Events Calendar

Balancing Depth and Breadth in Undergraduate EE Program - Thoughts from Both Sides of the Interview Table

Speaker: Bilal Zafar, Qualcomm, Inc.

Talk Title: Balancing Depth and Breadth in Undergraduate EE Program - Thoughts from Both Sides of the Interview Table

Abstract: In The Uses of the University, Clark Kerr argued that one of the biggest challenges for research universities is to improve the quality of undergraduate education. Specifically, Kerr challenged, "how to prepare the generalist as well as the specialist in an age of specialization looking for better generalizations". In the 50 years since Kerr wrote those words, the question has undoubtly gained further importance, especially in rapidly advancing fields like Electrical and Computer Engineering where the industry demands a highly-trained, yet flexible, workforce that can deliver value to the company instantly and adapt continuously.
In this talk, I will talk about this tension between breadth and depth in EE programs and share thoughts on how rapidly popularizing online educational resources (like Coursera, and Udacity) can be instrumental in finding the right balance for students and faculty. I will outline my experience and accomplishments as an educator – from a co-author of children books, to a Teaching Assistant Fellow and instructor -- and what I learned from some harsh comments from my students along the way. The talk will conclude with a short introductory lecture on Computer Architecture.

Biography: Bilal Zafar is a Senior Engineer at Qualcomm Inc. in San Diego, CA. At Qualcomm, Dr. Zafar is part of the Foundation IP team where he leads research and development initiatives related to memories and interconnects. Before joining Qualcomm, he was as a post-doctoral research assistant at the Information Sciences Institute, working on a point design for an Exascale super computer. Concurrently, he was a part-time lecturer at the Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical Engineering where he taught EE 352 – an undergraduate class in computer architecture for students majoring in CS (Games). Dr. Zafar earned his PhD and MS from the Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical Engineering in 2011 and 2002, respectively.

Host: Computer Engineering

Location: Hughes Aircraft Electrical Engineering Center (EEB) - 248

Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

Contact: Annie Yu