BS Electrical Engineering, Should I?

[Deceptive]

So, work just started a new program where they teamed up with a few colleges and will pay 100% tuition for a Bachelor’s Degree. We pay fees and books. No big deal.

I was thinking of the BS in Electrical Engineering from ASU.

I won’t have to take some of the filler shit like English, Lit, blah blah since I will be a transfer student. Now, the degrees I have I never took Calculus or Physics and my Chemistry will be too old to transfer. But for the most part it will be core courses.

I am the only one in my division without an Engineering Degree of some sort. Which is not an issue as long as I stay in this particular sector of the field.

I kind of want it for self gratification.

I kind of want it for more open doors and options.

I kind of want it for possible consult work when I retire or get closer to retirement.

Last, I wouldn’t be against moving if the right opportunity came up and I could make $150k or more sitting at home.

Anyone with this degree want to offer any insight?


If you buy an EV you won’t suffer through high gas prices. - Peter Buttplug

 

[robvas]

Yes

 

[cobracide]

I have a Double Bachelors - Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. Sounds like you are already in the field and are doing it more for self-fufilment or to open doors. Unless you are going to pull a 3.5 from a reputable college, don't bother. All the good engineering jobs go to the 4.0 GPA mostly brilliant and mostly foreign students. I ended up in IT working in some cases next to people with no degree. if you are doing it for yourself and maybe it would open up some mgmt positions that require it - then by all means go for it. It will be the hardest thing you will ever try to do. Not trying to discourage you - just trying to give you a realistic point of view to know what you are in for.

 

[Fat Boss]

I always tell people to go to engineering school until they have more money than they need. The company I work for hires EE's by the hundreds, each year.

 

[Rb0891]

So, work just started a new program where they teamed up with a few colleges and will pay 100% tuition for a Bachelor’s Degree. We pay fees and books. No big deal.

I was thinking of the BS in Electrical Engineering from ASU.

I won’t have to take some of the filler shit like English, Lit, blah blah since I will be a transfer student. Now, the degrees I have I never took Calculus or Physics and my Chemistry will be too old to transfer. But for the most part it will be core courses.

I am the only one in my division without an Engineering Degree of some sort. Which is not an issue as long as I stay in this particular sector of the field.

I kind of want it for self gratification.

I kind of want it for more open doors and options.

I kind of want it for possible consult work when I retire or get closer to retirement.

Last, I wouldn’t be against moving if the right opportunity came up and I could make $150k or more sitting at home.

Anyone with this degree want to offer any insight?


If you buy an EV you won’t suffer through high gas prices. - Peter Buttplug

You are going to do lots and lots of calculus. Then when that’s done you probably get to do differential equations, which is a joy.

 

[James Snover]

So, work just started a new program where they teamed up with a few colleges and will pay 100% tuition for a Bachelor’s Degree. We pay fees and books. No big deal.

I was thinking of the BS in Electrical Engineering from ASU.

I won’t have to take some of the filler shit like English, Lit, blah blah since I will be a transfer student. Now, the degrees I have I never took Calculus or Physics and my Chemistry will be too old to transfer. But for the most part it will be core courses.

I am the only one in my division without an Engineering Degree of some sort. Which is not an issue as long as I stay in this particular sector of the field.

I kind of want it for self gratification.

I kind of want it for more open doors and options.

I kind of want it for possible consult work when I retire or get closer to retirement.

Last, I wouldn’t be against moving if the right opportunity came up and I could make $150k or more sitting at home.

Anyone with this degree want to offer any insight?


If you buy an EV you won’t suffer through high gas prices. - Peter Buttplug

HELL YES!

And why haven't you signed up already?

Qualifier: sorry if I'm being a bit strident. This is, literally, at 60 years old, my single biggest regret in not pursuing. Granted, I've done super well as an old guy with no degree, but if I had it all to do over again, EE would have been it! I originally studied High Energy physics, what used to be called "nuclear engineering," until you couldn't get grant money for it, anymore. That didn't work out, for a bunch of reasons. But looking back on it all from 40-odd years down the road, EE would have been the way to go!

And: if you can handle quadratic equations, you CAN handle calculus and trig, and might even find them to be fun. Seriously.

Seriously, quit screwing around and tell them, "Where do I sign?"

 

[Black02GT]

So, work just started a new program where they teamed up with a few colleges and will pay 100% tuition for a Bachelor’s Degree. We pay fees and books. No big deal.

I was thinking of the BS in Electrical Engineering from ASU.

I won’t have to take some of the filler shit like English, Lit, blah blah since I will be a transfer student. Now, the degrees I have I never took Calculus or Physics and my Chemistry will be too old to transfer. But for the most part it will be core courses.

I am the only one in my division without an Engineering Degree of some sort. Which is not an issue as long as I stay in this particular sector of the field.

I kind of want it for self gratification.

I kind of want it for more open doors and options.

I kind of want it for possible consult work when I retire or get closer to retirement.

Last, I wouldn’t be against moving if the right opportunity came up and I could make $150k or more sitting at home.

Anyone with this degree want to offer any insight?


If you buy an EV you won’t suffer through high gas prices. - Peter Buttplug

Um, if they're paying and you can make the time why the hell not. Unless there is some clause if you drop out you owe it back, give it a shot. What do you have to lose?

I lost interest in math midway though HS (girls became more interesting). Picked it back up in college and the higher math classes are actually pretty fun in comparison. End up with a BS in Physics and a BE in Applied. Would love to find a job that'll pay for a masters in EE since kinda what I ended up doing, enjoy it, and I just miss school sometimes.

If you have the opportunity totally go for it.

 

[BOOGIE MAN]

I decided to finish a BS in the major I originally started college with after switching majors and then taking some time off. Degree was heavy physics/math based

I had gone through calc3, discrete math, linear alg, etc..., physics 1 and 2, and taught some secondary math classes so it's not like I don't have a math background/experience. Going back to school and jumping right in to Ordinary Differential Equations was tough, but doable.

Partial Differential Equations really sucked in grad school but again, doable

If you've got a chance to attach more acronyms to your name and you don't have to pay for it, buck up and do it.

The few people I know that got electrical engineering degrees and went to work in the field after school all hated it and now do something completely different. But, I feel like this info doesn't apply to you.

 

[VRYALT3R3D]

Yes, you should do it. I would strongly recommend that you set yourself up for the absolute best chance of success by taking math preparation courses. You need to be fluent in math to succeed in a program like that. Likewise, you need to be strong in trigonometry, linear algebra, MATLAB, and be able to understand math proofs.

This is an example exam of what you can expect to do in a math engineering course from the University I went to. Good luck and manage your time well.

https://exams.skule.ca/exams/MAT186H1_20219_631639174686F21mat186_Midterm_2_Solutions.pdf

 

[Detroit Iron]

Getting these engineering degrees is a time commitment. Not sure what stage in life you are in (married, kids, etc)...the classes and homework will chew up any spare time. Add a full time job on top of it and you will likely be overextending yourself. And if you go part time, how many years will it take to finish?

These are all important things to think about, don't want to discourage you.

 

[CompOrange04GT]

I wish I was smart enough to be an engineer.

My brain and numbers just don’t get along. ( which is weird that I work around parts per million / parts per billion daily at work)

I just have a program that dictates the numbers for me. No way in hell does my brain work in a way that can calculate numbers

 

[SVTdreamin04]

No, I don’t have the degree, but I’m in the field of controls. This field isn’t going anywhere. My little bro-in-law when in high school didn’t know what he wanted to do in life, so I showed him the stuff I do. He loved it and got a degree in Electrical Engineering. He works for a large automation/hardware company now and makes great money. There are so many different routes you can go with this degree in the world. Electricity isn’t going anywhere anytime soon!

Look into automation/controls, that may spark your interest even more.


Sent from my iPhone using svtperformance.com

 

[01yellercobra]

I still wish I had stuck with the engineering degree. But a combination of not being as smart as I thought I was and having a family made it difficult. I've done ok, but I'd definitely have more options if I had that degree. I say go for it.

 

[techi14]

No one can ever take the knowledge away from you. Take this opportunity! The satisfaction is also a great feeling. Good luck!

 

[Ramairgt1]

Do it.
I have a BS in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering. I was always good at math but damn Diffy Q's was a royal PITA!

 

[cobracide]

If you need prep work on math, take precalc before calc.

 

[black4vcobra]

I have a civil degree but work with EE's on a near daily basis as I'm in utility design - transmission lines, substations and most recently Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) which generally support solar arrays or wind turbines.

As others have mentioned, the need for people to design electrical systems is never going away and at least on the utility side of things, there is more work available than companies/people to do the work.

Another guy asked but what is your life situation as far as age and family? I see guys with kids struggle to study enough to pass their PE but if you have 80+ credits of math/science/engineering classes staring down the barrel at you it will be a tough balancing act to spend enough time with the family, to work and to study.

Also, the calc and diff equations is no joke.

I graduated 14 years ago so my college experience might be different than what goes on today, and I can't speak directly on the EE classes, but I'd be happy to chat further about the math/science required or about my line of work if you have any questions.

 

[Rb0891]

I have a civil degree but work with EE's on a near daily basis as I'm in utility design - transmission lines, substations and most recently Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) which generally support solar arrays or wind turbines.

As others have mentioned, the need for people to design electrical systems is never going away and at least on the utility side of things, there is more work available than companies/people to do the work.

Another guy asked but what is your life situation as far as age and family? I see guys with kids struggle to study enough to pass their PE but if you have 80+ credits of math/science/engineering classes staring down the barrel at you it will be a tough balancing act to spend enough time with the family, to work and to study.

Also, the calc and diff equations is no joke.

I graduated 14 years ago so my college experience might be different than what goes on today, and I can't speak directly on the EE classes, but I'd be happy to chat further about the math/science required or about my line of work if you have any questions.

Yes, the math was intense. A bunch of the EE’s that I knew even got Math degrees as well since they had to do so much. I was an ME so it stopped at diff eq for me. My worst struggle was heat transfer. Had a project that every time I would go in for some guidance, he would recommend some added shit to do. Finally stopped asking. Last day, I go in to turn it in, he asks does it work. Just said nope and left his office. Lmfao - “D” for done baby.

 

[Blk04L]

If you got the time to dedicate to the classes, do it.
I wasn't the best at the advanced math classes(found them to lack any real world value) but the actual engineering classes were great.

Some of the courses require a lot of homework/self teaching so just prepare for long nights while still working-which at times you travel to locations, right?

Civil Engineer here. Retarded when it comes to anything electrical though

If you get the degree, do you have a PE over you so you can gain "Experience" to take the FE and then the PE exams?
Saw you want to possibly be a consultant in the future

 

[shurur]

Free college. Yes. Always.

Expectations of what a BSEE will do for you are the thing to be managed.

If you are at a private company who still takes care of its people or at a government contract company or actually working for the government, then these points don't effect you much.

If you are in the truly private sector, then IMO these points need to be considered in order to management your expectations as to what your degree will do for you.

This is based on my own experiences, as I got my BSEE at 33, and started my career late. I went from network board design, a short stint in wireless and then IC design.
I was a digital designer.

1. Forty is the new fifty. If you are not safely in management by your forties expect to get let go at some point, and become a contractor at best. There are virtually no company engineer's engineers anymore.

2. If you use your degree to move up into more technical fields, you will find your degree is worth less and less, as what school you went to and how advanced your degree is begins to matter more, as some of these schools, MIT, Stanford, Georgia Tech, UC Berkley to name a few, are like belonging to a virtual union.

The higher you fly, the more chance of getting your wigs singed. The Icarus effect.

That is my experience and .02.

The best of luck to you.