How To Get A Job In Electrical Engineering

If you want to make some good money, you need to learn how to get a job in electrical engineering. We’re going over the steps you need to take so that you can get a high paying job in electrical engineering.

Electrical Engineering is a very respectable career and along with that make very good money. If you’re into the principles of electronics and all things electrical, explore a career in electrical engineering.

March 2, 2024 by Kazu Fujimoto

Education

Depending on whether you’re a high school graduate or a university student, the path will be similar. If you’re a high school student and you want to know how to get a job in electrical engineering, it’s great that you’re here early. Likewise, if you’re a university student, use this outline to get yourself a job in electrical engineering.

High School

There are 2 paths you can take from high school, going straight to a university or a community college.

If you want to go to the university route, get the best grades you can, take the highest courses in mathematics (Calculus) and science (Physics – Electronics and Magnetism) based. Focus on projects that utilize Electrical Engineering disciplines on the side and learn how to code. Work on physical electrical engineering processes such as soldering.

University

As an Electrical Engineering student, you’re going to target a Bachelor’s in STEM, very likely in Electrical Engineering.

You will be taking electrical engineering courses that incorporate principles such as:

• Circuits
• Electronics
• Programming
• Robotics
• Battery Design
• EV Design and Production
• Digital Design
• Internet of Things
• Cloud Computing
• Optical Engineering
• RF Design

If any of these don’t remotely sound interesting to you and you don’t think you’ll be able to succeed in these courses, you may have a difficult time becoming an Electrical Engineer.

Work On Electrical Engineering Projects

In your spare time, no matter if you’re a high school student, university student, or even an engineer in the industry, it’s very beneficial to work on Electrical Engineering projects.

Some Electrical Engineering projects that you can add onto your resume can be in:

• Solar
• Battery Design
• Robotics Arduino Programming

Look up good Electrical Engineering projects on YouTube or google and get started!

Solar

The world is shifting towards means of renewable energy. This is also backed by legislature in government agencies and administrations. The Biden administration (2020s) is very insistent on directing the United States towards the use of renewable energy and lower their dependence on non-renewable energy such as the consumption of fossil fuels.

Many companies understand this and will be looking to integrate Solar into their business operations.

Capitalize on this by adding Solar based projects on your resume.

Battery Design

Battery Design is very prevalent in the realm of electrical engineering. Learn how to develop a battery that powers an electrical or mechanical system (or an electromechanical system). Play around with basic electrical engineering components and parameters such as voltage, current, resistors, and capacitors.

You’ll have an industry level project in your resume this way and this will be attractive to recruiters.

Robotics

Projects that incorporate the use of robotics are great to add onto your resume and also get your feet wet. Look into easy mechatronic systems and put something together. Use programming languages such as Arduino and MATLAB along with basic kinematic principles and develop a robot.

Join Electrical Engineering Memberships

Joining Electrical Engineering memberships is a great way to build your network, hear of opportunities, and add some meat on your resume.

If you have zero experience, zero projects, this is a very easy way to start building up your electrical engineering resume.

Some good university clubs to join in electrical engineering are:

• IEEE
• Formula SAE
• BAJA SAE

Alongside adding the membership experience on your resume, these memberships have great projects that employers love to see on your resume.

IEEE

IEEE otherwise known as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers is the main Electrical Engineering organization to join. In this organization, you’ll have projects, standards, and various networking events to attend. You’ll get many opportunities to pad your resume by joining IEEE as an Electrical Engineer.

Formula SAE

Formula SAE is the most attractive membership to join in university as an Engineering student, hands down. The engineering that goes behind Formula race cars is impeccable, and you’ll be a part of something huge when you join Formula SAE.

Alongside learning high performance Engineering applications, you’ll get to network with brilliant engineering students and join study groups around them, while hearing about the best internship opportunities directly from students.

BAJA SAE

BAJA SAE is also a very attractive engineering organization to join – as an electrical engineering student, you can provide support regarding battery design and ensuring the light system goes on and off properly. They build and compete with off-roading vehicles at the end of the school year with students across the United States. Employers also love seeing BAJA on engineering resumes.

Some other notable memberships to join under Electrical Engineering would be Mars Rover teams, Satellite, Rocket, or Robotics Teams that build and compete with other students.

Find Electrical Engineering Internships

Make sure your gpa is solid and at least a 3.5.

A 3.5+ GPA in Electrical Engineering is 100% attainable, but will require you to study long hours. Learn how to be efficient in studying and make sure to live a balanced life. Those who spend all day in the library are usually the least productive.

Look into “Deep Work” and integrate that type of style into your studying.

When applying to electrical engineering internships, your resume should be one page, and be filled with electrical engineering projects, memberships, and coursework that you’ve done. Your resume will need to be filled out from top to bottom and you should make use of effective space.

Finding electrical engineering internships may be even harder than finding an electrical engineering job (as you have no experience at this point!)

Make sure you get an Electrical Engineering internship if you’re a university student and then finding an Electrical Engineering job will be easy for you.

Finding An Electrical Engineering Job

If you’ve been able to get Electrical Engineering internships, then by the time you graduate, you should have no issues getting a job. Leverage your existing Electrical Engineering network.

Electrical Engineering Job Resume Tip

Make sure your Electrical Engineering resume consists of keywords, quantitative results, skills, and accomplishments.

The Electrical Engineering work you have done needs to showcase your business impact.

Quantitative results and accomplishments will do this for you.

Did you design some type of EV, Battery, or Robotics System that has generated the company millions in revenue?

Did you improve an electrical engineering manufacturing process which saved the company time and money?

Bingo – these are the questions that you need to ask yourself and answer to fill out a jaw dropping resume.

Once you have a solid Electrical Engineering resume that details relevant education, experience, and skills, you’re going to apply to hundreds of jobs.

Use search engines such as Indeed, LinkedIn, and Google to find job openings. Additionally reach out to your network for jobs. You may even get hired on full time as an Electrical Engineer if your internship likes you.