How Much Programming Do Electrical Engineers Really Do Weekly?

AI Thread Summary
The discussion centers on the amount of programming that electrical engineers (EEs) typically engage in during their workweek. Mixed responses from professors suggest that programming is less central to electrical engineering compared to computer engineering, with some indicating that EEs may program only when necessary. One participant estimates that EEs might spend around 30 hours per week on programming, but acknowledges a significant margin of error in this estimate. The conversation emphasizes the variability in programming requirements based on specific job roles within the field, with some positions involving extensive programming while others may not require any. Overall, it highlights that regardless of programming tasks, EEs will likely spend considerable time using computers in their work.
Indifferent89
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I was wondering if anyone could give me some feed back on how much programming an electrical engineer does on an average week?

I've talked to my professors and have gotten mixed answers, the general consensus I got when deciding between computer and electrical engineering was go electrical engineering if you dislike programming but you'll do it if you have to. I must say after learning java, and some of C, I do dislike programming, so i would like to get an idea of how much programming an electrical engineer does on average.

I do understand there are different jobs that would dictate the amount of programming you would do on any given job, but if there is anyone out there that could give me some idea, I'd sure appreciate it.
 
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Indifferent89 said:
I do understand there are different jobs that would dictate the amount of programming you would do on any given job

Exactly.
 
Vanadium 50 said:
Exactly.

If you can't offer any help, don't bother replying.
 
Indifferent89 said:
If you can't offer any help, don't bother replying.

You answered your own question. Your professors gave you a general idea of how much programming you'll be doing. But since you can't be bothered to think for yourself, I'll d the thinking for you. On average, EEs have to put in 30hrs of programming during a week, with a margin of error of 80%.
 
Mathnomalous said:
You answered your own question. Your professors gave you a general idea of how much programming you'll be doing. But since you can't be bothered to think for yourself, I'll d the thinking for you. On average, EEs have to put in 30hrs of programming during a week, with a margin of error of 80%.

I'm actually looking for examples of different jobs electrical engineers that view this forum have had and how much programming they have done on a weekly basis. I know its pretty obvious that its different for each job, which is why I was hoping for examples. Thanks for being insanely rude about it though.
 
Indifferent89 said:
I'm actually looking for examples of different jobs electrical engineers that view this forum have had and how much programming they have done on a weekly basis. I know its pretty obvious that its different for each job, which is why I was hoping for examples. Thanks for being insanely rude about it though.

You are welcome. You could have phrased th original question in the above manner and you could have avoided being rude to the first person that replied to you. Hopefully, professional electrical engineers will answer your question; you may also visit the electrical engineering subforum to gather information.

Good luck in your search!
 
Mathnomalous said:
Hopefully, professional electrical engineers will answer your question; you may also visit the electrical engineering subforum to gather information.

Thanks for the tip.
 
There are over 400,000 electrical engineers in the United States alone, so there is a huge amount of variation. I worked as an electrical engineer for a couple of decades, and I saw electrical engineering jobs that ranged from virtually 100% programming to 0% programming. But whether you are programming or not, you will almost certainly spend a lot of time using a computer.
 
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