Throw on your best suspenders, secure your pocket protector, and tape up your broken glasses; now take it all off and get dressed like you normally would because you're not a nerd on a TV show. You're an electrical engineer—at the forefront of innovation.

Electricians: hanging from telephone poles since telephones were a thing. (Source)

Maybe you're in the trenches working on semiconductors. Maybe you're on the way to work or school and you spotted Google's self-driving car. Or maybe you're actually involved in the production of new eco-friendly cars.

Whatever the case may be, there are some pretty exciting opportunities out there for electrical engineers.

At its core (or in EE speak, at it's "CPU"), the role of an electrical engineer is to know the principles of electricity and electromagnetism. Now while knowledge may be power, it's not necessarily a paycheck. That means that you'll also need to apply what you know and actually build or fix some electrical doodads.

The job of any engineer is to manipulate things into working—kind of like when people were trying to copy your homework in school (but you're better than that).

As an electrical engineer, you'll be primarily dealing with electrons. So hopefully you rocked your science courses back when, you know, you were rocking that pocket protector.

If Bill Nye says it's time for the pocket protector to make a comeback, it's darn well time for the pocket protector to make a comeback. (Source)

The best electrical engineers are creative, fast-working problem solvers with excellent communication skills. Not only do EEs have to be able to accomplish obscure tasks using a thorough knowledge of the principals of electricity and math, they also have to be able to understand and be understood by the people they work with. So if you enjoy working on a team to build or repair things before deadlines, this may be the gig for you.

What's Out There

The industries employing the most electrical engineers today are: Architecture and Engineering Services, Electric Power, Electric Component Manufacturing, Electronic Instrument Manufacturing, and Scientific Research and Development Services (source).

That's a pretty big umbrella, and there are sure to be some interesting jobs in there. For instance, imagine designing useful instruments for the latest electric car, delving into the latest breakthroughs in fusion energy, or creating complicated interpretive dance routines—actually that last one may not apply.

Electrical engineers in modern industries work closely with computer engineers. Say you're an EE working to build a new self-driving car, you would be on a team developing the hardware—the GPS system, the obstacle sensors, and the physical communication network among all of the parts, even the engine itself. Pretty intense stuff.

Meanwhile, the computer engineers would be burning their eyes out writing the operating system on which the hardware would run, and giving you pesky advice like, "Make sure such-and-such part doesn't glitch out when something-something, or the engine will explode." Pssht. What do they know? (Probably a lot.)

Additional Ins and Outs

Most EE jobs are full-time gigs and you'll probably be required to work some occasional overtime (source).

Think again, Fred.

Some EEs work on a team, and others work independently. Either way, unless you're the tippy-top boss man, you'll certainly be reporting to someone on a regular basis. Better polish up those communication skills.

Electrical engineering happens to be a predominantly male field—as almost nine out of every ten electrical engineers are men (source). This is a noted issue, and programs promoting the integration of more women into the field of engineering have popped up. Some even offer incentives specifically for women to study engineering.

The electrical engineer programs at places like MIT, Stanford, and UC Berkeley are some of the top in the country, but there are plenty of other options out there (source).

In a field like electrical engineering, however, the learning doesn't stop when the school bell rings. In fact, you may not even be close to fully prepared for your first job by the time you finish school. You'll do a lot of learning as you go, so you better keep that brain of yours spongy—you know, because sponges absorb things.

There are new discoveries being made every day. With things like superconductors, fusion energy, and advances in quantum theory, there's always something new to learn.

Eureka. (Source)

While the tech sector is hot right now, job growth for EEs isn't as high as the projected growth for other careers. However, as the world continues to push into the tech age, the need for new products and systems will likely influence the job market for EEs. (Source)

All set to hop into the world of electrical engineering? Great—and even though we're not living in the flying car future of Marty McFly, there sure are some very cool things that EEs are doing. So let's go—you can even bring your pocket protector if that makes you feel more comfortable. You may even want to bring your dancing shoes, so you can celebrate when everyone's driving the electric car you helped build.

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