Ruth Dameron had good grades in high school. But she wasn't sure what to
major in once she got to college.
This was before the days of Internet job sites. So she picked up a newspaper
and scanned the want ads.
"There were lots and lots of jobs for people who knew how to program computers,"
says Dameron. "And so I got started in this field by deciding that I would
major in math as an undergraduate, and then go to grad school and get a master's
degree in computer science, and go into industry that way."
Around the time that Dameron entered the working world, microprocessors
came along. Software is used to program microprocessors.
"And then microprocessors get embedded into things," says Dameron. "And
once you're starting to do that, you're in computer engineering."
Being strong in math and science is one way to know that you're well suited
to computer engineering. But there's another trait that many computer engineers
share, and it might surprise you.
"There are an awful lot of musicians in electrical and computer engineering,
and I don't know why," says Dameron. "But I play about 20 instruments, and
here I am." You might think many computer engineers play instruments because
it uses a different part of the brain. Maybe it's about balance. But Dameron
doesn't think so.
"I don't think it appeals to a different part [of the brain], I think it's
the same part," she says. "I think there's a lot of analytical skill and pattern
recognition [in both music and engineering]."
There are also other, more obvious, qualities that aspiring computer engineers
should have.
"You're going to be in a team, so you need to be able to communicate and
work in a team," says Dameron. It also helps to be creative and to have strong
reasoning abilities. "If your thinking is very jumbled, you'd have a hard
time being in this role."
Computer engineer Ben Komar says this is a challenging but rewarding profession
in which to work. And new computer engineers will find many opportunities.
"They're going to find huge job demand, and the reason for this is that it's
difficult work," says Komar. "Things are a lot more sophisticated than they
were 30 or 35 years ago, [so] you need a degree in some form of engineering,
and that's a hard discipline to study and achieve a degree in.
"There are always going to be opportunities because it's a difficult thing
to achieve," Komar adds. "If you look at the job opportunities now, you have
lots of opportunities in things like network security -- that's a big thing.
[And] there are always opportunities in product development, at lots of different
levels."
Wayne Loucks is someone who has seen the profession develop since it first
came into existence.
"My undergrad degree was in electrical engineering because, at that time,
there was nothing like computer engineering," he says. "On the other hand,
the computer courses I found exciting and interesting and really enjoyed.
I did my graduate work in [computers], and then when I graduated was about
the time that the first computer engineering programs were coming into existence."
Loucks has always enjoyed the problem solving part of computer engineering.
"It's all about puzzles in some sense," he says. "In other kinds of engineering
you're also solving puzzles, that's very true. But for me, there's
something nice about solving them in the computer domain."
As a computer engineer, you're not only solving puzzles all the time.
You're also learning new things all the time. Your brain will never feel neglected
in this field!
"It is constant learning, so that is a challenge to stay current on many
aspects of what you do," says Loucks. "There are some fundamentals -- you
get those nailed down and you can pick up the other stuff as you go along."