Electrical engineers pretty much like molecular geneticists are the titans of their industry in many ways than you care to know. And for any aspiring student considering a career in the electrical engineer’s industry, it can be challenging to know what options are available and how rewarding this career can be.
Engineers seem to have their cake and eat it as almost anyone graduating as an engineer nearly seem to be identical pedigrees, but are they really the same?
I decided to dig a little deeper and see what every engineering degree offers, and in this post, I break down everything you need to know about electrical engineering jobs you can bag with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering.
As it turns out, there are numerous career opportunities you exploit in this industry. Read on to find out which careers make a list.
10 best jobs you can do with a bachelor of science in electrical engineering
With the advancements in technology, almost everything is turning electric. A good example is an electrical car. Many other things clearly show just how much impact electricity has on us.
As such, a degree in electrical engineering can set you up for success in this century and in the future.
With this degree, you can work in a wide range of sectors and industries, such as aerospace, automotive, energy, telecommunications, and IT.
In this article, we will be talking about the top 10 jobs that you can do with a bachelor of science in electrical engineering.
Here’s an outline of the topics we are covering
- What is electrical engineering?
- Required Skills
- Work Experience
- Your employers
- Further Education
- What do electrical and electronic engineering graduates do?
- Top 10 best jobs you can do with a bachelor of science in electrical engineering
- Final Words
So let’s get started.
What is electrical engineering?
Electrical engineering is defined as the career that involves designing, building as well as the maintenance of electrical systems. These systems include machine and various types of electrical equipment and appliances.
Some electrical engineers are also involved found in sectors such as mechanics and civil engineering, with another percentage of them working in electronics and smaller electronic circuits, computers and other modern equipment.
Normally, a course in electrical engineering encompasses both electricity as well as electronics.
Depending on the candidate’s needs, electrical engineers are frequently found working in transport systems, power generation and distribution, ventilation systems, manufacturing, and construction.
Required Skills
The electrical engineering course allows you to develop some very important skills in designing, computer-aided design, and circuits testing.
Here are some of the skills that you will need to have in this electrical engineering career.
- Good communication skills in both written and oral communication.
- Problem-solving skills
- You will need to be creative in order to design and use your practice to turn your ideas into reality.
- The ability to work in a team as well as perform independently when it is required
- You should have project as well as time management
- You should have a professional approach to work
Work experience
Some sectors accept inexperienced electrical engineers so that they may first go through on-the-job training. On the other hand, most employers focus on candidates who have gained some experience in the field.
Besides looking experienced in the face of potential employers, having some experience really gives you an in-depth understanding as well as a hands-on training of the basics that will help progress on the job.
The best part is that there are so many courses that are put on offer occasionally. These courses are developed in order to broaden your skill set. Taking advantage of such courses won’t only train you on the necessary skills you need, but it will also give you an opportunity to establish a network of contacts along the way.
It would be a great idea to sign yourself up for some summer classes in the program. Don’t know where to find them? These resources can be found on most company websites. Open the company’s website and go to the careers sectors, and thank me later.
You also have the opportunity to obtain some work experience through the power academy. The power academy offers a lot of scholarships for electrical engineering students, which include paid summer work placements.
On a side note, spending time in the summer programs can give you time to decide which direction you want to take, especially on your specialization.
Your employers
Usually, electronic and electrical engineers can find work in many areas and industries, including the electronics, automotive, IT, and telecoms, which many graduates spread in other sectors like manufacturing, power, transport and utilities. We will soon look into these below.
Further Education
Like in most careers, advancing your education is a strategy that can really separate you from the herd. Pursuing your studies further gives you a chance to specialize in a field of your choice.
Most graduates prefer to go for a master’s degree in programs such as internet engineering, nanotechnology and telecommunications. As a plus, some candidates also go for a PhD as soon as they complete their master’s degree or after they have acquired some work experience.
A major source of funding for postgraduate studies is said to be the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). This specifically applies to engineer programs.
An EngD is, in actual fact, an industry-based PhD that combines Doctoral-level research with training in practical skills. In case you are curious about the length, it’s a four-year program. Those four years consists of a year of intense training and three quarters, which are spent working in the industry.
Once you have secured a job and you have some experience, you can also have the option to go a Chartership (CEng). More information about this can be found on the engineering council’s website.
What do electrical and electronic engineering graduates do?
Generally, an electrical engineering degree can help you become just about anything.
A higher fraction of electrical engineering graduates often find themselves working in as little as 6 months after they graduate. The top five jobs are said to be electrical and electronic, programmers and software development professionals. Electrical engineers also work in power plants, and can bring their involvement to developments in the field of medicine.
In detail, on a 100% of graduates, about 75% of them go into employment, 12.2% of them continue with their studies, 3.3% work while they continue their studies, 2.7% go into other activities, leaving the 6.9% unemployed.
Of the graduates that go into employment, 4.1% go into the engineering and building sector, 20.2% go into the Information technology industry, 7.6 become technicians, and 6.2% go into catering and bar work, leaving about 24.7% who go into other industries.
Top 10 best jobs you can do with a bachelor of science in electrical engineering.
Here’s a look at the top 10 career paths that you can take with your bachelor of science in electrical engineering.
Electronics Engineer
A lot of graduate often go into the electronics industry. It is one of the most demanding jobs in the electrical sector.
As an electronics engineer, you will often design, develop and test various components such as capacitors, diodes, resistors, transistors and many more.
You will also repair a lot of systems that use electricity as part of their source of power. These include electrical systems such as refrigerators, heating systems and even cell-phones
On top of that, electrical engineers can also be engaged in other stages of a project, such as manufacturing electrical systems.
Telecommunications Engineer
Telecommunications Engineering is an engineering field that is primarily centered on electrical and computer engineering. This field aims on using electricity-powered systems in order to provide sustenance as well as enhance the telecommunication systems- that’s according to Wikipedia.
Generally, the telecommunication is very diverse since it encompasses electronic, civil engineering systems and everything else in between.
As a telecommunication engineer, you are responsible for designing and overseeing procurement and installing communications equipment and facilities.
These telecommunications equipment can include electronic switching systems, other plain old telephone service facilities, and other more complex schemes like microwave transmission systems, IP networks and optical fiber cabling coordination systems.
Besides working on electrical systems, telecommunications engineers also help find the cost of diverse types of workstations and technological articles.
Their day to day involves using different types of equipment in order to design the telecom network infrastructure like coaxial cables and optical fibers- just to mention a few.
They also work on providing solutions that revolve around wireless communication systems and info transfer technologies, such as wireless telephony services, radio and satellite communication networking systems.
Engineer in the Energy Sector
There are so many types of energy systems that are used in the electrical industry. As an engineer working in the energy sector, some of the things you are required to do involve creating, testing and securing a power plant.
You are also involved in any other implementation that works on the electrical power plant and improves the plant’s efficiency.
On top of that, these engineers are also responsible for creating and operating industrial equipment such as generators, compressors, pumps, condensers, pressure vessels and even boilers- among many others.
Naval Engineer
Naval Engineers (also called marine engineers) are defined as engineers who work on developing the engines of ships. These engineers are very significant in making marine travel safe and proficient.
As a marine engineer, you often deal with electrical engineering operations, maintenance, and repairs on generators, motors, transformers as well as emergency power systems on every type of vessel.
Occasionally, marine engineers also make efficient measurements and operations of electrical power generation.
Fire Risk Assessor
A bachelor of science in electrical engineering can also land you an occupation as a fire risk assessor.
As a fire risk assessor, you have a lot of things in your hands. Your main role is to ensure the safety of property and the safety of the people who work or reside in and around the property.
As such, you’ll be required to identify fire hazards and risks and create a record any of your discoveries.
After this, you are supposed to advise the responsible parties about the possible risks and how such risks can be addressed.
Your advice can be both verbally and in a detailed written report, which can often include an action plan
You will also be preparing emergency plans.
These provide a detailed list of things that must be done in case a building catches fire. After developing such emergency plans, you are responsible for providing training to all employees.
Additionally, you will also be updating and reviewing fire risk assessments on a regular basis.
You’ll also be tasked with informing and supporting health and safety managers in a workplace or public place.
Typically, fire risk assessment is a legal obligation for any place of work or business that gives admittance to members of the general public. This means you have the duty, as a fire risk assessor, to prevent the loss of life and the cost of damage to property.
Alternatively, government guidelines state that it’s the legal obligation of an employer, landlord and anyone else with control of premises that are either used for employment or public services to ensure that that particular place is kept safe from possible fires.
As a fire risk assessor, you will be working based on such guidelines issues by the government or any other fire safety experts, and keep yourself up to date with any alternations that may be made to the guidelines. You can do this by researching through documents like the Government Fire Safety Order
You will often find yourself working with teams and coordinating with other experts such as fire services, buildings and facilities managers, surveyors, fire engineers and landlords to create, improve, modify and implement fire safety plans.
The salary that fire risk assessors receive largely depends on the qualifications and work experience they have. Generally, fire risk assessors that are new or inexperienced to the job are said to earn a salary that ranges between £27,000 and £35,000.
If you have some work experience, you can receive amounts ranging from £35,000 to as high as £45,000 per year. It is not unusual to come across an advertisement that states a daily rate compared to an annual one.
In most cases, the average salary listed in such advertisements falls at around £250 per day. This is mostly the case for project-based employments or contracts.
If you are a fire risk assessor working for an employer, you will likely have other work benefits such as paid holidays and a pension scheme. This is mostly the case when you are employed by either a local authority or even a housing association.
Automotive Engineer
Automotive engineers are generally involved in all the electrical parts of a car. These are activities such as the creation, operation, maintenance and test all tools and various components.
As an automotive engineer, you will often take care of car safety systems such as the air-bags and anti-lock brakes and other things that improve the efficiency like navigation systems, electric locks and electric windows.
Aerospace Engineer
A large percent of graduates work in the aerospace industry. Here, they generally work on developing as well as repairing electrical systems on aircrafts.
As an aerospace engineer, you will often be involved in designing and operating board-computers, guidance systems, and all communication systems and networks in which pilots in an aircraft can efficiently communicate with ground stations and other aircrafts forgetting satellites.
Oil and Gas Engineer
Oil and gas engineers mainly work in organizations that produce, as you may have guessed, oil and gas.
As an oil and gas engineer, you will often be required to design and maintain the computer components as well as the electrical systems that produce such products.
Besides developing and repairing these components, they also have a duty to ensure that such components are in a condition that meets the safety standards.
Systems Engineer
Systems engineers are the type of engineers that are involved in the development of various programs and systems. They are the creative minds behind computer software systems.
As a systems engineer, you are often involved in developing many types of computer applications that allow people to do specific tasks on a computer either for individual use or for an organization.
A higher percentage of systems are found in New York, Houston and Dallas (Texas) and Huntsville, Alabama.
Medical Engineer
The electrical engineering sector has had a lot of contributions to the medical sector. Evidence of this can be seen in medical devices such as pacemakers as well as prosthetic devices.
As a medical engineer, you will be involved in activities from the designing, testing to the implementation of electrical circuits, software and other electronic components
Where do you Begin your electrical engineering Career?
You don’t want to find yourself unemployed for a while, especially after you graduate. As such, you want to get all the necessary licenses that will prove your credibility and proficiency to potential employers.
After you graduate, take the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam. Passing this exam won’t only earn you a Professional Engineer (PE) license, but it will also give you an “Engineers in training” or “EIT” title.
Final Words
Before we go, we will leave you with this: A large number of employers will often accept applicants from graduates with any other degree. As such, I wouldn’t hold myself back to the jobs that have been listed here.