If you are from the Class of 2014 or later, this page does not apply to you. Technical Breadth Electives are only relevant to Computer Engineering students up to the Class of 2013.
This page applies only to students who had completed the majority of their program under the old Electrical or Computer Engineering program and for some reason did not graduate with your original class.
Each Computer Engineering student graduating with the Classes of 2008-13, in addition to the required six technical electives (TEs), must complete two Technical Breath Electives (TBEs). These courses are meant to ensure that each Computer Engineering student has sufficient breadth or scope of knowledge in electrical and computer engineering beyond the discrete and digital world; that is, to ensure that a Computer Engineering student is not a Software Engineering student and is instead knowledgeable of some aspect of electrical engineering.
Note that:
- No double counting between TBEs, TEs, and CSEs is allowed.
- Many courses that have been approved as TBEs have prerequisites. Some of those prerequisites may be Core Courses in the Computer Engineering Program, others prerequisites may themselves count as TBEs, but others may have to be taken as Extra Courses (i.e., they don't count towards your degree).
- The department reserves the right to cancel courses if there is insufficient pre-enrollment.
- You should use an Elective Approval Form if you wish to request another course as a TBE.
- The course PHYS 258 may be used as a TBE only through a special approval. Please talk to your Academic Advisor.
There are many possible Technical Breadth Electives which a student can take. These are summarized in Table 1.
Table 1. Technical Breadth Elective courses for Computer Engineers.
| Terms Available* | Non-Core Prerequisites | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ECE 309 | Introduction to Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer | WS | |
| ECE 231 | Electronic Devices | SF | |
| ECE 331 | Electronic Circuits | WS | |
| ECE 332 | Electronic Circuits | FW | ECE 231 |
| ECE 261 | Energy Systems | SF | |
| ECE 362 | Modeling and Control of Electric Drives | FW | |
| ECE 370 | Electromagnetic Fields | WS | MATH 212 |
| ECE 471 | Electromagnetic Waves | S | ECE 370 |
| PSYCH 256/ PHIL 256 | Introduction to Cognitive Science | See Calendar description. | |
| ECE 411 | Digital Communications | S | |
| ECE 414 | Wireless Communications | W | ECE 411 |
| ECE 415 | Multimedia Communications | W | |
| ECE 418 | Communications Networks | S | |
| ECE 419 | Communication System Security | S | |
| ECE 432 | Radio Frequency Wireless Microelectronics, Optoelectronic Semiconductor Integrated Circuit & Sensor | S | either ECE 231 or ECE 331 |
| ECE 433 | Semiconductor Device Technology | W | either ECE 231 or ECE 331 |
| ECE 444 | Integrated Analog Electronics | W | |
| ECE 445 | Integrated Digital Electronics | S | either ECE 231 or ECE 331 |
| ECE 462 | Electrical Distribution Systems | S | either ECE 261 or ECE 361 |
| ECE 463 | Design & Applications of Power Electronic Converters | S | either ECE 261 or ECE 361 |
| ECE 464 | High Voltage Engineering and Power System Protection | W | either ECE 261 or ECE 361 |
| ECE 467 | Power System Analysis, Operations and Markets | W | either ECE 261 or ECE 361 |
| ECE 473 | Radio Frequency and Microwave Circuits | S | MATH 212 and either ECE 370 or ECE 375 |
| ECE 474 | Radio and Wireless Systems | W | MATH 212 and either ECE 370 or ECE 375 |
| ECE 477 | Radio Frequency Systems | W | MATH 212 and either ECE 370 or ECE 375 |
| ECE 481 | Digital Control Systems | S | |
| ECE 486 | Robot Dynamics and Control | S | |
| ECE 488 | Multivariable Control Systems | W | |
With the new program, seven of these courses will be replaced or removed. Table 2 shows the corresponding courses in the new program which may be used in place of the courses listed above. You cannot take both the listed course and its replacement to satisfy a technical breadth elective.
Table 2. Replacement courses for technical breadth electives in the new program.
| Listed Course | Last Taught | Replacement Course | First Taught | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ECE 309 | Spring 2011 | no replacement |
ME
250F,S
or
SYDE
381S
are acceptable with approval from your Academic Advisor | |
| ECE 231 | Fall 2010 | ECE 331 | Winter 2012 | |
| ECE 332 | Winter 2012 | ECE 242 | Spring 2011 | |
| ECE 261 | Fall 2010 | ECE 361 | Fall 2012 |
There
is
only
core
power
course in the new program. |
| ECE 362 | Winter 2012 | |||
| ECE 370 | Spring 2011 | ECE 375 | Winter 2012 | |
| ECE 471 | Spring 2012 | ECE 475 | Spring 2013 |
Computer Engineering students may also take at most one course from each of Tables 3 and 4, assuming they are still offered.
Table 3. Mechanical Systems.
| Terms Available* | Non-Core Prerequisites | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ME 321 | Kinematics and Dynamics of Machines | See Calendar description. | |
| SYDE 382 | Modeling and Simulation of Mechanical Systems | See Calendar description. | |
Table 4. Electromechanical Systems.
| Terms Available* | Non-Core Prerequisites | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ECE 362 | Modeling and Control of Electric Drives | FW | - |
| ME 269 | Electromechanical Devices and Power Processing | See Calendar description. | |
* The availability of some of these courses depends on whether the CE cohort is on-stream with an EE cohort. For example, a CE student on-stream with an EE cohort could also take ECE 261 in 2B with the EE class, however, a CE student off-stream with an EE cohort would have to take the course either during a Co-op Work Term or in a future Academic Term (possibly, for example, in 3BQ).
The courses listed as TBEs may be grouped as follows:
| Electronics Courses | ECE 231, ECE 332 |
| Energy-systems Courses | ECE 261, ECE 362 |
| Electromagnetics Courses | ECE 370, ECE 471 |
Thus, you may wish to focus your technical breadth electives in one area, for example, energy-systems.
ECE 370-ECE 471
Students wishing to take ECE 370 and ECE 471 must usually take MATH 212 as an extra course in 2nd year (it is a prerequisite for ECE 370), then ECE 370 in your third year (it is a prerequisite for ECE 471) and then finally ECE 471 in your 4th year.
Technical Breadth Electives and Technical Electives Overlap
Each of the four courses ECE 309, ECE 332, ECE 362, and ECE 471 may be counted as either a TE or a TBE for Computer Engineering students, however, none of them may be counted asboth a TE and a TBE.
Approving Alternate Technical Breadth Electives
If you would like to take a course and have it count as a TBE but it does not appear under the appropriate list in the Undergraduate Calendar, you may request to have the course approved. Please fill in an Elective Approval Formand submit it to your Academic Advisor before you take the course. Please note, however, that the course must demonstrate breadth in electrical engineering.
If the course is a graduate-level ECE course, please consult with the Professor to ensure that the courses is not equivalent to an already-existing 4th-year ECE course.
Courses from other engineering departments may also be acceptable as TBEs.
Courses NOT Allowed as TBEs
The following courses are not allowed as Technical Breadth Electives: KIN 341, SCI 238, ACTSCI 223, CS 241, CS 432 and all MSCI courses.