ece - start the journey

Department of electrical anDcomputer engineering at the university of illinois

ANSWER THE QUESTIONS AND QUESTION THE ANSWERS.

every day, ece illinois students share moments of discovery — whether it’s that instant in the classroom when a complex subject

suddenly makes sense or when challenges in the lab lead to a bold new solution. With outstanding peers as their co-conspirators and

accomplished faculty members as their guides, our students answer the questions and question the answers on a journey to a bold

new world. and every year, we invite the best of the next generation to join us on that quest. Welcome to the Department of electrical

and computer engineering at the university of illinois. and welcome to the start of a journey that will take you wherever you want to go.

www.ece.illinois.edu/startthejourney

Setting the Standard for undergraduate education.our exceptional undergraduate curriculum is designed to build your fundamental knowledge and skills while providing

a foundation for any number of exciting careers. you’ll discover dynamic classes that engage your interests from day

one, including ece 444, which grants you access to one of the nation’s first undergraduate semiconductor fabrication

laboratories. throughout your undergraduate experience, you’ll enjoy exposure to a wide range of challenging fields,

as well as the support of a department that actively encourages students through nearly 100 scholarships and the

ece James scholar program, which recognizes our most outstanding students. Don’t take our word for it. visit our

website, and get the inside story from students who made ece illinois their first step on their path to exciting careers.

plasma research in the laboratory for optical physics and engineering.


DESIGNED TO BUILD YOUR FUNDAMENTAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS.

reach further. achieVe More. as a first-year undergraduate here, you’ll explore ece 110, an exceptional, hands-on introduction to circuits,

electromagnetics, electronics, control, and digital systems. Working in teams, you’ll design and build the

circuitry necessary to transform a miniature car into a self-steering, sensor-navigated vehicle. this dynamic

course provides a substantive introduction to ece and the first step in an undergraduate program second

to none in the core areas of fundamental physics, mathematics, engineering theory, practical lab work,

and technical leadership skills. see it all for yourself. go inside the lab with great online videos, including

actual footage of an ece 110 car in action.

a proud ece 110 student shows off a robot that’s ready to rumble.

“it’s the best unDergraDuate

eDucation in engineering you

can get … it taught me hoW

to think, solve problems, Debug

in the lab, anD — most importantly —

helpeD me lanD my first Job

in the semiconDuctor inDustry.”

— Dirk meyer

presiDent anD ceo,

aDvanceD micro Devices inc.

bsee ‘83


students engineering a slide whistle in ece 395, advanced Digital projects lab.

WORK WITH LEADING MINDS FROM YOUR GENERATION.

Where LeaderS Lead.as one of the nation’s top-ranked electrical and computer engineering programs, ece illinois is a magnet

for the world’s best students. because of our stringent admissions standards, you’ll be working with the

leading minds of your generation in a process that produces skilled graduates in high demand by the world’s

top employers. every year, fortune 500 corporations and leading labs return to our campus in search of the

next generation of leaders, reflecting the value of an ece illinois degree and the success of a program that’s

different from day one. Discover the power of your potential. check out the latest recruitment and salary

statistics for ece illinois graduates, available now on our website.


one SteP BeYond: the VaLue of a graduate degree.When you’re ready for the next step, we offer an exceptional masters and phD program designed to help

you go deeper, explore further, and accomplish more. through our post-graduate degree programs,

you’ll partner with exceptional professors and fellow graduate students whose ambition is matched only

by their passion for discovery, in courses that yield new insights in emerging and specialized technology.

through a graduate course built on one of the nation’s top undergraduate programs, you’ll enhance the

value of your degree while expanding your opportunities far beyond the classroom door. connect with

the best. to find faculty members currently working in your area of interest, try our online search tool.


exploring power and its potential in the grainger electrical machinery lab.

“ece illinois proviDes a rigorous mathematical

founDation that’s very Difficult to acquire

once you leave school, but also pays enough

attention to applieD problems to ‘keep it real.’

the school’s reputation is also a great

selling point When starting a career.”

— steve sullivan

senior technology officer

lucasfilm

msee ‘91, phD ‘ 97

it StartS at the toP.it takes the best to lead the best. and at ece illinois, you’ll enjoy instruction from and interaction with

faculty who are leaders within their fields. in the classroom and in the lab, they’ll educate and inspire

you. and, during the course of your education here, you’ll benefit from the wealth of knowledge

and diversity of experiences this group of more than 100

seasoned experts can provide. our outstanding faculty

and their broad range of interests, encompassing virtually

every specialty area within electrical and computer

engineering, offer an asset few universities can match.

at ece illinois, faculty members pursue their varied

interests in a rich, multidisciplinary environment

that encourages new discoveries at the crossroads

of science. many of our professors conduct

interdisciplinary research, holding joint appointments

in chemical engineering, computer science, materials

science and engineering, bioengineering, and physics.

and the discoveries you’ll make together will take you

places where few others have dared to explore.

go beyond the bio. our website features in-depth

profiles on the faculty who will play a critical role in

guiding your career.

“[AT ECE ILLINOIS] I RECEIvED TRAINING FROM THE bEST ExpERTS IN THE FIELD.”

prith banerJeesenior vp of researchDirector of hp labsmsee ‘83, phD ‘85


RESEARCH:FROM THE LAb TO THE FOREFRONT.

it takes more than insight and determination

to build one of the world’s top electrical and

computer engineering programs. it takes a

commitment to pioneering research on a

massive scale — from highly focused study

at the nano level to the investigation of large-

scale networks and how they interact to provide

integrated solutions. at ece illinois, you’ll be

part of a dynamic program that’s collaborative,

innovative, interdisciplinary, and intense, with

many advanced research opportunities available

for those at the graduate level. there’s virtually

no field of endeavor within computer and

electrical engineering that’s beyond our scope,

which means you’ll be engaged in a passionate

quest for answers at the forefront of innovation,

pioneering the breakthroughs today that will

provide a platform of discovery for generations

to come. see where tomorrow’s discoveries are

taking place today. for a complete list of current

research areas, visit our website today.


undergraduates hard at work in the ece 444 integrated circuit fabrication lab.

DISCOvERRESEARCH CENTERS SECOND TO NONE.

this major technological

advance represents a multi-

year collaboration between

illinois, ibm, and dozens

of universities, colleges,

research labs, and institutes,

supported by a $208-million

grant from the national

science foundation.

more great student

opportunities lie just south

of campus in research park

at the university of illinois,

a primary destination for

companies looking for

outstanding student interns

and employees. this area is

also home to enterpriseWorks,

a separate facility within

the park that serves as an

incubator for technology-

driven startup companies.

excePtionaL oPPortunitieS aBoundfor ece iLLinoiS StudentS.With more than 80 research centers and labs, the university

of illinois is one of the largest research institutions in the

world. on the engineering campus alone, you’ll find many

large-scale interdisciplinary research facilities, including the

coordinated science lab (csl) and the national center for

supercomputing applications (ncsa). other vital engineering

research centers include the beckman institute for advanced

science and technology, one of the most comprehensive

interdisciplinary facilities ever built, and the micro and

nanotechnology lab (mntl), one of the world’s largest

and most sophisticated university-based labs for semi-

conductor, nanotechnology, and biotechnology research.

today, illinois is expanding on its long history of computer

technology innovation and leadership with the blue Waters™

project. When completed in 2011, blue Waters will be the

world’s first sustained petascale computational system

dedicated to open scientific research. housed within the

ncsa, this powerful system will be used by the nation’s

top scientists in pursuit of discoveries we can only begin

to imagine today, simulating new medicines, materials,

weather, disease outbreaks, and complex engineering

systems like power plants and aircraft.


an advanced anechoic chamber provides the perfect location for testing the latest antennas.

john bardeenco-INVENToR oF THE TRaNsIsToR

a hiStorY of forWard thinking.if you want to know a program’s future, look to its past. ours includes more than its share of giants whose pioneering work

has touched every field of human endeavor. from the light-emitting diode, to the plasma display panel, to the quantum-

well lasers that carry phone calls over fiber

optic cables, discoveries by ece illinois faculty,

students, and alumni have changed the way

we interact with the world. but among those

who have had the most significant impact

on modern electronics are two legends who

share more than an ece illinois connection.

shortly after World War ii, John bardeen

and Jack kilby provided two major break-

throughs that together heralded the arrival

of a new technological age, earning each a

nobel prize.

While working at bell labs in 1947, bardeen, along with colleagues Walter brattain and

William shockley, invented the first transistor, laying the foundation required for nearly

all modern electronics. not long after, bardeen joined the electrical engineering and physics

faculty at illinois, where he continued to light the path for future generations. in 1952, he taught

the first course on semiconductors and transistors ever offered at a university in what is now

everitt lab. and, in 1972, he joined leon cooper and J.r. schrieffer in developing the theory

of superconductivity, earning his second nobel distinction. in 1990, LIFE® Magazine included

bardeen in its list of the 100 most important americans of the century, while TIME Magazine

named him one of the “century’s greatest minds” in 1999.

building on bardeen’s transistor breakthrough, kilby, an ece alumnus, invented the integrated

circuit while working at texas instruments in 1958, thus providing another key development in

the advance of modern electronic technology. in his lifetime, kilby would go on to earn more

than 60 patents, eventually taking his rightful place alongside henry ford, thomas edison,

the Wright brothers, and bardeen in the national inventors hall of fame. jaCK KILbYINVENToR oF THE INTEGRaTED cIRcUIT

Jack kIlby PHoTo coURTEsy oF TExas INsTRUmENTs.

ExpLORE LIFE OUTSIDE THE LAb ON A DYNAMIC CAMpUSTHAT’S AS OpENTO THE pOSSIbILITIES AS YOU ARE.

find Your edge at the center of it aLL.alone, it would be impressive. but ece illinois is part of an

integrated experience much greater than the sum of its parts.

it starts with the college of engineering at illinois — one

of the world’s most prestigious and largest engineering

institutions, with most undergraduate and graduate programs

ranked among the top five in the nation. and it continues

with an exceptional university, vibrant campus, and diverse

community located at the crossroads of it all.

conveniently centered between chicago, indianapolis, and st. louis, the university of illinois provides

an entertainment and cultural hub on par with the country’s leading cities. from big ten sports to

broadway productions and the hottest concert events, you’ll find it all going down under the dome of

the assembly hall, while krannert center for the performing arts provides one of the nation’s premier

performing arts complexes, showcasing the world’s best in music, theatre, opera, and dance.

for those who prefer to “do” more than “watch,” the university’s sprawling campus provides endless

outdoor activities, along with a state-of-the-art recreation center that serves as a social hub for athletes

at every performance level. from ice-skating to aquatics and all points in between, the campus

recreation Department provides active students with countless worlds to explore.

beyond campus, you’ll discover a diverse downtown scene with a thriving nightlife, as well as

many small, rural towns that welcome visitors to explore the pleasures of more relaxed living through

a number of annual festivals and events.


students enjoying a beautiful afternoon on the tree-lined “quad” at the heart of campus, with the illini union in the background.

change toMorroW. Starting todaY.this is where the journey begins. in an elite program that answers the questions and questions

the answers in a never-ending search for better solutions. here, the world’s top minds come together

in cutting-edge research that’s opening new doors and pushing the limits of technology in all its

dimensions. and you could be part of that team, changing tomorrow through an exceptional

program that’s leading the world today.


two undergraduates prepare for serious fun with a computer-controlled foosball opponent of their own design.

for More inforMationto apply online, or to learn more about ece illinois including

our current rankings, statistics, and essential information for

incoming students, visit www.ece.illinois.edu/startthejourney

or contact the advising office today at 217.333.0716.

engineering caMPuS tourSseeing is believing. and there’s no better way to see ece

illinois than a free, guided campus tour. explore campus. see

the sights. and end your day of discovery with a relaxed and

informal q&a with a college of engineering dean or academic

advisor. to learn more, call us today at 217.333.0824.

Department of electrical

and computer engineering

at the university of illinois

156 everitt laboratory

1406 West green street

urbana, illinois 61801

www.ece.illinois.edu

ece - start the journey

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