The听Board of Regents on Thursday approved a new and innovative MOOC-delivered master鈥檚 degree in electrical engineering鈥搕he first of its type in the world.
The on-demand, asynchronous, and fully online degree, to be offered by the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Energy Engineering (ECEE) within the College of Engineering and Applied Science, will provide high-quality graduate education to students around the world in response to growing workforce demand.
- Board of Regents approve first MOOC-delivered electrical engineering master鈥檚 degree in the nation
- These faculty-designed courses leverage MOOC platform technologies to offer a rigorous degree at a lower cost and an unprecedented level of flexibility
- Learn more about the latest electrical engineering MOOCs at 彩民宝典
鈥淭he MOOC-based electrical engineering master鈥檚 degree really captures the spirit of ingenuity, entrepreneurship and creativity of the faculty at 彩民宝典,鈥� said Provost Russell Moore. 鈥淚n every discipline on campus, our faculty are looking at new ways to teach and conduct research mindful of the benefits for Colorado, the nation and the world. We look forward to presenting this unique degree to the HLC for authorization听with all these benefits in mind.鈥�
This degree, which will be rolled out in phases, represents an important evolution of 彩民宝典鈥檚 2013 experiments with massive open online courses, or MOOCs. At that time, MOOCs at 彩民宝典 were largely free and non-credit bearing. MOOCs are now emerging as promising vehicles for credit-bearing educational experiences.
The MOOC-based Master of Science in Electrical Engineering leverages advanced online learning platform technologies to offer a rigorous degree at a lower cost, giving students choice in how, when and where they complete their coursework.
The degree is optimized for the modularity of MOOCs. A three-credit, semester-long on-campus course might become three or four individual month-long MOOCs, each targeting specific content areas. Students will select subjects that best fit their goals as they move through the program. This modular and stackable structure captures the curricular content of the existing on-campus master鈥檚 in electrical engineering degree but adds an unprecedented level of flexibility.
鈥淲hat excites me about this initiative is that we鈥檙e using technology thoughtfully and strategically to create something new - an online degree that doesn鈥檛 try to mimic the classroom experience,鈥� said William Kuskin, vice provost and associate vice chancellor for strategic initiatives. 鈥淲e want to use the digital environment to let learners explore a sophisticated academic curriculum at their own pace.鈥�
鈥淥ur hope is that we will deliver an online degree that can only exist in the online environment, unique to this modality, and by doing that, deliver some powerful teaching to the entire world.鈥�
The new MOOC-based degree provides a robust set of academic options for students, including 100 month-long MOOCs covering academic and professionally relevant topics in embedded systems engineering, power electronics, photonics, feedback control and digital communications, and remote sensing. As they navigate the program, students will combine individual MOOCs into thematic series, along the way looking toward 彩民宝典 graduate certificates and, eventually, the full master鈥檚 degree.
彩民宝典听faculty have custom designed each course. Courses feature in-depth video content, curated readings and resources, and assessments that challenge students to demonstrate their mastery of the subject area. Many courses bring the laboratory experience out of the Engineering Center to MOOC students around the world, inviting students to apply their knowledge using hardware and software kits at home. The curriculum pushes the limits of automation in MOOCs to scale graduate education and capture the energy of a rapidly evolving field.
鈥淭he faculty have seized the moment and created something truly imaginative,鈥� Kuskin said, 鈥渁n online degree where each course bears the idiosyncratic mark of its creator.鈥�
In a field of peer institutions working in the for-credit MOOC space鈥搃ncluding MIT, Georgia Tech and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign鈥摬拭癖Φ� takes a leadership position in the electrical engineering master鈥檚 space.听
"Expanding access to the technological world and increasing our global engagement is what our college is all about,鈥� Dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Science Bobby Braun said. 鈥淭hrough this new degree program, I鈥檓 excited to see the department leading our college and university鈥揳nd really the nation鈥搘ith this 21st century approach to education.鈥�
