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Electrical Engineering vs Electronics Engineering vs Computer Engineering
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bsfeechannel:

--- Quote from: 42Bits on April 04, 2019, 06:22:10 am ---
--- Quote from: hamster_nz on April 04, 2019, 06:19:41 am ---Going by the name, there seems to be 50% overlap...

Why do you ask?

--- End quote ---

Because I wanna know the difference between them.

--- End quote ---

These terms have a historical significance. The engineer specialized in anything electrical or magnetic was first called an electrical engineer. By the late fifties an electrical engineer more specialized in TV, radio and telephone systems was started to be called an electronics engineer. This same electronics engineer was summoned to design computers and this further specialization created the computer engineer in the late seventies/early eighties.

But as others pointed out previously, these distinctions tend to get blurred a little.
IanB:

--- Quote from: tggzzz on April 04, 2019, 04:14:48 pm ---I can't remember ever seeing a "computer engineering" course.
--- End quote ---

It's offered at UCSD for example, and many students choose it. The course content overlaps somewhat with EE:

http://ece.ucsd.edu/undergraduate/computer-engineering-major
soldar:

--- Quote from: bsfeechannel on April 05, 2019, 03:59:35 am ---These terms have a historical significance. The engineer specialized in anything electrical or magnetic was first called an electrical engineer. By the late fifties an electrical engineer more specialized in TV, radio and telephone systems was started to be called an electronics engineer. This same electronics engineer was summoned to design computers and this further specialization created the computer engineer in the late seventies/early eighties.
--- End quote ---


Yes, very often there are historical reasons for why names and studies evolved a certain way. In Spain, over a century ago, electric motors, transformers, generators, etc were covered by "Industrial Engineers". Let's say "power". Telegraphy, telephone, radio, TV, etc. were "Telecommunications Engineers". Let's say "signals". Then when computers came along both schools would have a program on computers but may be with a slightly different focus. Then a Computer science school would open but they would focus more on software than on hardware. So, there are many different degrees that overlap each other to a great extent.
tggzzz:

--- Quote from: bsfeechannel on April 05, 2019, 03:59:35 am ---
--- Quote from: 42Bits on April 04, 2019, 06:22:10 am ---
--- Quote from: hamster_nz on April 04, 2019, 06:19:41 am ---Going by the name, there seems to be 50% overlap...

Why do you ask?

--- End quote ---

Because I wanna know the difference between them.

--- End quote ---

These terms have a historical significance. The engineer specialized in anything electrical or magnetic was first called an electrical engineer. By the late fifties an electrical engineer more specialized in TV, radio and telephone systems was started to be called an electronics engineer. This same electronics engineer was summoned to design computers and this further specialization created the computer engineer in the late seventies/early eighties.

--- End quote ---

My alma mater had the first Electronic Engineering degree in the country, in 1947.

Personally I chose (and would still choose) to avoid a course that specialised too much too early. Examples: telecom engineering, computer engineering, but of course that would depend on my seeing the specifics of the syllabus.

I suspect I was unusual in knowing what I wanted to do before uni, and having sufficient knowledge to be able to usefully distinguish between the various courses' output. That was helped by an Asimov short story that remains just as valid and relevant: http://www.abelard.org/asimov.php (Profession by Isaac Asimov (1957))


--- Quote ---But as others pointed out previously, these distinctions tend to get blurred a little.

--- End quote ---

Yes indeed, blurred for good reasons. But there are also significant distinctions.
IDEngineer:

--- Quote from: Brumby on April 05, 2019, 12:52:40 am ---A degree is only one part of that and it is not impossible that 5 or 10 years down the track, you could be working in an area for which your degree holds little relevance.
--- End quote ---
Very true. Two of the most senior people in a software company we did business with years ago had degrees in Biology and Astronomy. I asked the Astronomy guy WTF, and he replied "I love astronomy but I found out there aren't that many paying jobs in the field." Hence the danger for folks who "follow their bliss" or whatever and get doctorates in topics for which there is near-zero demand. They end up with massive student debt and mostly saying phrases like "Would you like fries with that?"

You definitely need to do what you love doing, but with a healthy dose of market-based reality included.

EDIT: I'll risk offending a few people and add that I haven't been overly impressed with folks who have only Computer Science (CS) degrees. I fired one such person years ago when it became evident they didn't understand binary, hex, ASCII, and how to relate one to another. I mean SERIOUSLY.  :wtf: :wtf: :wtf: Yet this person had a great sounding resume and had passed through interviews with multiple senior Engineers to get the job. I paid a lot more personal attention to hiring decisions after that.
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