The Cal Poly Electrical Engineering Department offers B.S. and M.S. degrees in electrical engineering.
The department objective is to prepare students for finding engineering solutions to urgent problems by reshaping the environment to meet human needs, while being responsibly aware of all implications. The curriculum provides a sound theoretical background along with current, practical engineering knowledge. The student begins the major in the first quarter with an orientation course and is generally enrolled in one or more major courses each quarter until graduation. The many laboratory courses provide practical experience and lead to design courses, which begin in the third year.
During the junior and senior years, students choose technical electives in either Electronics or Power. Electronics courses involve the development, design and application of circuits, devices and systems for communications, computers, controls, information processing and display, and system instrumentation. Senior elective courses in the Electronics area provide specialized preparation in a selected area such as active and passive network synthesis, advanced communications systems, computer system design, microelectronic circuit engineering, microprocessor systems applications, microwave engineering, electro-optics, and solid state devices.
Power courses deal with industrial process control systems and the generation, distribution, control and utilization of electric power. Senior elective courses in this area provide specialized background in a selected area such as advanced control systems, energy conversion, power system analysis, protection and stability, and solid state motor control.
Industry recognizes that students who have completed specialized technical courses are early contributors in the workforce. Students who wish to pursue graduate work may select appropriate senior- and graduate-level courses in keeping with this goal.
