NIU now offering biomedical and mechatronics engineering degrees

Prosthetics, pacemakers and other life changing devices - that's what engineering students at Northern Illinois University's College of Engineering and Engineering Technology can study now that the college has introduced a B.S. degree program in biomedical engineering.

A second new B.S. program, mechatronics, combines the principles of electrical, computer, mechanical and control engineering; mechatronics engineers are in high demand for their diverse experience and expertise.

Industries that specialize in robotics, manufacturing, consumer products, defense, aerospace, automotive and many more employ mechatronics engineers. These programs are now available and registering for fall semester 2019.

With the inaugural semesters of these two new programs, the CEET ranked 45th out of 200 undergraduate engineering colleges, also welcomes new staff with the inaugural semesters of biomedical and mechatronics degree programs.

"This is just the beginning for the College of Engineering," said Donald Peterson, Ph.D., dean of CEET and professor of mechanical engineering. "We have plans to grow the college with new undergraduate and graduate degree programs, and by adding distinguished faculty, such as our latest new faculty, who are experts in their respective fields and possess diverse, rich experiences to share with our students."

Yueh-Jaw Lin, Ph.D. joined the faculty on July 1, as director of mechatronics engineering and professor of mechanical engineering. He was previously a professor and director of the join engineering dual program at Valparaiso University and DJTU in China. His experience includes administrative experience at universities in the U.K. and the U.S. He earned a bachelor's degree in power mechanical engineering from the National Tsing-Hua University of Taiwan; and a master's degree and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

"I believe that education and research will continue to change," said Lin. "I further believe that a school should be measured by its contributions to its students. The greatest schools are those that provide the greatest education for their students."

Also new to the faculty on July 1, Tariq Shamim, Ph.D. joined as professor and chair of the Mechanical Engineering Department. He was previously a tenured professor and associate chair of engineering at the University of Michigan-Flint.

Prior to that, he was a faculty member at the University of Michigan-Dearborn and the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology in Abu Dhabi. He also had visiting faculty appointments at the MIT, National University of Singapore, and American University of Sharjah. He earned his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering and a master's in aerospace engineering from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor and a second master's in mechanical engineering from the University of Windsor, Canada. He earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the N.E.D. University, Karachi.

"My experience with universities in several parts of the world assists me in adopting innovative approaches in curriculum development in order to meet the need of students from diverse backgrounds," said Shamim. "I am pleased to have the opportunity of joining the college and making contributions to its growth and success."

Mansoor Alam, Ph.D. will join the CEET as chair of the Electrical Engineering Department on August 1. He has a doctorate in electrical engineering Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India 1974; a master's degree in engineering in electrical engineering from Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India; and a B.S. degree in engineering in electrical engineering from Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India. He was chairman of the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department for the University of Toledo, Ohio for seven years and 10 years as a graduate director. He was the acting director of the School of Computer Science at the University of Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

Abul Azad, Ph.D. was named the associate dean of undergraduate Academic Affairs, Outreach and Diversity in June. He was previously the acting associate dean and professor of engineering technology at NIU's CEET.

Professor Azad is interested in the "internet of things"- how we can leverage the internet to bring harmony to remote laboratories and enable more effective collaboration.

He has taken an active role in standardizing initiatives for the internet of things as well as mobile robotics. It's part of the reason why he's an editorial board member at the International Journal of Online Engineering and the U.S. Department of Defense relies on his expertise to review proposals. Professor Azad has diverse experiences gained in the UK, Middle East, Europe, Bangladesh, and other parts of the world.

"I believe that in addition to technical expertise, students should also be exposed to teamwork, skill transformation, lifelong learning, and ethical and environmental responsibility," he said. "I have approximately 30 years of experience in teaching and advising student projects at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. I also keep current with new developments in educational technologies, evaluation and assessment, classroom practices, and teaching effectiveness."

For more information about the new degree programs and new faculty, visit www.niu.edu/ceet/ or ceet@niu.edu.