CIVIL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

Civil engineers are concerned with safeguarding life, health, and property while promoting the general welfare. They are the designers of the public and private works that affect large segments of the population. However, because problems of expanding population and increasing human needs confront our civilization, the responsibility of civil engineers extends beyond mere physical structures into the social, political, and economic welfare of this and other countries. In brief, the work of the civil engineer has a significant impact on the quality of life in all areas of modern society.

The civil engineer deals in environmental control and in the development or redevelopment of a geographic area through overall planning, as well as in the design, construction, and operation of structures and facilities for public and private use. This broad field of activity includes all types of structures for the following areas: buildings, bridges, and industrial installations; soil mechanics and foundations; transportation, including highways, traffic, airports, and harbors; hydraulic engineering, including irrigation; water resources, including power plants and dams; water supply; waste disposal; air pollution; hazardous and solid wastes; and environmental sanitation. Modern-day requirements have necessitated involvement in the medical and dental fields, oceanography, polar exploration, energy resources, and the space effort.

The major objectives of the civil engineering program are to

• Provide graduates with an education that prepares them to meet the challenges of the civil and environmental engineering professional during their careers;
• Promote scholarship and problem solving skills;
• Provide graduates the opportunity to develop basic skills in communications, leadership and team-building, and basic understanding of the societal context in which engineering is practiced in a global economy;
• Encourage professional development and service; and
• Incorporate interdisciplinary concepts in the educational program.

The undergraduate program begins by providing study in the humanities, social sciences, physical sciences, and mathematics, and proceeds to the fundamental aspects of civil engineering. The curriculum focuses on the electives available for designing individualized programs suited to the student’s career goals. Emphasis is placed on societal needs and ways of meeting those needs. Thus, graduates are prepared to begin work in any of the several branches of civil engineering or to continue their education at the graduate level. For more information on the civil and environmental engineering department, contact cee@engr.pitt.edu or see www.engr.pitt.edu/civil/index.html.

Civil Engineering Undergraduate Curriculum

The civil engineering major program is designed for the students who enter the program at the end of their freshman year. Summer programs are available primarily to assist students who are not taking the structured curriculum on schedule. Students are expected to complete all prerequisite courses before advancing to the next term. Beginning with the seventh term, a student may elect to specialize in one of the following areas of concentration: environmental, geotechnical, structural, water resources, or construction management.

* Design electives are CEE 1340 or 1341, 1420 or 2400 or 2401, 1513, 1713 or 1714, and 1821.

** Consult departmental registration guide. These elective courses must meet the student’s program needs and certain other requirements.

COMPUTER ENGINEERING

Computer engineers are active in all phases of technology research, design and development, testing, manufacturing, sales, and management. In addition, many successful leaders in other professions, such as law, medicine, and business, use an undergraduate education in computer engineering as preparation for later professional study. The undergraduate curriculum provides preparation in the basic mathematics and physical sciences, coupled with coverage of all aspects of computing, software, hardware, interfacing, and design. The elective structure offers the student opportunities for professional specialization, area specialization within the computing discipline, or interdisciplinary broadening. For more information about the program, contact computer@engr.pitt.edu or see www.engr.pitt.edu/computer/index.html.

Computer Engineering Undergraduate Curriculum

The sophomore year (terms three and four) starts the student’s specialization with courses in programming; data structures; digital logic; computer organization and the digital systems laboratory; as well as linear algebra and differential equations; linear systems and circuits; and electives in the humanities, social sciences, and communications skills. The junior year (terms five and six) develops the student’s knowledge in the practical foundations of computer engineering with courses in algorithm design, computer architecture, operating systems, an advanced digital laboratory, and computer interfacing. These are complemented with courses in probability and statistics, as well as with electives in the humanities and social sciences. The senior year (terms seven and eight) continues the foundation sequence with software engineering and then extends the student’s experience with both technical and design electives in computer engineering. The rich set of electives available from computer engineering, computer science, telecommunications, and electrical engineering provides the student with exposure to several of the many subdisciplines within the field.

The major objectives of the computer engineering program are to

• Provide students with a balanced coverage of state-of-the-art computer hardware and software;
• Provide students with a strong hands-on design and experimentation environment for hardware and software development, using industry standard facilities;
• Provide students with a balanced educational program which will emphasize the importance of the interaction between technological and societal decisions and to graduate students who will take leadership positions within society at large; and
• Provide each student with a significant design experience through a combination of courses and individual projects.

As indicated, the program has considerable elective flexibility. The humanities and social science electives must be selected from the list of acceptable courses compiled by the School of Engineering. The open elective may be satisfied by any University course, including band, Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC), or physical education. Technical electives may include computer engineering; electrical engineering; computer science; or other engineering, mathematics, or basic science courses.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

Electrical engineers are involved in research, design, development, testing, manufacturing, sales, and management of electrical systems and devices, such as televisions, wireless telephone systems, computers and computer networks, patient monitoring equipment, and power generation and distribution systems. Many successful leaders in professions such as law, medicine, and business have used an undergraduate education in electrical engineering as preparation for later professional study. The undergraduate curriculum includes required courses in the basic electrical and physical sciences as well as electives that provide the student an opportunity to choose professional specialization or interdisciplinary broadening. The curriculum also includes elective courses in the humanities and social sciences to provide a balanced, liberal education so that the graduate may participate creatively in society and become both an educated and effective citizen.

During the sophomore year, electrical engineering students take courses in calculus, matrix theory, differential equations, basic physics, and communication skills. There are also required electrical engineering courses in linear circuits and systems, digital logic, computer organization, electronics, and a laboratory in electrical measurements. In the junior year, students have required courses in signals and systems, electromagnetics, semiconductor electronics, laboratories in signal processing and electronic circuit design, and two elective courses. During the senior year, the student takes only electives, including electrical engineering (EE) electives, selected from more than 25 offerings, and non-EE elective courses. A capstone of the student’s program is the Senior Design elective, in which the student initiates and completes a significant design project. Each term they are on campus, students take the undergraduate EE Seminar, which addresses professional issues and career opportunities for electrical engineers. All EE undergraduate students are required to use computers and computer software in project work and in homework assignments given in required and elective courses.

The educational objectives of the undergraduate electrical engineering program are to

• Produce graduates with a strong foundation in the basic sciences and mathematics that will enable them to identify and solve electrical engineering problems;
• Provide students with a solid foundation in electrical engineering that prepares them for lifelong careers and professional growth in fields of their choice;
• Provide our students with the basic skills to communicate effectively and to develop the ability to function as members of multidisciplinary teams;
• Provide our students with a broad-based education so that they can appreciate diversity of opinion, better understand ethical issues, and develop a more global perspective; and
• Provide our students with a relevant engineering design experience that is integrated across the four-year curriculum. Through those experiences we will develop in our students an understanding of the relationships between theory and practice.

Non-EE elective courses in the undergraduate program include humanities and social science electives, a communication skills course, an open elective, and technical electives. The humanities and social science electives must be selected from the list of acceptable electives compiled by the School of Engineering and available in the department office. The communications skills elective is also chosen from a list available in the department office. The open elective may be satisfied by taking a course that is acceptable for any other elective course category, or by using (for example) 3 credits of band, Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC), or chorus. Technical electives may include electrical engineering electives, engineering courses, mathematics courses, or basic science courses. For more information on the program, see www.engr.pitt.edu/electrical or contact eedept@ee.pitt.edu.

Specialization and Interdisciplinary Studies

Specialization is readily available for students with specific career goals. To facilitate specialization, optional areas of concentration have been defined to allow a student to develop strength in a particular area of interest. Areas of concentration that are currently available include computers, electronics, and telecommunications/signal processing. Requirements for the areas of concentration are met by proper selection of design and other elective courses. Students may take some courses in an area of concentration without completing all of the requirements.

For students interested in interdisciplinary studies, special programs can be arranged using the elective structure that exists within the regular electrical engineering curriculum. Formal interdisciplinary programs have been developed through minors offered by other engineering departments. Students may use electives to satisfy both EE and minor requirements.

Electrical Engineering Undergraduate Curriculum

Each student must complete at least five EE elective courses from the following list of breadth electives:

Each student must complete at least one EE design elective from the following list of design electives:

Students are asked to present and demonstrate their design projects at one of the EE department’s senior design expos, which are held near the end of the fall and spring terms. These design electives can also be used to satisfy EE elective requirements. However, a given course can only be used to satisfy one requirement.