Electrical Engineering

major

Electrical Engineering is concerned with all phases and development of the transmission and utilization of electric energy and intelligence. From communication systems to electronic components that run computers and motor vehicles, electrical engineers design products and systems that meet the needs of today and tomorrow's electrical and electronic systems.

About this Program

To graduate with this major, students must complete all university, college, and major requirements.

Department Information

Electrical engineers study electricity and design electrical systems that solve problems—how to make your smartphones smarter; how to make your refrigerator run more efficiently; coming up with the optimal temperature to heat pizza in your microwave; designing the audio and visual technology that brings movies to life.
Website

CONTACT

352.392.9758 (tel) | 352.294.0911 (fax)

P.O. Box 116200
968 Center Drive
216 LARSEN HALL
GAINESVILLE FL 32611-6200
Map

 Curriculum

While it is essential that electrical engineers understand the fundamentals of their chosen fields, they must also understand the role that other branches of engineering play in completed work. The curriculum provides a foundation in basic engineering as well as depth and breadth in electrical engineering and sufficient electives to allow specialization in academic areas including:

  • Electronic devices and circuits
  • Electromagnetics, power and, photonics
  • Computers, communications, and systems and controls

The curriculum also prepares an engineer for professional licensure.

The department's extensive laboratory facilities and varied research programs assist in both experimental and theoretical approaches to electrical and computer engineering.

Admission Requirements

It is the department's policy to admit the best-qualified students as demonstrated by academic achievement.

To be admitted, a student must have an overall 2.5 grade point average in critical-tracking courses, based on the first two attempts in eight professional courses and have earned a minimum grade of C in each course of Calculus 1, Calculus 2, Calculus 3, Physics with Calculus 1, Physics with Calculus 2, Differential Equations and General Chemistry. Only the first two attempts (including withdrawals and drops) in each course will be considered for admission to or retention in the department. 

Department Requirements

A minimum grade of C is required in any course transferred into the junior-senior years from another institution.

Courses marked below with a footnote1 must be completed with minimum grade of C. For a course to be used as a prerequisite for an EEE/EEL-prefixed course, a minimum grade of C is required in the prerequisite course. Any 3000/4000 level EEL/EEE-prefixed course not taken to satisfy the breadth or depth requirement can be applied as EE technical elective, excluding EEL 3834 (only counts for computer programming requirement)  EEL 3003, and EEL 3872, which does not apply toward degree requirements.

ECE majors must have an overall 2.0 GPA in all ECE courses to meet degree requirements.

A student must complete both EEL 3111C and EEL 3701C before taking any 4000-level EEE or EEL course. Electrical Engineering majors must have EEL 3923C  completed or in progress to apply for the IPPD program. 
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Any course taken to satisfy a degree requirement (General Education, required course, or technical elective), with the exception of EGN 4912, EEL 4948, and EEL 4949, cannot be taken S/U.

An electrical engineering student whose cumulative, upper-division or department grade point average falls below 2.0 or whose preprofessional grades do not meet department admission requirements will be placed on academic probation and be required to prepare a probation contract with an ECE academic advisor. If a student is not making normal academic progress, they will be placed on academic probation.

Students normally are given two terms in which to remove their deficit points. Students who do not satisfy the conditions of the first term of probation may be dismissed from the department.

All graduating seniors must complete an ECE Exit Questionnaire with their advisor before graduating.

Educational Objectives

The objectives of the Electrical Engineering program at the University of Florida are to prepare students to be good citizens engaged in ethical engineering for the betterment of society and enabling them, so that within a few years of graduation, they:

  1. Have successful careers providing leadership in a dynamic industry that is global, multi-disciplinary, and evolving;
  2. Are excelling in the top advanced studies programs in the world.

Goals

The baccalaureate program prepares students to embark upon professional careers in electrical and computer engineering or to begin graduate study. The department's educational objectives are consistent with the ABET general criteria for accrediting programs in engineering in the United States.

Mission

The department offers undergraduate and graduate programs in electrical and computer engineering and conducts research to serve the needs of Florida and the nation.

Critical Tracking records each student’s progress in courses that are required for progress toward each major. Please note the critical-tracking requirements below on a per-semester basis.

Equivalent critical-tracking courses as determined by the State of Florida Common Course Prerequisites may be used for transfer students.

Semester 1

Semester 2

  • Complete 1 additional critical-tracking course with the appropriate minimum grade within two attempts
  • 2.5 GPA required for all 7 critical-tracking courses
  • 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 3

  • Complete 2 additional critical-tracking courses with the appropriate minimum grades within two attempts
  • 2.5 GPA required for all 7 critical-tracking courses
  • 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 4

  • Complete 2 additional critical-tracking courses with the appropriate minimum grades within two attempts
  • 2.5 GPA required for all 7 critical-tracking courses
  • 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 5

  • Complete remaining 7 critical-tracking courses with the appropriate minimum grades within two attempts
  • Complete first Electrical Engineering Breadth course
  • 2.5 GPA required for all critical-tracking courses
  • 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 6

  • Complete the 2 remaining Electrical Engineering Breadth required courses.
  • Complete first Electrical Engineering Depth course
  • 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 7

  • Complete EEL 3923C
  • Complete the second Electrical Engineering Depth course
  • Complete 3 EE Technical Electives (9 credits)
  • 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 8

  • Complete EEL 4924C
  • Complete remaining Electrical Engineering Technical Electives (7-10 credits)
  • 2.0 UF GPA required

To remain on track, students must complete the appropriate critical-tracking courses, which appear in bold. These courses must be completed by the terms as listed above in the Critical Tracking criteria.

This semester plan represents an example progression through the major. Actual courses and course order may be different depending on the student's academic record and scheduling availability of courses. Prerequisites still apply.

Plan of Study Grid
Semester OneCredits
Quest 1 (Gen Ed Humanities; Writing Requirement) 3
Select one: 3
General Chemistry 1 (Critical Tracking; State Core Gen Ed Biological and Physical Sciences)
Chemistry for Engineers 1 (Critical Tracking; State Core Gen Ed Biological and Physical Sciences)
CHM 2045L General Chemistry 1 Laboratory (Gen Ed Physical Sciences) 1
MAC 2311 Analytic Geometry and Calculus 1 (Critical Tracking; State Core Gen Ed Mathematics) 4
EGN 2020C Engineering Design & Society (Gen Ed Physical Science) 2
State Core Composition (Writing Requirement) 3
 Credits16
Semester Two
Quest 2 (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences with Diversity (Writing Requirement)) 3
EEL 3000 Introduction to Electrical Engineering 1 2
MAC 2312 Analytic Geometry and Calculus 2 (Critical Tracking; Gen Ed Mathematics) 4
PHY 2048 Physics with Calculus 1 (Critical Tracking; Gen Ed Physical Sciences) 3
Computer Programming elective 3
 Credits15
Semester Three
MAC 2313 Analytic Geometry and Calculus 3 (Critical Tracking; Gen Ed Mathematics) 4
PHY 2049 Physics with Calculus 2 (Critical Tracking; Gen Ed Physical Sciences) 3
EEL 3701C Digital Logic and Computer Systems 1 4
EEL 3850 Data Science for ECE 4
 Credits15
Semester Four
EEL 3111C Circuits 1 1 4
EEL 3135 Introduction to Signals and Systems 1 4
MAP 2302 Elementary Differential Equations (Critical Tracking) 3
State Core Humanities with International (Writing Requirement) 3
 Credits14
Summer After Semester Four
EEL 3008 Physics of Electrical Engineering 1 3
EEE 3308C Electronic Circuits 1 1 4
Approved writing course (Writing Requirement) 3
 Credits10
Semester Five
EEL 3112 Circuits 2 1 3
EEL 4837 Programming for Electrical Engineering 2 3
ENC 3246 Professional Communication for Engineers (State Core Composition; Writing Requirement) 3
State Core Social and Behavioral Sciences 3
Electrical Engineering Breadth elective #1 (Critical Tracking) 1 4
 Credits16
Semester Six
Electrical Engineering Breadth electives #2 and #3 (Critical Tracking) 1 6-8
Electrical Engineering Depth elective #1 (Critical Tracking) 3
Interdisciplinary elective #1 3
 Credits12-14
Semester Seven
EEL 3923C Electrical Engineering Design 1 (Critical Tracking) 1 3
Electrical Engineering Depth elective #2 (Critical Tracking) 1 3
Electrical Engineering Technical electives (Critical Tracking) 9
 Credits15
Semester Eight
Select one EE Design 2 course: 3
Electrical Engineering Design 2 (Critical Tracking) 1
Integrated Product and Process Design 2 (Critical Tracking)
Electrical Engineering Technical electives (Critical Tracking) 9-10
Interdisciplinary elective #2 3
 Credits15-16
 Total Credits128
1

Completed with a minimum grade of C. In order to use a course as a prerequisite course for course used as a prerequisite for an EEE/EEL-prefixed course, a minimum grade of C is required in the prerequisite course. Any 3000/4000-level EEL/EEE-prefixed course not taken to satisfy the breadth or depth requirement can be applied as an EE technical elective, excluding EEL 3834 only counts for computer programming requirement, EEL 3003 and EEL 3872, which do not apply toward degree requirements. 


Computer Programming | Select One

COP 2274C++ Programming for Engineers3
COP 3275Computer Programming Using C3
EEL 3834Programming for Electrical Engineering 13

Electrical Engineering Breadth | Select Three

EEL 3211CBasic Electric Energy Engineering4
EEE 3396Solid-State Electronic Devices3
EEE 4260Bioelectrical Systems3
EEE 4306Electronic Circuits 23
EEL 3472Fundamentals of Electromagnetic Fields3
EEL 4514CCommunication Systems and Components4
EEL 4657CLinear Control Systems4
EEL 4744CMicroprocessor Applications4
EEL 4750Foundations of Digital Signal Processing3

Electrical Engineering Depth | 6 Credits

Select one EE Depth course from 2 different EE Breadth areas.
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Interdisciplinary Technical Electives | 6 Credits

Students are able to select courses that are 3000-4000 level from the Biology/Biochemistry courses (prefixes of BSC, BCH, CHM, PCB, and ZOO); Mathematics courses (prefixes of MAA, MAD, MAP, and MAS); Physics courses (prefixes of PHY and PHZ). Students are able to count CHM 2046, CHM 2210, and CHM 2211. Students are able to select courses that are 3000-4000 level from HWCOE (non-ECE) courses. Students can count EML 2023 and EGM 2511.

Electrical Engineering Technical Electives | 18-19 Credits

Any 3000 level or above course in ECE, with the exception of EEL 3003, EEL 3008, and EEL 3872

A minimum of 16-19 credits must be EEL-prefixed courses. The total credits of EE breadth and EE technical electives should equal 29 credits.


Electrical Engineering emphasizes development of the transmission and utilization of electric energy and intelligence. Electrical engineers design products and systems that meet the needs of today and tomorrow's electrical and electronic systems. Students will be able to design communication systems; design the electronic components that run computers, motor vehicles, TVs, stereo systems, and robots for automated factories; design aircraft and spacecraft control systems; design utility and industrial power systems; and design biological and biomedical systems.

The Electrical Engineering BS Program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the General Criteria and the Program Criteria for Electrical, Computer, Communications, Telecommunication(s) and Similarly Named Engineering Programs.

Before Graduating Students Must

  • Pass an assessment of performance on a major design experience. Assessment will be provided by two or more faculty and/or industry practitioners.
  • Pass assessment in two courses of individual assignments targeted to each learning outcome. Assessment will be provided by the instructor of the course according to department standards.
  • Complete an exit interview in your final semester.
  • Complete requirements for the baccalaureate degree, as determined by faculty.

Students in the Major Will Learn to

Student Learning Outcomes | SLOs

Content

  1. Identify, describe, and interpret mathematics, science, and engineering principles to electrical engineering problems.

Critical Thinking

  1. Design and conduct electrical engineering experiments as well as analyze and interpret data.
  2. Design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, and sustainability.

Communication

  1. Convey technical data and design information effectively for a range of audiences using a variety of methods and media.

Curriculum Map

I = Introduced; R = Reinforced; A = Assessed

Courses SLO 1 SLO 2 SLO 3 SLO 4
EEL 3000 I, A
EEL 3008 A
EEL 3135 A
EEL 3701C A I R
EEL 3923C A R
EEL 4924C A A A

Assessment Types

  • Homework assignments
  • Exam questions
  • Design projects and reports
  • Presentations