Undergraduate Curriculum Reform
• Last major curriculum restructuring was before I was hired
• Study Group to Examine Curriculum over summer / fall
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Chair - Law
Faculty - Arnold, Fox, Harris, Jordan, Lam, Nishida
External - Khargonekar, Hawkins
Students - Knauer, Sapp
• Reviewed issues with current curriculum and students
• Reviewed peer school curriculum
• Drafted a strawman proposal for feedback
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Current Issues
• Incoming student population is different from 20 years ago
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Top Florida kids, UF is selective
No practical experience - no heathkit, soldering, tinkering
Internet savvy - google answers, social network, wiki
Tend to not read textbooks, don’t think linearly
• UF Population Experience
– Retention is an issue, declining enrollment, poor attendance,
motivation - students do not appear excited about the material
– Curriculum has been static - some changes but mostly minor
– Problems doing real senior design unless computers - theory first
courses hurt senior design
• Graduation
– Job market has changed, more engineering support jobs, more jobs
require advanced degrees
– More students headed to grad school - 30% in surveys
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Peer School Study
• Links on web - http://www.ugstudy.ece.ufl.edu
• Looked at GaTech, Michigan, Purdue, Illinois, MIT, CMU,
Duke, RPI, Olin
• Generally - more early curriculum courses
• Programs with recent change have added more freshmen /
sophomore year courses
• Introductory courses with lab experience to help motivate
students to learn rigor later
• Real courses, real content
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Principles of redesign
• Lower Division courses
– Meaningful, important concepts covered and learned
– Lab and project based learning
– Math Level appropriate
• Focus less on required breadth and give more depth
opportunity
• Provide more electives in and out of department for students
to obtain career skills
• Spread out GenEd so the junior / senior years are less
intense
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Overview
 Soft skills and University general requirements
 Ethics, Gen Ed requirements, Science
 Statistics, Analysis
 ECE Foundation courses
 Computers, Electronics, Signals, E&M
 ECE Science courses
 Computing, Electronics, Devices, E&M, Signals, Applied Statistics
 ECE Integrated courses
 Courses that are electives covering 2 or more science areas
 RF electronics, VLSI Design, Optical Devices and Systems, Communications
Electronics (as examples)
 ECE Depth courses
 Required to take electives in one area
 ECE Electives
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Major Changes / Features
• First Semester Freshmen start with EE
• Dropped Calc III, Physics II
– Merge Calc III into E&M
– Physics II curricula in E&M, Electronics
• Added Modern Physics
• Teach our own Statistics
• Gen Ed in all semesters
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
A Proposed Curriculum
Semester
Course 1
Course 2
Course 3
Course 4
Course 5
Foundation
Fresh 1 (17) Computers
(4)
Computer
Language (2)
Calc I (4)
Chem I (4)
Gen Ed (3)
Foundation
Fresh 2 (17) Electronics
(4)
ECE
Analy sis (3)
Calc II (4)
Phys I (4)
ECE
Semi nar (2)
Soph 1 (17)
Foundation
Signals (4)
Science
Computers
(4)
Diff Eq (3)
Bio (3)
Tech
Writing (3)
Soph 2 (17)
Foundation
E&M (4)
Science
Electronics
(4)
Integrated (3)
Modern Phys
(3)
Gen Ed (3)
Junio r 1
(16)
Science
Signals (4)
Science
Devices (3)
Integrated (3)
Coll ege
Breadth (3)
Gen Ed (3)
Junior 2
(15)
ECE
Science
Statistics (3) E&M (3)
Depth (3)
Coll ege
Breadth (3)
Gen Ed (3)
Senior 1
(15)
Design I (3)
ECE Elective
Depth (3)
(3)
Elective (3)
Gen Ed (3)
Senior 2
(15)
Design 2 (3)
ECE Elective ECE Elective ECE Elective
Gen Ed (3)
(3)
(3)
(3)
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Comparison by credit
• Math and Science
– Proposal (28) - Calc I (4), Calc II (4), Diff Eq (3), Chem (4), Phys I (4), Bio
(3), Modern Phys (3), ECE Analysis (3)
– Current (33) - Calc I (4), Calc II (4), Calc III (4), Diff Eq (3), Chem (4),
Phys I (4), Phys II (4), Bio (3), ECE Analysis (3)
• General Education
– Proposal (23) - Gen Ed (18), Tech Writing (3), Seminar (2)
– Current (23) - Gen Ed (15), Tech Writing (3), Free Elective (3), Seminar (2)
• College Breadth
– Proposal (6)
– Current (9)
• Required ECE Core
– Proposal (45) - Circuits and Electronics (8), Devices (3), Computing (10),
E&M (7), Signals (8), Applied Stats (3), Design (6)
– Current (36) - Circuits and Electronics (8), Devices (3), Computing (6),
E&M (3), Signals (7), Statistics (3), Design (6)
• Technical Electives
– Proposal (27) - Integrated (6), Tier 3 Depth (6), Other (15)
– Current (29) - Technical Specialization (11-12), Other (17-18)
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering