well, after 2 years as an electrical engineer, its time i face the music and go where i belong.
im trying to choose between architecture or ID. pretty tough.
was wondering will a background in EE be of any advantage to employers?
its really weird to go from such a technical and science background to a creative field.
back in the day… you just graduate with your degree, apply and apply and some place will pick you up for 55-75k starting, with nothing but a degree behind you. no portfolio, no experience, nothing…
now i trade it all. seems like getting mid 40k is tough and getting a job in a place that is “decent” seems tougher.
I would EE is very usful expereince considering the majority of product design have some electronics in them, and would will be able to bring knowledge to that…hang electrical or electronic? enginneer any difference? do you design PCB’s program firmware or wire up buildings/cars
There’s a real trend towards older, science educated people finding their artistic sides and coming back for ID degrees! Just in our lower div classes this year, we have a biologist, a computer scientist, a doctor, a mechanical engineer, an electrical engineer, a technician, an IS person and a high-tech saleperson. 20 somethings mix it up with 30 and 40 somethings , and at the end of the day, it’s all about the work.
Your EE degree and real-world experience will definately be a benefit. One thing to watch out for though is the “pidgeon hole” - telling people about your previous skills can mean going right back to where you started - I’ve had that issue recently… so, use EE as your springboard and support, but bust ass and be a good designer or you’ll never get out .
The only other thing I can say is, prepare to work super hard. I thought my engineering degree(s) were difficult, but that didn’t hold a candle to the amount of output I’m being asked to generate now. It’s fun, but there’s a lot of stress, and man do we work.
…in terms of money, I’ve found that having my engineering degree and work experience only helps boost salary if I keep doing engineering. Letting go of that yields less money - but more enjoyment… Maybe someday companies will realize that someone who is proficient at:
Digital Rendering (AI, PS, CAD)
Art production
Sketching
Model making and machining
Materials
Typography
Photography
Graphic Design
Creativitity/Idea generation
Group dynamics
Long hours and crazy work ethics
…is equal in pay and in as high demand as an engineer. Having done both jobs, I can’t understand why so many ID’ers get such low pay… We’re not just casually aquanted with the above things - it’s a pretty decent level of training in all of them… Competition? Maybe… I just don’t know.
Anyway, just some groggy, sleep deprived personal opinions - good luck with your decisions, and hope you make the jump successfully.
I made a similar transition - moving from EE/CS to business to finally applying and getting into the MDes/MBA program at ID/IIT. I feel like I’ve found my calling if you know what i mean, something that would actually make me excited about going to work/school and applying a combination of the technology, business and design experience towards developing amazing and cool new products.
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