College

[kwired]

Lots of great comments, so I'll add a few based on 50+ years. The engineering program at any major university will be almost all theory, meaning a lot of high-level math and theory related to many of the various electrical engineering fields. After all, they only have so much time and neither you or they know whether you will end up designing computer chips or cell tower antennas, just to name two possibilities. For sure, you are not likely to see any courses about codes, motor control circuits, etc. For me, the best combination was a co-op program at a great university so that I ended up with a therotical understanding, along with some really good practical connections to the real world via my industrial job.

They also don't know if you are going to take a job making donuts at the coffee shop

One of my son's best friends from high school went to college and studied civil engineering. He is now an assistant manager at a big box store.

 

[ggunn]

Lots of great comments, so I'll add a few based on 50+ years. The engineering program at any major university will be almost all theory, meaning a lot of high-level math and theory related to many of the various electrical engineering fields. After all, they only have so much time and neither you or they know whether you will end up designing computer chips or cell tower antennas, just to name two possibilities. For sure, you are not likely to see any courses about codes, motor control circuits, etc. For me, the best combination was a co-op program at a great university so that I ended up with a therotical understanding, along with some really good practical connections to the real world via my industrial job.

And you could very well find a job waiting for you when you graduate. I was an Engineering Co-Op student, and I did my work semesters at Motorola in their semiconductor sector. When I graduated I went through a perfunctory set of interviews mostly with people I had already worked with, and I had a job for 22 years. Engineering Co-Op is great!

 

[stevieNyb4]

Hi
You should go for the second option Electrical engineer technology. More usefull and you should be able to find job easy .

 

[ggunn]

Hi
You should go for the second option Electrical engineer technology. More usefull and you should be able to find job easy .

My advice in general is to study the hardest thing you are interested in and that you think you can handle; for me that was EE.

 

[Ingenieur]

During the recession
At its worst in September 2009, the unemployment rate for engineers reached 6.4 percent, versus nearly 10 percent for all occupations. By the middle of 2011 it had dropped to under 2 percent.

 

[Besoeker]

They also don't know if you are going to take a job making donuts at the coffee shop

One of my son's best friends from high school went to college and studied civil engineering. He is now an assistant manager at a big box store.

Isn't that the way it goes sometimes............
My eldest got an honours degree in neuroscience. She is now a project engineer at a nuclear processing plant.
The second did a masters in biology - and is tech support for a communications company.
My son was the black sheep. He was idle with his school studies and didn't make it to university. He is now a successful computer games developer/programmer. He done good

Funny old world...........

 

[GoldDigger]

Does your dog hold any advanced degrees or competency certificates?
Is he gainfully employed?

 

[ggunn]

During the recession
At its worst in September 2009, the unemployment rate for engineers reached 6.4 percent, versus nearly 10 percent for all occupations. By the middle of 2011 it had dropped to under 2 percent.

In 2009 it seemed to me like most of those unemployed engineers were here in Austin. I was one of them.

But I bounced back faster than many folks did.

 

[Ingenieur]

In 2009 it seemed to me like most of those unemployed engineers were here in Austin. I was one of them.

But I bounced back faster than many folks did.

I was lucky, never been without gainful employment
in fact from 2008-2011 I made more (by an integral factor) than I ever did previously to that
it's one reason I can work in government now lol

my advice: do not go into engineering (or any profession) for the $$$, do it because you like it
you will be doing it for a long time and it will be a major part of your life

 

[ggunn]

my advice: do not go into engineering (or any profession) for the $$$, do it because you like it
you will be doing it for a long time and it will be a major part of your life

My advice is that both the money and the love of the work are considerations that should be taken into account. Some areas of study will not equip you for a job that will pay you enough to enable you to pay off your student loans.

 

[Ingenieur]

My advice is that both the money and the love of the work are considerations that should be taken into account. Some areas of study will not equip you for a job that will pay you enough to enable you to pay off your student loans.

It's a toss up
be miserable because you owe money or don't have excess
be miserable spending your life doing something you dred
pick your poison and priorities lol

I avoided big loan debt via rotc and national defense student loans plus part time/summer jobs

 

[ggunn]

It's a toss up
be miserable because you owe money or don't have excess
be miserable spending your life doing something you dred
pick your poison and priorities

It doesn't have to be one or the other. Thank goodness, I will add.

One should consider both economics and enjoyability of life's work. If it looks like one alternative is economically good but experientially bad and the other is the reverse, look for a third alternative.

 

[Ingenieur]

It doesn't have to be one or the other. Thank goodness, I will add.

One should consider both economics and enjoyability of life's work. If it looks like one alternative is economically good but experientially bad and the other is the reverse, look for a third alternative.

life is a compromise
And there are no absolutes
I don't like telling others what they should do (my kids excepted lol)


judging from the sheer number of folks being unfaithful, on meds, screwing the pooch at work, or anger at the system in general, the optimum compromise seems elusive for some
just like happiness
and in my case happiness was a learned skill

I'm lucky I drifted towards something I like, am competent at, and is relatively financially secure/rewarding
money was never the focus, or an after thought really, it just sort of was a consequence, unintended by-product or fall-out of my choices
never focused on it until my 40's when my wife got sick
wanted her not to worry about it
so got money hungry for 10 years and chased the dragon and made as much as I could
glad that phase is over lol

 

[peter d]

An American college degree is toilet paper unless it's science, engineering, medicine or finance.

 

[chris1971]

An American college degree is toilet paper unless it's science, engineering, medicine or finance.

Aren't these most of the degrees people get nowadays?:?

 

[kwired]

Aren't these most of the degrees people get nowadays?:?

you can work in any area without a degree, but education, medicine and law are the ones that don't let you go very far without meeting certain education requirements. Engineering - you maybe can't hold an official title of engineer without the proper credentials, but there are many designing things out there that don't officially hold that title.

There are people that practice medicine in some fashion or another that are not full fledged "doctors" either.

 

[Glori]

I suggest to take electrical engineering technology is best.

 

[steve smith]

Introduction

Introduction

Hello everyone
I am new here.I am an educator and content writer. now i started in the electrical industry.
best regards
steve smith

 

[gar]

170419-2237 EDT

When I was a student and working part time for the EE department the director of our group, the Electronics Defense Group, ask me if a student could work for me. This student had no prior electrical experience, and was mostly getting theory in class and had gone to his advisor and said that he did not know if EE was for him. So to help him make the decision they wanted him to work part time (part time for us was 4 hours per day) where he could see real world electrical engineering. He came to work for me and that experience convinced him to stay in EE. His grade average was probably in the B+ range.

Our University is one of the great ones in the world and the US. WE have a huge research budget, to a great extent in medical, but also very high in engineering. Last year the total was 1.33 billion dollars. Of this 250 million was in engineering. Thus, there are a lot of opportunities for part time jobs, and contact with real world projects.

It is my belief that any student should get practical experience in their field while a student.

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[gar]

170419-2333 EDT

Following is a link to research spending at various universities. If you add all the California schools together, then their total exceeds any others. This list is useful for judging what schools may have a good supply of part time jobs related one's interest.

http://www.bestcolleges.com/features/colleges-with-highest-research-and-development-expenditures/

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