r/ECE • u/shockdrift • 7h ago

UNIVERSITY ASU or UND for Online ECE Undergrad

Hello!

I'm between University of North Dakota and Arizona State University for an online BS in ECE (2nd bachelors). From the course lists, I like UND's curriculum better. It's very comprehensive and they offer many of the kinds of courses I'm interested in, along with hands-on learning, which ASU does not. However, they don't have any syllabus online so I'm not exactly sure what the actual course content is.

As for ASU, I've heard many good things from people who graduated from the program. ASU also seems to be more intentional about their approach to online education, have lots of info available online (such as actual course syllabi), and seem more attractive to employers. The program also takes less time.

I'm wondering if anyone has attended either of these programs and if they can talk about their experience with them?

P.S. My end goal is a career in R&D involving analog/mixed-signal circuit design, embedded sys, and/or power electronics.

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u/NewSchoolBoxer 6h ago

and seem more attractive to employers

There are plenty of recruiters who will reject your application for doing the BS online. It's their job to notice even though it's the same degree. Online has zero admissions standards and you never touch a professional lab. Not saying people don't get hired but you're at a disadvantage, especially if you aren't attending the in-person career fairs. Every internship and job offer I had stemmed from career fairs.

If your goal is R&D then you should not be going online for the BS. MS online is common but the average student did the BS in-person.

All that said, just do what you like better or what's cheaper. Also, don't be so sure what you want to do before studying EE. What I liked the most, I didn't know existed until junior year. Power gave me the best job offer and I wasn't against it. 2nd BS is desirable for getting an ABET degree. I'd say obligatory if your BS isn't math, physics or maybe computer science.

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u/shockdrift 6h ago

I appreciate the advice! I would also prefer to do it in person, but I work full time and would not be able to take scheduled classes so this is the best option I have. Perhaps when the time for a masters comes, I will be able to take it in person.

I live near a makerspace and am willing to invest in a homelab that's as professional as i can afford. Do you think independent projects or research can convince recruiters even though a degree is online?

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u/DreamingAboutSpace 6h ago

If you work full-time, an ECE degree will eat you alive.

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u/shockdrift 6h ago

It does seem hard but it can be done. I'm single and don't have kids and my job is strictly 9-5, M-F so now is the time to do it.

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u/DreamingAboutSpace 4h ago

Same, no kids, 8-4, M-F. But just one of the engineering fields is hard enough. This one has two. I got swamped so easily and knew I had to give one of them up. All it takes is one slip up and you can end up behind. For me, that was Calc 2.

I hope you have better luck than I did, though. Please test it out with free online ECE courses. Cornell has one and so does MIT.

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u/mushroom_counsel 3h ago

My dad did a full time EE degree in the 80s while working full time, hard manual labor overnight, graduated with a 3.7.