U. of Colorado rolls out Digital Energy program

Forwarded....also referred to as "Energy Communication Networking":


The University of Colorado at Boulder is proud to announce its new program in Digital Energy. The name, "Digital Energy", reflects the broad interest in developing the role of information and communications technologies, in the utility, electric power, and energy industries. CU and ITP are active players in new initiatives in smart grids, renewable energy, and energy cyber security and have built ties with government labs such as NIST, INL, and NREL and with major industry players including energy and IT companies big and small. Through these ties we hope to create a rich set of internship and networking opportunities for students in the program. For domestic students, there are significant fellowships being offered. More information about the program can be found at our website:
Digital Energy Program | University of Colorado at Boulder Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program

ITP is rolling out this program for the Fall and is accepting applications now. Feel free to forward this information to colleagues who might be interested. ITP's Deputy Director Elizabeth Golder (cc'd) can answer inquiries about applying to the program.

We are excited about the Digital Energy program and will send out additional updates as new information becomes available.

Regards,
Tim

Timothy X Brown
Director Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program
Department of Electrical, Computer, and Energy Engineering
ECOT 256 Campus Box 530
University of Colorado
Boulder, CO 80309
Tel: (303) 492-1630
Fax: (303) 492-1112
Tim Brown's Home Page

 

Very cool. What would be the potential job market for a degree like this? Nevermind I spoke too soon...here is a list of job potentials directly from the site:

Wireless Networks
Computer and Network Security
Network Architecture
Power Electronics
Project Management

 

Here's what telecom analyst firm Maravedis has to say:

Smart Grids and the New Utility

Published: June 2010

Region: Global

Government regulations and money continue to be the key drivers for smart grid deployments in North America. The current level of commitment to smart grids varies widely across utilities. Despite all the excitement, to-date most roll-outs have been in secondary markets involving small clusters of trial users. The three types of utilities are investor-owned, municipal and cooperatives. They have different agendas and regulatory frameworks governing them, from national to state to counties and townships. While the utility segment has been re-ignited among carriers, notably in the wireless arena under promising M2M opportunities, many utilities hesitate to outsource network infrastructure needs. Many smart metering programs are incorporating wireless interconnectivity. While many vendors are lining up behind WiMAX solutions, the success of LTE will be determined by 4G deployments over the next couple of years. New levels of standards protocols need to be agreed on, from device to network, and especially across utilities driving the need for open ‘utility-agnostic’ solutions and devices.

So, what Maravedis is saying is that device supply will precede utility demand. Opportunities exist primaritly in technology ventures aimed at this embryonic market, i.e. startups.