Alumni

We are deeply saddened to share the news of the passing of Dr. Robert (Bob) H. MacPhie, an internationally recognized researcher in antennas and propagation, and a cherished former member of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Dr. MacPhie earned his PhD from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in 1963 and joined the University of Waterloo shortly thereafter as an Assistant Professor in the Electrical Engineering Department (now the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering). He was promoted to Associate Professor in 1966 and to Professor in 1971. After a distinguished career spanning more than three decades, he retired in 1996 and was later named a Distinguished Professor Emeritus.

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering is pleased to announce that Zahra Dehghani Tafti, an incoming PhD student, has been selected as the sole Faculty of Engineering recipient of the Maks Wulkan Graduate Scholarship for Fall 2025.

Dr. Tejinder Singh, an electrical and computer engineering alum from the University of Waterloo, has been awarded the prestigious title of Distinguished Engineer at Dell Technologies. This recognition highlights his ground-breaking contributions to the company’s AI roadmap and his transformative work within the tech industry. The Distinguished Engineer title, one of Dell’s highest honors, is typically reserved for individuals with over 12-15 years of experience at the company and an advanced degree. Dr. Singh’s rapid rise to this prestigious elected position, after joining Dell only three years ago, speaks volumes about his extraordinary talent and technical leadership.

Nicolas Quintana (BASc ‘24, electrical and computer engineering), crossed the stage at convocation this year cheered on by his family of University of Waterloo alumni and ex-faculty.

In this Q&A, Quintana shares highlights from his student experience, and how his family’s close ties to each other and to Waterloo helped set him up for success.