Engineering Degree

[Stigs]

Didn't know where to post this, so I put it here.  Hope it's in the right place. Anyway, I've been doing a lot of college visiting and I know that I want to Engineering with electronics.  My question is, what is the difference between Computer and Electrical Engineering?  At most of the schools I've visited, your first and second years of school for both majors take the same classes....after that is when the curriculum starts to change, so I wanted to know what the differences are.  Thanks for the help.

[Darren]

Talk to a careers advisor at your high school or a rep from the college.

[toggleguy]

isnt electrical engineering like all electronics and computers like computers?(i have no idea what im talking about btw)

[Scionyde]

At the school I went to, the major was 'Electrical & Computer Engineering' or ECE for short. Then there was Computer Science, which was all the heavy programming and whatnot.

 

It probably varies school by school, but I'd guess computer engineering might have more programming, and electrical engineering will have more electrical...stuff. (Don't look at me, I only took the intro courses! I ended up majoring in chemical engineering...=S )

[NannerBeans]

I think electrical is focusing more on bigger stuff like home wiring and stuff and computer focuses on computer/electronics dealing with small stuff. Computer is a better bet if you want to do things electronics related and it also has some programming in it but it is very hard to get in especially at a top school. Computer and Biomedical are the hardest to get in out of the Engineerings. I'm in Civil but haven't taken any engineering classes yet. I've almost got my gen eds through. 

[shouldervalley]

atleast here in finland electrical engineering is when you draw and design wiring diagrams for large community buildings and block of flats. computer is like either programming or cpus and electronics and stuff like that. myself going to school to be an electritian and the probably electrical engineer 

 

EDIT: all the physics ((U/I=R, U*I=P)know this and you can do are set for life) are the same the scale just differs so if you go to school to be an electrical engineer you can still work with electronics no problem. 

[Art Vandelay]

If you don't like electrical physics, don't go into electrical engineering.

 

If you don't like low level programming (stuff like C and C++), don't go into Computer Engineering. If you go into CE, you will probably not design chip topographies, if you do not get a PhD, at least from what I hear out of people that worked in the field.

 

In my ECE program, I'm told in the second term of second year, CE students get to go do operating systems, while EE students get to take more electrical physics. I'm still in first year so that's all I know.

 

It's a lot of work though. currently doing about 35 hours a week of class (at least on paper; some classes don't take up their full time slot), I'm told third term is 40 hours a week.

 

If you want to use high level languages like Java, software engineering/CS is probably more oriented toward that.

 

atleast here in finland electrical engineering is when you draw and design wiring diagrams for large community buildings and block of flats. computer is like either programming or cpus and electronics and stuff like that. myself going to school to be an electritian and the probably electrical engineer 

 

EDIT: all the physics ((U/I=R, U*I=P)know this and you can do are set for life) are the same the scale just differs so if you go to school to be an electrical engineer you can still work with electronics no problem. 

Wait, really? I'm in ECE in Waterloo (in Canada) and we're doing calculations of Electrical and magnetic fields with integration in second term. Don't you need to know that kind of stuff to design circuit boards?

[Stigs]

If you don't like electrical physics, don't go into electrical engineering.

 

If you don't like low level programming (stuff like C and C++), don't go into Computer Engineering. If you go into CE, you will probably not design chip topographies, if you do not get a PhD, at least from what I hear out of people that worked in the field.

 

In my ECE program, I'm told in the second term of second year, CE students get to go do operating systems, while EE students get to take more electrical physics. I'm still in first year so that's all I know.

 

It's a lot of work though. currently doing about 35 hours a week of class (at least on paper; some classes don't take up their full time slot), I'm told third term is 40 hours a week.

 

If you want to use high level languages like Java, software engineering/CS is probably more oriented toward that.

 

Wait, really? I'm in ECE in Waterloo (in Canada) and we're doing calculations of Electrical and magnetic fields with integration in second term. Don't you need to know that kind of stuff to design circuit boards?

I enjoy electrical physics and I don't mind doing low level programming.  What I wanted to do is if I stay in the computer industry after college, I want to design motherboards, cpus, ect. If I go outside of that, I want to design things like guitar amplifiers and other electronics for the music industry.

[Nuluvius]

isnt electrical engineering like all electronics and computers like computers?(i have no idea what im talking about btw)

 

I love it. That is the best description

[Art Vandelay]

I enjoy electrical physics and I don't mind doing low level programming.  What I wanted to do is if I stay in the computer industry after college, I want to design motherboards, cpus, ect. If I go outside of that, I want to design things like guitar amplifiers and other electronics for the music industry.

I really doubt you'll be able to design CPUs without a phd. The main job that computer engineers end up with is being an embedded systems programmer (at least according to some of my profs).

[Stigs]

I really doubt you'll be able to design CPUs without a phd. The main job that computer engineers end up with is being an embedded systems programmer (at least according to some of my profs).

Oiy too much school. I was only planning on getting my Masters.

[Guest Philosophy]

I know with computer engineering you have to take programming classes along with electronic engineering (at least the degree program I am in). 

[Poohy14]

Well I have actually taken a Electronics course and you basically build your own DAC, mess with transformers, capacitors, resistors and maybe the 555 timer but you just build things like mobos and have a very good knowledge of the components and how they work. You can get a job at a lot of places even in the computer field like ASUS or MSI building things, but its better having the Electrical Engineering degree first since thats a lot of thing you have to go through before Electronics. Thats what I am doing and I will be getting my robotics degree also since its only 4 more classes but I already took a intro to Electronics and if you don't like doing a lot of school work its not for you because you really have to remember a lot like Ohms law is used a lot and you need to know the difference between resistance and impedance. Also, what a capacitor does in a DC circuit. Need to know how to use various tools also. Engineers don't get a PHD they get a PE which stands for Professional Engineer and the only thing you have to do is take a state test and thats it after your Engineering classes but you will get calls from other companies to look at wiring cad designs and design your own circuits and build machines for others since that has to go through a PE first before approval of building the machine.

[Stigs]

Well I have actually taken a Electronics course and you basically build your own DAC, mess with transformers, capacitors, resistors and maybe the 555 timer but you just build things like mobos and have a very good knowledge of the components and how they work. You can get a lot at a lot of places even in the computer field like ASUS or MSI building things, but its better having the Electrical Engineering degree first since thats a lot of thing you have to go through before Electronics. Thats what I am doing and I will be getting my robotics degree also since its only 4 more classes but I already took a intro to Electronics and if you don't like doing a lot of school work its not for you because you really have to remember a lot like Ohms law is used a lot and you need to know the difference between resistance and impedance. Also, what a capacitor does in a DC circuit. Need to know how to use various tools also. Engineers don't get a PHD they get a PE which stands for Professional Engineer and the only thing you have to do is take a state test and thats it after your Engineering classes but you will get calls from over companies to look at wiring cad designs and design your own circuits and build machines for others since that has to go through a PE first before approval of building the machine.

This was very helpful.  Thanks.