I know which jobs, but not which major. CE or EE?

[Timb0Slice]

I've spent hours reading forum after forum researching job availability, job salaries, and what jobs go with which. I am still torn between the two. I am currently finishing up the last of my Gen. Ed. classes at a community college and am working on signing up for classes for my college.

Originally I wanted to deal with programming and software. However, after taking an introductory CS class that dealt with simple C++, I was intrigued at first. But after some time I found it to be tedious and became much less interested. In the physics classes I have taken I was very interested in the circuit portions of it. Which has lead me to believe I would be more content with an EE career.

Jobs that interest me are ones that involve creating and testing hardware, which I understand involves some programming. Designing circuits, designing processors, and figuring out how to make something smaller, faster, or more power efficient sound like something I would love doing. I love trying to figure something out and I sometimes refuse to give up until I do.

I'm most curious on what jobs fit this criteria and how to go about getting these jobs. So far IC design, working with processors, and working with FPGA sound like things I might enjoy.

 

[axmls]

That would be more along the lines of computer engineering, though it is possible with an electrical engineering degree. Check what concentrations EE has at your university. Mine offers a computer engineering specialization.

 

[Timb0Slice]

I have thoroughly looked into both computer engineering and electrical engineering. The issue for me right now are what jobs incorporate the things I enjoy doing as well as if I should major in CE or EE.

 

[Hercuflea]

I would second Computer Engineering. Sounds like you would do fine with an EE degree too. I knew someone whose son went to GA Tech for computer engineering and had a starting salary of $ 96k after just a BS.

 

[Timb0Slice]

However, I hear that it is much more difficult to switch from a CE to an EE rather than the other way around. I know there is only a few classes different between the two. Is there a noticeable job market difference between them?

 

[Hercuflea]

Depends what jobs you're applying for. You could always minor or double major in EE. I doubt most companies would care either way as long as you had relevant experience.