Electrical Engineering or Software Engineering/Computer Science (4 Viewers)

[anomalousdecay]

There's still a bit of group work in comp sci. I'm not sure to what extent however.

Some labs are enjoyable. Most labs provide quite a bit to learn about. Some labs are draining and you just want to get over and done with but they still teach you quite a bit (this is mainly how we all feel towards end of semester when there is so much stuff going on and a lot to manage).

Some tutorials are great. Some I just skip. This is dependent on the course and the tutorial, so it's mainly a course by course basis.

 

[clementinez]

Are you happy with the choice you made both course wise and uni wise? If you had the chance to choose a different course/uni, would you?

 

[anomalousdecay]

No would not have changed a thing. However this is subjective to each individual.

 

[anomalousdecay]

I do know people that don't enjoy electrical though. That is why I mentioned before if you do not like circuits or physical labs and stuff then it would be best to choose something else.

 

[clementinez]

No would not have changed a thing. However this is subjective to each individual.

understood
it's nice to hear you're happy with the choice you made, hopefully I'll make the right decision too

 

[anomalousdecay]

pretty much what we all hope for haha

 

[clementinez]

I do know people that don't enjoy electrical though. That is why I mentioned before if you do not like circuits or physical labs and stuff then it would be best to choose something else.

tbh I've only considered SENG recently.. originally I was torn between Mechanical and Electrical and for a while I thought I'd do Mechanical but I really have NO idea what the workplace for a mechanical engineer looks like so I started looking into SENG. I'm interested in all three but I don't know what I'll be good at until I actually try one of them.

 

[anomalousdecay]

Mechanical is quite different. You'll learn about statics, dynamics, fluid mechanics, a bit of manufacturing, etc. Maybe someone else here who studies Mechanical can give you a better insight. It is structured like other engineering programs, in the sense that you have a lot of lab work, quite a bit of group work, etc. You'll learn completely different things, but in a similar manner to many other areas of engineering. Mechatronics is also completely different.

I recommend researching the types of jobs available after you graduate and have a look at what is on offer and what you can end up doing in all these different areas that you are interested in.

 

[clementinez]

Mechanical is quite different. You'll learn about statics, dynamics, fluid mechanics, a bit of manufacturing, etc. Maybe someone else here who studies Mechanical can give you a better insight. It is structured like other engineering programs, in the sense that you have a lot of lab work, quite a bit of group work, etc. You'll learn completely different things, but in a similar manner to many other areas of engineering. Mechatronics is also completely different.

I recommend researching the types of jobs available after you graduate and have a look at what is on offer and what you can end up doing in all these different areas that you are interested in.

So far I know that both EE and ME can lead me to some of the fields I previously mentioned having an interest in. I think finding a job with a degree in Mechatronics is a bit of a challenge and since I don't have a good enough reason to take Mechatronics I decided to stick to the more traditional fields. As you can tell I don't have a clear path in mind quite yet.

If nobody doing mechanical answers to this thread I might make another one specifically for that.

 

[Danoraptor]

EE will be significantly harder than SE and CS. Something to consider.

 

[clementinez]

EE will be significantly harder than SE and CS. Something to consider.

I assumed.
Compared to ME would you say EE is more difficult or about the same? I know a bit more about ME so a comparison might give me some idea of the difficulty.

 

[Danoraptor]

ME will be easier than EE but much harder than SE or CS. SE and CS are by far the easiest engineering disciplines shortly followed by CivE. It's definitely something to consider, because these courses at university level can be truly brutal.

 

[Silly Sausage]

I assumed.
Compared to ME would you say EE is more difficult or about the same? I know a bit more about ME so a comparison might give me some idea of the difficulty.

Whatever harder is subjective and would depend on your interests. IMO , mathematically and conceptually, electrical engineering is the hardest (e.g. fourier series, complex calculus, electromagnetism with vector calculus, signals, etc).
ME also has some though subjects, although not as mathematically challenging, will require at least as much critical thinking as EE especially for engineering mechanics subjects introduced in your first and second year (statics, dynamics - high school level maths but require a high level of critical thinking). Other examples include fluid mechanics, thermodynamics and heat transfer which can also be conceptually difficult.

 

[Silly Sausage]

ME will be easier than EE but much harder than SE or CS. SE and CS are by far the easiest engineering disciplines shortly followed by CivE. It's definitely something to consider, because these courses at university level can be truly brutal.

Would much rather do ME over CS or SE tbh since I suck at programming.

 

[clementinez]

Whatever harder is subjective and would depend on your interests. IMO , mathematically and conceptually, electrical engineering is the hardest (e.g. fourier series, complex calculus, electromagnetism with vector calculus, signals, etc).
ME also has some though subjects, although not as mathematically challenging, will require at least as much critical thinking as EE especially for engineering mechanics subjects introduced in your first and second year (statics, dynamics - high school level maths but require a high level of critical thinking). Other examples include fluid mechanics, thermodynamics and heat transfer which can also be conceptually difficult.

The maths in EE was what put me off initially and not so much the amount of maths but the type of maths. The concepts in ME are more to my liking.
Do any of you know what working as an ME is like? Do you spend a lot of time in workshops doing hands on things or behind a computer? I don't want to be assembling machinery for a living

 

[clementinez]

Would much rather do ME over CS or SE tbh since I suck at programming.

I've tried a bit of JAVA and it's not too bad. Kinda fun actually.

 

[Silly Sausage]

I've tried a bit of JAVA and it's not too bad. Kinda fun actually.

I agree it's fun at first but the difficulty will surely ramp up as you progress (I did JAVA too). However, at least you seem interested, unlike me lol, and that's a good start.

 

[Silly Sausage]

Also, depending on which uni you go, you may end doing just as much maths as an EE major if you do ME since they'll generally take the same math courses in first and second year.

What type of math do you not like?
Vector calculus is also frequently found in fluid mechanics. There are ALOT of differential equations in ME btw.

 

[clementinez]

Also, depending on which uni you go, you may end doing just as much maths as an EE major if you do ME since they'll generally take the same math courses in first and second year.

What type of math do you not like?
Vector calculus is also frequently found in fluid mechanics. There are ALOT of differential equations in ME btw.

I like the ME program at USYD and the EE program at UNSW ME at UNSW will probably cover the same but the progression is a bit different.

A friend of mine studying EE in the US showed me some homework and there was maths on there I was completely unfamiliar with, a lot of notation I'd never seen (she was in her final year at the time). Was scary.
Vector Calculus is intimidating honestly.

What I find a bit odd in EE is the concepts. Eg It's hard for me to imagine currents, much easier to imagine motion.

It's a subjective thing as everyone keeps pointing out. EE/ME/SENG they're all great fields and offer so much in terms of research and employment prospects.

 

[clementinez]

I agree it's fun at first but the difficulty will surely ramp up as you progress (I did JAVA too). However, at least you seem interested, unlike me lol, and that's a good start.

yeah it will definitely get more difficult..

lol yeah otherwise I'd have no chance at passing any of the courses