FAQ
Prospective Students FAQ
What is VIP?
VIP is an undergraduate research initiative in which students work on multidisciplinary teams led by faculty, contributing to their research, innovation, and/or design efforts. Students earn 1 to 2 credits each semester, with two semesters “adding up” to a typical 3-credit hour course. Students can participate for multiple semesters/years, providing deeper learning experiences and leadership opportunities. The long-term nature of VIP creates an environment of mentorship, with faculty and graduate students mentoring teams, experienced students mentoring new members, and students moving into leadership roles as others graduate.
What does "Vertically Integrated" mean?
“Vertically Integrated” refers to VIP team compositions, which include sophomores, juniors, seniors, graduate students, post-docs and faculty.
Who can participate?
Students are eligible to participate in VIP when they have sophomore, junior, senior or graduate student standing. Students can apply while they are freshmen (i.e. spring of freshman year) to participate when they are sophomores (i.e. fall of sophomore year). Students with substantial AP credit should think about whether they are taking sophomore-level courses within their major. If they are taking freshman-level courses, but have a lot of AP credit in other disciplines, they should wait until they are at a sophomore level within their own discipline.
Is Experience Required?
Previous experience is not required, but willingness to learn and to work with others are musts.
How do VIP credits count? How many semesters can I be on a VIP team?
Students will register for one of the following: ECE 298, ECE 398, or ECE 498. It is expected that students participate in the VIP project for several semesters in a row, to allow them time to gain sufficient depth of knowledge and experience to make significant contributions to the research project. A usual VIP sequence may look like:
First VIP Semester: ECE 298 [ 1 credit hour]. This is an introductory semester in which students learn about the research project and gain skills that will enable them to make meaningful contributions to the VIP team. This credit hour does not count towards the students’ degree requirements.
Second VIP Semester: ECE 398 [ 1 credit hour]. Up to 3 total credit hours of ECE 398 can count towards the “open elective” requirement.
Third VIP Semester: ECE 398 [2 credit hours]. Up to 3 total credit hours of ECE 398 can count towards the “open elective” requirement.
Fourth VIP Semester: ECE 498 [3 credit hours]. Up to 3 total credit hours of ECE 498 can count towards the “ECE elective” requirement.
Fifth/Sixth VIP Semester: Pending departmental approval, students may participate in the VIP project through their normal Senior Design course sequence.