Electrical Engineering

Solving Problems for Today and Tomorrow

Does being part of a profession that finds solutions to virtually every problem encountered by modern society appeal to you? If the answer is "yes", then you are invited to consider electrical engineering for your career choice.

The Options are Limitless

Electrical engineering graduates from Montana State University-Bozeman (MSU) find job opportunities with companies both large and small throughout the United States and the world.

Some of our graduates can be found in Silicon Valley doing advanced semiconductor and advanced device design. Others are found throughout the aircraft industry working as part of a team of engineers to build the controls and communications systems for the next generation of passenger aircraft. Still other graduates are key contributors in embedded systems, the power industry, and in the communications sector.

Although our graduates can be found working throughout the world, some also can be found in the West and Northwest due to their desire for the outstanding lifestyle they came to know and love in Bozeman. The job opportunities in this part of the country continue to exceed the number of graduates available to fill the positions.

It should be clear that whether you desire to find satisfaction from designing new electronic equipment to assist health care professionals to do a better job, devising innovative solutions to alternative and renewable energy systems, or if working on aerospace projects for the next generation of space exploration is your choice, these and many, many more fascinating careers are within your grasp when you study electrical engineering!

From nanotechnology to gigantic structures and networks, in areas ranging from biology to exploring deep space, electrical engineers are involved in the design of devices that allow new frontiers to be explored.

• A surgeon carefully guides a laser cauterizing head into position inside a damaged artery using the view provided by a television monitor connected to another laser via a fiber optic link.
• A mission control officer gives the "go" command, and a powerful rocket guided by complex electronics heads for outer space.
• A switch is closed, and several generators deep inside a concrete dam begin delivering electric power to a grid of transmission lines that stretch from coast to coast.

Employment Opportunities Abound

Digital communications including television transmission, cellular telephones, and long distance data transmission is an area where the demand for new electrical engineers is sharply exceeding the supply.

The applications of fiber optics have created strong new markets which in turn have created jobs involving everything from test instruments to fiber optic manufacturing.

The EE Program

A computer has become the tool most used by an electrical engineer, which means that considerable effort is expended in helping EE students learn how to extend their capabilities by using the latest in computer technology.

During the last two years of the program, specific skills are developed in electronic circuit design, communication systems, electromagnetic fields, power generation and transmission, control systems, and digital design.

In the final year, a "capstone" senior design project involving several members of a team is undertaken. The project incorporates many of the basic EE skills, but most importantly, it is designed to allow students to prove that they can work with a team to solve a "real world" problem. The senior design project has taken on added significance since many of the companies that actively recruit at MSU use the senior design project report as a major means of measuring the technical and the communication capabilities of the potential employee.

If you have the capability and perseverance to complete the program in electrical engineering, now is a very good time to join our department! Welcome aboard!