Undergraduate Programs
Electrical or Computer Engineering opens the door to solving real-world problems with technology—whether it’s building smarter devices, designing sustainable energy systems, or creating faster, more secure computing. It’s a high-impact, versatile degree that leads to rewarding careers in everything from aerospace and robotics to software and biomedical innovation.
What’s Electrical Engineering?
Electrical engineering is the magic behind almost everything that lights up, moves, or connects us. From building smartphone circuits to designing robots, electric cars, and space tech — electrical engineers turn raw electricity into real-world innovations.
What’s Computer Engineering?
Computer engineering is where hardware and software come together to make smart technology work. Computer engineers build the brains behind everything from smartphones and gaming consoles to self-driving cars and AI. Leveraging cutting-edge technologies and skills, they turn ideas into powerful, intelligent machines.
Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering - Major Exploration Series
Robotics and Autonomous Systems
NC State’s expertise in controls, machine learning and sensor integration powers our work in autonomous vehicles and robotics, making this an ideal place to launch your career.
Your pathway can take you into fields of autonomous drone, self-driving vehicles, medical robots and more.
AI and Machine Learning
ECE students work on cutting-edge projects at the intersection of AI and hardware, from designing the systems that run those data models efficiently with chip-level innovations to edge device optimization.
Graduates go on to design embedded machine learning systems for autonomous vehicles, medical devices and next-generation computing architectures.
Cybersecurity and Secure Computing
With multiple labs dedicated to advancing cybersecurity, cryptography and embedded security, NC State is a leader at the forefront of advancing and securing our digital space.
Career opportunities range from secure system design, network defense and hardware security.
Health and Sensor Systems
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Power and Renewable Energy
NC State is a national leader in energy systems research through the FREEDM Systems Center and industry ties in the power sector.
With opportunities in smart grid development, renewable energy integration, electric vehicles and power electronics, your education at NC State will set you up to change electricity as we know it.
Wireless Communications
Global Reputation. Individual Attention.
Electrical and computer engineers enjoy flexibility in career options and many engineering careers turn toward management as they mature. NC State University is known worldwide for providing students with the knowledge and skills necessary in all aspects of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
NC State is consistently ranked in the top ECE programs in the United States. We not only teach students the fundamentals of engineering, we give students the ability to expand and develop their own creative capabilities. Our program also strives to develop each student’s skills in all aspects of the field. This enables students to broaden their realm of knowledge to include a variety of issues that they will face in their future careers.
Extended Degree Options
Start your degree at a partner institution, get a degree from two universities at once, or get a head-start on a Master’s degree while you get your Bachelor’s degree.
Double Major
Students who complete first-year engineering requirements can apply to CODA in the EE/CPE Dual Degree program.
The curriculum follows the CPE curriculum, taking ECE 303 as the open elective, and adding three extra classes (1 foundation elective and 2 EE electives)
Powered by Renewables
ECE has partnered with the Center for Future Renewable Electric Energy Delivery and Management (FREEDM) to offer an undergraduate concentration in Renewable Electric Energy Systems (REES).
This concentration enables students to understand how to generate secure, sustainable, and environmentally friendly energy to significantly improve U.S. energy independence and reduce carbon emissions.
Your Health. Our Tech.
Our students can minor in Nano Science and Technology through our Center for Advanced Self-Powered Systems of Integrated Sensors and Technologies (ASSIST).
Students will be trained in the fundamentals of nano-scale materials, devices, and systems for a broad variety of applications within the world of wearable health monitoring systems – preparing them to contribute to this global industry.
Career Ready
Hundreds of companies and organizations actively recruit NC State graduates, including many of the top Fortune 500 companies. The university hosts the largest engineering career fair in the Southeast with employers from across the country recruiting our students—most have a job offer before graduating. NC State also goes beyond academics with career services and professional development opportunities across campus to help you get recruited.
Around 20 percent of ECE graduates end up in Silicon Valley—NC State is one of the leading providers of talent with its top companies.
MakerSpaces
In late 2016, the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering opened the ECE MakerSpace in Engineering Building II, consisting of two facilities – the Robert M. Kolbas MakerSpace, and the William F. Troxler MakerSpace. The two spaces serve to provide all of the resources students need to realize electronics and fabrication projects, both for Senior Design and other coursework as well as extracurricular and personal experimentation and creation.
The Kolbas MakerSpace provides all the tools required for students to work on electrical projects with state-of-the-art testing and soldering stations, Pick-and-Place component placement machine, in addition to a dozen 3-D printers to aid in prototyping.
The Troxler MakerSpace allows for fully-fledged fabrication with a complete wood and metal workshop, including a ShopBot CNC router and a WAZER waterjet cutter.
The MakerSpace enables and encourages students to be involved in hands-on engineering projects in their coursework and of personal interest.
Hands-on Education
Student learn best by doing, so ECE has adopted the Analog Discovery unit throughout our curricula, aiming to accelerate and deepen learning, and have more fun.
The Analog Discovery 2 is a portable and full-featured toolbox that can measure, visualize, generate, record, and control both analog and digital signals. It packs enough punch that it can be used to study and design the vast majority of circuits and signals in our ECE program, augmenting hands-on experiences with traditional desktop workstations.
Senior Design
The ECE Senior Design experience is a two-semester course (ECE 484ECE485) designed to prepare students for the workplace through hands-on experience in the design and development of a real-world solution. Students learn about the product life cycle and about development processes utilizing system engineering and project management techniques.
Students working in teams start with a problem statement, then define product requirements, evaluate possible solutions and perform design tradeoff analyses, then define a system solution, develop a project plan, and share a presentation of their system design and plan at a design review. Next students complete their detailed design and then build a working prototype and verify their solution. Students then present their prototype solutions at Engineering Design Day.
Finally, students document their design process and design solution in a final report. The final report also includes a summary of lessons learned and possible future enhancements.
Stringent Accreditation
Both the Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering programs at NC State are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET
Military & Veterans
The world needs great leaders like you. That’s why we are committed to helping veterans, active-duty military personnel and their families earn a first-rate engineering education from NC State.
Whether you are on active duty or transitioning from service, you need a program that does not require you to put the rest of your life on hold.
We can help. NC State’s online engineering and computer science programs allow you to get the same top-tier education as your on-campus peers — at a location and time convenient for you.
Learn more about Engineering Online for veterans and military personnel.
Scholarship Opportunities
A wide variety of scholarship opportunities exist for students in the ECE department, in addition to those offered by the University and the College of Engineering—these opportunities span a range of criteria, from academic performance, to need, to area of study.
Transfer in from Outside Institutions
If you are a student seeking to transfer into the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at NC State University from an outside college or university, you should know how classes taken at an external institution transfer over as credit into the NC State Credit System. Follow this link for a list of AP scores that qualify for meeting transfer admission coursework requirements.
College-level work must be completed with a C or better grade at a regionally accredited institution to be considered for admission/transfer credit. Work completed in technical programs is not considered for transfer credit or GPA calculation. Credits awarded by another institution without a letter grade of C or higher cannot be used to meet admissions requirements.
You can browse Admissions Databases which detail which courses from other institutions with transfer to NC State.
Questions
Still have questions about the ECE program? Send an inquiry into our Undergraduate Office and we’ll be in touch.
If your question is about acceptance into NC State or Engineering, please contact engineering@ncsu.edu