What fields in EE have good long term potential?

GShine_1989 · 09-04-2007, 10:55 PM

Well, I'm a freshman in EE at Illinois in my first EE class. We've been asked to pick an area of interest to us for a project. I'd like to pick a field that has good career potential (i.e. not a field that is becoming or going to become smaller and smaller). Yes, I know that it's only freshman year and what I pick now won't really matter in the long term. Yes, I know that I should be picking based on my interests primarily (I will). And yes, I know that we can't really predict what engineering will be like 20 years from now. I've done my own research (if googling & wikipedia can be called research haha) and have a good idea of what I might like. Still, I'd like to hear the opinions of some professionals, graduate students, or upperclassmen on these fields and their future:

Biomedical Imaging, Bioengineering, and Acoustics

* Biomedical Sensors and Instrumentation
* Imaging –MRI, Optics, Ultrasound
* Computer Music Synthesis, Audio, Acoustics
* Bioinformatics and Modeling

Circuits and Signal Processing

* Integrated Circuits Design, Modeling, Construction and Testing
* Image, Video, and Multimedia Compression
* Very Large Scale Integration Circuits and Microsystems
* Speech, Signal, and Image Processing

Communications and Control

* Coding Theory, Information Theory, and Applications
* Wireless Communications Systems
* Control Systems of Robotics, Technology Systems, and VLSI design

Computer Engineering

* Robotics, Artificial Intelligence: Vision and Pattern Recognition
* Computer Security, Information Protection, Cryptography
* Logic Design, Very Large Scale Integration, and Computer Aided Design
* Compilers, and Operating Systems
* Computer Systems, Networks, Distributed Systems, and Architecture

Electromagnetism, Optics and Remote Sensing

* RF, Antennas, Radar, Remote Sensing
* Optical, Theory, Systems, Lidar, Remote Sensing
* Microwave Devices and Circuits
* Radio and Optical Wave Propagation

Microelectronics and Quantum Electronics

* MicroElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS)
* Nanotechnology
* Plasma Devices, and Gaseous electronics
* Lasers, Photonic Devices, and Optics Physics

Power and Energy Systems

* Alternate and Renewable Energy
* Electromechanics
* Power Electronics and Energy Control

tom725 · 10-03-2007, 06:00 PM

^^ bump ^^

aswat12389 · 10-04-2007, 12:22 AM

Quantum Electronics would be my suggestion.

gobeavs · 10-04-2007, 11:12 PM

I would think anything related to medicine would be a good and solid field. Imaging systems, optics, even things like nanotechnology that is on the cutting edge of medicine.

Also, a lot of things with robotics and computers I don't see going away anytime soon....image and speech processing (and associated pattern recognition), AI, computer security, etc.

I'm not an expert, though.

undefined · 10-05-2007, 07:47 AM

All of these fields are advancing. You can't pick a field in hopes that it will continue to succeed as soon as you graduate. There are hot fields, but they may not pay as much. They might have jobs, though.

Do what interests you, learn what you want, demonstrate your skills to employers - all will be well.

DCguy · 10-05-2007, 11:43 AM

I agree with gobeavs.

ItsNotTheSame · 10-12-2007, 03:05 AM

Do you want to research your whole life or work for some company out of undergrad? If you want to do research, what other people have said in this thread is good advice.

However, if you don't want to work after college, I would recommend signal processing or AI. AI is not limited to robotics or image recognition... it was a huge range of applications, and most of the interns Google hired last summer were AI related research. (It is also true that full time employees researching something that may not work is costly.)
There is also new wave of wall street companies that trade based on signal processing.
Database would be another must have skill.

Please be careful of fellow students and professors who are happy to advise you... don't believe them full heartedly if they have only seen school in their lives. Most of the times they don't know much about the outside world.

undefined · 10-12-2007, 07:49 AM

ItsNotTheSame, interesting idea about the signal processing. I'm taking a course on Signals and Systems this semester, and I must say I do like it (partially because it's heavy on the math). I'll be trying to take the upper-level elective, DSP, either next semester or next year.

Did you read that in an article? If so, do you mind linking?

tom725 · 10-15-2007, 02:30 PM

how are the job prospects in Power Engineering (the bread and butter of electrical engineering)

chaoses · 10-15-2007, 04:16 PM

There are alot of people in microelectronics and communications (I guess the demand is high). since you're a freshman, you should probably not worry about these right now. Take the courses and see what you like best or do well. THen decide next year or junior year.

ItsNotTheSame · 10-15-2007, 10:38 PM

I didn't read it anywhere. I just talked to a few such companies at a career fair I went last Tuesday.

DSP is one application of signal processing, but keep in mind that anything that you can quantify, you can apply signal processing. I think DSP is growing, but it's not like DSP market is exploding. What you do should depend on what you enjoy, but it' important not to limit your options in the future.

undefined · 10-16-2007, 10:05 PM

Ok cool. I'll look more into that.