All BSEE degree candidates must complete a design sequence of 4 courses taken during the junior and senior years. Two required seminars, ELEC 391, Professional Issues in Electrical Engineering (Spring, junior year)  and ELEC 493, Senior Design Seminar (Fall, senior year), provide instruction in professional engineering topics, and the non-technical aspects of the design process, including ethics, design methodology, project planning, technical presentations, documentation, etc. 

In the Fall semester of the senior year, students can choose any one of the approved Design Elective courses (see the BSEE degree requirements page for the current list).  These courses, except for ELEC 491, provide technical instruction in a subject area, and the development of a design project concept in that area. In the Spring semester, the required ELEC 494, Senior Design Laboratory, provides laboratory time in which to actually realize the projects. 

ELEC 491, in conjunction with ELEC 494, provides two full semesters for more elaborate projects, including participation in design competitions sponsored by engineering societies, such as the IEEE.  ELEC 491-494 independent design projects require advance approval by the ECE Undergraduate Curriculum Committee.  Students interested in this option should form a project team, identify a faculty mentor, and submit a Design Project Concept for approval prior to the Fall semester, preferably late in the Spring semester of the junior year.  The Committee will evaluate the design content and total scope of the proposed project, and will assist teams in defining an appropriate and feasible project.  The form below indicates the information required for evaluation.

---

Design Project Concept Statement (Word document)