Communications education and training: software defined radio [Guest Editorial]

This is the first in a new series of Feature Topics on Communications Education and Training that will appear regularly in IEEE Communications Magazine henceforth. It has long been appreciated that successful design, implementation, maintenance, optimization, and improvement of modern communications networks require the efforts of a highly educated, well trained, and dedicated workforce. In recent years, various initiatives have been undertaken in both academia and industry that seek to improve our capacity to educate and train both current and future communications workers. These range from new learning technologies and pedagogies and new university accreditation programs to advanced cooperative education programs, training alliances, and industry certification programs.