Electrical, computer, and cyber security engineering undergraduate degree requirements consist of five components: the basic engineering program, departmental core curriculum courses, general elective courses, technical electives, and other remaining courses.
Electrical engineering students must earn 128 credits, computer engineering students must earn 127 credits, and cyber security engineering students must earn 125 credits in order to graduate. For software engineering degree requirements, see the Software Engineering program website.
- Basic Program Requirements
- Core Courses
- General Education Requirements
- Technical Elective Requirements
- Other Remaining Courses
Basic Program Requirements
The basic program consists of courses that all engineering students must take. Students must have at least a 2.0 GPA within the basic program courses and a 2.0 cumulative GPA at Iowa State in order to take core engineering courses and graduate with an engineering degree from Iowa State.
BASIC PROGRAM COURSES (24 CREDITS):
- Math 1650: Calculus I and Math 166: Calculus II
- Engl 1500: Critical Thinking and Communication (see details on English Proficiency Requirements)
- Chem 1670: General Chemistry for Engineering Students or Chem 1770: General Chemistry
- CprE 1850: Introduction to Computer Engineering and Problem Solving I or EE 1850: Introduction to Electrical Engineering and Problem Solving I (Engr 1600 is also accepted)
- Phys 2310 & 2310L: Introduction to Classical Physics I
- Engr 1010: Engineering Orientation
- Lib 1600: Library Instruction
Core Courses in Electrical, Computer, and Cyber Security Engineering
The core courses are the foundation classes that all students must take to graduate with a degree in computer engineering (CprE), cyber security engineering (CybE) or electrical engineering (EE) at Iowa State. Students must have at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA in the core courses to graduate with an engineering degree.
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING CORE COURSES (41 CREDITS):
- CprE 2810: Digital Logic
- CprE 2880: Embedded Systems I: Introduction
- EE 2010: Electric Circuits
- EE 2240: Signals and Systems I
- EE 2300: Electronic Circuits and Systems
- EE 2850: Problem Solving Methods and Tools for Electrical Engineering
- EE 3030: Energy Systems and Power Electronics
- EE 3110: Electromagnetic Fields and Waves
- EE 3220: Probabilistic Methods for Electrical Engineers
- EE 3210: Communication Systems I or EE 3240: Signals and Systems II
- EE 3300: Integrated Electronics or EE 3320: Semiconductor Materials and Devices
COMPUTER ENGINEERING CORE COURSES (33 CREDITS):
- CprE 2810: Digital Logic
- CprE 2880: Embedded Systems I: Introduction
- CprE 3080: Operating Systems: Principles and Practice
- CprE 3100: Theoretical Foundations of Computer Engineering
- CprE 3810: Computer Organization and Assembly Level Programming
- ComS 3090: Software Development Practices
- ComS 3110: Design and Analysis of Algorithms or CprE 3150x: Applications of Algorithms in Computer Engineering
- EE 2010: Electric Circuits
- EE 2300: Electronic Circuits and Systems
CYBER SECURITY ENGINEERING CORE COURSES (37 CREDITS):
- CybE 2300: Cyber Security Fundamentals
- CybE 2310: Cyber Security Concepts and Tools
- CybE 2340: Legal, Professional, and Ethical Issues in Cyber Systems
- CybE 3310: Application of Cryptographic Concepts to Cyber Security
- CprE 2810: Digital Logic
- CprE 2880: Embedded Systems I: Introduction
- CprE 3080: Operating Systems: Principles and Practice
- CprE 3100: Theoretical Foundations of Computer Engineering
- CprE 3810: Computer Organization and Assembly Level Programming
- ComS 3090: Software Development Practices
- ComS 3110: Design and Analysis of Algorithms or CprE 3150x: Applications of Algorithms in Computer Engineering
General Education Requirements
Both Iowa State University and industry want our graduates to be well-rounded professionals who can interact with their coworkers, business clients, and society. General education electives are an important part of your electrical or computer engineering degree program. These courses can help you develop or expand skills necessary to achieve success within both industry and society.
All general education electives must be reviewed with an academic advisor and/or faculty mentor. If you have transferred general education courses from another institution, you should discuss the general education requirements with your academic advisor to ensure all requirements have been met.
GENERAL EDUCATION COURSE REQUIREMENTS (15 CREDITS):
- 3 credits of U.S. Diversity
- 3 credits of International Perspectives
- 6 credits at 3000-level or higher
- English 2500: Written, Oral, Visual, and Electronic Composition
- English 3140: Technical Communication
In addition, general education courses do not include:
- courses in engineering, physical sciences, mathematics, or computer science
- “trade” courses (such as music lessons and groups, applied arts, physical education, etc.)
- remedial courses
- courses taken on a Pass/Not Pass basis
Please check the General Education List list to ensure the course(s) you wish to take will be accepted.
Technical Elective Requirements
Technical electives are courses that allow for more in-depth study in a specialty area of your choice. All technical electives must be taken from an approved list of computer engineering technical electives or electrical engineering technical electives. For technical elective lists for current or past course catalogs, see Flowcharts and Technical Electives Lists.
COMPUTER ENGINEERING TECHNICAL ELECTIVE COURSES (21 CREDITS):
- At least 9 credits of CprE electives
- 6 credits of Computational Thinking Electives
- 6 credits of Tech Electives
In addition, computer engineering students may declare a CprE Supplemental Area of Focus, which will help determine which technical electives the student should take. See the Supplemental Focus Areas for Computer Engineering list (PDF) for details.
CYBER SECURITY ENGINEERING TECHNICAL ELECTIVE COURSES (21 CREDITS):
- At least 12 credits of Cyber Security Electives
- 3 credits of Computer Engineering Tech Electives
- 6 credits of Tech Electives
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING TECHNICAL ELECTIVE COURSES (18 CREDITS):
- 12 credits in EE or CprE (including one approved sequence)
- 6 credits from EE, CprE, or non-EE/CprE technical electives
Other Remaining Courses
In addition to basic program, core curriculum, and other required electives, students must take certain engineering, math, physical science, computer science, and English courses in order graduate.
Examples of those courses are below:
- Math 2650: Calculus III
- Math 2670: Elementary Differential Equations and Laplace Transforms
- Math 2070: Matrices and Linear Algebra
- Phys 2320 : Introduction to Classical Physics II (Electrical Engineering Majors only)
- EE/CprE 4910: Senior Design Project I and Professionalism
- EE/CprE 4920: Senior Design Project II
- I E 3050: Engineering Economic Analysis
Students may also obtain credit for seminars, co-ops, and internships, but no internship/co-op is required in order to graduate.