Chapter 6: Graduate Core Requirements and Graduate Engineering

Santa Clara Engineering offers a wide range of general Graduate Engineering courses, of which the majority are designated with the prefix ENGR/GREN. Note that some ENGR/GREN courses are not included as part of the graduate core but are designed to be elective courses that are accessible to and of interest to students from many engineering programs. This includes the Co-op Education Courses ENGR/GREN 289 and ENGR/GREN 389. The Graduate Core is one of the distinguishing features of the Master’s program at Santa Clara University. Because of its breadth and interdisciplinary nature, the Graduate Core requires courses that transcend departmental boundaries, and address questions that relate to the societal impact of engineering, as well as ways in which this impact can be shaped.

The Graduate Core is required for all M.S. degree-seeking students in all departments and programs in the School of Engineering. The components that are associated with this requirement are designed to broaden the scope of the student’s knowledge and develop professional skills essential for operating effectively in a global environment including the ability to communicate clearly, to function on interdisciplinary and diverse teams, and to make ethically and socially responsible decisions.

All core courses must be taken at SCU and transfer credit cannot be approved for core courses. B.S./M.S. students may start to take the core courses while they are undergraduate students.

In order to fulfill the Graduate Core requirement, students must take one course selected from each of the following two areas:

  • Engineering and Society
  • Professional Development

Below are the lists of all classes approved for the graduate core in these two areas. Please check our current student resources on our graduate engineering website for the most current list of Graduate Core classes.

GRADUATE CORE AREAS AND TOPICS

Engineering and Society

  • BIOE 210 Ethical Issues in Bioengineering (2 units)
  • CSEN 269 Computing for Good: Project Design and Implementation (2 units)
  • CSEN 288 Software Ethics (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 245 Innovation, Entrepreneurship and the Evolution of Silicon Valley (3 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 272 Energy Public Policy (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 303 Gender and Engineering (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 336 Engineering for the Developing World (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 337 Social Entrepreneurship- Innovating with Impact (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 342 3D Print Technology and Society (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 344 Artificial Intelligence and Ethics (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 345 Space Ethics (2 units)

Professional Development

  • ENGR/GREN 269 Human Resources Development and the Engineering Manager (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 270 Effective Oral Technical Presentations (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 271A. Effective Written Technical Communication I (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN  271B. Effective Written Technical Communication II (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 285 Managing Business Relationships (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 302 Managing in the Multicultural Environment (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 304 Building Global Teams (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 306 Engineering and the Law (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 330 Law, Technology, and Intellectual Property (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 332 How Engineers, Businesspeople, and Lawyers Communicate With Each Other (3 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 349 Ethical Decision Making for Technology Leaders (2 units)
  • ENGR/GREN 358 Global Technology Development (2 units)        
  • ENGR/GREN 373 Technology Entrepreneurship (2 units)

Course Descriptions

ENGR/GREN 245. Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and the Evolution of Silicon Valley

This course will explore technological innovation by studying the evolution of technologies and industries in Silicon Valley. We will review the development of fundamental technologies such as vacuum tubes, semiconductors, and biotechnology, and systems such as radar, communications, aerospace, personal computing, the internet, social media, and platforms. This approach will help students to understand 1) the defining features of this region and how it has continued to lead in global technology development even as the fundamental technologies have changed, and 2) the complexity of the innovation process and the influence of the public sector, academia, investors, and other entities on innovation and entrepreneurship. Also listed as ENGR 145. (3 units)

ENGR/GREN 256. Introduction to NanoBioengineering

This course is designed to present a broad overview of diverse topics in nanobioengineering, with an emphasis on areas that directly impact applications in biotechnology and medicine. Specific examples that highlight interactions between nanomaterials and various biomolecules will be discussed, as well as the current status and future possibilities in the development of functional nanohybrids that can sense, assemble, clean, and heal. Also listed as BIOE 256. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 257. Introduction to Biofuels Engineering

This course will cover the basic principles used to classify and evaluate biofuels in terms of thermodynamic and economic efficiencies as well as environmental impact for resource recovery. Special emphasis will be placed on emerging applications, namely Microbial Fuel Cell Technology and Photo-bioreactors. Also listed as BIOE 157/257. Prerequisite: BIOE 21 or BIOL 1B, CHEM 13, PHYS 33. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 260. Nanoscale Science and Technology

Overview of key elements of physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering underlying this interdisciplinary field. Bulk vs. surface properties of materials. Surface phenomena and quantum phenomena. Self-assembly and soft lithography. Nanoscale materials characterization. Carbon nanotubes, inorganic nanowires, organic molecules for electronics, biological and bio-inspired materials. Applications of nanoscale materials. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 261. Nanotechnology and Society

Addresses the fundamental scientific and technological underpinnings of the important field of nanotechnology. Examines how our understanding and our technological capabilities have evolved over the past century, and how nanotechnology proposes new applications that can address social and economic goals. An appreciation of the interaction between these goals and the evolution of technology is central to the course. Students will develop critical thinking about the prospects for nanotechnology in order to be able to assess the relevant ethical and social issues, and also the possibility and/or likelihood of the development of specific applications. (4 units)

ENGR/GREN 269. Human Resource Development and the Engineering Manager

Provides concepts of human resource management in tech companies, including staffing, performance management, people development, compensation, and benefit strategies. Also explores the meaning of work, the individual and organization behaviors, growth and learning, the manager’s role in career/life management, corporate cultures, as well as the development of major management theories. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 270. Effective Oral Technical Presentations

Role of communications in the workplace, persuasive communications, organizing and leading meetings, interviewing skills, and delivering effective technical presentations to large and small groups. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 271A. Effective Written Technical Communication I

Cluster writing; pyramid technique; audience analysis; opening, body, and end of text; technical correspondence; abstracts and summaries; presentation patterns for reports and proposals; proposal presentation. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN  271B. Effective Written Technical Communication II

Intensive writing practicum, overview of writing, mechanics of style, editing techniques, digital communications. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 272. Energy Public Policy

The class will survey the types of energy used historically from traditional biomass to coal, to natural gas, to nuclear and renewables, as well as the increasingly diverse possibilities for future use discussed in current policy debates. Coverage will also include a historical review of regulation and policy in the energy industry. The geographic scope will be international. The field of energy analysis and policy is inherently interdisciplinary. Prerequisite: ECEN  280/MECH 287. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 285. Managing Business Relationships

Leadership skills taught to develop and leverage key relationships in one’s own organization, including person-to-person (manager), group-to-group (director), and company-wide (executive) relationship management strategies. Learn to develop and manage interaction models, dependency analyses, and team structures. Develop people skills and techniques to manage outsourcing, partnerships, joint development strategies, and change management. Calibration and driving key metrics as part of the ability to influence across one's network. High class participation using group exercise, combined with practical training methods. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 289. MS Co-op Education

Students who wish to do an academic internship must be enrolled in this class. The course may be taken for credit up to three times, and students are required to submit a final report in each quarter in which they are enrolled. The final report should focus on skills, experiences, and insights that they acquired in the current term. In order to get a passing grade, students must also submit a supervisor report, which evaluates their performance during the most recent ten-week period. Please note that F-1 student visa requirements for this course include the completion of three full-time academic quarters in the current degree program. Prerequisite: At least one Graduate Core course completed or in progress and a minimum 3.000 cumulative GPA.

ENGR/GENG 293. Directed Research

Special research directed by a faculty member. By arrangement. Registration requires the faculty member’s approval. (1–6 units per quarter)

ENGR/GREN 302. Managing in the Multicultural Environment

Provides practical, theoretical, and experiential tools to manage a multicultural workforce. Cases from Silicon Valley engineering environments will be studied. Topics will include (1) insights into various cultures’ approaches to time, information, planning, decision-making, relationships, power, and change; (2) developing leadership, motivation, and participation in multicultural teams; (3) creating an environment that maximizes the benefits of diversity and retains workers from a variety of cultural backgrounds; (4) resolving conflict when there are different cultural approaches; and (5) the role of corporate culture for multicultural and global companies. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 303. Gender and Engineering

This course, based on brain science, culture, and communication, provides a foundation for managing the different worlds—the various cultural lenses, paradigms, and different competencies—many women and men bring to an engineering workplace. Gender Competence, effective management of differences increases “fire prevention,” customer focus, and innovation in research, development, and marketing of products; and advancement of both women and men. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 304. Building Global Teams

Challenges of working virtually and globally. Building global teams. Working across cultures and distances; achieving goals while managing differences. Diverse approaches to managing task, time, and hierarchy. Social interactions and decision-making. Culture’s impact on teamwork. Global leader dimensions. Trust building. Empowering self and others. Business practices in China, India, Russia, and other countries. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 306. Engineering and the Law

Exploration of legal issues affecting project engineers, contractors, and owners. Topics include structure of project teams, contracts, standard of care, insurance, and dispute resolution. Evolving legal issues with Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) and Building Information Modeling (BIM). (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 330. Law, Technology, and Intellectual Property

Study of available legal provisions for establishing, receiving, preserving, and enforcing intellectual property rights in research, development, engineering, and marketing of products. Includes a study of patents, trade secrets, copyrights, mask works, trademarks, and employer-employee contracts regarding intellectual property. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 332. How Engineers, Businesspeople and Lawyers Communicate with Each Other

It can be challenging to communicate and collaborate effectively with people from different disciplines. This course will help students from business, engineering, and law learn to understand each other’s perspectives, speak each other’s language, and work together effectively in a collaborative environment. Students from different schools will be organized into teams to work together on a simulated project involving a technological matter, such as privacy/security or IP. Also listed as LAW 371. (3 units)

ENGR/GREN 336. Engineering for the Developing World

How does one innovate products and services for developing countries? How can complex problems be tackled with simple technologies and low-cost business models? This course presents a framework of engineering design and management techniques that are appropriate for developing markets. Topics such as “ruggedization,” cost control, and local resource use will be explored through a variety of examples and case studies, which range from alternative energy and low-cost diagnostics to mobile applications and micro-entrepreneurship. This course examines the potential social benefits that design, manufacturing, and business innovation can provide to address various challenges in the developing world. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 337. Innovating with Impact - Social Entrepreneurship

Social Entrepreneurship is a rapidly growing discipline that harnesses the power of leadership, entrepreneurship, business, and social impact to address society's most pressing social challenges. This course is designed for students who want to explore and analyze social enterprises and gain in-depth insights into economic and social value creation across several different sectors including poverty alleviation, financial services, energy, and sustainability. In this class, students will also compare various social ventures and their approaches and learn to analyze and evaluate their impact, and formulate possible improvements to their models. Through case studies, lectures, classroom dialogue, and individual assignments, students will learn the root causes of social problems, and how to use the tools of business to create financial, social, and environmental value. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 338. Mobile Applications for Emerging Markets

The mobile revolution is changing the lives of people across the globe, from Wall Street to Main Street to rural villages. This course will provide an overview of the technological innovation, including applications and instrumentation, which the mobile revolution is spawning, particularly in underserved communities globally. It will feature guest speakers from technology companies involved in Mobile R&D, look at market and beneficiary needs, and discuss how to innovate products and services for these customers and how to tackle complex “life” problems with simple technologies, applications, and business models, using real-life case studies. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 340. Distributed & Renewable Energy

This course surveys energy engineering and entrepreneurship in emerging market countries, with an emphasis on strategies for coping with the absence of a grid. It analyzes strategies for energy generation, transmission, and storage at household, community, and regional scales drawing from sector and case studies in the developing world. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 342. 3D Print Technology and Society

This class is designed to introduce students to 3D print technology, which offers a range of exciting possibilities for product design, delivery, and democratization of entrepreneurship. Along with hands-on experience of the technology, students will be exposed to the ecosystem engaged by the technology. Implications for life sciences, career opportunities, entrepreneurship, and restructuring of global markets and society will be examined. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 344. Artificial Intelligence and Ethics

Will artificial intelligence and machine learning save humanity and create heaven on Earth? Or will it take away what makes us human or even kill us? Or somewhere in between? This course takes a broad perspective on some of the ethical issues related to AI and ML. It will explore ethical reasoning and application to AI and ML technologies. Numerous case studies will make sure the theoretical ethical level of the course always remains connected to the concrete experience of AI and ML as practiced in the world. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 345. Space Ethics

Space: the final frontier for ethics. As humankind and our machines leave Earth, we open up potential problems that are literally larger than our planet. This class will look at ethical issues including whether we should go to space at all, the effects of space on human health, the dangers of space debris, war in space, asteroid risks, the search for extraterrestrial life and intelligence, responsible exploration, new players in space, long duration spaceflight, settlements in space, and terraforming planets. Every topic will include case studies and practical ethical tools for resolving not only ethical issues in space but much more typical ethical issues to be found on Earth as well, especially involving emerging technologies. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 349. Ethical Decision Making for Technology Leaders

Designed to create a holistic understanding of leadership, through readings, discussions, and case studies, students will learn to integrate key leadership concepts from psychology, ethics, political science, philosophy, and sociology. Students will be able to characterize their individual approaches to leadership and learn to adapt it to changes resulting from globalization and advancing technology. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 350. Success in Global Emerging Markets

Strategies and tactics for moving new products and technologies into global emerging markets, comprehending cultural impact, and creating new markets. Understanding your company’s objective, determining what is possible, and developing practical go-to-market strategies. Topics include new ventures, sustainability, social responsibility, risk assessment, and mitigation. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 358. Global Technology Development

Global markets present growth opportunities for both business and professionals. Approaches the development of global technology from the perspective of the engineering manager engaged as either part of a large corporate team or as an entrepreneur in a small business. Skills for characterizing, developing, and leveraging trending technology and risk management tools, as well as diversified cultures and global resources. Approaches include formal methodologies and practical lessons learned from industry. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 371. Space Systems Design and Engineering I

A review of the engineering principles, technical subsystems, and design processes that serve as the foundation of developing and operating spacecraft systems. This course focuses on subsystems and analyses relating to orbital mechanics, power, command and data handling, and attitude determination and control. Note: ENGR 371 and 372 may be taken in any order. Also listed as MECH 371. (4 units)

ENGR/GREN 372. Space Systems Design and Engineering II

A review of the engineering principles, technical subsystems, and design processes that serve as the foundation of developing and operating spacecraft systems. This course focuses on subsystems and analyses relating to mechanical, thermal, software, and sensing elements. Note: ENGR 371 and 372 may be taken in any order. Also listed as MECH 372. (4 units)

ENGR/GREN 373. Technology Entrepreneurship

Designed for students who are interested in starting their own venture as well as those working for a start-up company. Students will discover the process of moving from an idea to making a profit. Topics will include idea development, intellectual property, forming a team, obtaining funding, start-up logistics, executing your plan, and finding customers. Understanding the steps, risks, and pitfalls to avoid in starting a high-tech business can help in being better prepared for launching a successful technology venture. (2 units)

ENGR/GREN 389. Ph.D. Co-op Education

Ph.D. students who have passed their comprehensive examination and have the approval of their doctoral advisor may enroll in this class. The course may be taken for credit up to three times, and students are required to submit a final report in each quarter in which they are enrolled. The final report should focus on skills, experiences, and insights that they acquired in the current term. In order to get a passing grade, students must also submit a new supervisor report, which evaluates their performance during the most recent ten-week period. Please note that F-1 student visa requirements for this course include the completion of three full-time academic quarters in the current degree program. Prerequisite: Admitted to Ph.D. candidacy by passing the Comprehensive Exam and a minimum 3.000 cumulative GPA. (1 unit)