Electrical engineering is, in its most simple form, the creation of an electrical system, and “may be the most unrecognized driving force behind modern living” (Jorgensen, 2014, p. 2). Anything that uses electricity – from simple to complex – is created and maintained via electrical engineering (Jorgensen, 2014). Originally responsible for creation and implementation of electrical power systems to homes and businesses, as well as creation and maintenance of transistors after their invention in 1947 (Jorgensen, 2014), it has a much wider range of applications today. Modern electrical engineering is responsible for computers, cell phones, batteries, residential or commercial wiring, light switches, integrated circuit devices, entire power grids, and wireless devices, although these are far from being the only products serviced by this field (Jorgensen, 2014).
In order to create such diverse products, the field of electrical engineering has become a convergence of many disciplines, including computer programming, mathematics, atomic theory, physics, and many others (Jorgensen, 2014). Because of this, a wide range of sub-disciplines can be found within the field; these sub-disciplines create a large diversity in type of work performed and a wide variety of job opportunities. Some electrical engineers work directly with electricity on a daily basis, while some only utilize a fundamental knowledge of electricity to perform tasks such as designing Integrated Circuit (IC) schematics (Jorgensen, 2014). IC design is an extremely large and important sub-field of electrical engineering, but there are many more, including control, microelectronics, telecommunications (some of the largest) and power electrical engineering (one of the most well known).
Power engineering is what many people associate with the electrical engineering profession (United States Department of Labor, 2009). These individuals spend their days working directly with power sources, such as power outlets, other power supplies, electric trains and buses, and power grids (Jorgensen, 2014). Employed by transportation and power companies, this is the oldest sub-discipline in the profession (United States Department of Labor, 2009). A number of years ago, the majority of electrical engineers worked in the power specialty, as this was one of the main areas in which electricity was used. However, with so many recent advances in technology, electrical engineers are now more prevalent in the telecommunications and computing subfields, particularly IC design (Jorgensen, 2014).
IC design engineering is a field that, in recent years, has been dominated by electrical engineers (Jorgensen, 2014). Considered an important sub-discipline of electrical engineering, it also overlaps into various other disciplines as well, particularly computer engineering. Integrated Circuits are contained within mainframes, personal computers, and even used in cloud computing (Jorgensen, 2014). In this sub-discipline, engineers use computer software to design IC schematics (plans, or blueprints) (Jorgensen, 2014). Electrical engineers verify and test the schematics, which are then assembled and implemented (Jorgensen, 2014). These engineers rarely work directly with electricity; rather, the majority of their duties include designing rather than testing or maintenance of power systems. Most often these individuals are employed in the computing and microchip industries, as opposed to power industries or other electrically based fields (Jorgensen, 2014). While this is now an extremely large industry that is growing regularly, other subfields similar in size to IC design do exist, with one of the most prevalent being telecommunications.
Telecommunication, the field of broadcasting communication via phone, cable, or broadcast network, has a great need for electrical engineers. In fact, telecommunication engineers, after IC design engineers, currently make up the largest percentage of electrical engineers in the United States (United States Department of Labor, 2013). These engineers are responsible for design, administration, research, testing, installation, and maintenance of various wired or electrical systems used in telecommunications, such as hard-wired phone lines or wireless cellular networks (McDavid & Echaore-McDavid, 2007). They may specialize in certain types of networks – LAN (local area network), which serves only a building, or WAN (wide area network) that serves an entire population; alternatively, they may specialize in hard-wired or wireless systems (McDavid & Echaore-McDavid, 2007).
Their duties are varied, as they are responsible for every aspect of implementing and maintaining the electronics within telecommunication systems: research and development, production, maintenance, implementation, inspection, testing and troubleshooting, to name just a few (McDavid & Echaore-McDavid, 2007). Although telecommunications companies may seem to be the main industry in which these engineers are employed, the reality is that they may be employed across a wide variety of industries. These industries include financial, transportation, hospitality, and defense (McDavid & Echaore-McDavid, 2007). This wide variety of industries, large scope of duties make this one of the largest sub-disciplines currently (United States Department of Labor, 2013). However, there are other sub-disciplines that have seen recent exponential growth, and are now close behind this field in size and scope.
While still smaller than the field of telecommunications, microelectromechanical systems engineering, (MEMS), is still an extremely large sub-field that has seen dynamic growth over the past few years (Maluf & Williams, 2004). The term microelectromechanical is used because this field focuses on some of the smallest products made by extremely small machines (Maluf & Williams, 2004). These small products overlap into the automotive, communication, and medical sectors, to include automotive pressure sensors and accelerometers, photonics such as displays, optical sensors, fiber-optic communication devices, and medical devices such as small blood pressure sensors (Maluf & Williams, 2004). Wireless and radio frequency devices are also currently considered microelectromechanical products, although this is still considered a relatively new area of work for electrical engineers (Maluf & Williams, 2004). As one of the fastest growing sub-disciplines, the field doubled in size and scope from 1999-2004 and continues to grow faster than most other sub-disciplines (Maluf & Williams, 2004). Industries in which a microelectromechanical engineer might be employed include biomedical, communication, and automotive (Maluf & Williams, 2004). In contrast to fields like micromechanical and telecommunications engineering, there are still a few sub-disciplines that still have a significant impact on the profession, but whose growth and size are more minimal.
Control engineering, a field that is somewhat smaller and has seen less growth than microelectromechanical engineering, is still a large and extremely important sub-discipline. Control engineering refers to the creation, design, or administration of any mechanical control apparatus: a device that “regulates or optimizes the performance of machines or systems” (McDavid & Echaore-McDavid, 2007, p. 95). These can be controls for automation or devices involved in instrumentation (Hoske, 2014). Some control engineers are manufacturing engineers that are not trained in electrical engineering; however, one of the largest types of control engineering is currently design and maintenance of electrical equipment, requiring specially trained electrical engineers (Hoske, 2014). Currently, at least one third to one half of these engineers are employed in the manufacturing industry, and help design electrical systems for a variety of products (Hoske, 2014). The most common in the industry at this time are programmable controllers for a wide variety of uses, and “human machine interface equipment: control panels, alarms, annunciators, data acquisition equipment, data recorders, and plotters” (Hoske, 2014, p. 8).
Electronic devices are pervasive in modern society; thus, the field of electrical engineering is extremely vast and in constant demand. The diverse nature of electric devices means that there is an ever-increasing amount of sub-disciplines. Some have been present since electricity was discovered and work with traditional forms of electricity, such as power engineering. Other fields, relatively new, have seen much growth and encompass newer industries such as the microchip sector, overlapping with other technologies such as computer engineering. Job duties and industries within which an electrical engineer might work are also extremely varied throughout the sub-disciplines. This variation creates an extremely diverse field with a multitude of job prospects, allowing engineers to specialize based on their particular interests and talents. With the speed at which technology is currently advancing, it is likely that the field will continue to diversify and experience exponential growth for years to come.
References
Hoske, M. T. (2014, June). Control engineering professional profile. Control Engineering, (6), p. 8. Retrieved from http://www.controleng.com/single-article/control-engineering-professional-profile/42f7d3fd47128265ab3a0204ee09d3dc.html
Jorgensen, V. (2014). Electrical Engineering. In Salem Science (Ed.), Salem Press Encyclopedia of Science.
Maluf, N., & Williams, K. (2004). Introduction to microelectromechanical systems engineering. Boston, MA: Artech House.
McDavid, R., & Echaore-McDavid, S. (2007). Career opportunities in engineering. New York, NY: Ferguson and Infobase Publishing.
United States Department of Labor. (2013). Occupational employment and wages May 2013: 17-2072 Electronics engineers, except computer. Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes172072.htm
United States Department of Labor. (2009). Occupational outlook handbook 2009. New York, NY: Skyhorse Publishing.
