The branch of engineering which involves designing, constructing and operating robots is known as robotics. It also involves learning about the computer systems which control them and are important for their information processing and sensory feedback.

Bachelors and Masters Degree in Robotics are programs that are geared towards teaching students about developing and constructing robotic devices which can be used for various purposes such as in commercial, manufacturing and security sectors. These programs include elements of mechanical engineering, computer science and electrical engineering.

For students applying in the undergraduate programs, strong math and science base is a must. In case of masters programs, engineering degree in relevant field along with project portfolio is required.

Why Study Robotics?

The world is becoming increasingly automated and most of the work today is carried out on computer systems. Looking at this trend, there is an increasing demand for people who specialize in robotics so that it can be utilized into the work systems in a manner that it makes work easier as well as faster. The first industrial robot was introduced in 1960’s in the US. Since then, robotics has come a long way and the advancement in robotics has caused into its widespread application right from healthcare to manufacturing. Robots have many advantages such as safety, productivity and time and money saving. Robots help to produce high quality work which is accurate and devoid of mistakes. Such automated systems help to perform applications repeatedly with absolute accuracy and therefore their application is increasing in industries. Due to their high demand, studying robotics and researching in this field is advisable as it will provide better employment opportunities to students.

Opportunities for Robotics Students

There are a number of opportunities for students who have done bachelors and masters in the field of robotics, some opportunities include;
-Robotics programmer
-Robotics systems controller
-Automotive robotics engineer
-Industrial robotics engineer
-Aerospace robotics engineer

Robotics Technology Universities

There are a number of Universities offering degrees in Robotics. Here are a few listed below:

–University of California (Santa Cruz)

The University‘s world rank is 109 according to the World University Rankings for 2014-15. The robotics engineering program at UCSC prepares students for careers in interfaces between mechanical, computer and electrical engineering. The students will have a thorough understanding of the principles and practices of robotics. There are a number of Robotics related programs within the Computer, electrical and mechanical engineering programs for students to choose from.  Students can get a Bachelor’s in Robotics Engineering or opt for a minor in Control Designated Robotics at graduate level.

Scholarship- UCSC Robotics Engineering program prepares graduates for rewarding careers at the interfaces between electrical, computer, and mechanical engineering. UCSC Robotics Engineering graduates will have a thorough grounding in the principles and practices of robotics and control

–Princeton University

Robotics and Intelligent Systems

Princeton is a highly acclaimed university and according to The World University Rankings, it is ranked at number 7 in 2014-15. This is a certificate program designed for those undergraduate students who wish to pursue a career in  or graduate in one of the following areas:

Creating systems for decision-making, adaptation, estimation, identification and control by the use of concepts taken from cognitive and biological sciences.

Understanding human intelligence from the outlook of computation and neuroscience

Development of systems that automate transportation, manufacturing, healthcare etc.

The program is open for juniors as well as seniors in Princeton University with a background in science, computing and mathematics. Program requirements include:

-Six courses, which includes 3 core courses and 3 electives. A minimum grade of B in the six program course is required for certification.

-A one term senior independent work project or a two term senior thesis with a robotic / intelligent systems relevant topic should be completed.

-Close collaboration with faculty members.

Scholarship- The Certificate Program in Robotics and Intelligent Systems is open to juniors and seniors at Princeton University who have a satisfactory background in mathematics, science, and computing. Students should have successfully completed.

–Washington University St. Louis-Master of Engineering in Robotics

The University is a private research university and more than 20 Nobel Prize winners are associated with the University. According to World Rankings, it stood at 42 in 2014-15.This degree is open for students who have a bachelor’s in engineering or physical sciences from an accredited university. To pursue this degree, you will require 30 units. The program is designed in a manner that it is completed in 1.5 years but can be completed in longer time if done part-time. To finish the course in 1.5 years, students are required to take 3 courses in both fall and spring semester and 4 courses in second fall semester.

Scholarship- Applicant should have bachelor’s degree in engineering or physical sciences from an accredited university. The courses must be 400-level or higher and they must include at least 15 units of 500-level courses.

–Carnegie Mellon University

The Robotics Institute

This University is synonymous with robotics and has multiple engineering and computer science divisions. The University has been ranked 24 in The World Rankings. The University offers a number of Robotics programs such as PhD in Robotics, Masters in Robotics and Master of Science- Robotic Systems Development (MRSD). There is also a special masters program wherein Carnegie Mellon undergraduate students get a chance to complete their masters in the 5^th year.  These programs include Master of Science- Robotic Technology (MS-RT), Master of Science-Computer Vision (MSCV). Students also have the choice of doing a robotics additional major or opt for the robotics minor in the undergraduate program.

Scholarship- The Robotics Institute is an international leader in robotics education. Carnegie Mellon University offer many academic programs in Robotics like PhD in robotics, Masters in Robotics, Robotics Additional Major, Master of Science – Robotic Systems Development (MRSD) and so many programs.

–Georgia Tech

Institute for Robotics and Intelligent Machines

Three major research groups use Robotics at the University: The Mobile Robot Laboratory, The Healthcare Robotics Laboratory and The Center for Music Technology. Georgia Tech ranks at number 35 according to the U.S News and World Report’s Best College Ranking. Georgia tech offers PhD programs in Robotics. The program has more than 40 faculty members who are part of the PhD Robotics program. The SURE (Summer Undergraduate Research in Engineering) Program which was introduced in 1992 has been extended to Robotics. His program was launched in May 2014 and it receives funding from Department of Defense and National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Division of Engineering Education and Centers. This program is directed towards undergraduate students to participate in a 10 week summer robotics research experience which will help to attract underrepresented students to graduate school.

Scholarship- Georgia Tech offers the first interdisciplinary Ph.D. program in robotics to students enrolled in a participating home school in the College of Computing or the College of Engineering. The program supports Tech’s mission to provide education in disciplines related to science, technology, and interdisciplinary areas

–University of Pennsylvania

General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Perception (GRASP)

The General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Perception (GRASP) Laboratory is an interdisciplinary academic and research center within the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. The GRASP Laboratory integrates computer science, mechanical engineering and electrical engineering into a collaborative environment. GRASP has developed a $10 million research center wherein ground-breaking technological innovations to its credit. They can apply for CIS, MEAM or ESE department, depending on their interest.  According to the U.S News and World Report’s Best College Ranking University of Pennsylvania stands at number 19 amongst the Best Engineering Schools.

Scholarship- The center offers a number of undergraduate and graduate programs in the field of Robotics. They also offer a Masters in Robotics wherein students have to take up a total of 10 courses along with an optional thesis project. PhD students conducting doctoral research at GRASP get their degree from one of the associated departments.

–Flinders University

Bachelor of Engineering(Robotics) (Honours)

This Australian University is ranked in Top 10-16 in Australia and Top 400 Worldwide in the Academic Ranking of World Universities 2013. The course is a 4 year on campus course and it combines computer control, electronics, programming in design, signal processing, development and application of robots and its integration with the other working systems. Flinders is the only university in South Australia whose Robotics program is based on electronics and autonomous intelligent systems, both of which are the core elements of Robotics. The bachelor’s at Flinders is accredited by Engineers Australia and is internationally recognized.

Scholarship- Flinders University offers undergraduate program in the field of Bachelor of Engineering in Robotics. Flinders offers the only robotics course in South Australia based on electronics and autonomous intelligent systems. Flinders robotics degree enables you to choose a course of study with either an intelligent robotics focus or a mechatronics focus.

Johns Hopkins University

Laboratory for Computational Sensing and Robotics (LCSR) is a not-for-profit interdisciplinary academic center for engineering, research and development. LCSR’s mission is to create knowledge and foster innovation to further the field of robotics science and engineering. We will accomplish this goal by cultivating excellence in research and teaching in robotics engineering sciences, and by exploiting opportunities for robotics research and interdisciplinary synergy across all JHU divisions and with collaborators worldwide.

Scholarship- Johns Hopkins University also offers undergraduate minors in Robotics and Computer-Integrated Surgery and also offers graduate program Master of Science in Engineering focuses on interdisciplinary learning to offer a comprehensive education in Robotics.

Colorado School of Mines

The mission of the Center for Automation, Robotics and Distributed Intelligence (CARDI) is to engage in interdisciplinary research encompassing the fields of control systems, robotics and automation, computer vision and intelligence, distributed systems and networking, and data/information. Mining is an incredibly complex pursuit, and robots can step in to do dangerous work to save lives. Someone needs to build them, and the Colorado School of Mines has its Center for Automation, Robotics, and Distributed Intelligence (CARDI) to equip people with the tools to do so.

Scholarship- Education is a key element of the CARDI agenda. The center promotes undergraduate and graduate research in CARDI projects by publicizing the research of members, organizing an annual Research Fair and directly hiring undergraduate and graduate students.

UC Berkeley

The Robotics and Intelligent Machines Lab at UC Berkeley has an entire department devoted to replicating animal movement for the sake of improving robotic mobility. The school’s Laboratory for Automation Science and Engineering gets into more general robotics work, designing solutions for things like robot-assisted surgery and automated manufacturing.

Stanford University

Since its founding in 1962, Stanford’s Artificial Intelligence Laboratory has been facilitating robotics education for 52 years. Students gather for weekly reading groups to dissect robotics papers and discuss the latest developments in their fields. Its faculty’s list of interests is loaded with fun robo-buzzwords: informatics, logic, machine learning, natural language processing, and so on.

University of Southern California

USC’s Robotics Research Lab encourages undergrads to get their hands dirty by taking directed research credits from faculty. The USC Robotics Laboratory has a large and constantly growing collection of robots. Most recently, we received a PR2 robot from Willow Garage, as part of the PR2 beta program. Several lab projects make use of our group of Pioneers for research into coordination, communication and learning in robot teams. The Evolution Robotics ER1 platform is being used for human-robot interaction research.

Columbia University

The projects described on the website for Columbia University’s Robotics Group are impressive to say the least. Students have built autonomous vehicles for navigating urban environments, 3-D simulation tools to teach robots how to interact with the real world, and even a system for facilitate aspects of surgery-by-robot.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

MIT is nearly synonymous with developing cool, cutting-edge technology. It’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory has spawned a number of robotic creations. CSAIL articulates compelling interdisciplinary research visions for computing, invents fundamental new technologies, conducts basic research activities that strengthen the state of the art, and inspires and educates future generations of scientists, technology leaders, and the public. CSAIL is an innovative, passionate community that both drives the future of computing and harnesses its remarkable power.