Engineering career

[metallicafan18]

I think I've finally decided what I want to do with my life. I'm only a Sophomore in highschool now, so i have some time to think on it.

What I've noticed I love is working with electronics. I'm always wanting to help people as well. So I got to think and what I thought would be an awesome career is being an electronics engineer for the military. I want to design electronics for miltary weapons and vehichles. This just sounds like the thing for me.

Now, next year I am taking some electronic engineering classes in school to see if this is what I want to get into. But what I wanted to know was what else can I do to help? What can I research and is electronic engineering the correct field for this kind of work?

I have a 3.5 GPA and am very outgoing and always try my hardest.

Thanks!

[metallicafan18]

Anybody?

I've been looking around online and can't find much.

[greekorican]

I'm a senior in Highschool. I thought I knew what I wanted to do several times, and I keep changing my mind. Right now I'm enrolling in UIC for Mechanical Engineering, and I'm still not sure thats what I want to do. Whether or not you change your mind, you've still got time.

First of all, EE is supposed to be one of the toughest fields to major in. Lots of math too. Just so you know what you're getting into.

You might want to look into computer science. Someones got to program the electronics that get built, and you have to know quite a bit about the electronic components. Right now I'm taking a Logic and Hardware class, where we learn how a computer works from the NAND gates all the way to the Operating System.. Its really cool stuff. My computer science teacher was offered a job straight out of school from a company who works for the military. He would have been programming missiles and lots of other cool things like that, but he decided he didn't want to do that. He found it morally wrong (he's kind of a wuss, haha).

[metallicafan18]

I do like doing math. So that is a plus.

That's the kind of job I would love to do right there! That stuff interestes me a lot.

Also, I do enjoy and do well in Chemistry, but I'm not really sure if that applies.

So operating systems and computer sciences?

[Simo98]

Sound like the right field for you, electronic engineering consists of both learning to design circuits to do what you want, and also the practical aspect of putting them together.

It really depends what you are doing as a job which you will be doing more of, however the theoretical aspect does require a good deal of physics and maths.

As far as a career path, im not sure about where you live, but in Australia the military is an awesome way to get your qualifications, you get paid about 30 grand a year to study, rather than having to pay for your study like you do elsewhere, you are however locked into a contract for nearly 10 years... Plus side, you are guaranteed a job as soon as you are finished studying..

Im not sure if there is anything like that in the states? But it would be worth having a look.

[metallicafan18]

Also, I'd rather design more than actually putting them together.

I was watching that Howe and Howe tech the other day on Discovery channel, and the work the guys did that designed the computers and software in the vehicles seemed like something I would want to do.

[warnergt]

Sounds like you have a good plan, metallicafan. Military electronics are
mostly designed by military contractors; not the military itself. For
example, you might end up working at Lockheed Martin. Stay out of
trouble and away from drugs as you don't want anything interfering with
your ability to get a security clearance.

[fdeck]

As others have said, hit the math hard. You're a sophomore, so there's always a chance that you will be inspired by something else between now and college (as I was at your age), but for almost any technical field, math is the gatekeeper. In addition, math by itself is of interest to the military because it is the basis of encryption and many kinds of electronic communication and surveillance.

There's a lot of overlap between electronics and software. Possibly the majority of electronic circuits in use today contain a computer and are running code. Embedded systems are systems where electronics and software work together. There are dozens of computers in your car and your house, in places where you wouldn't even imagine looking.

Whatever you study, don't forget to enjoy it. Aside from being useful, this stuff is loads of fun.

[scottm]

Originally Posted by warnergt

Stay out of
trouble and away from drugs as you don't want anything interfering with
your ability to get a security clearance.

^ Very important! Start worrying about your credit score ahead of time too!

-ScottM

[Johnny Crab]

Don't let ANYONE tell you that you can't do it.
You might want to pick up Oliver Heaviside's stuff(or bio) and Sylvanus P. Thompson's Calculus Made Easy. I was fortunate enough to have the best physics teacher in college(Dr. David Derbes, now at U of Chicago) who pointed at those texts.

Closet math lover(BSEE) here.

[Deluge Of Sound]

You want to help people, so you've decided to design weapons...

[metallicafan18]

More so help our country.

[Deluge Of Sound]

You want to help our country, so you've decided to build weapons...


If you want to really help our country, go into Civil Engineering and build us some better cities. IMO, YMMV, Politics prohibited, etc.

[fdeck]

Don't worry, math and electrical engineering have plenty of peacetime uses as well. The OP will have plenty of time to make up his own mind about the political side of things.

[KeithBMI]

I want to get into military stuff as well. I am a second year mechanical engineering student. Good luck! Calculus isn't as hard as you think.

Originally Posted by Deluge Of Sound

You want to help our country, so you've decided to build weapons...

There is a lot of military equipment that isn't used for killing.

[MalcolmAmos]

Think about getting your ham radio license.
That will give you an idea of what electrical engineers do plus once licensed you will have enough basic knowledge to start building your own ham radio rig. Hams in your area will be a big help.
http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&key...49c926&mscbg=0

Here is a sample test.
http://www.qrz.com/ham/

Good luck
Malcolm aka KE5HZI

[metallicafan18]

Good to hear. I'm going to continue research and find some other jobs that interest me in this field.

[Deluge Of Sound]

Originally Posted by KeithBMI

There is a lot of military equipment that isn't used for killing.

Originally Posted by metallicafan18

I want to design electronics for miltary weapons and vehichles. This just sounds like the thing for me.

[KeithBMI]

He could be talking about a gun that shoots bean bags or a mine sweeper... OK fine I skimmed over the original post... happy?

[metallicafan18]

Not to be political, but I view the world as kill or be killed. So you gave to do what us nessecary to stay on top. Even if it means taking lives.