the practice of engineering becomes ever more people-focused and team-driven, educators are more pressured to emphasize real-world interpersonal and communication skills alongside the technical. And that seems to be taking place earlier in the educational process now, says Colleen Layman, president-elect of Society of Women Engineers and an EE degree holder.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cTwo decades ago, it wasn\u2019t until senior year that you really got to start putting things you learned together and focus on teamwork,\u201d says Layman, an associate vice president at HDR, Inc., Omaha. \u201cI\u2019m glad to see that EE education has changed to better reflect how EEs work in the real world.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn the University of Illinois program, collaborative concepts are emphasized at the earliest stages. Coursework from introductory stages on through to upper-level classes is imbued with the message that \u201cengineers work together, and engineering is all about teamwork,\u201d Kudeki says.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAnd it becomes essential to senior-year Capstone Design projects that showcase a student\u2019s practical knowledge attainment relative to a chosen specialty or passion.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe Capstone project has many elements in it that address professionalism, ethics, and being able to communicate,\u201d Kudeki explains. \u201cIt\u2019s an advanced composition course as much as it is a design course. Students have to write their initial proposal and various intermediate reports, and the semester ends with a final report as well as presentation in front of their peers.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe interdisciplinary curriculum focus at Tufts is having the effect of producing more complete graduates, Panetta says. When they understand that EE is not practiced in isolation, they\u2019re honing the people skills needed in today\u2019s engineering workplace.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA realistic scenario today, Panetta says, is one where a prospective employer says, \u201cIt\u2019s great you\u2019ve got this kid who can do all the circuit theory, but I really need someone who\u2019s going to be able to go out to my clients who have no technical expertise, be able to redact exactly what they need, and communicate it back to them without them being scared off by it.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003EDegree as door-opener\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EStill, companies hiring newly minted EEs know as they always have that an EE degree is an essential starting point. Even as more programs stress the softer skills, graduates\u2019 grasp of basic technical knowledge of the field is a given. Even in a complex and rapidly changing field, that\u2019s a sufficient springboard to begin what amounts to the next phase of the educational process: on-the-job training.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ERecruiters at Peter Basso Associates, Inc., a Troy, Mich., consulting engineering and building design firm, are finding today\u2019s EE graduates generally well-prepared to step into jobs that demand a firm grasp of both core engineering principles and strong interpersonal communication skills. From there, says one of the firm\u2019s principals, Terry Cleis, it\u2019s about acquainting new hires with Basso\u2019s culture.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThe value of an engineering degree is the same as it\u2019s always been \u2014 it basically teaches you how to think and how to logically plod your way through problems,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s a process of finding people who have the basic skill set and an eagerness to learn. Intelligent people is what we want.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELikewise, Sparling, a consulting and electrical engineering firm in Lynnwood, Wash., courts graduates with not only the requisite technical grounding, but also a comfort level with working collaboratively. Degreed EEs are a natural fit, given Sparling\u2019s broad menu of electrical services for the built environment. But Sparling also considers computer, mechanical, design, and audio engineering majors \u2014 even physics majors \u2014 because its work is hard to pigeonhole.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe\u2019re not engineers in cubicles here,\u201d says Karl Pihl, a company principal. \u201cWritten and verbal communications skills are very important since we\u2019re working with architects, owners, and other engineers. We need to be able to speak in layman and technical terms at the right time for the right audience.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELacking those skills, Sparling has found, even top-notch candidates can wash out. A recent new-grad hire came in flashing a 3.9 GPA and letters of recommendation from professors. That wasn\u2019t enough.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe took all of that information at face value, but we found out real quick that some of the \u2018meat\u2019 in terms of working in groups and on projects was very much missing from this individual\u2019s portfolio,\u201d says another Principal Michael Newbury.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ch3\u003EVetting grads\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThat experience led to some changes in how Sparling evaluates new graduates. Now, Pihl says, they\u2019re challenging candidates more in interviews to demonstrate a teamwork mentality and reveal how they think. The applicant\u2019s degree, from a university\u2019s satellite program, also demonstrated that not all EE degrees are equal.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cMaybe it\u2019s a matter of faculty, staff, research resources, and facilities, but it seems to us like there\u2019s some work to do to get those satellite programs up to snuff relative to their main campuses,\u201d Pihl says.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EInternship and co-op programs help reduce such hiring misfires, and that common industry practice has continued to grow. A tighter labor market, more graduates, engineering specialization, and cutthroat competition for business have likely boosted reliance on \u201ctest drives\u201d to vet prospective talent.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBasso routinely has co-op students on staff \u2014 about half of whom come onboard, Cleis says. Sparling quickly inserts most of its interns into \u201creal paying projects with real deadlines,\u201d Pihl says, as a way to size them up and expose them to the nuances of the work they\u2019d be performing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThat\u2019s also an important consideration for S-E-A, Ltd., a Columbus, Ohio, forensic engineering firm. One of its electrical engineers, Sam Sudler, says students it brings on as interns benefit from early exposure to a very specialized application of what\u2019s taught in school. They\u2019re being evaluated, he says, for the ability to \u201cuse scientific methods to collect information, analyze it, and develop hypotheses.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPreparation for a world in which new technological frontiers are constantly opening and communication and collaboration are essential will be academia\u2019s call to action in educating tomorrow\u2019s electrical engineers. As more students pursue EE degrees, curricula will have to continue adapting to ensure that candidates are getting both the fundamental and specialized knowledge and basic skills that will translate to the marketplace. Engineering educators may be uniquely qualified to do that.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cAs engineers we\u2019re innovators,\u201d Ferri says. \u201cWe like to think of ourselves in EE or CE as \u2018the magic makers.\u2019 We have to think of new ideas and better ways of doing things.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EAs college students surge into electrical engineering degree programs, educators are pressured to find the best methods of teaching an evolving body of knowledge.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech ECE Professor and Associate Chair Bonnie Ferri was one of the faculty members who was interviewed for this article, which was first published in the November 2014 issue of Electrical Construction \u0026amp; Maintenance Magazine.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"As college students surge into electrical engineering degree programs, educators are pressured to find the best methods of teaching an evolving body of knowledge."}],"uid":"27241","created_gmt":"2014-12-01 15:13:02","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:17:37","author":"Jackie Nemeth","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2014-12-01T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2014-12-01T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"350841":{"id":"350841","type":"image","title":"Bonnie Ferri lectures prior to in-class exercise.","body":null,"created":"1449245702","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 16:15:02","changed":"1475895078","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:51:18","alt":"Bonnie Ferri lectures prior to in-class exercise.","file":{"fid":"201101","name":"bonnie_ferri_lectures_prior_to_in-class_exercise.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/bonnie_ferri_lectures_prior_to_in-class_exercise_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/bonnie_ferri_lectures_prior_to_in-class_exercise_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":4758236,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/bonnie_ferri_lectures_prior_to_in-class_exercise_0.jpg?itok=HT-DU3od"}},"350851":{"id":"350851","type":"image","title":"Bonnie Ferri works with students on an in-class exercise.","body":null,"created":"1449245702","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 16:15:02","changed":"1475895078","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:51:18","alt":"Bonnie Ferri works with students on an in-class exercise.","file":{"fid":"201102","name":"bonnie_ferri_works_with_students_on_an_in-class_exercise.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/bonnie_ferri_works_with_students_on_an_in-class_exercise_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/bonnie_ferri_works_with_students_on_an_in-class_exercise_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":5294656,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/bonnie_ferri_works_with_students_on_an_in-class_exercise_0.jpg?itok=Z_dEjR1T"}}},"media_ids":["350841","350851"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.ece.gatech.edu\/faculty-staff\/fac_profiles\/bio.php?id=47","title":"Dr. Bonnie Heck Ferri"},{"url":"http:\/\/www.gatech.edu\/","title":"Georgia Tech"},{"url":"http:\/\/www.ece.gatech.edu\/","title":"School of Electrical and Computer Engineering"},{"url":"http:\/\/ecmweb.com\/design\/ee-evolution","title":"Link to article"},{"url":"http:\/\/ecmweb.com\/","title":"Electrical Construction \u0026 Maintenance Magazine"}],"groups":[{"id":"1255","name":"School of Electrical and Computer Engineering"}],"categories":[{"id":"130","name":"Alumni"},{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"},{"id":"132","name":"Institute Leadership"},{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"},{"id":"8862","name":"Student Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"33191","name":"Bonnie Ferri"},{"id":"109","name":"Georgia Tech"},{"id":"166855","name":"School of Electrical and Computer Engineering"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EJackie Nemeth\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESchool of Electrical and Computer Engineering\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E404-894-2906\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jackie.nemeth@ece.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ejackie.nemeth@ece.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["jackie.nemeth@ece.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}