Engineering at Indiana University?

When I first explain to industry professionals, family, and friends that I am studying Intelligent Systems Engineering (ISE) at Indiana University, their response is always the same:

"Indiana isn't an engineering school, and besides, what is Intelligent Systems Engineering?"

And to this I typically explain that while Indiana isn't well known for engineering at this point in time, the creation of this program in 2016 is no different than the introduction of the Informatics program at Indiana in 2000. At that time, the program was one of the first in the nation and many people had their doubts. However, today the program is consistently ranked one of the top in the nation and ISE will be no different.

As for what ISE is, my response changes day to day and may differ among my peers. A couple points remain consistent though:

1. As a society we are moving towards a world of interconnected devices, we have already seen this with the invention of "smart"-everything. Some may view these devices as unnecessary such as smart-toasters, or smart-vacuums. However, the applications are very real and exist in the realms of healthcare, environment, industry, and emergency response to name a few. This is often referred to as The Internet of Things.
2. This progression in society requires a new breed of engineers, ones that understand embedded systems, machine learning, edge computing, design, rapid prototyping, etc.
3. A shortage of engineers in this discipline exists, and the need for their expertise will continue to grow as the realm of connected devices continues to grow.

ISE aims to solve this problem and from the start I have seen the results.

Through hands-on, learning I have begun developing systems from day one, which is unusual compared to the conventional "learn by the textbook method." I have studied the most relevant skills needed for developing future technologies, been provided incredible resources, had access to some of the most highly skilled researchers in the field, and have received many opportunities to participate in undergraduate research in areas of study that I find most fascinating.

As a junior, I have chosen my concentration to be Cyber Physical Systems, systems which combine sensing, computation, and networking into physical devices and infrastructure connecting them to the internet and other devices. The course load has been demanding, yet rewarding and I have been fortunate to work through it closely with my peers.

And so, while I continue to have to explain ISE to each new person that I meet, this will not be the case for long. With each day, the program develops and with it the abilities of me and my peers. We are gearing up to fulfill the needs of industry and set an example of how the teaching style of engineering can be changed at conventional engineering schools. As a member of the Inaugural Class of Intelligent System Engineers set to graduate in 2020, it is an exciting time and I look forward to contributing to the needs of the society of the future.