EnSilica

EnSilica has world-class expertise in designing and supplying custom analog, mixed signal and digital IC’s

Our Scholarships

Placement Location

Oxford, Bristol or Sheffield

Type of Placements Offered

• 12-month placements • Summer and 6-month MEng placements also offered (to students doing a 12-month placement before or after)

Restrictions/Notes

(1) Requires 12-month placement. Additional summer or 6-month MEng placements in other years also offered; (2) Requires interest in semiconductor design; (3) Candidates must specify which location/s they are interested in

2023/24 Scholarships

Multiple new scholarships

Who we are and what we do

EnSilica is a leading fabless design house focused on custom ASIC design and supply for OEMs and system houses, and IC design services for companies with their own design teams. The company has world-class expertise in supplying custom analog, mixed signal and digital IC’s to its international customers in the automotive, industrial, healthcare and consumer markets. Our project portfolio ranges from module design to multi-million gate System-on-Chip.

The company also offers a broad portfolio of core IP covering cryptography, Radar and communications systems. EnSilica has a track record in delivering high quality solutions to demanding industry standards.

Our vision

  • To be our customers’ preferred ASIC supplier
  • Through our flexibility, engineering excellence and quality focus, EnSilica strives to increase our customers’ competitiveness, through the use of custom ASICs
  • To create a profitable, value creating company based on the design & supply of digital, analog and mixed signal IC’s
  • To be considered a great company by our key stakeholders – customers, suppliers and staff
  • To build value over the coming years that will deliver financial benefit to all staff through a stock-option scheme

What you could be doing

Students on summer placement would perform a wide range of supporting activities working directly for a member of our team, reflecting the diverse activities involved in IC development. This work involves activities drawn from design, verification, chip layout, lab prototyping and silicon validation with specific activities selected based on the products in development at the time.

Students joining EnSilica for a 12-month placement would initially work in a supporting role in one of our IC product developments with opportunities to progress beyond a supporting role and perform design/verification/prototyping work as their skills develop.

Meet one of our Scholars

Name: Vasiliki

Sponsor: EnSilica

University: University of Birmingham

Degree Course: BEng Electronic and Electrical Engineering

What appeals to me about Electronics?

Getting paid to solve challenging puzzles – what is not to like! The field of electronics is the cornerstone of all modern-day technologies. From mobile phones to space shuttles, most people do not realise the impact electronics have in every area of our society, which is what makes the field so broad and challenging. I discovered my passion for electronics during university and I switched my course, which shows why students should be exposed to electronics from a young age, and highlights the importance of the outreach work that UKESF is doing.

Why I wanted a Scholarship with EnSilica?

I wanted to join a chip design company, and EnSilica stood out during my research due to the variety of projects that it has been involved with that include satellites, medical devices and cars. What made me accept their offer was the hiring process, which was challenging but very informative. During the interview, the hiring manager took his time to talk me through the different stages of chip design, was happy to answer many questions and even suggested that I join them for a full year instead of the summer, which was something I had not considered until then.

My placement and its value

I am part of the digital team and I started training on SystemVerilog for design and verification. Currently I am involved with the directed verification of a large communications chip which includes writing directed testbenches to test the developed RTL and checking the code coverage. The plan for the rest of the year includes getting familiar with UVM and constrained random verification and the design of an SPI IP module. It is mind-blowing to think that the work I am doing, however small, will someday be up in space receiving communications from earth. I am confident that my placement year with EnSilica will surely prepare me to enter the highly challenging semiconductor industry.

My interests

I am a very active person and in my free time I enjoy bouldering, going to the gym and taking dance classes. Apart from that, I love travelling so I try to visit new places at least once a month!