<p>I want to work with computers (mainly hardware) for a living.
I AM going to graduate with at LEAST a masters before I go job hunting.</p>
<p>I am planning to stay in-state for my undergraduate work. UF is my main choice and UCF is my backup. And depending on how I do, I'll do my graduate work out-of-state. I wan't to maybe graduate with maybe an MSEE and MAYBE perhaps another masters (perhaps even a dual masters) in computer engineering (MSCE).</p>
<p>But recently I have been doing research on salaries in these fields. So far I have only found the one for Electrical engineering and it reads(according to payscale):</p>
<p>-(Years of experience/median salary)
-<1 year / $54,734
-1 to 4 years / $58,581
-5 to 9 years / $70,046
-10 to 19 years / $80,601
-20 or more years / $94,097</p>
<p>UPDATE Here is Computer engineering:</p>
<p>-<1year / $54,927
-1 to 4 years / $59,303
-5 to 9 years / $76,819
-10 to 19 years / $93,686
-20 or more years / $95,892</p>
<p>Now as you can see the numbers get better the more experience the worker has. But then again you see that you don't make more than $60,000 until you've been on the field for about 5 years. But I want to be able to make a decent living and not have to worry about $ problems in the future.</p>
<p>So do you guys think that being a computer/electrical engineer in the short/long run?</p>
<p>^ im not interested in just the money, but the fact of the matter is that we all need money</p>
<p>I want to work with computers cuz i would enjoy it, im just saying that i dont want to worry about $ trouble, especially if i start a family in the future</p>
<p>Then you’re set. You won’t have $ troubles with a degree in engineering. I don’t think I’ve ever met an engineer that has trouble making ends meet.
Also, the averages you have up there are just that: averages. Many engineers earn a lot more, and many earn under. Don’t put too much faith in them.
The only places where an engineer’s earnings seem kinda low are in high-cost states, like NY and CA, but even there, engineers maintain a higher-than-average quality of life.
Plus you only work like 40 hours!</p>
<p>No one can predict the future and everyone is different. It doesn’t make sense to use median or average salary to predict your future precisely.</p>
<p>And through your study of electrical engineering, you’ll learn some math and the way to solve problem.That’s why some EE people go to wall street after graduate.</p>
<p>^ i considered that at one point since my uncle is an engineering professor at Texas A&M, i spoke to him about that possibility, but in the end i decided i did not want to have the stress of educating children in the fear of “wishing i did a better job”</p>
<p>wow this is the exact question I am asking myself…i’m now leaning towards pharmacy…6 years of school, 100k right out…i’ll enjoy the money, but idk about the job lol</p>
<p>I’m not sure I follow your question. If you are doing a career only for the money then engineering is not a good field. You will make good money but you need to be dedicated to what you do. Is doing EE or CE worth it for money? To me it’s worth it to call myself an engineer. I take pride it that. But to answer your question…EE and CE’s make very good money. If you don’t think you can support yourself on 50k a year you are crazy.</p>
<p>^ im not interested in just the money, but the fact of the matter is that we all need money</p>
<p>I want to work with computers cuz i would enjoy it, im just saying that i dont want to worry about $ trouble, especially if i start a family in the future</p>
<p>You can support a family on 50k a year and live comfortably. Most engineers start off making more than that and end up making much more than that. I’ve never heard of an engineer complaining he makes too little money.</p>
The fact of the matter is you will make more money than the average American straight out of college. What percentage of people have a salary of over $60k? I’m not talking about people’s starting salary at 22. I’m talking about the average joe in this country at any age. You’ll be MORE than fine with $60k and already be much better off at 22 than most people.</p>
<p>How much money do you believe you need to make a “decent” living?</p>
<p>^ken: What I mean by a “decent” living is that I want to be able to support a family (in the future and with the help of mi wife of course) in terms of being able to go out and have dinner with my family once in a while or be able to take them to disney for a family trip. </p>
<p>In the short run (pre-marriage) what i mean by decent is be able to support myself, as in pay rent (since im probably gonna be living in an apartment or something for one person), get a car (most likely a cheap economic one or maybe ill stik with the one i use for college, if any), u noe the basics. But i also want to be able to just not worry about any financial problems.</p>
<p>Your idea of middle class is skewed. The average household income is probably lower than what a starting engineer makes. In my zipcode its 28k for a 3 person household.</p>
<p>To give you some perspective… My parents’ household is a family of six on a total income of UNDER 60k and we live in California in a decent area with good schools, etc. We have enough to eat and live happily in reasonable comfort.
OTOH, I know people who are complaining with more than twice 60k and HALF our family size, so sometimes I think people’s priorities are just plain messed up.</p>