International Engineering Consortium

What International Engineering Consortium does

The Innovative Engineering Consortium (IEC), also known as the Inclusive Engineering Consortium, is a non-profit organization founded in 2018 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. It operates as a "virtual super department" that convenes Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) — including HBCUs, HSIs, and TCUs — to advance education, research, and career pathways in electrical and computer engineering (ECE). The consortium currently comprises 20 Core Member Institutions, collectively representing over 5,000 students and 200 faculty, and has signaled plans to expand to 50+ community college partners through its 2to4 program.

IEC's core offerings are educational programs rather than commercial technology products. Its flagship initiative is the IEC 2to4 Program, a scholarship and mentorship pathway that supports community college students transitioning to four-year ECE degrees at MSI partner institutions, with awards of up to $10,000 in tuition plus stipend support. Complementary offerings include the ARPELS workshop series (Anti-Racist Practice in Engineering), the IEC Catalyst Workshop, ECE@HSI workshop series, an online mini-workshop series, the EquiTECH diversity/inclusion conference, the T3 Web Series on community college transfer, and content assets such as the IEC Exchange eNewsletter, IEC Briefs, and EquiTALKS Podcast. Underlying technology is limited to standard digital delivery (website, email, virtual workshop platforms); there are no proprietary software platforms, AI/ML products, or technical IP.

The organization is funded primarily through competitive government grants (notably a $10.9M DoD Research and Development division grant over six years awarded in September 2022 for the 2to4 program, plus NSF and NASA MUREP grants), supplemented by corporate membership fees, sponsorships, and partnership contributions from companies such as Intel, Texas Instruments, Keysight Technologies, and Digilent. Its go-to-market is community-led and event-driven: the consortium acquires member institutions through institutional partnerships and engages industry through conferences, workshops, and program sponsorship rather than traditional sales motions. The target beneficiaries are underrepresented minority community college students pursuing ECE careers, member MSI faculty and institutions, and corporate partners seeking access to a diverse engineering talent pipeline.

Name

International Engineering Consortium

Legal name

Innovative Engineering Consortium

Website

https://iec.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

The Innovative Engineering Consortium is a non-profit consortium of 20 Minority Serving Institutions (HBCUs, HSIs, TCUs) that operates a "virtual super department" advancing electrical and computer engineering education, serving over 5,000 students and 200 faculty through scholarship, mentorship, and partnership programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Engineering Education Services

NAICS

Educational Services (611), Professional Organizations (81392), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Technical Universities with Strong Industry Partnerships (EDAHAEAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Engineering & Technology Institutes (Comprehensive) (EDAHAEAA), Networking & Telecommunications (Routing/Switching, Wireless, VoIP) (EDABAFAG)

Keywords

• Engineering education consortium
• Minority serving institutions
• STEM scholarships programs
• Academic industry partnerships
• Electrical computer engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Government Grants: Primary revenue source through competitive grants from federal agencies including the DoD ($10.9M over 6 years for 2to4 program), NSF, and NASA MUREP.
2. Corporate Membership: Corporate partners pay membership fees to join as members and access to MSI talent pipeline and collaboration opportunities.
3. Sponsorship: Corporate sponsors support specific programs and events in exchange for visibility and engagement with member institutions.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

The Innovative Engineering Consortium (IEC) is a non-profit consortium that brings together Minority Serving Institutions (HBCUs, HSIs, TCUs), industry, and government to advance electrical and computer engineering education, research, and careers. It operates a scholarship program (2to4) for community college transfer students, hosts workshops and conferences on equity and pedagogy, and convenes a network of 20 Core Member Institutions with 5,000+ students and 200+ faculty.

Product overview

The Innovative Engineering Consortium (IEC) operates as a non-profit consortium focused on educational programs, not a commercial technology product company. Its offerings consist of scholarship programs (IEC 2to4), workshop series (ARPELS, Catalyst, ECE @ HSI, Online Mini-Workshops), conferences (EquiTECH), the T3 Web Series, and publications—all aimed at advancing education, research, and careers in electrical and computer engineering at Minority Serving Institutions. There are no software products, platforms, or technical offerings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• IEC 2to4 Program
• Anti-Racist Practice in Engineering Workshop (ARPELS)
• IEC Catalyst Workshop
• ECE @ HSI Workshop Series
• EquiTECH Conference
• T3 Web Series
• Institutional Membership

Quantifiable outcome

• The IEC has been awarded a $10.9M grant over six years from the U.S. Department of Defense to support the 2to4 program focused on community college student transition to 4-year ECE degrees
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• U.S. Department of Defense Research and Development DivisioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 September 2022Awarded $10.9M grant over six years to support IEC's 2to4 program focused on community college students transitioning to 4-year ECE degrees. IEC was one of five recipients selected from more than fifty applicants for DoD STEM Community College Consortium award.
• Innovative Engineering Consortium Foundation (IECF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIEC leverages partnership with IECF to provide scholarship recipients access to Pathways to Success Program offering professional development opportunities, academic mentorship, educational workshops, and summer internships.
• 50K CoalitionmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative of 40+ organizations (AISES, NSBE, SHPE, SWE) focused on bold national goal: producing 50,000 diverse engineering graduates annually by 2025. IEC partners with 50K Coalition on T3 Web Series about community college transfer.
• DoD STEMcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIEC 2to4 Program made possible by generous support of U.S. Department of Defense Research and Development division and DoD STEM Community College Consortium Award.
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNASA MUREP grant (80NSSC20K1769) supports ECE@HSI initiative - Coalition for Inspiration, Education and Research in Electrical and Computer Engineering at Hispanic Serving Institutions. NASA engagement through research opportunities and workforce development.
• National Science FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple NSF grants support IEC initiatives including iCASE (NASA INCLUDES planning grant), HBCU-ECP (Experimental Centric Pedagogy), and various research and education projects.
• Engineering Research Center (ERC)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIEC collaborates with ERC Program on SMART CITIES REU/RET program for research experiences for undergraduates and teachers.
• Intel CorporationminorGTM or Marketing PartnerIntel hosted IEC Stakeholders' Workshop July 14-15, 2019 at Intel Campus in Tigard, OR, demonstrating corporate partnership and support for IEC initiatives.
• Digilent Inc.minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey industrial advisory member supporting HBCU-ECP (Experimental Centric Pedagogy) initiative. Provided technology and resources for hands-on learning modules.
• ECEDHA (ECEDHA Annual Conference)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Heads Association for annual conference participation and IEC@ECEDHA workshop sessions.
• Texas InstrumentsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner23-year collaboration with UPR Mayaguez on electrical engineering program; supports TI-RSLK (Robotics System Learning Kit) curriculum development with faculty from multiple institutions.
• Keysight TechnologiesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate sponsor for ECE@HSI workshop series; provides educational technology resources and curriculum support for HSI institutions.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• HBCU Engineering Deans Constituency Council: Network of engineering deans at HBCUs working on shared academic, research, and partnership priorities. Adjacent to IEC's mission of strengthening engineering programs at historically Black institutions.

Broad incumbents

• Society of Women Engineers (SWE): Largest established organization driving women's participation in engineering and technology. Comparable scholarship, corporate partnership, and outreach programs but with a broader (not MSI-specific) mission.
• ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology): Accrediting body for engineering and technology programs. While not a membership consortium in the same sense, ABET influences engineering program quality and outcomes at MSIs in ways comparable to IEC's work.

Direct peers

• National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE): Largest student-governed STEM organization supporting Black engineering students. Co-member of the 50K Coalition and pursues parallel goals of broadening Black participation in engineering via scholarships, programs, and industry partnerships.
• American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE): National non-profit devoted to advancing engineering education. Highly comparable as a membership consortium hosting conferences, publications, and faculty development programs similar to IEC's offerings.
• National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME): Non-profit dedicated to increasing representation of African American, American Indian, and Latino women and men in engineering. Runs scholarship and university partnership programs directly comparable to IEC's 2to4 model.
• 50K Coalition: Collaborative of 40+ engineering diversity organizations (including IEC as a partner) targeting 50,000 diverse engineering graduates annually. Operates as a coordinating umbrella consortium across the same DEI engineering education space.
• Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE): Leading organization supporting Hispanic engineers, co-member of the 50K Coalition alongside IEC. Offers comparable scholarship, mentorship, and corporate partnership programming targeted at HSIs.
• ECEDHA (Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Heads Association): Organization of ECE department heads that partners directly with IEC on the annual ECEDHA conference and workshop series. Operates a similar membership consortium model focused on ECE education leadership.
• American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES): National non-profit supporting Indigenous STEM students and professionals. Comparable scholarship, mentorship, and conference programming; fellow 50K Coalition partner pursuing similar talent pipeline outcomes.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about International Engineering Consortium