Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
www.citadel.edu/root/eveningundergraduatestudies-2-2-programs/electrical-engineering

 

Dr. Mark McKinney, PhD, PE, Department Head, mckinneym@citadel.edu

Professors: Barsanti, Hayne, McKinney, Peeples, Williams

Associate Professor: Mazzaro

Assistant Professor: Dàvila-Montero, Integlia

General Information

Nearly every aspect of modern life has been impacted by the contributions of computer engineers.  Robotics, aeronautics, electric vehicles, intelligent systems, communications, computer systems, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and the smart grid are just some of the exciting technologies computer engineers design.

In the early 2020s, The Citadel began offering a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering (BSCMPE) Degree in the evenings to veteran and civilian students.  This program is offered in cooperation with South Carolina technical colleges. Students complete the first two years of coursework at one of these technical colleges (or other accredited institution) and the junior and senior years of study are completed at The Citadel by attending evening classes.  Students in this program have the exact same curricula, faculty, textbooks, laboratory equipment, course content, classrooms, and laboratory rooms as students in the South Carolina corps of Cadets.

Computer Engineering graduates can expect to get jobs or pursue graduate work in a wide range of technical areas including. robots, microprocessors, memory systems, networks, embedded systems, chip design, and all aspects of computer organization, design, and programming

The Electrical and Computer Engineering Department is located on the third floor of Grimsley Hall, a first-tier engineering education facility that provides fully-equipped laboratories, classrooms and faculty offices. The related Departments of Mathematics, Cyber and Computer Science, Physics, Mechanical Engineering, and Civil and Construction Engineering are housed adjacent to the department, creating a “micro-campus” of science and technology.

Several student organizations are an active part of The Citadel’s Electrical and Computer Engineering Program.  Included in these are The Student Branch of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), The Citadel Chapter of Tau Beta Pi - the national engineering honor society, the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), and the Society of Women Engineers (SWE).

Mission

The mission of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering is to prepare the individual for professional work or for graduate study in the fields of Electrical and Computer Engineering and to provide as many of the elements of a broad education as can be included in a program of professional study leading to the degree of Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering or Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering.

In addressing its mission, the department strives, through small classes and hands-on experience in laboratories closely monitored by full-time faculty, to provide an environment highly conducive both to learning and to the development of close student-faculty relationships.

Both the Electrical and Computer Engineering curricula place emphasis on a broad liberal education base, a strong background in mathematics and basic sciences, and a logical sequence of Electrical and Computer Engineering courses that provide the breadth and depth necessary for continuous professional growth in today’s technological society. While the goal is to provide a broad based engineering education, during the junior and senior years, students have the opportunity to select courses specific to their interests. An integral part of the program is the design component that develops the student’s ability to address practical engineering problems. This is accomplished by the inclusion of engineering design problems and concepts throughout the curriculum, culminating with a mandatory two-semester senior design course in which students undertake significant design projects.

Convinced of the great value of practical experience, the department encourages its majors to obtain gainful employment through internships in Electrical or Computer Engineering or a related field for at least one summer, preferably between the junior and senior years.

Curriculum Overview

The courses taken at a partner institution are designed to develop basic engineering skills and good teamwork and communication skills.  Once at The Citadel, the junior year establishes a foundation in algorithm development, electronics, computer architecture, control systems and data structures and includes a lab class incorporating many of these topics.  Finally, senior year, students get to focus their studies by selecting senior electives in areas that interest them.  These courses include significant design components and build on the theoretical foundation established in the junior year. 

Computer Engineering Design Experience

Engineering design is distributed throughout the Computer Engineering curriculum. Introduction to the design process and the initial design experience occurs in the lower level courses.

Techniques of analysis, synthesis, iteration, and approximations are studied throughout the curriculum. Specialized design exercises illustrate the use of these techniques in the areas of circuits, systems, electronics, embedded systems, and digital systems.  During the senior year, students begin to focus on design techniques in a particular area of interest through the choice of elective courses.

The design experience culminates in the required senior design courses. This two-semester design sequence provides students the opportunity to work on a project of interest and provides the faculty the opportunity to guide students in their first major design experiences and emphasize once more the various constraints that may come into play in a design. The students are taught several different structured design approaches. Project definition and documentation are stressed. Interdisciplinary design teams of three to four students are formed at the beginning of the first semester. Students are instructed on various practical aspects of design, such as layout considerations, safety, functionality, specific standards that apply to the project and documentation of design.

The student design teams select or propose a major design project to be completed by the end of second semester. They must enlist a faculty advisor to guide their project. At the end of the first semester, the design teams present their design proposals (written and oral) that include their preliminary design (block diagram level), a schedule for the following semester, and a cost estimate. In the second semester, the teams design and build, test, refine, demonstrate, and document their design projects. In addition to the technical aspects, project management and presentation techniques are taught and applied. A detailed project specification is developed and placed under tight change control. Financial and scheduling aspects of the project are tracked. A final presentation in both written and oral form is required at the end of the semester, along with a working demonstration.

Program Educational Objectives

Within a few years (3-5 years), Citadel Computer Engineering graduates are expected to:

Succeed in the practice of Computer Engineering, by ethically and judiciously applying engineering methods to solve problems facing a technologically complex society.

Sustain awareness of engineering-related issues through employment, professional development, professional registration, or graduate education.

Be principled leaders with strong communications and team-building skills.

Student Outcomes

The Citadel’s Computer Engineering program include assessment to demonstrate that students obtain:

An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics.

An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors.

An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences.

An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgements, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts.

An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives.

An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgement to draw conclusions.

An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.