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Information for Prospective Students

Welcome to Electrical and Computer Engineering at Waterloo

Start in Fall 2012 to Graduate with the Class of 2017!

Thank you for your interest in studying electrical and computer engineering here at the University of Waterloo. In 1957, 75 prospective students wrote an admissions examination to begin studying engineering at the Waterloo College Associate Faculties. One of those five founding programs was Electrical Engineering. Four months after starting their studies, they became the first class in Canada to take a term of co-operative studies, joining the industrial world in a supervised environment to gain practical real-world experience to complement what they had learned in the classroom. Since then, the faculties have evolved into the University of Waterloo and the Faculty of Engineering has never looked back on its decision to use co-operative education in all of its programs to foster both academic and practical education in its students.

"For me, what sets the University of Waterloo apart is the way it is constantly evolving. Waterloo seems to focus on delivering innovative ways to apply the theories students are learning through clubs, student teams, design projects and work placements."
Adam Schubert (alumnus)

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The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering provides support for five different degree programs: Computer, Electrical, Mechatronics, Nanotechnology, and Software Engineering. Our two core programs offer Bachelor of Applied Sciences in Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering.

"Information technology has become an integral part of society. While completing my computer engineering degree, I focused much of my energy working with Engineers Without Borders, a national organization whose mandate is to promote human development through access to technology. My work with this organization has challenged me to match the problem solving and technical skills I acquired as an engineer with my profound interest in International affairs in order to apply them to global, social and environmental issues."
- Sonya Konzak (alumna)

What is Electrical and Computer Engineering?

The field of electrical and computer engineering is multi-disciplinary and based on foundations in science, mathematics, and computing—both hardware and software. The Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering programs span the field in slightly different ways to give students a deep base of core knowledge with the ability to specialize in one or more target areas. The department has identified ten overlapping target areas in the discipline:

  1. Communications, modulation and coding, multimedia, and wireless;
  2. Networks, mobility, and distributed computing;
  3. Energy distribution, motors/generators, power electronics, and energy marketing;
  4. Control, automation, robotics, and mechatronics;
  5. Digital architectures, embedded computers, and formal specification and design;
  6. Analog or digital devices, circuits, VLSI, and micro-/nano-fabrication methods;
  7. Microwave (radio frequency) or photonic devices and systems;
  8. Signal processing, computational intelligence, and soft computing;
  9. Software systems, components, security, and embedded software; and
  10. Software engineering, requirements specification, software architectures, and verification.

Common elements of mathematics, science, and computing permeate these areas and tie them together with a concentration on engineering science (analysis) and engineering design (synthesis).

"I encourage all students to get involved with something. Whether it's EngSoc, a student team, a club or a sport, the experience gained from participating in an extracurricular activity is just as valuable as the education you gain during your time in Waterloo Engineering. You'll have a chance to develop your leadership skills, your teamwork skills and your communication skills (to name a few). These skills, with the technical knowledge you'll gain at Waterloo will help prepare you for a successful career."
- Ruth Anne Vanderwater (alumna)

What Differentiates Electrical and Computer Engineering?

Computer Engineering puts relatively more emphasis on digital hardware, software systems, and networks. Electrical Engineering puts relatively more emphasis on microwave/photonic systems, devices/fabrication, and power. The programs are structured to make it easy to transfer from one to the other if the student develops interests for which this would be the best path.

Ready for the Next Step?

Visit the Faculty of Engineering's Prospective Students page and then visit The Next Step for Applicants for information about application documents and important dates.

If you are interested in transferring to either of the Electrical or Computer Engineering Programs at the 2A level or higher from another Engineering Department at the University of Waterloo or requesting advanced admission from another Engineering program at another university, please see the Transfers and Advanced Admissions page. For a transfer or advanced admission to either 1A or 1B, see the above link.

The left- and right-hand menus list a variety of links within the University of Waterloo which may be of interest to you.

"I choose the ECE Department because although I loved computers, I didn't want to be writing code all day. The Computer Engineering program combined just the right amount of software know-how and electrical background to give me a solid foundation to specialize in whatever I choose to do in the future. The set-up is also really nice: Unlike many other universities, most of my classes are taken with the same group of really bright people, so you get to know all of them really well; this makes it much easier to forge bonds that may one day be the start of a great business. Through my four years at UW, I have also found that the material you learn at UW is practical, focuses on innovation and has an effective blend of theory; nothing feels better than applying what I learnt at school to pull off my next move to impress my boss."
- James Goh (alumnus)