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What kind of dangers are involved in electrical engineering?
I want to know what I will be dealing with if I pursue electrical engineering as my career. Probably don't need to go in depth for now.
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Kathryn’s Answer
So, I majored in electrical engineering a while ago - and I have yet to be electricuted, if that's your concern - LOL. Of all the engineering diciplines at my university - civil, chemical, mechanical, electrical - I chose electrical engineering because in my mind there would be more job opportunities. I could see myself designing wiriing for houses and buildings and using computers to do so. While I am not designing wiriing for houses and buildings, I did work in the engineering department for a television station and I must say, I thoughly enjoyed that job. Today, I am an engineer in the telecommunications field. I have designed where towers are built for your cell phone service to work, and I am now working to improve how the network performs on a daily basis. So where is the electrical engineering part of this? It's there - it's in the formulas and models used to design the network. Of course, computers are doing all the heavy lifting, but we do need to understand how and why it works. That's what you will learn in any engineering dicipline you choose. How can we do things more quickly, efficiently, cost effectively, and with optimal performance. In a nutshell, "problem solvers" - that's what engineering is to me.
Loved reading this, thanks!
Isaac
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Scott’s Answer
Hi Isaac,
There is not very much danger involved in studying electrical engineering. Of course, when doing any type of lab work or hands on work, you should follow the appropriate safety guidelines. That goes for school work or any job really. Electrical engineering can be a very rewarding career path and has many subdisciplines that you could focus on including power systems, electronics, micro-electronics, communications, radio frequency (RF), microwave devices, optics, fiber-optics, lasers, and a whole lot more. As with most engineering fields, you will need to put in the study time to succeed and earn your degree. The course work usually incorporates a lot of higher level math. I my case, I would have only needed 3 more math course during my undergraduate studies to receive a second major in math. The most important thing in any career path is to find something you are interested in and then go for it!
There is not very much danger involved in studying electrical engineering. Of course, when doing any type of lab work or hands on work, you should follow the appropriate safety guidelines. That goes for school work or any job really. Electrical engineering can be a very rewarding career path and has many subdisciplines that you could focus on including power systems, electronics, micro-electronics, communications, radio frequency (RF), microwave devices, optics, fiber-optics, lasers, and a whole lot more. As with most engineering fields, you will need to put in the study time to succeed and earn your degree. The course work usually incorporates a lot of higher level math. I my case, I would have only needed 3 more math course during my undergraduate studies to receive a second major in math. The most important thing in any career path is to find something you are interested in and then go for it!
Thank you for taking the time to help.
Isaac
Dan Wolf
Retired Electrical/Software Engineer and part-time College Professor (BSEET and MS Engineering Management)
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Dan’s Answer
I worked 40 years as an electrical engineer or in an engineering environment and I believe it is not normally a dangerous career. Yes, it is true there are applications where there is significant danger. I worked in the mass transit industry where the high voltage power systems were quite capable of killing someone but access to those areas was very controlled and limited to workers who had the proper training and had the need to be that close. In the locomotive industry, I had to work in the locomotive yard which had higher potential for physical accidents (falls, crush, impacts) rather than electrical accidents. However there were always required safety training and in many situations, I was only in these risk areas when accompanied by "safety certified" person who's job was to make sure I didn't do anything unsafe.
While I did encounter these situations, they were rather rare and there are many (most?) electrical engineering positions that are low voltage and carry no such dangers. Indeed, I estimate that 99% (or more) of my 40 year career did not involve any significant safety risks. And finally, it is always your responsibility to pay attention during safety training, always observe the safety rules, and avoid putting yourself into unsafe situations.
While I did encounter these situations, they were rather rare and there are many (most?) electrical engineering positions that are low voltage and carry no such dangers. Indeed, I estimate that 99% (or more) of my 40 year career did not involve any significant safety risks. And finally, it is always your responsibility to pay attention during safety training, always observe the safety rules, and avoid putting yourself into unsafe situations.
Thanks for the help.
Isaac
Updated
Rich’s Answer
An electrical engineer can work in a wide variety of environments, most of them working on a computer in an office but some positions may have field or lab work. All legitimate businesses have strict safety programs and training for anyone working in hazardous environments so you are much more likely to get hurt in a car accident driving to work than at work. Bottom line, while safety is important on the job it probably isn’t a major concern in career selection. If you want to be an electrical engineer, do it!
Thanks for the advice.
Isaac