Assistant Professor Shaolan Li giving a lecture on analog chip testing. Li developed the new course with Texas Instruments as part of ECE's Curriculum Partnership Initiative.
To meet the challenges of a growing skills gap and the increasing demand for electrical and computer engineers, the Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) has created the Curriculum Partnership Initiative (CPI), a program designed to enhance industry expertise in academic environments.
“We are acutely aware of how rapidly our field evolves," said Arijit Raychowdhury, Steve W. Chaddick School Chair of ECE. "A collaborative model with industry leaders is essential to meet the fast-paced demands of industry and best prepare future leaders. The CPI allows us to stay ahead by ensuring our curriculum is both current and forward-thinking, and providing our students with the tools and experiences they need to thrive in their careers."
The CPI serves as a platform for companies to contribute to course development and curriculum by supporting ECE faculty, teaching assistants, and typical course-related expenses. Beyond financial support, it offers pathways for students to receive direct access to industry experts in the form of mentorships, networking events, guest lectures, and more. Company collaborators can also offer access to industry-standard tools and methodologies.
Familiarity with industry experts and resources is intended to shorten the ramp-up time, which is the period it takes for new employees to become fully productive in their roles. By reducing this period, recent graduates entering tech careers can make meaningful contributions from day one, according to Raychowdhury.
"Our students are already reaping the benefits of this initiative," he said. "They find that this hands-on approach not only prepares them for their future careers but also deepens their understanding of essential engineering principles."
The CPI places a significant emphasis on bolstering the domestic semiconductor workforce, which the Semiconductor Industry Association projects will grow nearly 115,000 jobs by 2030. With 2,762 students enrolled and 841 degrees awarded in the 2023-24 academic year, Georgia Tech ECE is one of the largest programs in the country and well-positioned to address this demand.
Curriculum Partnership Initiative
ECE has introduced the Curriculum Partnership Initiative (CPI), a strategic industry-academia engagement model, to ensure a highly skilled workforce by providing students with hands-on learning, industry-standard tools, and real-world problem-solving experiences
"Working on industry-aligned projects in class was incredibly valuable and raised the stakes,” said recent ECE graduate Ethan Weinstock, who currently works at NVIDIA. “It taught me the schedule, tone, and expectations of working in industry. The experience significantly benefited my transition to a working engineer."
Currently, ECE is working on collaborative opportunities with industry leaders in areas such as digital design (Apple), analog design (Texas Instruments), glass-based packaging (Absolics), 3D heterogeneous integration (GlobalFoundries), and satellite communications (Intelstat).
Some of the first success stories highlighting the benefits of the CPI are the School’s new digital and analog "tapeout" courses, developed in partnership with Apple and Texas Instruments (TI), respectively. Tapeout refers to the final stage of the integrated circuit design process, where the completed design is sent to the fabrication facility for manufacturing. The academia-industry courses offer undergraduate students an opportunity to explore the intricacies of the complete circuit design cycle—from system specification and architectural design to fabrication and testing.
"Providing courses of this caliber requires significant investment and effort," said Professor Visvesh Sathe, who designed and instructs ECE’s digital tapeout course. "The success of these hands-on opportunities underscores the strategic and intentional synergy among instructors, students, and industry collaborators. Our students emerge from these courses uniquely well-prepared through rigor and practice, demonstrating the true value of this collaborative effort."
The success has led to stronger industry collaborations, including Georgia Tech joining the Apple's New Silicon Initiative (NSI) in late 2024. The NSI extends beyond a single course, providing ECE students with various modes of support to learn directly from Apple engineers and enhance their skills in microelectronic circuits and hardware design.
Expanding on this early foundation, future CPI areas of focus look to include circuits and systems for sensing and communication, computer architecture, intelligent platforms, machine learning, packaging, and more.
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