<p>Which one do you prefer?
Which one is in more demand?
Any tips for a future embedded software engineer?</p>
<p>When most people think of programming, they probably think of applications like MS Word.</p>
<p>I recently took an embedded systems class and enjoyed it very much (and got an A).</p>
<p>It's nice to hear input for professionals here. I know a lot of posters are software engineers.</p>
<p>Well, having done a fair bit of embedded sw work I definitely prefer embedded. </p>
<p>Difficult to say which one is in more demand. Nice thing about embedded s/w development is it requires more training, typically, than applications development. This means the barrier to entry is higher so it is easier to find jobs and the pay tends to be better, on average.</p>
<p>Tips … hmm, a lot of embedded folks tend to come from electrical / computer engineering backgrounds. I would say to know your maths, control systems knowledge is good to have, understand RTOSes, keep up with trends in the industry (what are the hot chips/architectures/tools etc. out there … try to get some experience in those).</p>
<p>I think there aren’t as many embedded positions as say, web development or java development these days. So in fact I would say its probably much harder to find embedded jobs and I doubt the salary is really much better (especially with the recent web-boom). </p>
<p>But I personally find embedded development much more interesting and no question its a higher-skill job!</p>
<p>Which is more likely to get outsourced? Application I’m guessing ?</p>
<p>I think application is easier to outsource. But there are way more application level jobs than systems level (and that sector is expected to grow much more rapidly). So I still think your job prospects are best at the application level. Just my opinion.</p>
<p>I appreciate all of your guys’ input. (especially squall211 since that’s his first post)</p>
<p>I want to specialize in embedded systems as an undergrad. My school has good staff for the subject and I find it interesting.</p>
<p>However, I’m still going to keep up to date with application software. I know C/C++ and Java. It seems like different employers want you to know a lot of languages. Learning databases is a plus too.</p>
<p>I think that you would be qualified for many applications level jobs with an embedded background. </p>
<p>In embedded systems, you will get really good at programming in C…you’ll probably learn about the fundamentals of operating systems as well. If you take a few CS electives on the side (data structures, etc) you will be in good shape for employment.</p>