Chapter 17: Certificate Programs

General Information

Certificate programs are designed to provide an intensive background in a narrow area at the graduate level. At approximately one-third of the units required for a master’s degree, the certificate is designed to be completed in a much shorter period of time. These certificate programs are appropriate for students working in industry who wish to update their skills or for those interested in changing their career path.

Interdisciplinary

Certificate in Frugal Innovation

Advisor: Dr. Aleksandar Zecevic

Over the past two decades, global trends have been forcing businesses to adapt to growing consumer bases in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, which are in desperate need of low-cost and high-quality solutions to the challenges that they face. The importance of these new “economic realities” is underscored by the fact that emerging markets are expected to exceed 50% of the world’s GDP in 2017 (according to IMF estimates). In order to excel professionally in such an environment, engineers will have to be equipped with the knowledge and skill sets to appropriately define, design, and implement solutions that are not merely a “stripping down” of Western products to meet the rising demand. Industry, particularly in Silicon Valley, is becoming increasingly aware of this fact and has begun to move toward a ‘Triple Bottom Line’ approach to business, which integrates environmental, societal, and financial considerations. The Certificate in Frugal Innovation is designed to give students the ability and the tools to adapt to this new model, and to expand their understanding of the impact that engineering has on society.

This program is suitable for working professionals in a wide variety of engineering disciplines. To enroll, students must have a B.S. in Engineering from an accredited institution and should maintain a GPA of at least 3.000 in order to receive the certificate.

Program Requirements

The Certificate in Frugal Innovation entails a minimum of 16 units of coursework. It consists of an eight-unit Core and a set of electives that are organized into two groups. Students are required to take four units from Group A and another four from Group B, as described below.

Required Core Classes (8 units)

  • ENGR/GREN 336 Engineering for the Developing World (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 338 Mobile Applications and Instrumentation for Emerging Markets (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 340 Distributed and Renewable Energy for the Developing World (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 341 Innovation, Design and Spirituality

Elective Group A (4 units)

  • ENGR/GREN 304 Building Global Teams (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 342 3D Print Technology and Society (2 units)
  • ENGR 349 Ethical Decision Making for Technology Leaders  (2 units)

Elective Group B (4 units)

  • CENG 219 Designing for Sustainable Construction (4 units)
  • CSEN 389 Energy Efficient Computing (2 units)
  • ECEN 280/MECH 287 Introduction to Alternative Energy Systems (2 units)
  • ECEN 288/CSEN 282 Energy Management Systems (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 302 Managing in the Multicultural Environment (2 units)

Renewable Energy Certificate

Advisor: Dr. Maryam Khanbaghi

Renewable energy is the fastest-growing sector in California and brings together principles and practices from engineering, environmental science, and economics. Silicon Valley, the home of the world’s largest cluster of renewable energy companies and green investors, offers fertile ground to recruit career changers who wish to move into renewable energy and students who want to take advantage of the tremendous career opportunities.

The main goal of this certificate is to introduce students to the field of renewable energy. The intent is to help equip professionals in Silicon Valley with the knowledge that will help them advance in their present careers or enter the renewable energy field. To enroll in this certificate, an applicant should have a B.S. in Engineering from an accredited school and should maintain a grade point average of 3.000. As with most certificates in the Graduate School of Engineering, the requirement is 16 quarter units. Eight of these units are in Power Systems, eight units are in Renewable Energy.

Required Courses (16 units total)

Power Systems (8 units)

  • ECEN 280/MECH 287 Renewable Energy (2 units)
  • ECEN 281A Power Systems: Generation and Transmission (2 units)
  • ECEN 281B Power Systems Distribution (2 units) or ECEN 281E (4 units)
  • ECEN 285 Introduction to the Smart Grid (2 units)

Renewable Energy (8 units) 

  • ECEN 284 Solar Cell Technologies and Simulation Tools (2 units) or ECEN 380 Economics of Energy (2 units)
  • ECEN/MECH 286 Introduction to Wind Energy Engineering (2 units)
  • ECEN 287 Storage Device Systems (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 272 Energy Public Policy (2 units)

Electrical and Computer Engineering Certificates

Digital System Design

Advisor: Dr. Hoeseok Yang

This certificate program has a triple purpose: (a) to increase design skills in digital system development, (b) to strengthen fundamental knowledge of computer architecture, digital design, and embedded systems; and (c) to introduce the digital system designer to state-of-the-art tools and techniques. The program consists of the courses listed below totaling 16 units. Any change in the requirements must be approved by the academic advisor.

Required Courses (7 units)

  • ECEN 501/501L (Embedded Systems) 3 units
  • ECEN 511 Advanced Computer Architecture (2 units)
  • ECEN 603 Logic Design Using HDL (2 units)

Elective Courses (9 units)

  • ECEN 387 VLSI Design I (2 units)
  • ECEN 388 VLSI Design II (2 units)
  • ECEN 500 Logic Analysis and Synthesis (2 units)
  • ECEN 502 Real Time Systems (2 units)
  • ECEN 503 Hardware-Software Co-design (2 units)
  • ECEN 512 Advanced Computer Architecture II (2 units)
  • ECEN 513 Parallel System Architectures (2 units)
  • ECEN 530 Hardware Security and Trust (2 units)
  • ECEN 601 Low Power Designs of VLSI Circuits and Systems (2 units)
  • ECEN 608 Design for Testability (2 units)
  • ECEN 613 SoC (System-on-Chip) Verification (2 units)

Integrated Circuit Design and Technology

Advisors: Dr. Shoba Krishnan, Dr. Cary Yang, Dr. Mahmudur Rahman

The study of integrated circuits consists of three interconnected areas: Design, Devices, and Process Technology. This certificate provides the necessary fundamentals in these areas and advanced concepts and applications in integrated circuit design, devices, and process technology. The program will also introduce the IC designer to state-of-the-art tools and techniques. The program consists of the courses listed below; students are required to complete a total of 16 units. Any change in the requirements must be approved by the academic advisor.

Required Courses (8 units)

  • ECEN 252 Analog Integrated Circuits I (2 units)
  • ECEN 261 Fundamentals of Semiconductor Physics (2 units)
  • ECEN 270 Introduction to IC Materials (2 units)
  • ECEN 387 VLSI Design I (2 units)

Elective Courses (8 units)

  • ECEN 251 Transistor Models for IC Design (2 units)
  • ECEN 253 Analog Integrated Circuit Design (2 units)
  • ECEN 254 Advanced Analog Integrated Circuit Design
  • ECEN 264 Semiconductor Device Theory I (2 units)
  • ECEN 265 Semiconductor Device Theory II (2 units)
  • ECEN 267 Device Electronics for IC Design (4 units)
  • ECEN 271 Microsensors: Components and Systems (2 Units)
  • ECEN 274 Integrated Circuit Fabrication Processes I (2 units)
  • ECEN 275 Integrated Circuit Fabrication Processes II (2 units)
  • ECEN 351 RF Integrated Circuit Design (2 units)
  • ECEN 352 Mixed Signal IC Design for Data Communications (2 units)
  • ECEN 353 DC to DC Power Conversion (2 units)
  • ECEN 361 Nanoelectronics
  • ECEN 388 VLSI Design II (2 units)

Digital Signal Processing and Machine Learning

Advisors: Dr. Maria Kyrarini, Dr. Tokunbo Ogunfunmi, Dr. Sally Wood

This certificate program provides a basic understanding of digital signal processing theory, machine learning, and modern implementation methods as well as advanced knowledge of at least one specific application area. Digital signal processing and machine learning have become important across many areas of engineering, and this certificate prepares students for traditional or novel applications. This certificate can be earned with a combination of in-person and online courses.

Required Courses (11 units minimum)

  • ECEN 233 Digital Signal Processing I (2 units)
  • ECEN 520 and ECEN 520L Introduction to Machine Learning (3 units)
  • At least one course from: AMTH 210 Probability I or AMTH 245 Linear Algebra I or AMTH 370 Optimization Techniques (2 units)
  • At least one course from: ECEN 223 Digital Signal Processing System Development (4 units) or ECEN 226 Machine Learning and Signal Processing Using FPGAs (2 units) or ECEN 234 Digital Signal Processing II (2 units)
  • At least one course from: ECEN 421 Speech Processing I or ECEN 640 Digital Image Processing I (2 units) or both ECEN 521 Deep Learning (2 units) and 521L Deep Learning Laboratory (1 unit)
  • Note: ECEN 233E Digital Signal Processing I, II (4 units) is equivalent to both ECEN 233 and ECEN 234.

Elective Courses (Additional courses to make a total of 16 units) selected from the list below or from any courses in the list above that are not used to meet the specified certificate requirements:

  • ECEN 243 Digital Communications Systems (2 units)
  • ECEN 244 Information Theory (2 units)
  • ECEN 334 Introduction to Statistical Signal Processing (2 units)
  • ECEN 422 Speech Coding II (2 units)
  • ECEN 431 Adaptive Signal Processing I (2 units)
  • ECEN 522 Reinforcement Learning (2 units)
  • ECEN 523 Natural Language Processing with Deep Learning (2 units)
  • ECEN 643 Digital Image Processing II (2 units)
  • ECEN 644 Computer Vision I (2 units) or ECEN 645 Computer Vision II (2 units)

Digital Signal Processing Theory

Advisors: Dr. Tokunbo Ogunfunmi, Dr. Sally Wood

This certificate program provides a firm theoretical grounding in the fundamentals of digital signal processing (DSP) technology and its applications. It is appropriate for engineers involved with any application of DSP who want a better working knowledge of DSP theory and its applications. A novel feature of the program is a hands-on DSP hardware/software development laboratory course in which students design and build systems for various applications using contemporary DSP hardware and development software.

Required Courses (8 units)

  • AMTH 308 Theory of Wavelets (2 units) or AMTH 358 Fourier Transforms (2 units)
  • ECEN 233E or ECEN 233 and 234 Digital Signal Processing I, II (4 units)
  • ECEN 334 Introduction to Statistical Signal Processing (2 units)

Elective Courses (8 units)

  • ECEN 223 Digital Signal Processing System Development (4 units)
  • ECEN 226 Machine Learning and Signal Processing Using FPGAs (2 units)
  • ECEN 235 Estimation I (2 units)
  • ECEN 241 Introduction to Communications (2 units)
  • ECEN 244 Information Theory (2 units)
  • ECEN 336 Detection (2 units)
  • ECEN 431 Adaptive Signal Processing I (2 units)
  • ECEN 640 Digital Image Processing I (2 units)
  • ECEN 641 Image and Video Compression (2 units)
  • ECEN 643 Digital Image Processing II (2 units

Fundamentals of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Advisor: Dr. Shoba Krishnan

This certificate has been designed for those individuals who have significant work experience in some area of electrical and computer engineering and wish to take graduate-level courses but may lack some prerequisite knowledge because they have not earned a BS degree in electrical and/or computer engineering. This one-year program consists of 16 to 28 units, depending on the background of the individual student, and covers electrical and computer engineering core areas. Units from courses at or above the 200 level may be credited toward the Master of Science Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering after successful completion of the certificate.

The specific required courses for a certificate are selected with the help of the program advisor according to the student’s background.

  • ECEN 21 Introduction to Logic Design (4 units)
  • ECEN 50 Electric Circuits I (4 units)
  • ECEN 100 Electric Circuits II (4 units)
  • ECEN 104 Electromagnetics I (4 units)
  • ECEN 110 Linear Systems (4 units) or ECEN 210 (2 units)
  • ECEN 115 Electronic Circuits I (4 units) or ECEN 250 (2 units)
  • ECEN 120 Microprocessor System Design (4 units)

RF and Applied Electromagnetics

Advisor: Dr. Kurt Schab

The purpose of this certificate is to meet the increasing need for knowledge in microwave, antenna, and RF integrated circuits in existing electronic products. This program is offered to students who have a B.S. in Electrical Computer Engineering. Students are expected to have knowledge of multivariate calculus and preferably partial differential equations and they must ensure that they have prerequisites for the courses in their program.

The curriculum consists of 16 units: two required courses (4 units) and 12 units of elective courses listed below:

Required Courses (4 units)

  • ECEN 201 Electromagnetic Field Theory I (2 units)
  • ECEN 701 Microwave System Architecture (2 units)

Elective Courses (12 units)

  • ECEN 202 Computational Electromagnetics (2 units)
  • ECEN 203 Bio-Electromagnetics (2 units)
  • ECEN 204 Magnetic Circuits for Electric and Autonomous Vehicles (2 units)
  • ECEN 351 RF Integrated Circuit Design or ECEN 354 Advanced RFIC Design (2 units each)
  • ECEN 624 Signal Integrity in IC and PCB Systems (2 units)
  • ECEN 706 Microwave Circuit Analysis and Design (2 units) (Passive Component)
  • ECEN 711 Active Microwave Devices I or ECEN 712 Active Microwave Devices II (2 units each) (Active Components)
  • ECEN 715 Antennas I or ECEN 716 Antennas II (2 units each)
  • ECEN 726 Microwave Measurements, Theory and Tech (3 units) (Laboratory Oriented)

Substitutions for these courses are only possible with the approval of the certificate advisor and the chair.

Mechanical Engineering Certificates

Department Chair: Dr. Michael Taylor

Design and Manufacturing; Dynamics and Controls; Mechanics and Materials; Mechatronic Systems Engineering; Thermofluids and Energy as well as general mechanical engineering. The certificate program is designed for working professionals, who would like to deepen their understanding in disciplinary subjects and apply the knowledge to real engineering problems. One can receive a certificate in Mechanical Engineering by taking 16 units of Mechanical Engineering graduate courses with a minimum GPA of 3.00 and a grade of C or better in each course. Candidates for a certificate in a specific concentration area must take at least 8 units of core courses from the concentration area, which is listed under the section “Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering” in Chapter 14: Department of Mechanical Engineering of this Bulletin. Applicants must have completed an accredited bachelor’s degree program in Mechanical Engineering or a closely related field of engineering. Up to 16 units earned in a certificate can be transferred toward another advanced degree program at SCU if they are accepted to the M.S. program.

Robotics and Automation Certificate Program

Advisor: Dr. Christopher Kitts

This certificate program provides a graduate-level introduction to the theoretical knowledge and the practical skills necessary to excel in the growing, interdisciplinary fields of robotics, autonomous systems, intelligent machines, and smart products. The program is offered to students with an undergraduate degree in a field of engineering or related area. Students should also have an academic background or demonstrate proficiency in computer programming, basic electrical circuit design, basic mechanical design, and system dynamics. The curriculum consists of 16 units: three required courses (7 units) and 9 units of elective courses listed below:

Required Courses (7 units)

  • MECH/ECEN 207 Advanced Mechatronics I (3 units)
  • MECH/ECEN 337 Robotics I (2 units)
  • MECH/ECEN 338 Robotics II (2 units)

Elective Courses (9 units)

  • BIOE 277 Biosensors (2 units)
  • CSEN 240 Machine Learning (4 units)
  • CSEN 266 Artificial Intelligence (4 units)
  • CSEN 344 /ECEN 644 Computer Vision I (2 units)
  • CSEN 345 /ECEN 645 Computer Vision II (2 units)
  • ECEN 331(L) Autonomous Driving Systems (2 units w/optional 1-unit Lab)
  • ECEN 520(L) Intro to Machine Learning (2 units w/optional 1-unit Lab)
  • MECH 208 / ECEN 461 Adv Mechatronics II (3 units)
  • MECH 323 Modern Control Systems I (2 units)
  • MECH 324 Modern Control Systems II (2 units)
  • Up to 2 units of experiential research and design work: MECH 290 Graduate Research Project (1-2 units)
  • Up to 4 units of mathematics selected from the following courses:
    (1)     AMTH 245 Linear Algebra I (2 units)
    (2)     AMTH 246 Linear Algebra II (2 units)
    (3)     AMTH 247 Linear Algebra I & II (4 units)
    (4)     AMTH 210 Probability I (2 units)
    (5)     AMTH 211 Probability II (2 units)
    (6)     AMTH 212 Probability I & II (4 units)
  • Up to 2 units of coursework relating to business, societal and/or ethical issues:
    (1)     CSEN 288 Software Ethics (2 units)
    (2) EMGT 292 Managing Capital Assets in the Smart Machine Era (2 units)
    (3) ENGR/GREN 342 3D Print Technology and Society (2 units)
    (4) ENGR /GREN 344 Artificial Intelligence and Ethics (2 units)

Substitutions for these courses are possible with the approval of the certificate advisor.

Online Graduate Certificate in Robotics and Automation

Advisor: Dr. Christopher Kitts

This certificate program provides a graduate-level introduction to the theoretical knowledge and practical skills necessary to excel in the growing, interdisciplinary fields of robotics, autonomous systems, intelligent machines, and smart products. The program is offered to students with an undergraduate degree in a field of engineering or related area. Students should also have an academic background or demonstrate proficiency in computer programming, basic electrical circuit design, basic mechanical design, and system dynamics. This is an online version of the Certificate in Robotics and Automation, intended to support the needs of remote and international students. The Certificate is ideal for professionals wishing to enhance their knowledge of this emerging engineering area as well as for remote students interested in completing the Certificate prior to enrolling in the in-person M.S. Degree in Robotics and Automation. The curriculum consists of 16 units: three required courses (7 units) and 9 units of elective courses listed below. These courses may be taken online or in person. For students who are completely remote, 4 units of coursework will generally be available during each quarter of the academic year, and only a subset of the elective courses listed below may be available:

Required Courses (7 units):

  • MECH/ECEN 207 Advanced Mechatronics l (3 units)
  • MECH/ECEN 337 Robotics l (2 units)
  • MECH/ECEN 338 Robotics II (2 units)  

Elective Courses (9 units):

  • BIOE 277 Biosensors (2 units)
  • CSEN 240 Machine Learning (4 units)
  • CSEN 266 Artificial Intelligence (4 units)
  • CSEN 344/ECEN 644 Computer Vision I (2 units)
  • CSEN 345/ ECEN 645 Computer Vision II (2 units)
  • ECEN 331(L) Autonomous Driving Systems (2 units w/optional 1 unit Lab)
  • ECEN 520(L) Intro to Machine Learning (2 units w/optional 1 unit Lab)
  • MECH 217 Introduction to Control Systems (2 units)
  • MECH 208 / Elen 461 Adv Mechatronics II (3 units)
  • MECH 323 Modern Control Systems I (2 units)
  • MECH 324 Modern Control Systems II (2 units)
  • MECH 379 Satellite Operations (1 unit)
  • Up to 2 units of experiential research and design work: MECH 290 Graduate Research Project (1-2 units)
  • Up to 4 units of mathematics selected from the following courses:
    (1) AMTH 245 Linear Algebra I (2 units)
    (2) AMTH 246 Linear Algebra II (2 units)
    (3) AMTH 247 Linear Algebra I & II (4 units)
    (4) AMTH 210 Probability I (2 units)
    (5) AMTH 211 Probability II (2 units)
    (6) AMTH 212 Probability I & II (4 units)
  • Up to 2 units of coursework relating to business, societal and/or ethical issues:
    (1) CSEN 288 Software Ethics (2 units)
    (2) ENGR/GREN 342 3D Print Technology and Society (2 units)
    (3) ENGR 344/GREN Artificial Intelligence and Ethics (2 units)
    (4) EMGT 292 Managing Capital Assets in the Smart Machine Era (2 units)

Substitutions for these courses are possible with the approval of the certificate advisor.