Executive Summary
Electronic and Computer Engineering (ECE) at Brunel is one of the largest disciplines in the University with almost 50 full-time academic staff and extensive teaching and research portfolios. The subject area is home to an undergraduate population of 600 and a postgraduate population of over 300 students.
Our IET accredited teaching provision as well as our research programmes are aimed at developing the knowledge, skills and expertise that are necessary to match the rapid increase in the industry needs for highly qualified engineers across the full breadth of Electronic and Computer Engineering as well as Digital Media Design and Technologies. Our NSS (National Student Satisfaction) scores have placed EE at Brunel in the top quartile of UK universities, hence reflecting the positive learning experience of our students.
Research activities in ECE cover a wide range of topics which have direct relevance to the industry vision and are carried out in five research centres set up around two main thematic areas namely Telecommunications and Systems. The department has an extensive research portfolio with circa £7.5M worth of ongoing research grants and contracts and is a major part of a General Engineering submission that was ranked 5th in UK in the last Research Assessment Exercise (RAE2008).
Below are some key facts about the department of Electronic and Computer Engineering in the school of Engineering and Design at Brunel University:
- Brunel University recognised as a centre of excellence in engineering and design with a strong focus on modern science and technology .
- General Engineering rated Rated 6th in the UK in the Guardian University Guide 2011.
- General Engineering research ranked 5th in the UK, Research Power. In the current Research Assessment Exercise, 95% of academics in the School achieved international standard, with 100% achieving this level in General Engineering.
- ~£7M worth of active research grants and contracts (2011) - An average annual research income of ~£2M.
- 90% of Electronic Engineering students at Brunel are satisfied for an overall satisfaction mean score of 4.4 in NSS 2011. Ranked 13th out of 60 EE departments in the last NSS (National Student Satisfaction.
- Overall student population of nearly 1000 students with an annual intake of over 200.
- Courses professionally accredited with the Institution of Engineering and Technology leading to Chartered Engineering status
- The teaching and facilities in the School were rated excellent in the last independent assessment.
- The department has strong links with industry.
- Sandwich programmes and industrial placements as well as project based learning are at the heart of our undergraduate provision. Close to 50% of our students follow sandwich programmes that involve placements with many national and multinational companies e.g. O2 Telefonica, Intel, BBC, Motorola amongst many others.
- Brunel Careers and Work Placements Award 2010 - ‘Best Placement Service’ accolade at the 2010 National Placement and Internship Awards, run by RateMyPlacement.co.uk.
- Brunel Careers and Work Placements Award 2011 – award for The University with a Forward Thinking Attitude to Work Based Learning. The award ‘celebrates the initiatives and innovations carried out by UK universities and departments in promoting the value of work based learning to students and employer, Rate My Placement Awards 2011.
- Brunel graduates enjoy high employability - 91% of Brunel’s 2010 graduates were in full-time employment, further education or a mix of the two, by the Spring of 2011 (a statistic taken from the graduates who took part in the 2010 Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey).
- Brunel graduates enjoy the 13th highest starting salaries in the UK, according to the recent Sunday Times Good University Guide. The average starting salary of £22,323 is almost £3000 more than the national average.
- Electronic and Computer Engineering graduates at Brunel also benefits from geographical proximity to most of the country’s information engineering and telecommunications industry.
- Brunel recruits from 115 countries world wide.
- Thriving Brunel Graduate School.
- Brunel is a campus-based university situated in Uxbridge, West London, and is home to nearly 15,000 students from over 100 countries worldwide. Founded in 1966, our distinctive mission is to combine teaching and research excellence with the practical and entrepreneurial approach pioneered by its namesake, Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
- Brunel is near completion of a £300 million campus redevelopment programme and now possesses an impressive range of modern, state-of-the-art facilities.
- Brunel is ideally located 17 miles to the west of the Capital, with easy access to the City on the London underground, and 20 minutes to London Heathrow airport.
