Educating microwave engineers in the United States

Three knowledge areas in which a microwave engineer needs to be educated are reviewed, and implementation means discussed. It is shown that microwave engineering education in the US occurs primarily after receipt of the first (bachelor´s) engineering degree. The inevitability of specialized academic education within the field of microwave engineering is pointed out. Overall results from a broadly based survey of US electrical engineering departments´ microwave engineering programs are presented. They include information on master´s and doctorate degrees awarded, faculty, and sources and level of research funding. Additional reference sources which contain information on US microwave engineering are identified. Opportunities for making educational improvements on the graduate level of this multifaceted engineering specialization, which is not centrally regulated, are pointed out and illustrated by a specific example