UB Programs At-A-Glance

Electrical Engineering

Department of Electrical Engineering
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
332 Bonner Hall
North Campus
Buffalo, NY 14260-1920

Phone: 716.645.3115
Fax: 716.645.3656
Web: www.ee.buffalo.edu/

Vladimir Mitin
Chair

James J. Whalen
Director of Undergraduate Studies

About the Program

The undergraduate degree offered by the department is the B.S. in electrical engineering. Electrical engineers work in research and development, product design, manufacturing, operations, service, technical sales and marketing, consulting, education, and environmental problem solving.

The undergraduate program provides the scope of knowledge and training for employment in the field and also forms the basis for further study at the graduate level. The curriculum emphasizes communications and signals, microelectronics and energy systems, and engineering materials and devices for electronics and photonics.

Communications and signals include wireless communications, communications systems, digital signal processing, and image and video processing. Microelectronics and energy systems include electronic instrumentation, integrated circuit systems, RF and microwave circuits, energy generation and conversion, and power conversion and control. Materials and devices for electronics and photonics include electronic device fabrication, electrical and optical characterization, laser spectroscopy, and photonics. Students interested in computer hardware and software may take courses offered by the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, including computer networks, high-performance computing, and VLSI.

The program is designed to serve both students who intend to enter industry directly and others who plan to continue their education through formal graduate study.

About Our Degrees

Acceptance Criteria - B.S.

Minimum GPA of 2.0 overall.
Minimum GPA of 2.0 in technical and engineering courses.

Acceptance Information

Number of applicants (2002-2003): 324
Number of accepted majors (2002-2003): 194
Total number of majors currently enrolled: 429

Acceptance Information - B.S./M.B.A.

Good standing as an electrical engineering undergraduate student and acceptance as a graduate student by the School of Management.

Degree Requirements

See the Undergraduate Catalog.

About Our Courses

Suggested Introductory Courses


The typical class size for:

Freshman/introductory courses is: 100
Sophomore/intermediate courses is: 50-180
Upper level/advanced courses is: 10-50

In the Department of Electrical Engineering, what do teaching assistants (TA's) do?

TA’s assist professors in all courses with laboratory and recitation sections. They frequently lead small-group discussion sections. TA’s also assist with grading exams.

For course descriptions, please see the Undergraduate Catalog.

About Our Faculty

Faculty Specializations

See www.ee.buffalo.edu/people/faculty/index.html for descriptions of the specializations of our faculty.

Faculty Distinctions

Tau Beta Pi Teacher of the Year
Milton Plesur Excellence in Teaching Award
Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching

The director of undergraduate studies, James J. Whalen, may be contacted at jjw@eng.buffalo.edu.

See a list of our undergraduate faculty.

Practical Experience and Special Academic Opportunities

Undergraduate Research and Practical Experience

Undergraduate Research
As part of their undergraduate education, students are encouraged to participate in work experience classes and research opportunities.

Work experience is available through the Engineering Career Institute program in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, as well as departmental co-op and internship classes. The Engineering Career Institute (EAS 396, 1 academic credit) provides career-effectiveness skills and co-op placement assistance during the junior year. This may be followed by one to three co-op work experiences (EAS 496, 2 academic credit hours). Descriptions of co-op courses may be found at http://undergrad-catalog.buffalo.edu/academicprograms/eas.shtml.

There are many opportunities for undergraduate research with EE faculty that provide the opportunity to participate in peer-reviewed publications. . Examples include:

  • (a) Evaluation of silicon dioxide deposited by plasma-assisted CVD (PECVD). The research involves oxide deposition by PECVD, formation of contacts by metal evaporation and testing by I-V and C-V techniques.
  • (b) Students can learn basic semiconductor microfabrication techniques, such as optical lithography and metal deposition. Working with graduate research assistants, these students are exposed to the techniques of low-temperature nanodevice characterization. The research undertaken under this program would also serve as the basis for an Honors thesis.
  • (c) The undergraduate researcher has direct interaction with faculty, industrial and governmental contacts, and graduate and fellow undergraduate and graduate researchers. The Energy Systems area can include reliability of autonomous and/or supervised devices and systems from nano-scale to mega-scale, investigation of electronic circuits, devices and systems for processing electrical power and interdisciplinary investigation of packaging power electronic circuits.



Independent Study

Approval is required to use EE 499 Independent Study as a senior technical elective. See the requirements for approval at: /www.ee.buffalo.edu/academics/undergrad/courses/ee499_checklist.html.

Extracurricular Activities


See the UB Student Association.

Complementary Programs and Courses

Majors that Complement Electrical Engineering


Minors that Complement Electrical Engineering


Courses Outside Electrical Engineering that Could Improve Employment Opportunities

Career Information and Further Study

The electrical engineer is involved in a spectrum of changing and challenging activities such as research, development, product design, manufacturing, maintenance and service engineering, sales, and environmental problems and education. Electrical engineers design, develop, test, and supervise the manufacture of electrical and electronic equipment. Electrical equipment includes power generating and transmission equipment used by electric utilities; electric motors; machinery controls; and lighting and wiring in buildings, automobiles, and aircraft.

Alumni in Electrical Engineering have found employment in the following fields:

  • Circuit layout designer
  • Consulting
  • Digitizer applications engineer
  • Education
  • Electrical drafter
  • Environmental problem solving
  • Maintenance
  • Management
  • Manufacturing
  • Operation of technical systems
  • Product design
  • Research and development
  • Service
  • Technical sales and marketing


Salary Information

Beginning salaries: A bachelor's degree graduate average is $51,878; The 25-75% range is $49,000 - 56,000.
Factors influencing salary: Skills, experience, internship, project and design experience, geographic location, and size of company.
Educational level influence on salary:
A master's degree graduate's average is $64,781 and 25-75% range is $60,000 - 70,000. The Ph.D. graduate's average is $75,066 and the 25% - 75% range is $66,000 – 85,000.

What percentage of graduates goes on to graduate school?

25%

Formal system of tracking graduates?

The department does have a formal system for tracking graduates. Tracking is done by the School of Engineering & Applied Sciences Alumni Association.

What percentage of graduates goes on to find related employment?

100%

Links to Further Information About This Program

Last Modified: Tuesday, 7-Nov-2006 10:26:07 EST