Telecommunication Engineering is a 5-year or ten semester degree programme. Nine semesters of coursework and laboratory practicals are spent in the Institute. The long vacation of eight weeks between the 200 level and 300 level is devoted to SWEP (Students‟ Work Experience Programme) in the different works and production centers of the Institute (e.g., Wood mill, batching plant, metal fabrication workshop, bakery, CLMT, construction sites, etc.). At 400 level, students embark on SIWES (Students Industrial Experience Scheme) which involves six months of industrial training, starting immediately after the First Semester. As a result, the first three years, that is, 100, 200, 300 levels, are 100% common to the other Engineering programmes offered in the Faculty of Ground and Communications Engineering.
Justification for the Programme in the Department
In the electromechanical age, Electrical Engineering as a discipline was monolithic. The name Department of Electrical Engineering was adopted by Universities offering the programme. Then came the era of microelectronics which broadened the discipline to Electrical and Electronic Engineering; and Department of Electrical & Electronic Engineering became common. The computer age followed and it became fashionable to have a Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The new era now is an Information age and in order to cope effectively with the industries labour demands, it is imperative to design programmes and curricula to meet these demands.
Telecommunications industry being the fastest growing industry in Nigeria, yet there was no programme in the Nigerian university system at the onset of the current investments in the sector; hence, the nomenclature “Department of Telecommunications Engineering” came on board. The programme is designed to expose students to telecommunications engineering encompassing both hardware and software needed by professional engineers in telecommunications sector.
Philosophy of the Department
The philosophy of the programmes in the Department of Telecommunications Engineering is derived from AFIT Commandant’s Vision, “To transform AFIT into a world class institution and first choice for the study of Aerospace and Defense Engineering related programmes. Telecommunications Engineering, as the backbone of a knowledge-based economy, is highly dynamic and versatile. Therefore, the Department’s programmes aim to contribute effectively and sufficiently to the knowledge-based economy by putting in place curricula that meet these challenges in Information and Communication Technology, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, and Telecommunication Engineering.
The training is to produce graduates, who will be producers rather than mere consumers of knowledge and who upon graduation, will be functional engineers in industries, research assistants, scholars in academia, or successful entrepreneurs in the Telecommunications industries.
Objectives of the Department
In order to actualize the philosophy of the Department, emphasis is placed on the following objectives:
- To facilitate a good grasp of a broad spectrum of engineering principles by students.
- To facilitate the acquisition of practical work experience.
- To inculcate entrepreneurial, marketing, and management skills in students.
- To enable students to engage extensively in electrical and Telecommunication engineering research and development.
The evolution of Telecommunication Industries brought about Telecommunications Engineering to become economically the most promising activities. Transmission of information via picture, voice or data is a fundamental prerequisite for the development of modern society. New computer technologies have significantly improved automatic control in processing industry, ship handling, flying an aircraft, sophisticated robots and modern medical equipment. Well-educated professionals, capable of keeping abreast of the latest developments, are the fundamental prerequisite of quick and prestigious development. It is therefore only by excellent education that we can successfully keep pace with modern scientific achievements and with technological challenges.
It is pertinent to note that: sustainable, reliable, and affordable electric power and information services are indispensable to achieving these goals.The Department of Telecommunications Engineering offers courses that are designed to train students to make original contributions and play leading roles in a global context. In the entire programme, students are expected to be able to:
- Design electrical and Telecommunications engineering projects and supervise their constructions.
- Design and make electrical and electronic components, devices and systems.
- Design and develop innovative products and production techniques in the electrical and Telecommunications engineering industries.
- Install and maintain electrical and Telecommunication engineering systems for optimal performance in the local environment.
- Investigate and develop systems according to specifications.
- Function on multidisciplinary projects; and
- Guide projects from specifications, through design, simulation, production, and testing.
Therefore, the programme is designed to provide the requisite human capacity in electrical and Telecommunication industries which are essential to drive the government’s development agenda. The Department is accordingly equipped and positioned to produce the manpower needed by the nation to attain the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Vision 20: 2020 which are centered on poverty eradication and capacity building.
