What Kind Of Major Do I Need?

[JoeRoccoCassara]

For integrated circuit design, would I need to major in Electronic Engineering? Or is IC Design a Major in and of itself?

Edited October 1, 2012 by The Transhumanist

[maddog]

For integrated circuit design, would I need to major in Electronic Engineering? Or is IC Design a Major in and of itself?

I think this question is a little more complicated than that. A dominant fact needed to know first is what institution are planning to be at. If that answer is somewhere close, then where is that? The easy to answer part is such a program is most likely a four-year accredited college. A Trade school like DeVry or ITT-Tech will get you the experience to be a technician in this field (not an engineer).

 

In general, IC design is a branch of science that straddles both Physics (Solid State) and Electrical Engineering. To do well, you will need both. You could major in either one and take a lot of classes as elective in the other. For Physics the crucial classes would be Thermodynamics, Quantum Mechanics, Solid State Physics.

This would give you the depth in the theory to design circuits. If you are more interested the process than the theory behind the process, then EE is more your suit.

 

Of course with either you will need a lot of mathematics - say Calculus, Linear Analysis, Differential Equations, Fourier Analysis, maybe Linear Algebra.

 

As for whether IC Design is a major on its own - that would definitely depend on the university you intend to study at. That might be a specialization in EE for a Masters degree.

 

Good Luck! :D

 

maddog