I will be taking 300 and 301 over the summer and am trying to decide which ECE courses to take in the fall. Can anyone give some insight into which classes are interesting/useful, and which teachers to avoid at all costs?

3/3/2006 6:13:50 PM

You will probably want to get 302 and 303 out of the way before you start taking electives.

You should probably also ask which teachers to take. I would avoid almost every teacher in the 400 level at all costs. Top of the worst teachers ever would probably be a tie between Dual-Hallen and Lunardi; Walsh is trying to push his way to the top too.

3/3/2006 6:52:45 PM

Yeah I mistyped earlier I am actually taking 301 and 302 in the summer. I know I'll take 303 in the fall but I still have to find 3 more ECE classes. I was just wondering if there are any that were particularly interesting. Right now I am leaning towards ECE 303, 306, 403, and 456. I just kinda would like to get a heads up on which ECE classes are not worth taking.

3/3/2006 8:23:53 PM

Unless you are some freak, you are going to Hate 302 like no other course. Thus, you will be retracting the statement that you want to take 403, the course the comes after 302. After you take the 300's you will know what kind of ece classes you like, then you can decide on 400's. Also like toch said, avoid luardi and walsh like the plague.

3/3/2006 8:45:41 PM

Thanks guys, I still haven't decided which area I want to specialize in. Has anyone taken ECE 456? Chow is teaching it and it seems like it could be a pretty cool class.

3/3/2006 9:37:00 PM

Quote :

"Unless you are some freak, you are going to Hate 302 like no other course. "

There's nothing wrong with ECE 302. The first part of the course isn't the most fun (although I do know a lot of people who like device physics, which there's nothing wrong with that). The second half when you actually get to small signal models and such - that's the interesting part. If you like that part, I would highly recommend 403. Even if you hated 302, Bilbro takes 302 and re-explains everything and it all makes a hell of a lot more sense the second time around. But hey - analog isn't easy and any professor will tell you that.

^456 - I haven't taken it. I know too many people that are doing robotics courses though and they liked it (they took 556 I think though). I've heard Chow might make 435 a prereq for 456 because there's a good deal of control theory. I'm not sure if that was just a rumor or what.

Also if you only need 3 ECE courses, 306 I believe only will count as an elective if you're an EE and have taken Java 2. If you're a CPE, it's a required course.

3/3/2006 10:24:43 PM

Thanks for the info. I have not taken the second java class, mainly because several people told me it is much more worthwhile to learn C. They just recently changed the requirement that allows you to replace Java 2 with ECE 306 or the 1hour C course and any other ECE class. So would it be more beneficial to take ECE 435 in the fall and then take 456 later?

3/3/2006 10:37:31 PM

take ECE492K- Optical Communications. Dr. Muth is extremely laid back and you will make a good grade no matter what. I took it last semester and he forgot to schedule another test after the midterm and for our exam we had to write a technical paper, which meant going to class the second half was worthless. You basically will get an A or B as long as you just write the paper.

3/3/2006 10:48:01 PM

^^Like I said - I just heard about the 435 prereq "rumor" last semester I think. However it could have been something Chow just said in class, etc. If the prereq hasn't been changed, it just requires you have ECE 301 I think. But people have taken 456 w/o 435 before, so you should be fine.

If you take 303 and kind of like e-mag (I know, another "unpopular" choice...), take ECE 492J (or 492B) with Dr. Barlage. Really laid back class and Barlage's cool. He sets the course up so you learn how to do stuff with Agilent's ADS program and you can go pretty much straight into a microwave circuits job.

I've also heard good things about 492K with Muth. Seems like a very interesting course.

3/3/2006 11:10:12 PM

I appreciate all the input.

^^I realize it's kinda early considering I haven't had 301 or 302 yet. However, I am not necessarilly interested in which classes will be the easiest. I am looking for the classes people found most interesting.

^How do you find out exactly what those specialty courses entail since there is no course description?

3/4/2006 1:19:32 AM

I have to recommend some of the Power courses (305, 451, 453). I'm biased, of course, but having a little background in power is a big plus for any EE major. The concepts you learn in that class are of course applied to large scale power systems and motors, but the same principles apply for smaller scale electronics so it is very worthwhile.

I'd also recommend learning a little bit about controls, because chances are you'll use them again someday in your job. Plus it lets you put to use all that "stuff" you learned in 301

I also thoroughly enjoyed taking the Lasers and Optics courses taught by Dr. Kolbas. I never thought I'd be interested in this, but Kolbas really knows how to teach and made it very interesting. He's one of the professors that really just makes you say 'wow.' Just a bit of advice, don't cheat in his class

3/4/2006 1:24:21 AM

^Yeah, I figured it would be beneficial to learn about power systems, 3-phase, etc. Also I like the idea of being able to actually put to use the principles taught in other classes, that is why I'm interested in taking the mechatronics course. I don't cheat at all so that won't be a problem. My goal is not just to get a degree, I want to know enough when I graduate that I can actually do something with the knowledge I have acquired.

3/4/2006 1:38:45 AM

^^^As of now, the easiest way is to go to the courses page for ECE and look at all the 492 classes. Most of them have a webpage. You can ignore 492C, 492E, and 492G because they're both Senior Design related (though I would strongly recommend getting the Senior Design "lab" done with 492G before Senior Design).

I also want to say Townsend sometimes sends out a list of elective classes...I remember an e-mail within the past year or so where she sent out a list of electives and course descriptions. The 492 classes might have been on there, but I honestly can't remember too much about it. If you're interested in the stuff being offered next Fall, look at the course lists and then see what the professor does - usually that's a good tip as to what the course will be about (i.e. Misra's 492M is about nanotech, etc.). That or go bug Townsend and she'll tell you or she'll tell you to contact the professor of that course.

3/4/2006 10:24:18 AM

ECE 402 (communications engineering) with dr hughes is a good class, specially if you are interested in learning some details about this topic.

you build on concepts from ECE301 (fourier transforms) and ST371 (probability density function, etc), before moving on to digital, satellite communication. and dr hughes is a great teacher.

3/4/2006 11:39:09 AM

^Agreed on 402/Hughes. I loved that class, and I'm enjoying wireless (420) with Alexander now (which builds on 402).

3/4/2006 12:47:07 PM

Thanks for all of the input. I think now I have some good ideas. I never thought much about taking 402 but it seems to be highly recommended. I also totally overlooked the 492 special topics classes. Can anyone tell me about the entrepeneur program? It looks to me like it is basically another senior design project except for you get to come up with your own project. Any thoughts?

3/4/2006 1:48:10 PM

i'm gonna second joe's reccomendation of Kolbas' laser class - the material is pretty insane, but he is just that good a teacher

also, bilbro's analog class was pretty awesome too

456 is a fun class, but i didn't think overmuch of chow as a teacher

same goes for 435, the controls class was interesting, but Brickley is not a good teacher

3/4/2006 2:18:17 PM

Quote :

"Right now I am leaning towards ECE 303, 306, 403, and 456. I just kinda would like to get a heads up on which ECE classes are not worth taking."

I took all of these classes (took 556 instead of 456). You really won't have a very good idea of what you want to take until you take 301, 302, and 303. Personally, 403 was my favorite class I took but you won't have many other courses like it unless you take grad classes. 306 is a class that every EE should take whether they are interested in it or not. I didn't care for 456.

If I were you, I would register for whatever you think you want to take now. When the summer session is over, you will probably want to change based on which classes you liked better. Generally people who liked 301 go on to 402 and 435. People who liked 302 go on 403. If you end up liking 303, I recommend taking 422 and Dr. Barlage's microwave class as well.

[Edited on March 4, 2006 at 2:38 PM. Reason : ]

3/4/2006 2:37:24 PM

You should think about what "specialization" area you want to go into. Whether or not you want to focus on power systems, analog design, communictations, etc.

Amazing, but I'm going to be able to make it through ECE with out any power, analog design, or comp architecture classes. I definitely went down the road of 402/421/422/420, all of which are pretty mathematical. I only have a handful left to take, and I think they're going to be Optics and maybe Controls, but I'm taking that in the math department so maybe not. Who knows. Maybe 407. Ick.

3/4/2006 2:46:57 PM

Quote :

"Dr. Barlage's microwave class"

which class is that?

3/4/2006 2:47:41 PM

^^ I'm sure places like Sony Ericcson or Qualcomm would love your selection of classes.

The microwave was ECE492B when I took it but I think it changed.

3/4/2006 3:04:24 PM

402 and 421 are a complete waste of time, TRUST me

407 should not even be an EE course



Thats all ive got to say about that

[Edited on March 5, 2006 at 5:26 PM. Reason : .]

3/5/2006 5:25:37 PM

^ so which courses did you feel were most interesting/beneficial?

3/5/2006 6:44:53 PM

I agree entirely about 421 (as you know), but who did you have for 402 and why didn't you like it?

In any case, 402 is a pre-req for 420.

3/6/2006 9:21:51 AM

I don't know the numbers of the classes since I've been out of school for a while, but i wish I had taken more RF classes.

Theres a pretty big demand for people with a good understanding of RF, and its not something that a lot of people focus on in college, so you can get a big leg up in looking for a job if you have some background in it.

3/6/2006 9:27:41 AM

Barlage's Microwave class was 492B. Apparently they changed his class to 492J this semester because they now want to reserve B for biology or biomed or something.

^The only RF classes I know that NCSU offers are 549 in the Fall and 792X in the Spring. I wish they offered more classes in RF and analog circuit design, but oh well.

3/6/2006 1:06:26 PM

take:
492k- muth
492j- barlage
403- bilbro --see what snuzzbff said
^all easy, good choices, + opportunity to learn alot!

if you want a challenge, but you still have the potential to do well, take: 420,422 with alexander (u'll need 402/stat371; and 303 respectively)


good luck!

3/13/2006 2:29:10 PM

Does anyone have a course description or opinion on ECE 492V - Laser Optical Communication? Im curious on what the difference is between this and ECE 492K - Optical Communications, which includes lasers.

3/19/2006 8:40:59 PM

ECE492K basically just explains how lasers are used in optical communications as a light source. It doesnt really go into that much detail whereas 492V is all about lasers. ECE492K is basically about fiber optics

3/20/2006 1:06:11 AM

i took 492v and am in 492r with kolbas now. both great classes. kolbas is the most laid back easy to get along with teacher ive had in 5 yrs at state. 406 and 407 are easy, 404 is hard as shit. 402 is pretty good too with bilbro, nothing like 302 (least it wasnt when i took it)

3/21/2006 7:22:38 PM

^

Quote :

"402 is pretty good too with bilbro"

i think you mean ece403 with bilbro

[Edited on March 21, 2006 at 11:01 PM. Reason : ]

3/21/2006 11:00:54 PM