[Closed]: EE career related questions - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: vynncentgm
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: September 15, 2016, 11:50:04 pm
content: In my Intro to Engineering & Design class we are working on a assignment that involves researching a career related to STEM. Obviously, I had chose Electrical Engineering (as I am very interested in the career as it is). Is it possible that somebody could provide an answer to the following:What are the skill and characteristics of a person successful in this career?Are there any Professional Associations pertaining to the job?Also, any extra information would be helpful.Thank youVynncent

author: tggzzz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2016, 12:02:55 am
content: Quote from: vynncentgm on September 15, 2016, 11:50:04 pmPart of it is the ability to adequately research existing knowledge on the topic, so that they learn the fastest, don't waste other people's time with repeat questions/answers, can indicate how they have done that, and thence to ask interesting, pointednewquestions.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 16, 2016, 12:24:29 am
content: Quote from: vynncentgm on September 15, 2016, 11:50:04 pmIt should be pointed out that Electrical Engineering is amassivelydiverse field.What makes people successful in one area of EE may not make necessarily them successful in another.

author: vynncentgm
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: September 16, 2016, 12:47:57 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on September 16, 2016, 12:24:29 amI would like to know about Electronic Engineering, specifically the field regarding electronic devices and circuits.Vynncent

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2016, 01:05:44 am
content: Quote from: vynncentgm on September 15, 2016, 11:50:04 pmObviously you can Google the second question, so we don't need to answer that for you here. So I will give some thoughts about the first question.I am a chemical engineer, not an electrical or electronic engineer, but I think the general characteristics of a successful engineer apply to all engineering disciplines.Some characteristics would be:- An insatiable curiosity. A desire to find things out, to discover how things work, and a habit of researching things--looking things up and finding things out for yourself without waiting for others to tell you- An ability to conceptualize and think in the abstract; to be able to take complex things and reduce them to their fundamentals, ignoring unnecessary details- Creativity; an ability and a desire to create new things, to be inventive and imaginative, a willingness to experiment without fear of failure- Attention to detail; a recognition that a missed detail can cause an expensive failure, therefore a desire to be accurate and get things rightThere are more fundamental things of course that you can find by Googling, such capability in mathematics, science and related subjects, but I have listed above some of the less obvious attributes that make for a good engineer.

author: rstofer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2016, 01:03:33 pm
content: One problem facing most engineers is getting along with non-engineers. It isn't easy! Sometimes you will swear their approach to problem solving looks a lot like 'random walk'.Obviously, one of the big organizations for electronic engineers is the IEEE (there are subgroups for electrical engineers as well). Since you can't do electronic engineering without also being competent as a code wienie, the ACM is another organization.

author: vynncentgm
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: September 16, 2016, 02:01:51 pm
content: Thank you to everyone who had replied.Vynncent

author: Syntax_Error
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2016, 03:09:43 pm
content: As I see you are in the United States, don't forget the National Society of Professional Engineers, or NSPE. If you only know one society, this should be it, as they are involved in the licensing path of engineers in the United States, whereas the IEEE, while more specifically targeted toward your career path, is not involved in licensing.Granted, as I'm sure many are going to point out, professional licensing is frequently not required to be a successful electronic engineer, I still feel it worth mentioning.