Electrical Engineering Careers

From geographical information systems that can continuously provide the location of a vehicle to giant electric power generators, electrical and electronics engineers are responsible for a wide range of technologies. Electrical and electronics engineers design, develop, test, and supervise the manufacture of electrical and electronic equipment. Some of this equipment includes power generating, controlling, and transmission devices used by electric utilities; and electric motors, machinery controls, lighting, and wiring in buildings, automobiles, aircraft, radar and navigation systems, and broadcast and communications systems. Many electrical and electronics engineers also work in areas closely related to computers. However, engineers whose work is related exclusively to computer hardware are considered computer hardware engineers, an occupation covered elsewhere in the Handbook.

Electrical and electronics engineers specialize in different areas such as power generation, transmission, and distribution; communications; and electrical equipment manufacturing, or a subdivision of these areas-industrial robot control systems or aviation electronics, for example. Electrical and electronics engineers design new products, write performance requirements, and develop maintenance schedules. They also test equipment, solve operating problems, and estimate the time and cost of engineering projects.

Electrical and electronics engineers held about 288,000 jobs in 2000, making their occupation the largest branch of engineering. Most jobs were in engineering and business consulting firms, government agencies, and manufacturers of electrical and electronic and computer and office equipment, industrial machinery, and professional and scientific instruments. Transportation, communications, and utilities firms as well as personnel supply services and computer and data processing services firms accounted for most of the remaining jobs.

California, Texas, New York, and New Jersey-States with many large electronics firms-employ nearly one-third of all electrical and electronics engineers.

Electrical engineers should have favorable employment opportunities. The number of job openings resulting from employment growth and from the need to replace electrical engineers who transfer to other occupations or leave the labor force is expected to be in rough balance with the supply of graduates. Employment of electrical engineers is expected to increase about as fast as the average for all occupations through 2014. Although international competition and the use of engineering services performed in other countries may limit employment growth, strong demand for electrical devices such as giant electric power generators or wireless phone transmitters should boost growth. Prospects should be particularly good for electrical engineers working in engineering services firms providing technical expertise to other companies on specific projects.

According to a 2005 salary survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, bachelor's degree candidates in electrical and electronics engineering received starting offers averaging $51,888 a year; master's degree candidates averaged $64,416; and Ph.D. candidates averaged $80,206.

• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers