Electrical Engineering, Bachelor of Science

Overview

The Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department takes a human-centric approach to research and education, with a focus on applications in speech processing, medical imaging, bio-photonics, computer-integrated surgery, renewable energy, human inspired electronic systems for perception and cognition, and other cutting-edge technologies that address real-world problems. Our courses cover wide-ranging topics in three broad areas: signal, systems, and control; electro-physics; and computational systems.

Mission

The Electrical Engineering Program at Johns Hopkins is supported by faculty in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering who are committed to providing a rigorous educational experience that prepares students for further study and to professionally and ethically practice engineering in a competitive global environment. Electrical Engineering is concerned with a wide variety of topics in signals, systems and communications, photonics and optoelectronics, and computer engineering. The mission of the program is to provide students with a broad, integrated education in the fundamentals and advanced topics in computer engineering, basic sciences, mathematics, and humanities in an environment that fosters the development of analytical, computational, and experimental skills, and that involves students in design projects and research experiences; and to provide our electrical engineering graduates with the tools, skills and competencies necessary to understand and apply today’s technologies and become leaders in developing and deploying tomorrow’s technologies.

ECE Focus Areas for Undergraduate Studies

ECE Students have a lot of flexibility as it relates to their studies. They have the ability to craft a program that is as broad or as specific as they wish. Students who want to deepen their knowledge can do so in seven different areas of the discipline. They are: 

1. Computing Systems
2. Integrated Circuits and Microsystems
3. Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence
4. Medical Imaging
5. Photonics and Optoelectronics
6. Robotics
7. Signals, Systems, and Communication

​Classes that fall under each category can be found here. 

The information below describes the academic requirements for students entering JHU as degree-seeking students in Fall 2024.  Students who entered JHU as degree-seeking students prior to Fall 2024 should view the appropriate archived catalogue.

Students must meet the University requirements and the Whiting School of Engineering requirements (see Requirements for a Bachelor's Degree in this catalogue), as well as the departmental major requirements, to complete a bachelor’s degree.

The Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering requires 126 credits.

The ECE department recognizes students with exemplary academic records by awarding Departmental Honors to students with a Grade Point Average of 3.50 or higher in courses used to satisfy the  Electrical Engineering Requirements. 

UNIVERSITY AND WSE SCHOOL REQUIREMENTS

These requirements are described in this section of the catalogue. 

First-Year Seminar (FYS)

All students entering Hopkins from high school are required to complete a First-Year Seminar with a Satisfactory (S) grade in their first year of study. First-Year Seminars are offered only with the Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grading system; they are not offered for letter grades.

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
One FYS course		2-3
Total Credits		2-3

Writing Intensive for BS in Electrical Engineering 

A grade of C- or higher is required. No Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grades will be accepted. Courses must be at least 3 credits each and courses applied here may also be used towards satisfying the Distribution requirement.

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Two Writing Intensive (W) courses 1		6
Total Credits		6

¹

A recommended course, EN.661.315 Culture of the Engineering Profession, can be used to fulfil three requirements: Writing Intensive, Distribution, and Ethics. 

Distribution for BS in Electrical Engineering  

Courses must be at least 3 credits each and may overlap with the Writing Intensive requirement. Elementary language courses, which do not carry an area designator, can be used to satisfy the Distribution requirement for engineering students.

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Six Humanities (H) or Social Science (S) courses that are comprised of the following:		18
Three H or S courses at any level
Two H or S Breadth & Depth courses at any level 1
One H or S Breadth & Depth course at 300-level or higher 1
Total Credits 2		18

¹

Breadth & Depth courses must have a thematic connection and must be from the same department. 

²

A recommended course, EN.661.315 Culture of the Engineering Profession, can be used to fulfil three requirements: Writing Intensive, Distribution, and Ethics. 

MAJOR REQUIREMENTS

MATHEMATICS

A grade of D or higher is required. No Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) grade will be accepted. 

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
AS.110.109	Calculus II (For Physical Sciences and Engineering)	4
AS.110.202	Calculus III	4
or AS.110.211	Honors Multivariable Calculus
AS.110.201	Linear Algebra	4
or EN.553.295	Linear Algebra for Data Science
AS.110.302	Differential Equations and Applications	4
EN.553.311	Intermediate Probability and Statistics	4
or EN.553.420	Probability
Total Credits		20

BASIC SCIENCES

A grade of D or higher is required. No Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) grade will be accepted. If a requirement is waived and no credits are awarded, students must take additional N courses to reach 16 credits of Basic Sciences. 

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
AS.030.101	Introductory Chemistry I	3
AS.171.101	General Physics: Physical Science Major I	4
or AS.171.107	General Physics for Physical Sciences Majors (AL)
AS.171.102	General Physics: Physical Science Major II	4
or AS.171.108	General Physics for Physical Science Majors (AL)
AS.173.111	General Physics Laboratory I	1
AS.173.112	General Physics Laboratory II	1
Natural Science elective with N, EN, or QN area designation(s) 1		3
Total Credits		16

¹

Courses coded as NS are not allowed. Introduction to Computing courses may not be used to fulfill the requirement.

ETHICS REQUIREMENT

A grade of D or higher is required. No Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) grade will be accepted. 

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Complete one course from the following:		3
EN.660.310	Cases in Workplace Ethics 1
EN.660.455	Reimagining The City to Resist Climate Change 1
EN.660.463	Engineering Management & Leadership 1
EN.661.315	Culture of the Engineering Profession 2
Total Credits		3

¹

EN.660.310 Cases in Workplace Ethics, EN.660.455 Reimagining The City to Resist Climate Change, and EN.660.463 Engineering Management & Leadership can be used to fulfill two requirements: Distribution and Ethics.

²

EN.601.315 Databases can be used to fulfill three requirements: Writing Intensive, Distribution, and Ethics.

PROGRAMMING REQUIREMENT 

A grade of D or higher is required. No Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) grade will be accepted. 

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
EN.601.220	Intermediate Programming 1	4
Total Credits		4

¹

EN.500.113 Gateway Computing: Python is preferred before taking EN.601.220 Intermediate Programming. If EN.500.112 Gateway Computing: JAVA or EN.500.114 Gateway Computing: Matlab are taken, then EN.500.133 Bootcamp: Python is required. EN.500.133 can be used towards the major requirement, even though it is offered as a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) grade. EN.500.133 can count as Computer Science credits and be used towards the 45 ECE Credits or the Other Engineering Requirement. 

The 45 required Electrical Engineering credits are comprised of ECE Courses, Advanced Labs, and ECE Electives.  A grade of D or higher is required. Students must obtain a 2.0 GPA in the Electrical Engineering Requirements. No Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) grade will be accepted.

ELECTRICAL & COMPUTER ENGINEERING (ECE) COURSES

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
EN.520.137	First Year ECE Design	4
EN.520.142	Digital Systems Fundamentals	3
EN.520.214	Signals and Systems	4
EN.520.219	Introduction to Electromagnetics	3
EN.520.230	Mastering Electronics	3
EN.520.231	Mastering Electronics Laboratory	2
EN.520.498	Capstone Design Project l	3
EN.520.499	Capstone Design Project ll	3
Total Credits		25

ADVANCED LABS

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
At least 6 credits of ECE Advanced Labs and/or Other Engineering Advanced Labs (see below for the list)		6
Total Credits		6

ECE ELECTIVES

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Additional ECE courses to reach the 45 Electrical Engineering credit requirement 1, 2		10-20
Total Credits		10-20

¹

Up to 6 credits of Computer Science (EN.601) courses may be used towards the 45 ECE credit requirement. 

²

Although EN.500.11x and EN.500.133 are General Engineering courses, they can count as Computer Science credits and be used to meet the ECE Electives or Other Engineering Courses requirements.  

OTHER ENGINEERING COURSES

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Engineering Courses outside of AMS, CLE, ECE, or Gen Eng 1, 2		0-6
Total Credits		0-6

¹

Courses must have an area E designation. Courses may be from the Krieger School of Arts & Sciences (AS.xxx) or outside of the following engineering departments/centers: Applied Math & Statistics (EN.553), Center for Leadership Education (EN.66x), Electrical & Computer Engineering (EN.520), and General Engineering (EN.500).

²

Although EN.500.11x and EN.500.133 are General Engineering courses, they can count as Computer Science credits and be used to meet the ECE Electives or Other Engineering Courses requirements.  

³

If Other Engineering Advanced Lab is taken, it can fulfill both Advanced Lab and Engineering Course outside of AMS, CLE, ECE, or Gen Eng requirements. 

FREE ELECTIVES

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Elective courses to reach 126 credits

ADVANCED LAB COURSE LISTINGS

A total of 6 credits in Advanced Lab must be taken from the ECE Advanced Labs or Other Engineering Advanced Labs lists. The Other Engineering Advanced Lab courses can also count towards the 6 credits of the Other Engineering Courses requirement. The following courses have been approved for use. 

ECE Advanced Labs

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
EN.520.363	ECE Ideation and Design Lab	3
EN.520.412	Machine Learning for Signal Processing	3
EN.520.424	FPGA Synthesis Lab	3
EN.520.433	Medical Image Analysis	3
EN.520.440	Machine Intelligence on Embedded Systems	3
EN.520.448	Electronics Design Lab	3
EN.520.450	Advanced Micro-Processor Lab	3
EN.520.454	Control Systems Design	3
EN.520.463	ECE Ideation and Design Lab	3
EN.520.483	Bio-Photonics Laboratory	3
EN.520.491	CAD Design of Digital VLSI Systems I (Juniors/Seniors)	3
EN.520.492	Mixed-Mode VLSI Systems	3
EN.520.495	Microfabrication Laboratory	4

Other Engineering Advanced Labs

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
EN.510.433	Senior Design Research	3
EN.510.434	Senior Design/Research II	3
EN.530.420	Robot Sensors/Actuators	4
EN.530.421	Mechatronics	3
EN.530.474	Effective and Economic Design for Biomedical Instrumentation	4
EN.540.418	Projects in the Design of a Chemical Car	2
EN.540.419	Projects in the Design of a Chemical Car	2
EN.540.421	Project in Design: Pharmacodynamics	3
EN.540.432	Project in Design: Pharmacokinetics	3
EN.580.311	Design Team Health-Tech Project I	4
EN.580.312	Design Team Health-Tech Project II	4
EN.580.411	Design Team Health-Tech Project I	4
EN.580.412	Design Team Health-Tech Project II	4
EN.580.437	Biomedical Data Design	4
EN.580.438	Biomedical Data Design II	4
EN.580.457	Introduction to Rehabilitation Engineering: Design Lab	3
EN.580.471	Principles of Design of BME Instrumentation	4
EN.580.480	Precision Care Medicine I	4
EN.580.481	Precision Care Medicine II	4
EN.580.493	Imaging Instrumentation	4
EN.580.571	Honors Instrumentation	2
EN.601.315	Databases	3
EN.601.411	Computer Science Innovation & Entrepreneurship II	3
EN.601.415	Databases	3
EN.601.417	Distributed Systems	3
EN.601.421	Object Oriented Software Engineering	3
EN.601.443	Security & Privacy in Computing	3
EN.601.447	Computational Genomics: Sequences	3
EN.601.451	Introduction to Computational Immunogenomics	3
EN.601.454	Introduction to Augmented Reality	3
EN.601.456	Computer Integrated Surgery II	3
EN.601.461	Computer Vision	3
EN.601.466	Information Retrieval and Web Agents	3
EN.601.468	Machine Translation	3
EN.601.471	Natural Language Processing: Self-Supervised Models	3
EN.601.476	Machine Learning: Data to Models	3
EN.601.482	Machine Learning: Deep Learning	4
EN.601.496	Computer Integrated Surgery II - Teams	3

The sample program below is very general. Sample programs with an emphasis on computing systems, integrated circuits and microsystems, machine learning & artificial intelligence, medical imaging, photonics and optoelectronics, robotics, and signals & systems can be found in the undergraduate advising manual and at https://engineering.jhu.edu/ece/academics/undergraduate-studies/degree-options/study-focus-areas-for-undergraduates/.

First Year
First Semester	Credits	Second Semester	Credits
AS.110.1091	4	AS.110.201	4
AS.171.101 or 1072	4	AS.171.102 or 108	4
AS.173.111	1	AS.173.112	1
EN.500.113	3	EN.500.132	1
EN.501.124	2	EN.520.137	4
HEART Seminar	1	EN.520.142	3
	15		17
Second Year
First Semester	Credits	Second Semester	Credits
AS.030.101	3	AS.110.302	4
AS.110.202 or 211	4	EN.601.220	4
EN.520.2193	3	EN.520.2143	4
EN.520.230	3	EN.520.216	3
EN.520.231	2
Writing Intensive (also counts as Humanities/Social Sciences)	3
	18		15
Third Year
First Semester	Credits	Second Semester	Credits
EN.520.344	3	EN.520.353	4
EN.553.311	4	ECE Elective 4	3
EN.661.315 (counts as Ethics, Writing Intensive, and Humanities/Social Sciences)	3	Basic Science Elective (N)	3
ECE Elective 2	3	Humanities/Social Sciences	3
ECE Elective 3	3	Humanities/Social Sciences	3
	16		16
Fourth Year
First Semester	Credits	Second Semester	Credits
EN.520.498	3	EN.520.499	3
Advanced Lab 15	3	Advanced Lab 25	3
ECE Elective 5	3	ECE Elective 6	2
Non-ECE Engineering Elective 1	3	Non-ECE Engineering Elective 2	3
Humanities/Social Sciences	3	Humanities/Social Sciences	3
	15		14
Total Credits 126

¹

Most students will take one of the required math courses each semester for the first two to three years. Students can adjust if they have transferred in or earned exam credits for the math courses.

²

Students beginning at the Calculus I level should discuss with the professional academic advisor when to take Physics I and lab. 

³

Although EN.520.219 Introduction to Electromagnetics and EN.520.214 Signals and Systems require AS.110.202 Calculus III as a prerequisite. Calculus III can be taken as a co-requisite. Students should keep this in mind and plan accordingly. 

⁴

Students may choose a different course to fulfill the Ethics requirement: EN.660.310 Cases in Workplace Ethics, EN.660.455 Reimagining The City to Resist Climate Change, or EN.660.463 Engineering Management & Leadership. However, they must make sure that another Writing Intensive course is taken in order to satisfy the 6 credits of Writing Intensive requirement.

⁵

Can be fulfilled by ECE Advanced Lab or Other Engineering Advanced Lab from the approved list. 

Accreditation Statement

The B.S. in Electrical Engineering program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, http://www.abet.org, under the General Criteria and the Program Criteria for Electrical, Computer, Communications, Telecommunication(s) and similarly Named Engineering Programs.

Program Educational Objectives

The Program Educational Objectives (PEOs) for electrical engineering (EE) at the Johns Hopkins University describe what EE graduates are expected to attain within a few years of graduation. The PEOs are determined in consultation with the Electrical and Computer Engineering External Advisory Committee and approved by the ECE faculty.

The educational objectives of the EE program are:

• Our graduates will become successful practitioners or innovators in engineering and other diverse careers.
• Some graduates will pursue advanced degree programs in engineering and other disciplines.

Student Outcomes

Students graduating with a B.S. in electrical engineering will have demonstrated:

1. An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics.
2. An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors.
3. An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences.
4. An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts.
5. An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives. 
6. An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions. 
7. An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

Enrollments and Graduates

Enrollment*

EN Enrollment Chart

Term	Total	First-Year	Sophomore	Junior	Senior
Fall 2017	63	13	18	20	12
Fall 2018	62	12	16	14	20
Fall 2019	64	20	10	21	13
Fall 2020	71	20	20	11	20
Fall 2021	76	19	23	20	14
Fall 2022	73	15	19	19	20
Fall 2023	83	25	19	16	23

B.S. Degrees Awarded**

EN Degrees Awarded Chart

Academic Year	Total
2017-2018	14
2018-2019	17
2019-2020	14
2020-2021	15
2021-2022	12
2022-2023	21

*

Based on Fall census each year

**

Includes August, December, and May conferrals each academic year