Embedded Systems
Certificate Program

Embedded Systems

Building the internet of things

Establish Candidacy View Individual Courses
Contact Us

Certificate Description

Build your knowledge of universal connectivity

The UCSC Silicon Valley Extension Embedded Systems professional certificate program prepares students with the core design skills needed to work at some of the top companies in the Valley.

Our hardware professional students learn to design function-specific computer and communication systems, including:

  • mobile devices,
  • the Internet of Things,
  • networking equipment,
  • industrial controllers, and
  • consumer and automotive electronics.

Learn on industry-standard hardware

Students get invaluable hands-on experience with quick prototyping using FGPAs from Xilinx. Learn to design and test hardware and software innovations of the future as you prepare for high-paying jobs in the industry.

Embedded Systems certificate program objectives

  • Design, debug, and synthesize digital logic for ASICs, PGAs, and IP cores
  • Understand the basics of embedded software and hardware design
  • Decode IO technologies, including PCI Express, Ethernet, and Fibre Channel
  • Design and implement prototypes using FPGA

Program Overview

Estimated Cost: Starts at $3,810. (You pay only for courses you enroll in.) | International Tuition Cost
Program Requirements: 5–6 courses (14 quarter units). Take 3 required courses (8 quarter units) and 2–3 elective credit courses (6 quarter units). End with Certificate Review.
Minimum Hours of Instruction: Minimum 140 hours of instruction.
Estimated Duration: A full-time student can complete the certificate in 9–12 months.
Special Programs:
International Logo Workforce Logo

Courses

Syllabus Library

1. Required Course(s):

Quarter Units: 2.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

02-07-2024 to 03-27-2024
$740.00
EMBD.X403.(9)
See complete class schedule here.
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-16-2024 to 03-26-2024
$750.00
LINX.X409.(15)
See complete class schedule here.
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me

2. Electives: Embedded Software

CMPR.X401
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-18-2024 to 03-21-2024
$960.00
DBDA.X408.(36)
See complete class schedule here.
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-25-2024 to 03-28-2024
$750.00
LINX.X413.(7)
See complete class schedule here.
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-10-2024 to 03-13-2024
$980.00
DBDA.X427.(12)
See complete class schedule here.
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me

3. Electives: Embedded Hardware

Fall TBD
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-18-2024 to 03-21-2024
$980.00
EMBD.X400.(12)
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-27-2024 to 03-16-2024
$980.00
EMBD.X405.(11)
See complete class schedule here.
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-18-2024 to 03-21-2024
$820.00
VLSI.X405.(14)
See complete class schedule here.
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-10-2024 to 03-13-2024
$910.00
EMBD.X408.(12)
See complete class schedule here.
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 1.5
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-17-2024 to 03-20-2024
$980.00
VLSI.X411.(13)
See complete class schedule here.
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

01-08-2024 to 03-25-2024
$910.00
EMBD.X413.(14)
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me
Quarter Units: 3.0
Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID
Want to enroll or get the estimated cost of future sections? Notify Me

5. Completion Review:

Start / End Date
Cost
Instructor
Location
Section ID

Meet Our Instructors

Ajit A Natarajan
Sr. Software Engineer, Google
Edison Fong
RF Engineer and Analog Engineer, Consultant
Edward T Ong
Senior Product Marketing Manager, Power Integrations
Gary Wallichs
Sr. Principal Eng/FPGA Product Architect, Intel
Hinkmond Wong
Principal Software Engineer
Juergen Kienhoefer
Managing Partner, AIRcable LLC
Kalyan Rapolu
Principal Engineer, DuPont Silicon Valley Tech
Mandar M Munishwar
Formal Verification Engineer, Google
Marilson B Campos
Senior Staff Engineer - ML Platform, Apixio
Michael A. Wang
Director of Business Development, ISSI Integrated Silicon Solution Inc.
Oswald A Campesato
Founder, iQuarkt and AI Adjunct Professor
Radhika S Grover
Founder, Trainer & Consultant, SPEL Technologies
Raghav Vinjamuri
Independent Computer Software Professional | Linux Program Chair
Sam D Huynh
Principal Member of Technical Staff, AMD
Xi "Bill" Chen
Senior Software Engineer, Meta
Yuchung M Wang
Director, Global Academic Program at Digi-Key Electronics

Certificate Inquiry Form

Contact Us
Speak to a student services representative.

Call (408) 861-3860

Envelope extension@ucsc.edu

Requisite Knowledge

Technical aptitude

You need a degree in a technical field or equivalent knowledge acquired through training and experience in system design and development. We recommended you have experience in C programming.

Please review course descriptions

Make sure you have taken the necessary prerequisites or meet the requirements through job experience or previous education before registering for a course.

Advisory Board

huynh-sam-1x1.png

Certificate Program Chair 

SAM HUYNH, Ph.D., is a principal member of the technical staff and a senior manager at AMD. He has over 22 years of experience in the field of VLSI design including memory, IO, physical design implementation, and full chip integration. He has three patents and 10 publications. He has served as chair of the VLSI and Embedded Systems programs since 2020.

Certificate Program Advisory Board

ALFREDO ALBA, MS
Senior Technical Staff Member, Intelligence Augmentation Department, IBM Almaden Research Center

ABDO BABUKR, MSEE
Consultant, Embedded Computing, Wave Spectrum, Inc.

SAM HUYNH, Ph.D.
Principal member of technical staff and a senior manager, AMD
Chair and Instructor, Embedded Systems Certificate Program, UCSC Silicon Valley Extension

Y.C. WANG, BSEE
Director, Global Academic Program at Digi-Key Electronics
Instructor, Embedded Systems Certificate Program, UCSC Silicon Valley Extension

Establish Candidacy

Establish candidacy in a certificate or specialization

Once you create your student account, you can establish candidacy in a certificate or specialization program any time during your studies.

The benefits of enrolling early
  • Lock in your certificate requirements.This means that even if program requirements change, the requirements to complete your certificate will remain the same for you
  • Receive program updates
  • Set your intention
  • It’s free

To complete a program, you must enroll in the certificate program before enrolling in the Certificate Completion Review.

You have five years to complete all necessary courses in a certificate program or three years to finish up a specialization program.

All the necessary units in a certificate must be completed within this window.* The clock begins on the first day of your first course in the certificate program. For example, if you started a course on Sept. 5, 2017, you would have to complete all of the required units in this certificate by Sept. 4, 2022.

Note:

Enrolling in a certificate program does not trigger the beginning of the five-year window. It begins the first day of the first course that applies to a certificate program. The Certificate Completion Review process does not have to occur within the five-year timeframe.

For more information: How do I get my certificate or specialization?

* Students participating in a special program, such as workforce, international, Personal Financial Planning, or curriculum partner programs (such as GreenFig or CLS by Barbri) may have a shorter completion requirement.

Establish Candidacy

Grade Requirements

Please note that only letter grades of C or higher may be applied to a certificate, and in some programs, students may have more stringent requirements. Students in most employer- and government-sponsored payment programs, such as workforce development, as well as international students on F-1 visas, need to maintain a B average to meet their requirements. Personal Financial Planning students have additional grade requirements for individual courses to attain a certificate.

See Grading and Credits Policy for further information.