[Dhruv] I knew I wanted to be an electrical engineer,
but the spectrum of electrical engineering is so vast that there's potentially 100 different
directions you can go in.
I was coming from background of controls on automation and I wanted to go towards software,
but I didn't have the technical background for it.
So this program was the stepping stone for me to actually guide myself in the right direction.
[Blake] The PMP in ECE is designed for lots of different
kinds of students.
We have many students who are full time employees, coming in at night, and we also have students
who are full time students.
So, you can take one course at a time, or you can take a full load and accelerate your
progress if you have the time and bandwidth for that.
[Dhruv] This program actually provided me with the
opportunity to take classes that I was just interested in outside my career path.
Like I took classes that were just fascinating, without having them tied into my career at
any point.
[Eve] I'm really excited to see the new classes
that are being developed specifically for our professional Master's programs.
There are courses on really new topics: artificial intelligence, machine learning, self-driving
cars.
These are topics that are highly sought-after in industry.
[Blake] Companies that are hiring right now are looking
for the specific technologies that you pick up in our courses and the specific theories
and ideas that you pick up in our courses.
Technologies like machine learning, like the ROS Robot Operating System, like 5g networks
and they're hiring for those because they need to get ready, they need to get the capabilities.
[Dhruv] Every professor has a background that they
bring to the table.
You know it completely sets the tone for the class when the professor walks in and they're
talking about their time in the industry, the companies they have worked for and what
the real world job application of this material is.
The others who are coming from a PhD, research background are going to focus more on the
details, making sure that you understand what the theoretical implications of the matter
are.
[Blake] You really interact with a very high quality
and very experienced faculty who are working at the cutting edge of technology, bringing
knowledge from their research and professional practice and making sure that the course material
keeps up with that and addresses it.
So you're your degree will really be at the state of the art.
[Eve] This is a chance to come in, get up to speed
really quickly, and possibly make a career change, if that's what someone's looking for.
Or to bring the knowledge back to your own company and, you know further what your company
is working on.
They can come in and be led through the new topic with state of the art material by experts
in the field.
It's a way to jump start a turn in your career.
[Dhruv] Because of the fact that I was looking for
a job opportunity when I started this program and I was surrounded by people who were in
the industry it opened doors for me to network with people who were working in the capacity
of what I wanted to work as.
You are surrounded by working professionals, and if working in the industry is your ultimate
goal than you can start networking on day one and talk to people.
This program encapsulates the best of electrical engineering that's out there.
It puts you in the driver's seat and it gives you the freedom to pick and choose, whatever
your passion is.
Everybody has a desire to learn and everybody has the opportunity to do so without you know
anything holding them back.