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Types of jobs Computer Engineers can do?

S

sandmanwake

Golden Member
Well, seeing how there's so many of us computer engineers having trouble finding jobs currently, I thought it'd be a good idea to find out more of what we're qualified to do. Most places seem to think that all we can do is program; I hate programming. If any of you guys are currently working, could you also include a brief description of what you do? I guess I'll start things out here.

1. Software development (aka Hell on Earth)
2. Network Admin
3. Circuit Design
4. Network analysit
5. Anything an electrical engineer can do (not sure of all the things they can do), just maybe not as well starting out
6. Anything a computer science person can do (the only thing I know they do is program), just maybe not as well starting out
 
techno: go for it, once you take some major classes you'll know if it's for you. keep in mind that if you can't cut it there's always (IE, Industrial Engineering). btw, I'm a EE Junior at Tech.
 
CE as in computer engineering, civil engineering, or chemical engineering? 😉 I choose comp engr in the first place because it supposedly is a combination of electrical engr and comp sci, I had no idea till I started working and trying to find a job that too many managers think we're the same as comp sci and all we want to do is program. I think if I had to do it all over again I would have chosen Chemical engr instead. Supposedly it's also a very flexible major as far as the choices of what you'll be doing once you graduate goes and there's supposedly lots more women since a lot of majors require some form of chemistry freshman year. It's so bad where I'm at that one summer, I had a professor move our classroom so that we'd have a better view of the girl packed management building across the street from us.
 
Haha.

I meant Computer Engineering. I want to do Comp Sci., but *everyone* is doing that. I like working hands on a lot, too, so I figured I'd do Comp. E


*shrug*

 
I have no direct experience with any of these majors (or any major @ all for that matter), but I find it hard to believe that a Comp Eng major could do all the same stuff as a CS or EE. If you really got all the CS and EE knowledge out of this one major, why would CS and EE even exist? How could it be a 2 for 1 deal? I'm sure you can do some of the same stuff, but logically, you shouldnt be able to do a lot of it.
 
Since we're on the topic of majors, I'm a junior in HS and I recently signed up for the SAT and when I looked at the choice of majors I saw Computer Science and Computer Programming. WTH, I thought the two were the same, so why did College Board separate them? Now I'm confused and my counselor said we would talk about beginning of my senior year, but maybe some of you could enlighten me now. Thanks.
 


<< I have no direct experience with any of these majors (or any major @ all for that matter), but I find it hard to believe that a Comp Eng major could do all the same stuff as a CS or EE. If you really got all the CS and EE knowledge out of this one major, why would CS and EE even exist? How could it be a 2 for 1 deal? I'm sure you can do some of the same stuff, but logically, you shouldnt be able to do a lot of it. >>



Comp E's have a CS field of concentration available to them and take some EE courses here (but not a lot...). EE has a field of study for computer engineering, too. So there's a little overlap if you decide to take courses in one of those fields of concentration.
 


<< Since we're on the topic of majors, I'm a junior in HS and I recently signed up for the SAT and when I looked at the choice of majors I saw Computer Science and Computer Programming. WTH, I thought the two were the same, so why did College Board separate them? Now I'm confused and my counselor said we would talk about beginning of my senior year, but maybe some of you could enlighten me now. Thanks. >>


I haven't taken the SAT1's in almost a year, but i think one of those fields was occupation, not major.
 
I'm an EE but it seems to me that a lot of companies see CEs as CS people that get paid a little more for having a hardware background as well. The thing is, that hardware background won't justify the extra salary in a lot of companies so it could hurt you more than it could help. If you don't like programming, I'd say go EE otherwise if you don't mind coding, CS all the way.
 
I am a CECS (pronounced SEX 😉 ) major.

You can do work for Intel/AMD and do CPU hardware design. I hate dealing with equations so I couldn't be any other kind of engineer. Plus I HATE having to calculate voltage and current through transistors so no hardcore EE for me. And I hate don't like to have to program ALL the time so I picked SEX instead. Not too much programming but not too much EE either.
 
Basically if you want to do hardware chip design, you can be a CE or an EE it really doesn't make too much of a diff as long as you have a solid VLSI background. Intel, AMD, and Sun recruit tons of people every year with the major requirements being a basic proc design course and VLSI. The thing that sucks is, while processor design sounds awesome, unless you're a PhD with years of experience, you're probably not going to get any input on high-level design in companies like that. Most college grads get stuck with mundane, low-level stuff unless you go to a smaller company like Sandcraft. There you'll have a more important role but a helluva lot more is expected out of you.

Just things to keep in mind as you make your decision.
 
Hmm.

Is there a strong enough CS job market to handle all the people who are going CS (specifically at tech - the CS inductee crowd is huge!)

LMK,

-tg
 
I have no direct experience with any of these majors (or any major @ all for that matter), but I find it hard to believe that a Comp Eng major could do all the same stuff as a CS or EE. If you really got all the CS and EE knowledge out of this one major, why would CS and EE even exist? How could it be a 2 for 1 deal? I'm sure you can do some of the same stuff, but logically, you shouldnt be able to do a lot of it.

You're right Comp Eng can't do all the same stuff as a CS or EE (at least not first starting out). The way someone once put it to me was that an EE may not be able to do CS work at all and a CS may not be able to do an EE's work at all. A CompE could do some CS work and some EE work, however, not as well as someone who concentrated purely on CS or EE. That's first starting out. However, suppose a CompE decides that once he/she starts working that he/she likes EE type work better and for the next 5 years works as a EE. The CompE would theoretically have an easier time adjusting to pure EE type work than a CS major (not taking into account each individual's ability to learn here). Similarly, a CompE should theoretically have an easier time adjusting to purely CS work than an EE. However, like I said, a lot of companies seem to think there's no difference between CS and CompE. I know grad students in CompE who are designing computers and algorithms to do partical physics analysis and polymer synthesis. To be able to do these things require some knowledge of the subjects, which goes to show just how flexible CompE's have to be. Once again though, the CompE won't know physics as well as a physist or chemicals as well as a chemist.
 
In either case, I think that both majors have to learn things beyond the scope of their majors. For example, someone designing hardware/software for NASA would have to learn some AE. It just depends on where you work...
 
Comp Es at Purdue have to take mostly EE classes with several programming classes included. For the most part we don't do the extra type programming, more operating systems and hardware level stuff.
 


<< The way someone once put it to me was that an EE may not be able to do CS work at all and a CS may not be able to do an EE's work at all. >>



Not really just about every EE is required to have some CS background and so most EEs can do CS stuff (and there are a LOT of EEs that get hired just to do programming) but it doesn't work the other way around.

CEs do a little of both but almost never get a background in analog circuits or RF. While it may sound like CEs have the mst well-rounded exposure, I would contend that EEs do, because as an EE you can get employed anywhere from programming to chip design, to designing wireless networks. Whereas CS is relegated ONLY ot programming, and CE is relegated to programming and computer hardware. Of course, I'm a little biased. 🙂
 


<<

<< I have no direct experience with any of these majors (or any major @ all for that matter), but I find it hard to believe that a Comp Eng major could do all the same stuff as a CS or EE. If you really got all the CS and EE knowledge out of this one major, why would CS and EE even exist? How could it be a 2 for 1 deal? I'm sure you can do some of the same stuff, but logically, you shouldnt be able to do a lot of it. >>



Comp E's have a CS field of concentration available to them and take some EE courses here (but not a lot...). EE has a field of study for computer engineering, too. So there's a little overlap if you decide to take courses in one of those fields of concentration. >>



depends on the schools. At my univ .. Compe E is very closely related to EE major here, they are off by a few courses.
 
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