Courtesy of Jeff Feiereisen

Members of the Washington University IEEE pose for a photo.

The Institution of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE) was revamped this year. The organization, which had only three members last year, now boasts between 400 and 500.

This Saturday, the group’s hard work paid off when it was awarded the title of “Most Oustanding Student Branch in the Region,” and senior Jeff Feiereisen won “Most Outstanding Student Member.”

The IEEE is an international organization focused on electrical engineering. The world is divided into 10 regions, which are then divided into subregions. Washington University is in a region that stretches across about 10 states, spanning Texas and Missouri. The University’s victory puts it among the top 10 branches in the world.

Members of the electrical and systems engineering department predict that this will increase the University’s name recognition.

“The region is one of 10 in the world, so they won this recognition for the entire region, which includes dozens and dozens of universities and schools. It is a very significant recognition for Washington University,” said Professor Paul Min, associate professor of electrical and systems engineering and the University’s IEEE adviser.

“This has a really big impact because as one of the 10 largest outstanding student groups in the world, our name will get out there,” Feiereisen said.

The team put a lot of effort toward the win this year. They did a complete about face, coming up with a new motto, “your dreams are reality.” The WU IEEE tries to host an event each day, prioritizing networking and awareness.

“The big thing for us was always to help Wash. U. build relationships and get its name out there, and it’s a really hard, slow process and I don’t think the school gets as much help from the students as it needs,” Feiereisen said. “If you go to the company you should be pushing the company to recruit Wash. U. students.”

The University’s IEEE projects are not confined to electrical engineering. Outside projects include building dance floors like the one at Vertigo and constructing trebuchets. Feiereisen intends for the group to appeal to all majors, and though most members are engineers, the group has one philosophy major.

The group also spends a significant amount of time networking. They host events with local engineers and major corporations as well as department dinners with and without faculty.

The IEEE wants to increase recognition of the University among employers, especially major corporations with which the University does not already have strong relationships. These corporations include General Electric.

“People will hear the name more across the region and this will help with bigger events,” Feiereisen said.

By working to improve corporate relations with the career center, engineering school and Weston Career Center, the University’s IEEE hopes to make more jobs available to students.

Feierson was pleased that he won “Most Outstanding Student Member,” but didn’t think that was the highlight of the awards.

“I’m very appreciative of the fact that I was recognized, but it could never have been a single person’s effort; it was a team that we had,” Feiereisen said.

Professor Min was proud of the group and attributed all of the accomplishments to the students.

“These students basically participated in the competition, and they were recognized for their tremendous accomplishments,” Professor Min said.

“I had a vision that I followed through with and it’s more that I had a great group of motivated students that shared the same vision and wanted to jump on board and be a part of it,” Feiereisen said. “So winning the outstanding large student group [award] was extremely rewarding. That’s what made me feel good and feel proud.”