Better your competitive edge. Connect with Oregon State University to advance your company’s
technology through research partnerships and find future talent.
In the middle of deadline-driven projects, it can be hard to act on the strategic priorities of R&D
and advanced-degree future hires, which is required for continued innovation. Many
companies, large and small, have learned to leverage top research universities for effectively
addressing those priorities. Importantly, locality matters for such relationships, and luckily,
there is just such a resource in your backyard.
In our local tech community, Oregon State University’s School of Electrical Engineering and
Computer Science (EECS) is well known as a source for recruiting interns and great new hires.
But what you might not know is Oregon State’s strong research record and prestigious
nationally ranked programs. Oregon State’s strong research organization is a great asset to
industry, and the university is making it easier to find those connections. Having this research
powerhouse next door is a tremendous asset, but its true value to industry is only sparked
when we decide to proactively connect.
The School of EECS includes a broad set of research areas ranging from electronic materials and
integrated circuits to programming languages and computer visualization. A top area of impact
is the broad topic of data science, which includes artificial intelligence, robotics, and
cybersecurity. With more than 30 faculty in this area, according to csrankings.org, Oregon
State’s artificial intelligence program is ranked highest in the Pacific Northwest.
And these programs represent just a portion of the $383.9 million in research grants and
contracts awarded to the university in 2021. That’s more research funding than all the other
public universities in Oregon combined.
This coupled with strong educational programs makes Oregon State, a smart choice for finding
future talent. Oregon State achieved national prominence with its degree programs. Its online
bachelor’s degree in computer science is ranked third, and it is ranked fifth in mechatronics,
robotics and automation engineering in the U.S., according to the Center for World University
Rankings.
Such strong and deep set of research programs provide many opportunity but also could make
it hard to find a single place to connect. To ease the connections, EECS hosts over 7 NSF-funded
centers including examples like:
Pervasive Personalized Intelligence Center (artificial intelligence, IoT, edge computing)
Center for Design of Analog-DigitaI Integrated Circuits
Oregon Research and Teaching Security Operations Center (security operations)
Developing future engineers and researchers remain a top focus which translate to Internships
and new hires in connection with the industry. Student engagement programs can be leveraged
through INSPiRE Industry Affiliates. Likewise, the Center for Applied Systems and Software
helps companies wanting interns to work on projects, but lacking the staffing to manage them.
Like any other worthwhile endeavor, leveraging these local planning takes some planning
before regular programs settle in place. Longer-term research and recruiting programs lead to
ongoing results over time. It’s an added bonus that this local resource happens to be nationally
ranked. Which means, if you don’t make time to connect, then your competitors might.
