Digital transformation is the order of the day, and semiconductors and microelectronics are foundational elements of a digital strategy. The worldwide shortage of semiconductors—tried to buy a car lately?—may have been caused by pandemic-induced supply chain disruptions, but the silver lining is that it has brought into sharp focus the need for more design, engineering and manufacturing capacity in order to keep pace with the drive to put digital smarts everywhere.

The semiconductor industry needs a lot more engineers who are versed in these digital matters, and Purdue is stepping up to meet the challenge. The Purdue University College of Engineering is launching a range of high-value degrees and credentials to educate and train the next generation of workforce leaders in advanced semiconductors and microelectronics. This will provide both graduate and undergraduate students with a suite of options for obtaining specialized training in the field.

The Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), in partnership with Purdue’s Schools of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Engineering, intends to offer the new concentration—an entirely new Master of Science (MS) degree major in semiconductors and microelectronics—starting in January 2022. Depending on their interests, students can customize their coursework to focus on semiconductor devices and manufacturing, circuit design, or system design.

This will be the only interdisciplinary MS degree focused entirely on semiconductors and microelectronics that is offered at the Top-10 ranked engineering colleges in the country. It’s a valued diploma—26% of the workers in the semiconductor industry have graduate degrees, compared to an average of 14% for all other industries. And an additional 30% have undergraduate degrees.

At that undergraduate level, Purdue Engineering is launching a concentration for ECE students and a minor for students in other Purdue schools/departments. This will enable these students to obtain targeted training and transcripts certifying their credentials, making them highly valuable to employers. The College is also exploring a “project-based” option for the MS degree—letting students complete a substantial design project in microelectronics and semiconductors as part of the curriculum, to become even more workforce-ready.

“Purdue is a natural home for this program,” says Vijay Raghunathan, professor of electrical and computer engineering, and associate head of graduate and professional programs at the Elmore Family School. “It has historically been a national leader in microelectronics and semiconductors, from circuit and system design to advanced device design and modeling. The substantial volume of our synergistic activities—like our Birck Nanotechnology Center, with one of the largest (25,000 square feet) and most advanced university cleanrooms—positions us well to jump out ahead of our peer institutions and lead the way in educating the next generation of semiconductor workforce leaders.”

That’s just what’s required, when it’s estimated that there will be 50,000+ openings for engineers in the semiconductor field in this decade. These engineers play a variety of roles in the semiconductor industry, from advanced research and development to designing, verifying, fabricating, and testing semiconductor chips. They also create the increasingly-sophisticated electronic design automation (EDA) tools used to design and verify the complex chips of today containing (tens of) billions of transistors.

Private sector employers are clamoring for their expertise. A February 2021 KPMG International Global Semiconductor Industry Outlook, produced with the Global Semiconductor Alliance, found that 53% of responding semiconductor company CEOs identified talent development/management as their second-highest strategic priority over the next three years—a 13 percentage point rise from the previous year.

The U.S. government, recognizing the pressing need, has thrown its hat into the ring. This summer, Congress passed the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) for America Act. Part of the United States Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) (S.1260), CHIPS for America will include $52 billion in investments for domestic semiconductor research, design and manufacture.

That will mean even more demand for semiconductor engineers—a boon not only to the engineers, but to the broader economy. A May 2021 report by the SIA and Oxford Economics indicates that each U.S. worker directly employed by the semiconductor industry supports 5.7 more jobs in the wider economy.

“Students will learn the manufacturing and design of chips, and the entire supply chain: the chemical engineering of gas reaction, the mechanical engineering of tool development and packaging, the material engineering of new manufacturing materials, and the industrial engineering of supply chain and logistics optimization,” says Mung Chiang, executive vice president of Purdue University for strategic initiatives and the John A. Edwardson Dean of the College of Engineering. “Semiconductor ecosystems work best when we create synergy across major companies in manufacturing and in design, small to medium disrupters with their investors, and researchers and teachers at universities. Now is the silicon moment for America and Purdue is proud to play essential roles.”