Electrical Engineering Honours (B.Eng.) (138 credits)
Offered by: Electrical & Computer Engr (Faculty of Engineering)
Degree: Bachelor of Engineering
Program credit weight: 138 credits
Program Description
Program credit weight: 138-141 credits
Program credit weight for Quebec CEGEP students: 113-116 credits
Entry into the Electrical Engineering Honours Program
The Honours program is a limited enrolment program and entry is highly competitive. There is no direct entry to the Honours program in the first year. Students may enter the Honours program in the following ways:
- Students from CEGEP will be admitted, on the basis of their grades, at the start of the third term.
- Students from outside Quebec will be admitted, on the basis of their grades, at the start of the fifth term.
To remain in the Honours program and to be awarded the Honours degree, a student must have completed at least 14 credits in each term since entering Electrical and Computer Engineering, except for the final two terms of their degree, and maintained a CGPA of at least 3.30 since entering Electrical and Computer Engineering. In either of their final two full terms (i.e., Fall and Winter, or Winter and Fall) students may drop below 14 credits, provided the combined load for the two terms is at least 16 credits. For more information, please contact the Departmental office at 514-398-3943.
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Required Year 0 (Freshman) Courses (25 credits)
Note: Students in the Honours Electrical Engineering program complete the Year 0 (Freshman) courses before entering the Honours program, as explained above.
Generally, students admitted to Engineering from Quebec CEGEPs are granted transfer credit for these Year 0 (Freshman) courses and enter a 113- to 116-credit program.
For information on transfer credit for French Baccalaureate, International Baccalaureate exams, Advanced Placement exams, Advanced Levels, and Science Placement Exams, see http://www.mcgill.ca/engineering/current-students/undergraduate/new-stud... and select your term of admission.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CHEM 120 | General Chemistry 2. | 4 |
General Chemistry 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A study of the fundamental principles of physical chemistry. | ||
| MATH 133 | Linear Algebra and Geometry. | 3 |
Linear Algebra and Geometry. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Systems of linear equations, matrices, inverses, determinants; geometric vectors in three dimensions, dot product, cross product, lines and planes; introduction to vector spaces, linear dependence and independence, bases. Linear transformations. Eigenvalues and diagonalization. | ||
| MATH 140 | Calculus 1. | 3 |
Calculus 1. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Review of functions and graphs. Limits, continuity, derivative. Differentiation of elementary functions. Antidifferentiation. Applications. | ||
| MATH 141 | Calculus 2. | 4 |
Calculus 2. Terms offered: Summer 2025 The definite integral. Techniques of integration. Applications. Introduction to sequences and series. | ||
| PHYS 131 | Mechanics and Waves. | 4 |
Mechanics and Waves. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The basic laws and principles of Newtonian mechanics; oscillations, waves, and wave optics. | ||
| PHYS 142 | Electromagnetism and Optics. | 4 |
Electromagnetism and Optics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The basic laws of electricity and magnetism; geometrical optics. | ||
AND 3 credits selected from the approved list of courses in Humanities and Social Sciences, Management Studies, and Law, listed below under Complementary Studies (Group B).
Note: FACC 100 Introduction to the Engineering Profession. must be taken during the first year of study.
Required Non-Departmental Courses (26 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CIVE 281 | Analytical Mechanics. | 3 |
Analytical Mechanics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Kinematics of particles, dynamics of particles. Work, conservative forces, potential energy. Relative motion and general moving frames of reference. Central force fields and orbits. Dynamics of a system of particles. General motion of rigid bodies, angular momentum and kinetic energy of rigid bodies. Generalized coordinates and forces, Lagrange's equations. | ||
| COMP 202 | Foundations of Programming. | 3 |
Foundations of Programming. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Introduction to computer programming in a high level language: variables, expressions, primitive types, methods, conditionals, loops. Introduction to algorithms, data structures (arrays, strings), modular software design, libraries, file input/output, debugging, exception handling. Selected topics. | ||
| COMP 206 | Introduction to Software Systems. | 3 |
Introduction to Software Systems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Comprehensive overview of programming in C, use of system calls and libraries, debugging and testing of code; use of developmental tools like make, version control systems. | ||
| FACC 100 | Introduction to the Engineering Profession. 1 | 1 |
Introduction to the Engineering Profession. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to engineering practice; rights and code of conduct for students; professional conduct and ethics; engineer's duty to society and the environment; sustainable development; occupational health and safety; overview of the engineering disciplines taught at McGill. | ||
| FACC 250 | Responsibilities of the Professional Engineer. | 0 |
Responsibilities of the Professional Engineer. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A course designed to provide all Engineering students with further training regarding their responsibilities as future Professional Engineers. Particular focus will be placed on three professional characteristics that future engineers must demonstrate: i) professionalism, ii) ethical and equitable behaviour, and iii) consideration of the impact of engineering on society and the environment. | ||
| FACC 300 | Engineering Economy. | 3 |
Engineering Economy. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Introduction to the basic concepts required for the economic assessment of engineering projects. Topics include: accounting methods, marginal analysis, cash flow and time value of money, taxation and depreciation, discounted cash flow analysis techniques, cost of capital, inflation, sensitivity and risk analysis, analysis of R and D, ongoing as well as new investment opportunities. | ||
| FACC 400 | Engineering Professional Practice. | 1 |
Engineering Professional Practice. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Laws, regulations and codes governing engineering professional practice. Responsibility and liability. Environmental legislation. Project and organization management. Relations between engineer and client. Technical practice - analysis, design, execution and operation. | ||
| MATH 262 | Intermediate Calculus. | 3 |
Intermediate Calculus. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Series and power series, including Taylor's theorem. Brief review of vector geometry. Vector functions and curves. Partial differentiation and differential calculus for vector valued functions. Unconstrained and constrained extremal problems. Multiple integrals including surface area and change of variables. | ||
| MATH 263 | Ordinary Differential Equations for Engineers. | 3 |
Ordinary Differential Equations for Engineers. Terms offered: Summer 2025 First order ODEs. Second and higher order linear ODEs. Series solutions at ordinary and regular singular points. Laplace transforms. Linear systems of differential equations with a short review of linear algebra. | ||
| MIME 262 | Properties of Materials in Electrical Engineering. | 3 |
Properties of Materials in Electrical Engineering. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Properties of a material continuum and crystalline state; properties of atoms in materials; conduction electrons in materials; electronic properties of semiconductors and metals; magnetic and thermal properties of materials; applications of electronic materials in semiconductor technology, recording media and transducers. | ||
| WCOM 206 | Communication in Engineering. | 3 |
Communication in Engineering. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Written and oral communication in Engineering (in English): strategies for generating, developing, organizing, and presenting ideas in a technical setting; problem-solving; communicating to different audiences; editing and revising; and public speaking. Course work based on academic, technical, and professional writing in engineering. | ||
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Note: FACC 100 Introduction to the Engineering Profession. must be taken during the first year of study.
Required Electrical Engineering Courses (61 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ECSE 200 | Electric Circuits 1. | 3 |
Electric Circuits 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Circuit variables. Analysis of resistive circuits, network theorems (Kirchhoff’s laws, Ohm’s law, Norton and Thevenin equivalent). Ammeters, Voltmeters, and Ohmmeters. Analysis methods (nodal and mesh analysis, linearity, superposition). Dependent sources and Op-Amps. Energy storage elements. First and second order circuits. | ||
| ECSE 205 | Probability and Statistics for Engineers | 3 |
Probability and Statistics for Engineers Terms offered: Summer 2025 Probability: basic probability model, conditional probability, Bayes rule, random variables and vectors, distribution and density functions, common distributions in engineering, expectation, moments, independence, laws of large numbers, central limit theorem. Statistics: descriptive measures of engineering data, sampling distributions, estimation of mean and variance, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing, linear regression. | ||
| ECSE 206 | Introduction to Signals and Systems. | 3 |
Introduction to Signals and Systems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Review of complex functions. Discrete-and continuous-time signals, basic system properties. Linear time-invariant systems, convolution. Fourier series and Fourier transforms, frequency-domain analysis, filtering, sampling. Laplace transforms and inversion, transfer functions, poles and zeros, solutions of linear constant-coefficient differential equations, transient and steady-state response. Z-transforms. | ||
| ECSE 210 | Electric Circuits 2. | 3 |
Electric Circuits 2. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Second-order circuits. Sinusoidal sources and phasors. AC steady-state analysis. AC steady-state power. Laplace transform. Circuit analysis in the s-Domain. Two-port circuits. Elementary continuous signals, impulse functions, basic properties of continuous linear time-invariant (LTI) systems. Frequency analysis of continuous-time LTI systems. | ||
| ECSE 211 | Design Principles and Methods. | 3 |
Design Principles and Methods. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Engineering process: design specifications, parameters, optimization, implementation, troubleshooting and refinement; project management: scheduling, risk analysis, project control; case studies; design examples and project. | ||
| ECSE 222 | Digital Logic. | 3 |
Digital Logic. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to digital logic, binary numbers and Boolean algebra, combinational circuits, optimized implementation of combinational circuits, arithmetic circuits, combinational circuit building blocks, flip-flops, registers, counters, design of digital circuits with VHDL, and synchronous sequential circuits. | ||
| ECSE 250 | Fundamentals of Software Development. | 3 |
Fundamentals of Software Development. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Software development practices in the context of object-oriented programming. Elementary data structures such as lists, stacks and trees. Recursive and non-recursive algorithms: searching and sorting, tree and graph traversal. Asymptotic notation: Big O. Introduction to tools and practices employed in commercial software development. | ||
| ECSE 251 | Electric and Magnetic Fields. | 3 |
Electric and Magnetic Fields. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Divergence, gradient and curl. The divergence theorem and Stokes’ theorem. Maxwell's equations, electrostatics, magnetostatics and induction for power-frequency electrical engineering problems. | ||
| ECSE 307 | Linear Systems and Control. | 4 |
Linear Systems and Control. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Modelling and simulation of control systems, review of LTI systems, time response of first and second order systems, state space modeling, controllability, state feedback and pole placement, observability, observer design, and output feedback, block diagrams and their simplification, Routh-Hurwitz stability criterion, system type and steady state errors, Bode plots, Nyquist plots, Nyquist stability criterion, gain and phase margins, lead-lag compensators. Lab work involving step response, frequency response, system identification, state feedback, output feedback, and lead-lag compensators. | ||
| ECSE 308 | Introduction to Communication Systems and Networks. | 4 |
Introduction to Communication Systems and Networks. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Information and bandwidth, signals, modulation and noise, transmission and switching. Principles of layered design and the OSI model, measures of performance. Information sources and services. Application, Presentation and Session layers. Transport and Network layers. Data link layer and multi-user communication. Physical layer and transmission techniques. Wireline and wireless transmission media. Core (Backbone), and Access Communication Networks. Communication network classification. Laboratory work involving analog and digital transmission techniques. | ||
| ECSE 324 | Computer Organization. | 4 |
Computer Organization. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Basic computer structures; instruction set architecture; assembly language; input/output; memory; software; processor implementation; computer arithmetic. Lab work involving assembly language level programming of single-board computers. | ||
| ECSE 331 | Electronics. | 4 |
Electronics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to electronic circuits using operational amplifiers, PN junction diodes, bipolar junction transistors (BJTs), and MOS field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), including: terminal characteristics, large- and small-signal models; configuration and frequency response of amplifiers with discrete biasing. Introduction to SPICE. Lab work involving simulation experiments and testing of simple circuits using discrete transistors. | ||
| ECSE 343 | Numerical Methods in Engineering. | 3 |
Numerical Methods in Engineering. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Number representation and numerical error. Symbolic vs. numerical computation. Curve fitting and interpolation. Numerical differentiation and integration. Optimization. Data science pipelines and data-driven approaches. Preliminary machine learning. Solutions of systems of linear equations and nonlinear equations. Solutions of ordinary and partial differential equations. Applications in engineering, physical simulation, CAD, machine learning and digital media. | ||
| ECSE 354 | Electromagnetic Wave Propagation. | 4 |
Electromagnetic Wave Propagation. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Transient and steady state wave propagation in transmission lines; telephone and radio frequency lines; Smith's chart and impedance matching; Maxwell's equations, Helmholtz's equations, Poynting's theorem; plane waves, polarization, Snell's law, critical and Brewster's angle; rectangular waveguides, optical fibres, dispersion; radiation and antennas; S-parameters; lab work involving the Smith chart, communication transmission lines, reflection and refraction, and optical waveguides. | ||
| ECSE 362 | Fundamentals of Power Engineering. | 4 |
Fundamentals of Power Engineering. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Characteristics and components of power systems. Generation, transmission and utilization of electric power. 3-phase ac and dc systems. Fundamentals of electromechanical energy conversion. Ampere and Faraday's law. Magnetic circuits. Mutual inductance and transformers. Torque and force. Rotating magnetic fields. Basic rotating machines. Lab work involving techniques of electric power, efficiency, torque, and speed measurements. | ||
| ECSE 396 | Honours Research Laboratory Rotation 1. | 1 |
Honours Research Laboratory Rotation 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. First in a series of four research laboratory rotations selected among research groups in the department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. | ||
| ECSE 397 | Honours Research Laboratory Rotation 2. | 1 |
Honours Research Laboratory Rotation 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Second in a series of four research laboratory rotations selected among research groups in the department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. | ||
| ECSE 478D1 | Electrical Engineering Honours Thesis. | 3 |
Electrical Engineering Honours Thesis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A research project undertaken with close mentorship by a staff member and under the supervision of the course instructor. The thesis consists of defining an engineering problem, reviewing relevant background, acquiring/analyzing data, and seeking design solutions using appropriate simulation/analysis tools and experimental investigations. | ||
| ECSE 478D2 | Electrical Engineering Honours Thesis. | 3 |
Electrical Engineering Honours Thesis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. See ECSE 478D1 for description. | ||
| ECSE 496 | Honours Research Laboratory Rotation 3. | 1 |
Honours Research Laboratory Rotation 3. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Third in a series of four research laboratory rotations selected among research groups in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. | ||
| ECSE 497 | Honours Research Laboratory Rotation 4. | 1 |
Honours Research Laboratory Rotation 4. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Fourth in a series of four research laboratory rotations selected among research groups in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. | ||
Note: ECSE 478N1 Electrical Engineering Honours Thesis. and ECSE 478N2 Electrical Engineering Honours Thesis. can be taken instead of ECSE 478D1 Electrical Engineering Honours Thesis. and ECSE 478D2 Electrical Engineering Honours Thesis..
Complementary Courses (23-26 credits)
Technical Complementaries
17-20 credits (5 courses) must be taken, chosen as follows:
8 credits (2 courses) from List A
6-8 credits (2 courses) from 500-level ECSE courses
3-4 credits (1 course) from List A, List B, List C or from 500-level ECSE courses
List A: Technical Complementaries with Laboratory Experience
8-12 credits from the following:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ECSE 335 | Microelectronics. | 4 |
Microelectronics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Single-stage integrated-circuit amplifiers; differential and multistage amplifiers, integrated-circuit biasing techniques; non-ideal characteristics, frequency response; feedback amplifiers, output stages; digital CMOS logic circuits. Lab work on designing, building, and debugging electronic hardware using discrete transistors and circuit building blocks | ||
| ECSE 403 | Control. 1 | 4 |
Control. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Stability of linear and non-linear systems, controllability, state space models, canonical forms, state space design of controllers, pole placement, LQR, observability, Luenberger observer, separation principle and certainty equivalence, loop transfer recovery, correspondence between system theoretic results for continuous- and discrete-time systems. Lab work involving applications of PID, lead-lag, full state feedback and LQR controllers to robotic devices. | ||
| ECSE 408 | Communication Systems. 2 | 4 |
Communication Systems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Communication system models; AM and FM modulation, performance of AM and FM systems in noise; sampling, FDM and TDM multiplexing systems; baseband and pass-band digital transmission over noisy band-limited channels, digital modulation and detection techniques and their quantitative performance; concepts of entropy and channel capacity, selected data compression and error-control coding techniques. Illustrative examples taken from subscriber loop telephone systems, evolution of internet modems and wireless cellular phone standards. Lab work involving measurement of the performance of AM and FM systems with noise, digital modulation techniques and spectra, experiments with basic error control coding systems. | ||
| ECSE 416 | Telecommunication Networks. | 4 |
Telecommunication Networks. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Architecture and protocols of contemporary networks; wired and wireless access systems; flow and congestion control; network optimization; randomized multiple access protocols; queueing disciplines; low-power wireless networks. Examples: Ethernet, TCP/IP, 802.11, 802.15.4. Lab experiments addressing routing protocols, TCP, queuing disciplines and quality-of-service, and network security. | ||
| ECSE 433 | Physical Basis of Transistor Devices. | 4 |
Physical Basis of Transistor Devices. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Quantitative analysis of diodes and transistors. Semiconductor fundamentals, equilibrium and non-equilibrium carrier transport, and Fermi levels. PN junction diodes, the ideal diode, and diode switching. Bipolar Junction Transistors (BJT), physics of the ideal BJT, the Ebers-Moll model. Field effect transistors, metal-oxide semiconductor structures, static and dynamic behaviour, small-signal models. Laboratory experiments. | ||
| ECSE 444 | Microprocessors. | 4 |
Microprocessors. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Design techniques for developing modern microprocessor-based systems, multiple state-of-art instructions set architectures (ISAs) and associated assembly languages, use of tools for compiling, linking, memory overlay; debug techniques for start-stop and real-time debugging, together with debug infrastructure and interfaces: flash patching, variable watching and instruction stream tracing. Use of coprocessors and computer peripherals, such as SPI, I2C, I2S, SAI, USB, wireless standards, timers, DMA units and FLASH accelerators. Interfacing and processing sensor data including multi-sensor integration. Design techniques that promote structured approaches for separation of concerns in computing and communication. Real-time systems and software engineering for tightly integrated hardware. | ||
| ECSE 470 | Electromechanical and Static Conversion Systems. | 4 |
Electromechanical and Static Conversion Systems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Lumped parameter concepts of electromechanics. Reference frame theory and derivation of current and torque equations. Examples of AC electric machines: synchronous and induction types. Steady-state, transient and stability analysis. Power electronic voltage and frequency converters. Variable speed drives and generation systems. Laboratory work involving electric machine parameters, operation and power electronic control. | ||
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ECSE 403 Control. and ECSE 501 Linear Systems. cannot both be taken.
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ECSE 408 Communication Systems. and ECSE 511 Introduction to Digital Communication. cannot both be taken.
List B: Technical Complementaries (0-3 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ECSE 310 | Thermodynamics of Computing. | 3 |
Thermodynamics of Computing. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to thermodynamics from the perspective of computer engineering. The first and second laws of thermodynamics; elementary information theory (bits, entropy); energy storage and dissipation in electrical circuits; effects of noise in switching circuits; the fluctuation-dissipation theorem; Landauer’s principle; reversible and irreversible computation; energy costs of communication; thermal resistance, heat sinking, and cooling technologies for computing circuits. | ||
| ECSE 325 | Digital Systems. | 3 |
Digital Systems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Design of digital systems. Implementation technologies; arithmetic modules; synthesis and advanced modelling techniques; verification; timing analysis; design for testability; asynchronous circuits; hardware/software co-design. | ||
| ECSE 415 | Introduction to Computer Vision. | 3 |
Introduction to Computer Vision. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the automated processing, analysis, and understanding of image data. Topics include image formation and acquisition, design of image features, image segmentation, stereo and motion correspondence matching techniques, feature clustering, regression and classification for object recognition, industrial and consumer applications, and computer vision software tools. | ||
| ECSE 420 | Parallel Computing. | 3 |
Parallel Computing. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Modern parallel computing architectures for shared memory, message passing and data parallel programming models. The design of cache coherent shared memory multiprocessors. Programming techniques for multithreaded, message passing and distributed systems. Use of modern programming languages and parallel programming libraries. | ||
| ECSE 421 | Embedded Systems. | 3 |
Embedded Systems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Definition, structure and properties of embedded systems. Real-time programming: interrupts, latency, context, re-entrancy, thread and process models. Microcontroller and DSP architectures, I/O systems, timing and event management. Real-time kernels and services. Techniques for development, debugging and verification. Techniques for limited resource environments. Networking for distributed systems. | ||
| ECSE 422 | Fault Tolerant Computing. | 3 |
Fault Tolerant Computing. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to fault-tolerant systems. Fault-tolerance techniques through hardware, software, information and time redundancy. Failure classification, failure semantics, failure masking. Exception handling: detection, recovery, masking and propagation, termination vs. resumption. Reliable storage, reliable communication. Process groups, synchronous and asynchronous group membership and broadcast services. Automatic redundancy management. Case studies. | ||
| ECSE 424 | Human-Computer Interaction. | 3 |
Human-Computer Interaction. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The course highlights human-computer interaction strategies from an engineering perspective. Topics include user interfaces, novel paradigms in human-computer interaction, affordances, ecological interface design, ubiquitous computing and computer-supported cooperative work. Attention will be paid to issues of safety, usability, and performance. | ||
| ECSE 425 | Computer Architecture. | 3 |
Computer Architecture. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Trends in technology. CISC vs. RISC architectures. Pipelining. Instruction level parallelism. Data and Control Hazards. Static prediction. Exceptions. Dependencies. Loop level paralleism. Dynamic scheduling, branch prediction. Branch target buffers. Superscalar and N-issue machines. VLIW. ILP techniques. Cache analysis and design. Interleaved and virtual memory. TLB translations and caches. | ||
| ECSE 427 | Operating Systems. | 3 |
Operating Systems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Operating system services, file system organization, disk and cpu scheduling, virtual memory management, concurrent processing and distributed systems, protection and security. Aspects of the DOS and UNIX operating systems and the C programming language. Programs that communicate between workstations across a network. | ||
| ECSE 435 | Mixed-Signal Test Techniques. | 3 |
Mixed-Signal Test Techniques. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Purpose and economics of mixed-signal test, DC measurements. Accuracy and repeatability. DSP-based theory and its applications to parametric testing of analog filters, DACs, and ADC. Timing and PLL measurements. Design for Testability. | ||
| ECSE 446 | Realistic Image Synthesis. | 3 |
Realistic Image Synthesis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to mathematical models of light transport and the numerical techniques used to generate realistic images in computer graphics. Offline (i.e., raytracing) and interactive (i.e., shader-based) techniques. | ||
| ECSE 451 | EM Transmission and Radiation. | 3 |
EM Transmission and Radiation. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Microwave transmission through waveguides: impedance matching, microwave devices, filters and resonators; microwave transmission though free space; near and far field behaviour of electromagnetic radiators, simple antennas, antenna arrays, practical antenna parameters; the physics of the radio communication channel: reflection, diffraction and scattering and their macroscopic impact (multipath, fading). | ||
| ECSE 460 | Appareillage électrique (Electrical Power Equipment). 1 | 3 |
Appareillage électrique (Electrical Power Equipment). Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Éléments d'un réseau de transport. Lignes: modélisation et paramètres. Transformateurs: circuits équivalents, pertes, enclenchement, protection. Disjoncteurs: fonctionnement et dimensionnement. Équipements de compensation: condensateurs, branchement série et shunt, inductances. Coordination d'isolement. | ||
| ECSE 464 | Power Systems Analysis. | 3 |
Power Systems Analysis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Basic principles of planning and operating interconnected power systems with emphasis on Canadian conditions. Mathematical models for system. Steady-state analysis of power systems, load flow formulation and solution algorithms. Operating strategies, economic dispatch, voltage reactive power regulation, frequency and tie-line power control. | ||
| ECSE 467 | Comportement des réseaux électriques. 1 | 3 |
Comportement des réseaux électriques. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction: classification des phénomènes, structure d'un réseau électrique. Modélisation des composants: lignes, transformateurs, machines électriques, charges. Systèmes d'excitation des machines. Régime permanent. Stabilité de transitoire, de tension, des petits signaux. Méthodes de compensation: stabilisateurs, compensation série et shunt. Oscillations sous synchrones. Phénomènes électromagnétiques transitoires. Méthodes et outils de simulation numérique. | ||
| ECSE 468 | Electricité industrielle (Industrial Power Systems). 1 | 3 |
Electricité industrielle (Industrial Power Systems). Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Structure des réseaux électriques industriels. Niveau de tension. Installations électriques, codes et normes. Court-circuits, protection et coordination. Mise à la terre. Qualité de l'onde. Facteur de puissance, tarification et gestion de l'énergie électrique. | ||
| ECSE 469 | Protection des réseaux électriques. 1 | 3 |
Protection des réseaux électriques. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Généralités sur les systèmes de protection. Calculs de défauts symétriques et asymétriques. Transformateurs de mesure. Système de mise à la terre. Types de relais de protection. Protection de transformateur, de barres, de ligne de transport : philosophie et application. Conception des systèmes de protection. Homologation et essais de relais. | ||
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Courses taught in French
List C: Non-departmental Complementary Courses (0-4 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| COMP 445 | Computational Linguistics. | 3 |
Computational Linguistics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to foundational ideas in computational linguistics and natural language processing. Topics include formal language theory, probability theory, estimation and inference, and recursively defined models of language structure. Emphasis on both the mathematical foundations of the field as well as how to use these tools to understand human language. | ||
| COMP 549 | Brain-Inspired Artificial Intelligence. | 3 |
Brain-Inspired Artificial Intelligence. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Overview of the influence of neuroscience and psychology on Artificial Intelligence (AI). Historical topics: perceptrons, the PDP framework, Hopfield nets, Boltzmann and Helmholtz machines, and the behaviourist origins of reinforcement learning. Modern topics: deep learning, attention, memory and consciousness. Emphasis on understanding the interdisciplinary foundations of modern AI. | ||
| COMP 550 | Natural Language Processing. | 3 |
Natural Language Processing. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to the computational modelling of natural language, including algorithms, formalisms, and applications. Computational morphology, language modelling, syntactic parsing, lexical and compositional semantics, and discourse analysis. Selected applications such as automatic summarization, machine translation, and speech processing. Machine learning techniques for natural language processing. | ||
| COMP 551 | Applied Machine Learning. | 4 |
Applied Machine Learning. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Selected topics in machine learning and data mining, including clustering, neural networks, support vector machines, decision trees. Methods include feature selection and dimensionality reduction, error estimation and empirical validation, algorithm design and parallelization, and handling of large data sets. Emphasis on good methods and practices for deployment of real systems. | ||
| COMP 562 | Theory of Machine Learning. | 4 |
Theory of Machine Learning. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Concentration inequalities, PAC model, VC dimension, Rademacher complexity, convex optimization, gradient descent, boosting, kernels, support vector machines, regression and learning bounds. Further topics selected from: Gaussian processes, online learning, regret bounds, basic neural network theory. | ||
| COMP 579 | Reinforcement Learning. | 4 |
Reinforcement Learning. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Bandit algorithms, finite Markov decision processes, dynamic programming, Monte-Carlo Methods, temporal-difference learning, bootstrapping, planning, approximation methods, on versus off policy learning, policy gradient methods temporal abstraction and inverse reinforcement learning. | ||
| MATH 247 | Honours Applied Linear Algebra. | 3 |
Honours Applied Linear Algebra. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Matrix algebra, determinants, systems of linear equations. Abstract vector spaces, inner product spaces, Fourier series. Linear transformations and their matrix representations. Eigenvalues and eigenvectors, diagonalizable and defective matrices, positive definite and semidefinite matrices. Quadratic and Hermitian forms, generalized eigenvalue problems, simultaneous reduction of quadratic forms. Applications. | ||
| MATH 249 | Honours Complex Variables. | 3 |
Honours Complex Variables. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Functions of a complex variable; Cauchy-Riemann equations; Cauchy's theorem and consequences. Taylor and Laurent expansions. Residue calculus; evaluation of real integrals; integral representation of special functions; the complex inversion integral. Conformal mapping; Schwarz-Christoffel transformation; Poisson's integral formulas; applications. Additional topics if time permits: homotopy of paths and simple connectivity, Riemann sphere, rudiments of analytic continuation. | ||
| MATH 547 | Stochastic Processes. | 4 |
Stochastic Processes. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Conditional probability and conditional expectation, generating functions. Branching processes and random walk. Markov chains:transition matrices, classification of states, ergodic theorem, examples. Birth and death processes, queueing theory. | ||
| PHYS 357 | Honours Quantum Physics 1. | 3 |
Honours Quantum Physics 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Experimental basis for quantum mechanics; wave-packets; uncertainty principle. Hilbert space formalism. Schrodinger equation: eigenvalues and eigenvectors: applications to 1-d problems including the infinite and finite potential wells and the harmonic oscillator. Tunneling. Time independent perturbation theory. | ||
| PHYS 434 | Optics. | 3 |
Optics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Fundamental concepts of optics, including applications and modern developments. Light propagation in media; geometric optics and optical instruments; polarization and coherence properties of light; interference and interferometry; diffraction theory and applications in spectrometry and imaging; Gaussian beams, Fourier optics and photonic band structure. A laboratory component provides hands-on experience in optical setup design, construction and testing of concepts introduced in lectures. | ||
| PHYS 457 | Honours Quantum Physics 2. | 3 |
Honours Quantum Physics 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Angular momentum and spin operators. Operator methods in quantum mechanics. Coupling of spin and angular momenta. Variational principles and elements of time dependent perturbation theory (the Golden Rule). Solution of the Schrodinger equation in three dimensions. Applications to the hydrogen and helium atoms and to simple problems in atomic and molecular physics. | ||
| PHYS 558 | Solid State Physics. | 3 |
Solid State Physics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Properties of crystals; free electron model, band structure; metals, insulators and semi-conductors; phonons; magnetism; selected additional topics in solid-state (e.g. ferroelectrics, elementary transport theory). | ||
Complementary Studies (6 credits)
Group A - Impact of Technology on Society
3 credits from the following:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 212 | Anthropology of Development. | 3 |
Anthropology of Development. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Processes of developmental change, as they affect small communities in the Third World and in unindustrialized parts of developed countries. Problems of technological change, political integration, population growth, industrialization, urban growth, social services, infrastructure and economic dependency. | ||
| BTEC 502 | Biotechnology Ethics and Society. | 3 |
Biotechnology Ethics and Society. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Examination of particular social and ethical challenges posed by modern biotechnology such as benefit sharing, informed consent in the research setting, access to medical care worldwide, environmental safety and biodiversity and the ethical challenges posed by patenting life. | ||
| ECON 225 | Economics of the Environment. | 3 |
Economics of the Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A study of the application of economic theory to questions of environmental policy. Particular attention will be given to the measurement and regulation of pollution, congestion and waste and other environmental aspects of specific economies. | ||
| ECON 347 | Economics of Climate Change. | 3 |
Economics of Climate Change. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The course focuses on the economic implications of, and problems posed by, predictions of global warming due to anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases. Attention is given to economic policies such as carbon taxes and tradeable emission permits and to the problems of displacing fossil fuels with new energy technologies. | ||
| ENVR 201 | Society, Environment and Sustainability. | 3 |
Society, Environment and Sustainability. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course deals with how scientific-technological, socio-economic, political-institutional and behavioural factors mediate society-environment interactions. Issues discussed include population and resources; consumption, impacts and institutions; integrating environmental values in societal decision-making; and the challenges associated with, and strategies for, promoting sustainability. Case studies in various sectors and contexts are used. | ||
| GEOG 200 | Geographical Perspectives: World Environmental Problems. | 3 |
Geographical Perspectives: World Environmental Problems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to geography as the study of nature and human beings in a spatial context. An integrated approach to environmental systems and the human organization of them from the viewpoint of spatial relationships and processes. Special attention to environmental problems as a constraint upon Third World development. | ||
| GEOG 203 | Environmental Systems. | 3 |
Environmental Systems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to system-level interactions among climate, hydrology, soils and vegetation at the scale of drainage basins, including the study of the global geographical variability in these land-surface systems. The knowledge acquired is used to study the impact on the environment of various human activities such as deforestation and urbanisation. | ||
| GEOG 205 | Global Change: Past, Present and Future. | 3 |
Global Change: Past, Present and Future. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An examination of global change, from the Quaternary Period to the present day involving changes in the physical geography of specific areas. Issues such as climatic change and land degradation will be discussed, with speculations on future environments. | ||
| GEOG 302 | Environmental Management 1. | 3 |
Environmental Management 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An ecological analysis of the physical and biotic components of natural resource systems. Emphasis on scientific, technological and institutional aspects of environmental management. Study of the use of biological resources and of the impact of individual processes. | ||
| MGPO 440 | Strategies for Sustainability. 1 | 3 |
Strategies for Sustainability. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course explores the relationship between economic activity, management, and the natural environment. Using readings, discussions and cases, the course will explore the challenges that the goal of sustainable development poses for our existing notions of economic goals, production and consumption practices and the management of organizations. | ||
| PHIL 343 | Biomedical Ethics. | 3 |
Biomedical Ethics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An investigation of ethical issues as they arise in the practice of medicine (informed consent, e.g.) or in the application of medical technology (in vitro fertilization, euthanasia, e.g.) | ||
| RELG 270 | Religious Ethics and the Environment. | 3 |
Religious Ethics and the Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Environmental potential of various religious traditions and secular perspectives, including animal rights, ecofeminism, and deep ecology. | ||
| SOCI 235 | Technology and Society. | 3 |
Technology and Society. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An examination of the extent to which technological developments impose constraints on ways of arranging social relationships in bureaucratic organizations and in the wider society: the compatibility of current social structures with the effective utilization of technology. | ||
| SOCI 312 | Sociology of Work and Industry. | 3 |
Sociology of Work and Industry. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The development of the world of work from the rise of industrial capitalism to the postindustrial age. Responses of workers and managers to changing organizational, technological and economic realities. Interrelations between changing demands in the workplace and the functioning of the labour market. Canadian materials in comparative perspective. | ||
| URBP 201 | Planning the 21st Century City. | 3 |
Planning the 21st Century City. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The study of how urban planners respond to the challenges posed by contemporary cities world-wide. Urban problems related to the environment, shelter, transport, human health, livelihoods and governance are addressed; innovative plans to improve cities and city life are analyzed. | ||
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Note: Management courses have limited enrolment and registration dates. See Important Dates at https://www.mcgill.ca/importantdates
Group B - Humanities and Social Sciences, Management Studies, and Law
3 credits at the 200 level or higher from the following departments:
Anthropology (ANTH)
Economics (any 200- or 300-level course excluding ECON 227 Economic Statistics. and ECON 337 Introductory Econometrics 1.)
History (HIST)
Philosophy (excluding PHIL 210 Introduction to Deductive Logic 1. and PHIL 310 Intermediate Logic.)
Political Science (POLI)
Psychology (excluding PSYC 204 Introduction to Psychological Statistics. and PSYC 305 Statistics for Experimental Design., but including PSYC 100 Introduction to Psychology.)
Religious Studies (RELG) (excluding courses that principally impart language skills, such as Sanskrit, Tibetan, Tamil, New Testament Greek, and Biblical Hebrew)1
School of Social Work (SWRK)
Sociology (excluding SOCI 350 Statistics in Social Research.)
OR 3 credits from the following:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH 528 | History of Housing. | 3 |
History of Housing. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Indigenous housing both transient and permanent, from the standpoint of individual structure and pattern of settlements. The principal historic examples of houses including housing in the age of industrial revolution and contemporary housing. | ||
| BUSA 465 | Technological Entrepreneurship. 2 | 3 |
Technological Entrepreneurship. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Concentrating on entrepreneurship and enterprise development, particular attention is given to the start-up, purchasing and management of small to medium-sized industrial firms. The focal point is in understanding the dilemmas faced by entrepreneurs, resolving them, developing a business plan and the maximum utilization of the financial, marketing and human resources that make for a successful operation. | ||
| CLAS 203 | Greek Mythology. | 3 |
Greek Mythology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A survey of the myths and legends of Ancient Greece. | ||
| ENVR 203 | Knowledge, Ethics and Environment. | 3 |
Knowledge, Ethics and Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to cultural perspectives on the environment: the influence of culture and cognition on perceptions of the natural world; conflicts in orders of knowledge (models, taxonomies, paradigms, theories, cosmologies), ethics (moral values, frameworks, dilemmas), and law (formal and customary, rights and obligations) regarding political dimensions of critical environments, resource use, and technologies. | ||
| ENVR 400 | Environmental Thought. | 3 |
Environmental Thought. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Students work in interdisciplinary seminar groups on challenging philosophical, ethical, scientific and practical issues. They will explore cutting-edge ideas and grapple with the reconciliation of environmental imperatives and social, political and economic pragmatics. Activities include meeting practitioners, attending guest lectures, following directed readings, and organizing, leading and participating in seminars. | ||
| FACC 220 | Law for Architects and Engineers. | 3 |
Law for Architects and Engineers. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Aspects of the law which affect architects and engineers. Definition and branches of law; Federal and Provincial jurisdiction, civil and criminal law and civil and common law; relevance of statutes; partnerships and companies; agreements; types of property, rights of ownership; successions and wills; expropriation; responsibility for negligence; servitudes/easements, privileges/liens, hypothecs/ mortgages; statutes of limitations; strict liability of architect, engineer and builder; patents, trade marks, industrial design and copyright; bankruptcy; labour law; general and expert evidence; court procedure and arbitration. | ||
| FACC 500 | Technology Business Plan Design. | 3 |
Technology Business Plan Design. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course combines several management functional areas such as marketing, financial, operations and strategy with the skills of creativity, engineering innovation, leadership and communications. Students learn how to design an effective and winning business plan around a technology or engineering project in small, medium or large enterprises. | ||
| FACC 501 | Technology Business Plan Project. | 3 |
Technology Business Plan Project. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Students work in teams to develop a comprehensive business plan project based on a technological or engineering innovation while utilizing site visits. | ||
| HISP 225 | Hispanic Civilization 1. | 3 |
Hispanic Civilization 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A survey of historical and cultural elements which constitute the background of the Hispanic world up to the 18th century; a survey of the pre-Columbian indigenous civilizations (Aztec, Maya and Inca) and the conquest of America. | ||
| HISP 226 | Hispanic Civilization 2. | 3 |
Hispanic Civilization 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A survey of the constitution of the ideological and political structures of the Spanish Empire in both Europe and America until the Wars of Independence; a survey of the culture and history of the Hispanic people from the early 19th Century to the present. | ||
| INDR 294 | Introduction to Labour-Management Relations. 2 | 3 |
Introduction to Labour-Management Relations. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to labour-management relations, the structure, function and government of labour unions, labour legislation, the collective bargaining process, and the public interest in industrial relations. | ||
| INTG 215 | Entrepreneurship Essentials for Non-Management Students. 3 | 3 |
Entrepreneurship Essentials for Non-Management Students. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Fundamental concepts, theories, and practices of entrepreneurship. Focus on identifying opportunities, developing business ideas, and understanding key components of starting and managing a business. | ||
| MATH 338 | History and Philosophy of Mathematics. | 3 |
History and Philosophy of Mathematics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Egyptian, Babylonian, Greek, Indian and Arab contributions to mathematics are studied together with some modern developments they give rise to, for example, the problem of trisecting the angle. European mathematics from the Renaissance to the 18th century is discussed, culminating in the discovery of the infinitesimal and integral calculus by Newton and Leibnitz. Demonstration of how mathematics was done in past centuries, and involves the practice of mathematics, including detailed calculations, arguments based on geometric reasoning, and proofs. | ||
| MGCR 222 | Introduction to Organizational Behaviour. 2 | 3 |
Introduction to Organizational Behaviour. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Individual motivation and communication style; group dynamics as related to problem solving and decision making, leadership style, work structuring and the larger environment. Interdependence of individual, group and organization task and structure. | ||
| MGCR 352 | Principles of Marketing. 2 | 3 |
Principles of Marketing. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Introduction to marketing principles, focusing on problem solving and decision making. Topics include: the marketing concept; marketing strategies; buyer behaviour; Canadian demographics; internal and external constraints; product; promotion; distribution; price. Lectures, text material and case studies. | ||
| ORGB 321 | Leadership. | 3 |
Leadership. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Leadership theories provide students with opportunities to assess and work on improving their leadership skills. Topics include: the ability to know oneself as a leader, to formulate a vision, to have the courage to lead, to lead creatively, and to lead effectively with others. | ||
| ORGB 423 | Human Resources Management. 2 | 3 |
Human Resources Management. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Issues involved in personnel administration. Topics include: human resource planning, job analysis, recruitment and selection, training and development, performance appraisal, organization development and change, issues in compensation and benefits, and labour-management relations. | ||
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If you are uncertain whether or not a course principally imparts language skills, please see an adviser in the McGill Engineering Student Centre (Frank Dawson Adams Building, Room 22) or email an adviser.
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Note: Management courses have limited enrolment and registration dates. See Important Dates at http://www.mcgill.ca/importantdates.
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INTG 215 Entrepreneurship Essentials for Non-Management Students. is not open to students who have taken INTG 201 Integrated Management Essentials 1. and INTG 202 Integrated Management Essentials 2..
Note regarding language courses: Language courses are not accepted to satisfy the Complementary Studies Group B requirement, effective for students who entered the program as of Fall 2017.
Elective Course (3 credits)
One 3-credit course at the 200-level or higher from any department at McGill, approved by the Undergraduate Programs Office in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.