Electrical and Computer Engineering

The first study year is characterized by a university-specific offering of disciplinary education that builds on and expands upon the students’ entrance qualifications. Students select introductory modules for a total of 45 CP from the CHOICE area of a variety of study programs, of which 15-45 CP will belong to their intended major.

To pursue ECE as a major, the following CHOICE modules (45 CP) need to be taken as mandatory modules:

• CHOICE Module: General Electrical Engineering I (m, 7.5 CP)
• CHOICE Module: General Electrical Engineering II (m, 7.5 CP)
• CHOICE Module: Classical Physics (m, 7.5 CP)
• CHOICE Module: Digital Systems and Computer Architecture (m, 7.5 CP)
• CHOICE Module: Programming in C and C++ (m, 7.5 CP)
• CHOICE Module: Foundations of Communications and Electronics (m, 7.5 CP)

In their second year, students take a total of 45 CP from a selection of in-depth, discipline-specific CORE modules. Building on the introductory CHOICE modules and applying the methods and skills acquired so far, these modules aim to expand the students’ critical understanding of the key theories, principles, and methods in their major for the current state of knowledge and best practice.

ECE students take the following mandatory CORE modules:

• CORE Module: Signals and Systems (m, 7.5 CP)
• CORE Module: Digital Signal Processing (m, 7.5 CP)
• CORE Module: Communications Basics (m, 5 CP)
• CORE Module: Electromagnetics (m, 5 CP)
• CORE Module: Electronics (m, 5 CP)
• CORE Module: Wireless Communication (m, 5 CP)
• CORE Module: Information Theory (m, 5 CP)
• CORE Module: PCB design and measurement automation (m, 5 CP)

Since Electrical and Computer Engineering has a strongly sequential structure where course contents build onto each other, ECE students will not have the option of a minor in another study program within the 180 CP required for the Bachelor’s degree.

Students prepare and make career decisions after graduation during their third year. They take a mandatory summer internship to explore options fitting individual interests and gain professional experience.

The 5th semester also opens a mobility window for comprehensive study-abroad options. Finally, the 6th semester is dedicated to fostering students' research experience by involving them in an extended Bachelor thesis project.

To pursue ECE as a major, at least 10 CP from the following mandatory major-specific Specialization Modules need to be taken:

• ECE Specialization: Wireless Communication II (me, 5 CP)
• ECE Specialization: Coding Theory (me, 5 CP)
• ECE Specialization: Digital Design (me, 5 CP)
• ECE Specialization: Radio-Frequency (RF) Design (me, 5 CP)

A maximum of 5 CP can be taken from major-related modules instead of major-specific Specialization Modules:

• RIS Specialization: Optimization (me, 5 CP)
• PHDS Specialization: Nanotechnology (me, 2.5 CP)
• PHDS Specialization: Advanced Optics (me, 2.5 CP)

As part of Constructor University's commitment to student employability, all students are required to participate in a mandatory two-month internship of 15 CP that will usually be completed during the summer between the second and third year of study. It provides students with the opportunity to gain real-world experience in a professional setting, allowing them to apply their knowledge and understanding to a professional context, reflect on the relevance of their major to employment and society, and gain professional guidance. As an alternative to the full-time internship, students interested in setting up their own company can apply for a start-up option to focus on the development of their business plan.

The CONSTRUCTOR Track is another important feature of Constructor University’s educational model. The Constructor Track runs orthogonal to the disciplinary CHOICE, CORE, and CAREER modules across all study years and is an integral part of all undergraduate study programs. It provides an intellectual tool kit for lifelong learning and encourages the use of diverse methodologies to approach cross-disciplinary problems. The CONSTRUCTOR track contains Methods, New Skills and German Language and Humanities modules.

Methods
Methods and skills such as mathematics, statistics, programming, data handling, presentation skills, academic writing, and scientific and experimental skills are offered to all students as part of the Methods area in their curriculum. The modules that are specifically assigned to each study programs equip students with transferable academic skills. They convey and practice specific methods that are indispensable for each students’ chosen study program. Students are required to take 20 CP in the Methods area. The size of all Methods modules is 5 CP.

To pursue ECE as a major, the following Methods modules (20 CP) need to be taken as mandatory modules:

• Methods Module: Matrix Algebra & Advanced Calculus I (m, 5 CP)
• Methods Module: Matrix Algebra & Advanced Calculus II (m, 5 CP)
• Methods Module: Probability and Random Processes (m, 5 CP)
• Methods Module: Numerical Methods (m, 5 CP)

New Skills Modules
This part of the curriculum constitutes an intellectual and conceptual tool kit that cultivates the capacity for a particular set of intellectual dispositions including curiosity, imagination, critical thought, and transferability. It nurtures a range of individual and societal capacities, such as self-reflection, argumentation and communication. Finally, it introduces students to the normative aspects of inquiry and research, including the norms governing sourcing, sharing, withholding materials and research results as well as others governing the responsibilities of expertise as well as the professional point of view. Students in this study program are required to take the following modules in their second and third year:

• New Skills Module: Logic (m, 2.5 CP)
• New Skills Module: Causation and Correlation (m, 2.5 CP)
• New Skills Module: Argumentation, Data Visualization and Communication (m, 5 CP)

Furthermore, they must choose either

• New Skills Module: Linear Model/Matrices (me, 5 CP) or
• New Skills Module: Complex Problem Solving (me, 5 CP)

as well one of the following modules:

• New Skills Module: Agency, Leadership and Accountability (me, 5 CP) or
• New Skills Module: Community Impact Project (me, 5 CP).

German Language and Humanities Modules
German language abilities foster students’ intercultural awareness and enhance their employability in their host country. They are also beneficial for securing mandatory internships (between the 2nd and 3rd year) in German companies and academic institutions. Constructor University supports its students in acquiring basic as well as advanced German skills in the first year of the Constructor Track. Non-native speakers of German are encouraged to take 2 German modules (2.5 CP each), but are not obliged to do so. Native speakers and other students not taking advantage of this offering take alternative modules in Humanities in each of the first two semesters.

The curriculum of the study program is outlined in the schematic study plan:

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