The Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) department at UC Santa Cruz aims to achieve engineering discoveries that benefit humankind through a combination of curiosity, open-mindedness, and inclusiveness. We aim to provide undergraduate and graduate students with inspiration and quality education, believing that rigor, creativity, and excitement should be part of the Electrical and Computer Engineering curriculum.
Our Electrical Engineering undergraduate program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, www.abet.org. Learn more about ABET Accreditation.
#2
public university in the nation for students focused on making an impact in the world (Princeton Review, 2022)
#10
best electrical engineering master's degree school in California (College Factual, 2025)
#2
top public colleges for engineering salaries (Wall Street Journal, 2023)
Researchers run high-performing large language model on the energy needed to power a lightbulb
UC Santa Cruz researchers show that it is possible to eliminate the most computationally expensive element of running large language models, called matrix multiplication, while maintaining performance.
ECE research news
Chancellor’s 2024 innovation awards honor excellence in research and impact
The recipients include innovators who have created breakthroughs in knowledge and technology that are improving our world and community partners.
Innovative techniques aim for climate-safe restoration of Ms. Blue
A new project is underway to give Ms. Blue another life, this time enabling her to teach the community about the power of climate-safe innovation
UC Santa Cruz AgTech Alliance launches to support interdisciplinary collaboration
Building on the long history of innovation in agriculture at the campus, the AgTech Alliance will support research, education, events, and workforce development related to advancing agricultural technology in order to create more formalized opportunities for collaboration within the university and beyond.
Explore potential Electrical and Computer Engineering career paths
- AI Engineer
- Computer Hardware Engineer
- Electrical and Electronics Engineer
- Embedded Systems Engineer
- Robotics Engineer
- Signal Processing Engineer
- Software Engineer
- Systems Engineer
- Telecommunications Engineer
Learn more
Learn about Robotics and Control Engineering at UC Santa Cruz
Innovator of the year
Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Holger Shmidt received the Innovator of the Year Award for his outstanding work on highly sensitive devices called optofluidic chips.
