Engineering Electrical Engineering or Civil Engineering？

[xlu2]

One advice I received on choosing a major is pick what you are good at and what you like while keep in mind what future career you might have. Even though I was just accepted into the EE department after my freshman year, I am still unsure if I really want to do EE.

Would someone please give advice or account of their experiences on CE and EE?

Here is a short description of me. I love math and I am doing a minor in math. In some aspects, math is concrete and logical to me. If I do not get some math concepts but work at it, I would get it eventually. Compared to math, science, especially physics, is not my forte. I self studied AP Bio (5) (not a biology/ person) and AP Physics C: Mechanics (4) in high school. Last semester, I took a E&M class at university and absolutely hated it. Now I am taking a basic course in Circuit Analysis and I worked hours and hours and I still do not get the circuits. Why did I apply for EE? I heard that EE make higher salaries and the job is more likely to be in an office/lab. Moreover, I was interested in renewable energy, specifically thermoelectricity (produce electricity by heat). Given this specific field, I see a research job being the most probable. But now when I stare at the circuit problems, I doubt I have the ability to pursue the EE interest.

Before I got interested into thermoelectricity, I was very interested in civil engineering. I love looking at large structures and scaled models and playing LEGO. (I like tangible stuff and right now, EE circuit diagrams are very abstract to me.) When I was in high school, I joined trebuchet building team and won some prizes in the school district. Another pull factor from CE is that CE get to see their buildings being built. Also, I saw CE drawing diagrams on computer and to me, these diagrams are certainly more interesting than circuits. only downside is that I heard many CE have outdoor work and I do not like being outdoor.

Even though I mentioned EE makes more money, salary is not of any concern to me. I am just looking for a secure job in office setting (occasionally outdoor is fine), with interesting and exciting project, and some people interaction. I am not a people person but I like to work with a small team (of hopefully hard working people).

Since I took Physics E&M and now Circuit Analysis, I am thinking about taking a basic CE course to see if I like the hang of it. Any suggestions?

Many thanks in advance!

 

[chestycougth]

I think that very few CEs work on sites or outdoors. My brother is a CE and he works in an office.