Should Distribution Systems Engineering be taught at the Undergraduate Level?

Although there are some exceptions, a distribution systems course is not part of a typical undergraduate curriculum. The course is usually taught at the graduate level. Teaching a distribution systems course requires the student to have a background in balanced three-phase power system modeling such as that obtained from a first power systems analysis course. The requirement to add breadth to an undergraduate curriculum often precludes the notion of depth in any one area unless a student takes the depth courses as technical or free electives. An argument could be made that a distribution systems course does not contain much power engineering fundamentals beyond what is covered in a first power systems course. Conversely, much of the interesting concepts including load characteristics, transformer configurations, unbalanced system modeling, power quality modeling, radial system protection coordination, etc., occur at the distribution level. In addition, much of the smart grid innovations will occur at this level. This paper discusses some of the merits and demerits of developing and teaching a distribution systems course at the undergraduate level and also focuses on the difficulties of developing the contents of such a course.