Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EE, CSC)

Steven Hietpas, Head
Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Daktronics Engineering Hall 214
605-688-4526
e-mail: steven.hietpas@sdstate.edu
website: http://www.sdstate.edu/eecs/

The Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department combines all aspects of electricity, electronics, hardware, and software into one multi-disciplinary unit. The department offers degree programs in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science with minors in Biomedical Engineering, Software Engineering, and Computer Science. Degrees include the Bachelor of Science (B.S.), the Master of Science (M.S.), and the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). The department has well-established, nationally and internationally-known research programs in materials science, nanotechnology, sensors, photovoltaics, and satellite image processing.

Electrical Engineering (EE)

Faculty

Professor Hietpas, Head; Professors A. Andrawis, M. Andrawis, Brown, Galipeau, Helder; Professors Emeriti Ellerbruch, Knabach, Sander; Associate Professors Bommisetty, Fan, Fourney, Tan; Assistant Professors Devaraj, Farrokh-Baroughi, He, Qiao, Tonkoski, Yan.

Program

Electrical engineers play key roles in solving technical problems in many areas including biomedical engineering, communications, computers and digital hardware, electronic materials and sensor devices, image processing, control systems, alternative energy and power systems.

The mission of the Electrical Engineering program is to provide a rigorous, practical education for our students oriented toward problem solving; to conduct world-class research with a regional emphasis; and to provide technical assistance to existing and emerging businesses, industry, and government.

As a practicing electrical engineer, three years or more into their career, our alumni will:

Have achieved increases in duties and responsibilities within their positions and/or have been promoted to new positions.
Have achieved advanced studies in electrical engineering or other engineering/ professional fields.

The program begins the first year developing a strong foundation in mathematics, science, and communications. Following this are two intensive years of study in circuit and machine theory, electronics, signal and system theory, electronic material and devices, digital and microprocessor systems. The capstone of the program is Senior Design I and II, a two-semester sequence taken in the senior year, that places every student on a team that designs, builds, tests, and demonstrates a significant electrical engineering project. The projects are often in collaboration with industry and provide students valuable “real world” team design experience.

Academic and Graduation Requirements

The degree program is arranged to include 27 credits of elective coursework. This elective flexibility allows a student to pick a technical and non-technical course program that best suits his/her needs and interests. Students will be admitted into junior level EE courses only after they have completed EE 220, 220L, 222, 222L, 245 and 245L with minimum grades of “C.” Students will not be permitted to enroll in subsequent courses for which EE 220, EE 222, or EE 245 is a prerequisite until the above requirement has been met. Students must also pass all junior electrical engineering courses (with the exception of EE 385) prior to taking EE 464 (Senior Design I). In addition to the graduation requirements and academic performance specified in this catalog, to earn the Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering a student must earn a CGPA of 2.0 or higher for all his/her Electrical Engineering courses combined. All graduating seniors are required to take the Fundamentals of Engineering examination which leads to professional registration.

The non-technical (15), technical (12 EE 400 level), and required (103) credits comprise the 130 credit degree. The 15 required non-technical electives must be from a list of approved courses to meet graduation requirements. To meet the 12 credits of the South Dakota Regental System’s General Education requirements, students are required to take a minimum of six approved credits in Social Science/Diversity (SGR Goal 3) and six approved credits in Humanities and Arts/Diversity (SGR Goal 4). To meet the five credits of the Institutional Graduation requirements, students are required to take two credits of GE109/L for the First Year Seminar (IGR Goal 1) and three approved credits in Cultural Awareness and Social and Environmental Responsibility (IGR Goal 2).

The 12 required technical electives must be from Electrical Engineering courses at the 400 level. These may be selected from specialization areas: Biomedical, Communications, Computers, Electronic Devices, Image Processing, or Power Systems.

Many students benefit from the Department’s Internship program which allows students to receive limited technical elective credit for working in industry while they complete their degree in Electrical Engineering. Many such students gain valuable work experience in industry during the summer months without extending the time required to complete the BS degree. The Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science provides assistance to students desiring this practical experience. The Department also provides assistance in resume preparation and job placement.

Computer Science (CSC)

Faculty

Professors Salehnia, Shin; Professor Emeritus Bergum; Associate Professors Fourney, Hamer, Liu, Min; Assistant Professor: Wang; Instructors Cooley, Gamradt, Kurtenbach, Prohaska

Program

Computer Scientists play key roles in many walks of life in today’s society. Graduates of the program work in many different areas such as; application programmer, network designer, database administrator, information technologist, game development, and many others. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, CS related jobs are among the ten fastest growing careers that show a lot of promise and opportunity for growth.

The mission of the Computer Science program is to provide a highly respective, rigorous, and practical education for our students oriented toward problem solving; to conduct world-class research with a regional emphasis; and to provide technical assistance to existing and emerging businesses, industry, and government.

As a practicing Computer Scientist, three or more years into their career, our alumni will:

Have achieved increases in duties, and/or responsibilities, and/or been promoted.
Have achieved advanced studies/lifelong learning in computer science or other related professional fields.

The program begins with the first year developing a strong foundation in programming, mathematics, and communication. Following this is three years of software and hardware based study in theoretical and applied computer science.

Majors complete a core of basic computer science courses that includes the study of programming and algorithms, data structures, database concepts, computer architecture and organization, programming languages, compilers, operating systems, and software engineering. Important courses in closely related fields, e.g., discrete mathematics, digital logic design, scientific computation, and probability and statistics are also taken. Computer Science students are required to study all aspects of computing, including hardware, software, and theory.

Additionally, a capstone sequence of software engineering I and II provides a yearlong sequence that provides valuable practical experience in the specification, design, implementation, and documentation of large software systems and emphasizes a team-based approach to solving a “real world” problem in computer science.

Academic and Graduation Requirements

The degree program includes 12 credits of elective coursework of which all must be 300 level or higher and 9 of the 12 credits must be in approved CS or SE courses. This elective flexibility allows a student to pick a technical and non-technical course program that best suits his/her needs and interests. In addition to the graduation requirements and academic performance specified in this catalog, to earn the Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science a student must pass all CSC and SE courses with a grade of C or better. All graduating seniors are required to take the Computer Science exit examination, which is give once per semester.

The non-technical (15), technical (12 CS/SE 300/400 level), and required (93) credits comprise the 120 credit degree. The 15 required non-technical electives must be from a list of approved courses to meet graduation requirements. To meet the 12 credits of the South Dakota Regental System’s General Education requirements, students are required to take a minimum of six approved credits in Social Science/Diversity (SGR Goal 3) and six approved credits in Humanities and Arts/Diversity (SGR Goal 4). To meet the five credits of the Institutional Graduation requirements, students are required to take two credits of GE109/L for the First Year Seminar (IGR Goal 1) and three approved credits in Cultural Awareness and Social and Environmental Responsibility (IGR Goal 2).

Students interested in the Certificate Program in Computer Applications should visit with the Director of Continuing and Extended Education on the SDSU campus or with the Director of the Certificate Program in Computer Applications at Capital University Center in Pierre.