Bachelor/Master of Engineering in Electronic and Computer Engineering

Program Overview

The Electronic and Computer Engineering program at UL equips students with strong skills in computer software and electronics hardware engineering, preparing graduates for roles in emerging fields like AI, electric vehicles, and sustainable development. Students can pursue a four-year BEng or a five-year MEng degree, with options to specialize in areas such as Computer Engineering, Electronic Engineering, or Robotics. The program includes a Cooperative Education (Co-op) experience for practical industry exposure and a major individual project to showcase students' skills and knowledge.

Program Outline

This program of study will support the development of skills required to develop and employ technologies to tackle many of the challenges of the coming decades including Internet edge devices, climate change, electric vehicles, sustainable development, energy, personalized health and well-being, and artificial intelligence, as well as other innovative areas such as entertainment and autonomous vehicles. Graduates of this degree program will play key roles in the research, design, development, test and installation of future systems. They will frequently work in teams to tackle challenging problems. Many of those who graduate from this degree program also continue their academic studies by pursuing higher degrees by research (e.g., MEng and PhD), or through taught postgraduate programs (e.g., MSc, MEng, and MBA). The program can be undertaken as either a four-year (Bachelor of Engineering, BEng) degree program or a five-year (Master of Engineering, MEng) degree program. All students would initially enter the BEng degree program route, and can either graduate with a BEng degree at the end of the fourth year of study or have the option to continue into the fifth year Masters degree by transferring into the MEng degree program at the end of the fourth year rather than graduating with a BEng degree. Core subjects studied will be augmented by student selected elective subjects that allow the student to identify a focus of specific interest.

Outline:

The first two years of the program is common to all students on the program and will provide a strong practical and theoretical foundation in computing and programming languages, software, digital and analogue electronics, electrical science, and engineering mathematics. During these first two years of the program, students will be guided towards their choice of a major option to be undertaken in the years three and four of the program. In years three and four of the program, students select one of the available BEng major options, and decide whether they would want to graduate with a BEng degree award or continue their studies into a fifth year to graduate with a MEng degree award. There is also the opportunity to choose a General option, where students can select modules from the various major option streams rather than specializing on a single major option. Work experience is obtained through an eight-month period of Cooperative Education (Co-op), which is an integral part of the program. Co-op will provide students with real-world industrial experience and practice. This will be taken in the summer at the end of second year and the first semester of the third year of the program. In year four, the final year of the BEng program, students aiming to graduate with a BEng degree will undertake a major individual project, which in general aims to solve a real-world problem. The project involves advanced design and implementation work, and builds confidence by putting into practice the skills and knowledge that have been acquired throughout the programme of study. Master of Engineering (MEng) Track (year five). The MEng track enables students to gain a broader and deeper understanding of a range of advanced topics in electronic & computer engineering including integrated circuit (IC) design, artificial intelligence, machine learning, cryptography and security, data forensics, and network security, amongst others. Students will also undertake a major individual project. Students will select the MEng track in year three of the programme, and will study the MEng track subjects in year 4. Major Options Computer Engineering Computer engineers will work in important application areas that include mobile phone systems, gaming, medical diagnostic and monitoring equipment, the Internet, edge devices, smart transport and energy management systems. Material covered in this option includes: Software - software engineering, distributed and real-time software design, advanced operating systems, language processors Digital Electronics - integrated circuits (ICs), computer architectures Control – advanced control systems, machine vision Data and Telecommunications - networks, communications, protocols, security Signal Processing - digital signal processing, coding theory Electronic Engineering Electronic Engineers have brought us mobile phones, digital cameras, security systems, improved weather forecasting, electronic medical devices and so many other things that we now take for granted. Material covered in this option includes: Electronic Circuit Design - integrated circuits (ICs), analogue circuits, digital circuits, mixed-signal circuits Data and Telecommunications - networks, communications, protocols Electrical Engineering - power systems, power electronics, electromagnetics Control - advanced control systems, sensors and actuators Signal Processing - signal processing, VLSI signal processing Electrical Energy Engineering Recent times have seen a worldwide shift towards a refocused commitment on the topic of energy. Material covered in this option includes: Electrical Engineering - power systems, power electronics, electromagnetics Physics - thermal physics, mechanical energy, electrical energy Control - advanced control systems, sensors and actuators Environment - advanced electronics for the built environment Robotic Engineering Robotic applications are found in space exploration, deep-ocean systems, transport, product manufacturing, medical equipment, entertainment systems etc. Material covered in this option includes: Robotics - advanced robotics systems, artificial intelligence, machine vision Control - advanced control systems, digital control systems Software - software engineering, distributed and real-time software design Automation - industrial automation, sensors and actuators General Option

Careers:

Graduates of the Electronic and Computer Engineering programme will build successful careers in a wide range of application areas, including research, design and development of: Mobile and Wireless Systems Software Engineering Computer Systems and Networks Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Security and Forensics Game Systems Telecommunication Systems Integrated Circuit Technology Energy Production & Distribution Systems Smart Energy Management Electrical Power Systems Sensors and Sensor Networks Biomedical Electronics Automation Control Systems Robotics Automotive and Aerospace electronics Engineers often move quickly into senior management and consultancy positions, using their analytical approach to project management and problem solving. There are also worldwide opportunities for advanced study and research, and graduates can diversify into many other areas such as business, medicine and law.

Other:

The Bachelor of Engineering (BE) programmes in UL are accredited by Engineers Ireland (EI). This is an internationally recognised professional engineering accreditation. The new BE in Electronic and Computer engineering will be accredited once students have graduated from the programme, in accordance with Engineers Ireland rules.