Career Options for Aspiring Electrical Engineers

 

A degree in electrical or compuer engineering can allow you to pursue a job in almost any industry you can think of. After all, nearly everyone uses electricity and electrical devices, so industries demand skilled professionals to build, repair, and improve these devices.

Electrical and computer engineers work in businesses such as:

* Scientific research and development firms
* Electrical component manufacturing companies.
* Power generation, distribution, and transmission.
* Manufacturers of navigation controls, medical equipment, and measurement devices
* Architectural firms

Although these industries employ the most engineers, they may not be right for everyone. Electrical and computer engineering majors have many options, more than enough for any student to find a job in a field they love. The following job titles represent only a handful of the choices available:

* Research Engineer. These engineers work in the lab, testing and inventing. This job requires a high level of creativity on the part of the engineer, as well as a great deal of patience. Whether inventing a new optoelectronic device or simply designing a better electric can opener, research engineers are responsible for the discovery stage technology behind any new electronic product.

* Design Engineer. Once a new technology is invented, it must be applied. The design engineer uses computer simulations and models in order to turn innovations like wireless technology into plans for the tiny parts that make up an actual cell phone. Design engineers must visualize how the insides of a future product could look, while inventing several possible scenarios for the applications of new technologies.

* Project Engineer. The project engineer oversees many specialist engineers through the construction of a working prototype of a new product or technology. The project engineer must have natural leadership ability, as well as a high proficiency in a variety of electrical engineering disciplines.

* Test Engineer. These engineers design programs to test the functions of electronic device and to troubleshoot those devices when things go wrong These engineers keep technology working properly, and understand which elements to test and in what order. Successful test engineers remain sharp, even after long hours on the job.

* System Engineer. Power grids, phone lines, and wireless networks all require the skills of a system engineer for proper installation and maintenance. High attention to detail is important for students who enter this profession. Experienced system engineers rely on their ability to think holistically about the systems they create.

* Application Engineer. Application engineers work with whatever resources are available, adapting existing equipment and technologies to fill the needs of their employers. They need to be resourceful, while counting on their keen understanding of the capabilities and the potential modifications of existing equipment.