The IEEE recognizes that individuals, wo are in the early stages of their career, are the keys to the future of the technical profession. GOLD (Graduates Of the Last Decade) is a peer group formed to create IEEE activities and also help bridge the transition from student to professional engineer. If you are an IEEE member who has received your first professional degree within the past ten years, you are automatically part of this group.

The "Graduates Of The Last Decade" program (GOLD), was started in 1995 by the IEEE to meet the professional needs of recent graduates during their first years "on the job". Initially started with 7 pilot projects, there are now several GOLD committees in sections all over the world. The purpose of these projects was to start activities at the local level that would help bridge the transition of Student members to Section members and encourage recent graduates to stay IEEE member.