My Career Path as an Electrical Engineer

Growing up, I was always amazed by the power of electricity and all that it could do. The potential of electric power is always dazed and all I wanted to do was learn more about electricity and be able to stretch its uses. This is where my passion for Electrical Engineering was born.

Electrical Engineering is concerned with equipping learners with the knowledge of designing and developing equipment or products that use electronics. Examples of these products include computers, electric motors, lasers, machinery controls, television sets, radio, satellite systems, radar, lighting and wiring in buildings, telecommunication systems, aircraft, navigation systems, and power generators among others.

Electrical engineering is also concerned with lighter applications of electricity that control systems and process signals. This means the discipline is responsible for many applications of varied usage such as portable music players, mobile devices et al, to the global position system (GPS), Notably, there is a high number of electrical engineers who end up working closely with computers. Simply put, it covers a relatively large academic discipline base such as energy and power development, automation and telecommunications engineering, micro-electronics, and technical informatics.

Electrical Engineering as an academic discipline is carefully curated and constructed in such a manner that it provides the learner with mathematical, scientific, engineering, managerial, and application skills. These skills are ultimately intended to be employed by the student to further drive his or her career as an Electrical Engineer and work in different industries that design and produce electrical and electronic devices, systems, and services. An Electrical Engineering foundation also prepares an individual with the skills and knowledge that can be applied in large-scale industries and multinational corporations dealing with aerospace travel, automobile manufacturing, computer systems construction and design in both the hardware and software front, manufacture of hospital instruments and health services.

Electrical Engineers make it possible to harness electricity which has transformed human life since its discovery by Michael Faraday.

The Activities that Constitute Electrical Engineering

Generally, Electrical Engineers design and develop products and information systems using scientific methods and principles in conjunction with a purely natural curiosity for learning the unknown, a mindset geared towards solving problems, and an innovative mind.

This field of study expects one to be able to work collaboratively with others as part of a team and be able to research, design and develop electronic products. They need to work together with the Design Engineers, Marketing, and Sales department of an organization. They also have to work with clients so that they can discuss and work on a client’s needs. Mostly, the activities an electrical engineer undertakes daily are determined by his or her interests. There are those who prefer office work, others like being in the open for field work and getting their hands dirty, still, others prefer research and development while there are those who do a lot of fabrication and deployment of commercial and industrial systems. Electrical engineers can also be teachers or even consultants.

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A lot of Electrical Engineers find themselves spending a lot of time in Physics laboratories and computer laboratories if they choose to work as Computer Engineers. Because the electrical engineering syllabus is heavily reliant on programming and computer science paradigms, Computer Engineers usually do a ton of work related to or are heavily invested in systems programming where knowledge of electronics and hardware is a must.

Electrical Engineering jobs involve operating complex instruments and equipment and systems close to every technology area whether it is biomedical, oil and chemical processes, aerospace and aeronautics, telecommunications and geospatial data et al.

Electrical Engineers use Computed Aided Design (CAD) software such as AutoCAD to produce images of electronic products that they are working on. They then build models of their product also known as prototypes in the lab and test its functionality and efficiency. After the model is completely tested and ready, it is an Electrical Engineer’s responsibility to produce samples of the new model in the laboratory so that his or her peers can also test the product before releasing it onto the market. The engineer, however, still has to deal with problems that may occur during production

Specialization Fields of Electrical Engineering

There exist several specializations that an Electrical Engineering undergraduate student may feel inclined to branch out into:

1. Micro-electronics Engineer – responsible for designing tiny electronic circuit components.
2. Signal Processing – the individual who deals with digital and analog signals.
3. Telecommunications Engineer – works in communications technology such as the internet, email platform, satellite, and cable systems.
4. Instrumentation Engineer – focuses on the designing of measurement instruments, equipment used for pressure, and temperature.

The Virtues of an Electrical Engineer

Personality Qualities and Skills

The following personality traits are essential for one to succeed as an Electrical Engineer:

1. One needs to have technical ability entrenched in their system and good knowledge of l Computer Science.
2. One should be willing to stay up to date with the latest technological trends so that they are not left behind.
3. One should learn how to work in collaboration with others.
4. One should have good communication skills needed when writing technical reports and promotes fruitful communication with other members of a project that they are working on.
5. Organizational skills – these help in the planning and distribution of resources for projects so that they are completed efficiently and on time.
6. One should be able to pay close attention to details because the difference in very small mathematical figures could result in big errors being made that might end up causing catastrophic damage.
7. An understanding of electrical health and safety regulations is also essential so that accidents are avoided especially in the library and on fieldwork duty where there are civilians.
8. Possessing an acutely analytical and logical mind is necessary as it helps electrical engineers solve problems in their workspaces
9. Being able to take pressure very well and staying calm during times of crisis helps not just engineers but scientists in general.
10. Electrical engineers should also be willing to take up more responsibilities and lead their teams.

Pay and Opportunities for Electrical Engineers

Electrical engineers are mostly employed in large industrial complexes and plants falling under various industries such as transportation (aerospace and aeronautical, automobile), distribution (conveyor belts), communications (satellite and media), and marine industries. Computer manufacturers and large telco operators also employ huge numbers of electrical engineers. There are also electrical engineers who choose to go the self-employment route and work as consultants

Electrical Engineer works about 50 hours a week but their schedules do change at times which means longer weekly hours. They earn between a starting salary of $23500 and a salary of $39600 in gross yearly income.