Conference Proceeding

University-Industry Partnerships in Semiconductor Engineering

Cox, Ron, Dallas, Tim, Yu-Chun, Donald Lie, Bayne, Stephen B, Karp, Tanja, Nutter, Brian Steven, Gale, Richard O

2014

Overview

University-Industry Partnership in Semiconductor EngineeringA critical component of the US industrial base is the development, production, and deploymentof semiconductor devices. This industry relies on a high number of specially trained engineers toaccomplish these missions. As semiconductor technologies have continued to advance, severedemands have been placed on educational institutions to properly prepare students for the rigorsof employment. To maintain exceptional student development, strong partnerships betweenindustry and academia are a necessity.We describe a long-standing and successful university-industry partnership in semiconductordevice engineering with a primary focus on product and test engineering. The partnership, nowin its 15th year, relies on a symbiotic relationship that has evolved over the years to reflectindustrial trends and advancing university capabilities. The success of the partnership is due to amultifaceted approach with an emphasis on frequent communication between the company andthe university. Bi-directional on-site visits by all participants (faculty, students, alumni, and otherindustry engineers) strengthen the initiative and clearly communicate the nature of the industrialenvironment and work expectations to the students. Mentoring of students by working engineersprovides the necessary one-on-one guidance as critical employment path decisions are made.Visits by industry representatives to the university for recruitment and technical talks providepositive visibility to the company. This interaction feeds the core component of the program,student internships. These internships, for which students can obtain course credit, are done atboth the undergraduate and graduate level and provide a nearly seamless pathway from school tofull-time employment. For graduate students, the industrial internship provides the material forthe graduate thesis.Corporate and federal funding of these initiatives has been a driving force to expedite studentprogress and strengthen educational tools. The semiconductor device engineering program,initiated by visionary alumni, is currently supported by both industry sponsored scholarships andfellowships, as well as a four-year award from the National Science Foundations’ Scholarships inSTEM program. These scholarships have allowed many students to stay in school and morequickly finish their degrees. Corporate support of university research and educational labfacilities has provided a tool set that replicates many of the systems that a student will see oncethey begin their careers at the company. Prior experience reduces the need for on the job trainingand gives these students a competitive advantage in the internship and hiring process.The full paper will provide a detailed description of the key success factors of the long-standingindustry university collaboration. It will provide insights into benefits of the collaboration asexperienced by students, university faculty, industry project managers, and human resources.

• Publisher: American Society for Engineering Education-ASEE
• Subject: Business competition / Collaboration / College faculty / College students / Colleges & universities / Communication / Companies / Comparative advantage / Competition / Competitive advantage / Cooperative learning / Critical components / Decision making / Economic development / Education / Educational research / Employment / Engineering / Engineers / Graduate students / Graduate studies / Higher education / Hiring / Human resources / Internship programs / Internships / Occupations / Partnerships / Professional training / Project managers / Recruitment / Scholarships & fellowships / Semiconductor devices / Site visits / Student teacher relationship / Students / Undergraduate education / Visibility