Students take project labs in which they are assigned open ended projects requiring invention and design to meet specifications. Many students work one to one with professors. Class sizes for upper-level electives range from as small as four students to as large as 25. Some specialization is possible in the last three semesters where a student can choose five technical electives in areas such as computers, electronics, electro-optics, power systems or linear systems and controls. In addition to the design labs that are required, most courses at the junior and senior level have semester long projects as part of the course homework.
Many projects require teamwork.
During the senior year, every electrical engineering student is required to complete a year-long senior design project that is often sponsored by industry. During the first semester, the student writes a proposal and does a preliminary design. This design is subject to a design review process and a formal presentation of the ideas and concepts is required. During the second semester, the student completes the design and constructs a final product. Student chapters of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, IEEE, and the Association for Computing Machinery, ACM, are sponsored by the department to support and encourage the professional development of the students.