2005 IRISH SCIENTIST YEAR BOOK

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University College Dublin
Tom Brazil
Successful Engineering Summer School at UCD

Fourteen Transition Year Students with an aptitude for maths and an interest in engineering spent a week (13th�17th June 2005) at an engineering summer school in the Department of Electrical/Electronic Engineering in UCD. The students were nominated by their maths or science teachers to take part in the Summer School, which is now in its second year.


Image shows two of the Summer School '05 participants with the robot they built

Facilitated by post-graduate tutors, the students attended lectures and carried out experiments in Biomedical Engineering, Speech and Image Processing and Optoelectronics. They visited several high tech facilities such as the ESB National Control Centre, Bell Labs Ireland, and Intel. By the end of the week, the students designed and built their own robots using Lego Mindstorm� Kits. The robots competed against each other on a number of challenges and several prizes, including iPods, were awarded to the students with the most innovative designs.

The initiative is part of the Engineering Community Outreach Programme, designed to popularise science and technology and to attract second level students to careers in Electrical/Electronic Engineering

Speaking about the initiative, Dr John Sheridan said: "It is difficult for students at second level to be certain of the choices they make on their CAO form. By creating these links with secondary schools we can ensure that students with a high level of ability in maths are equipped to make a well-informed decision about pursuing a degree in Electronic/Electrical Engineering. We hope that this initiative will encourage students to apply for the degree programme and maintain a steady stream of high-calibre graduates to cater for the needs of the market."

The Summer School is one of a number of pro-active initiatives introduced by the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering to tackle the falling number of graduates which is insufficient to serve market demands. These include offering maths grinds to Leaving Cert students who have chosen Electrical/ Electronic Engineering. It has also developed a mentoring programme for all first year undergraduate students to assist them in making the transition from a school to a university structure. In addition, students who choose to specialise in Electrical Engineering, are offered a high spec laptop at a significantly reduced price.

Electrical/Electronic Engineering is a four-year degree course in UCD. In 2004, 330 points were required for entry, as well as a B3 in higher-level maths. Students complete two common years of the course, before electing to specialise in electrical or electronic engineering. Students qualify with a B.E., which is a globally recognised professional engineering qualification. According to a survey carried out by the Employment Policy Foundation in the US, electrical engineering is the third highest paying profession in the United States, awarding an average salary $112,000 per annum. Graduates can expect a starting salary of approx �25,000 here in Ireland, which usually rises over five to eight years to between �50,000��80,000.

The Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Summer School Programme 2005 was sponsored by Enterprise Ireland, Intel and the Institution of Electrical Engineers.

For more information please visit eleceng.ucd.ie/summerschool/index.html

Contact: Department of Electronic Engineering, UCD,
Belfield, Dublin 4;
Tel: 01 716 1909; E-mail: [email protected]; Web: eleceng.ucd.ie