Any tips on electronic/computer engineering?

iggyman

because ill be doing my leaving cert next year..im lookin for a course...ive found that there are a number of computer engineer courses in blanchardstown i.t ..this would be good because i only live about a 10 minute drive from there..does anyone have any suggestions about blanchardstown i.t or any thing about computer engineering would be even more helpful..please

themole

one piece of advice i would give is don't choose a college based on how easy it is to get to it.

this will only be an issue if you can't afford to move out.

tbh, its better fun to live away from home.

well, i did electronic and computer engineering in NUIG and i liked it.

commited

I travel an hour to UCD everyday for Mech Eng - worth it for the quality of the degree.

Trinity do both and UCD do electronic Eng.

Khannie

There's a MASSIVE difference between electronic engineering and computer science / comp. eng.

You should really decide where to go based on the course and the qualification, not the proximity to your house.

themole

Khannie wrote:

There's a MASSIVE difference between electronic engineering and computer science / comp. eng.

You should really decide where to go based on the course and the qualification, not the proximity to your house.

there is indeed a big difference in the way pure elec and pure comp are thought.

i liked both and that why i chose electronic and computer eng in NUIG.

i would indeed agree that the course should drive the decision.

Sparky

Khannie wrote:

There's a MASSIVE difference between electronic engineering and computer science / comp. eng.

You should really decide where to go based on the course and the qualification, not the proximity to your house.

yeah plc's and all that, easy stuff if you know it.

iggyman

well im not really basin it on how close i live to there..its just that i wouldnt get into any other computer/electronic engineering course anywere else..so i really have the only choice of going here..so if i want to do comp engineering i have to go here..and the closeness to my house is a good motivater..as well i like the place its only new and top of range labs..but the only bad thing is that its a bit quiet but i can live with that..theres also two new courses this year one of which is a 5 year honours degree course in comp engineering..ill like that..

steveland?

I'm doing Digital Media Engineering in DCU. Best thing would be to choose CECE (common entry into electronic engineering) because all the Electronic side of the course is done in a common year regardless of your course and by choosing CECE you can choose which of the courses you prefer after first year. This is what I did and you get an idea of what all the courses will be like.

If you want to do Electronics and computers DME is your best bet

DME:
First year you do C, Electronic Fundamentals, Electromagnetism, Web Design, Soldering and stuff in design, etc.
Second year: you can choose to go into either 2nd year DME, ICE (information communication) or EE. You'll do C++, Java, Java3D, Assembly, Unix etc aswell as some stuff like TCP/IP... Database design (MySQL) etc.
Third year: You'll do Kernel design (uC/OS), VHDL (electronic gate design and testing), VLSI and then in second semester you do a 6 month work placement.

Dunno about 4th year cos I'm only in 3rd

I've just secured a job in Esat BT as an IP Activations Engineer starting April because of the course

Mutant_Fruit

If you want to do electronic engineering, you will need to be good at maths. The first year course when i did it last year (in UCD) consisted of Maths-Algebra, Maths-Calculus, Applied Maths (a.k.a. Maths Physics) and Fluid Mechanics which are all VERY maths orientated. There were other subjects like computers where we learned programming, but of the 7 subjects we covered (8 if you count algebra and calculus as different subjects) over half of them where very maths-based.

Pretty much the same story so far in 2nd year, very maths based in most of our subjects. If you aren't confident about getting a B3 or better in leaving cert honours maths (and i mean CONFIDENT about getting it) then i wouldn't really recommend electron/electrical engineering. If you are good at maths and/or physics, then by all means go for electronic engineering. I liked both of those subjects for LC and they definately do come in handy for elec. I love the course so far.

All i know about computer science is that you'd want to love computers. You should be interested in knowing how they work, and you shouldn't be too bothered about getting down into the nitty-gritty when programming. You'll have to learn multiple programming languages (java, C, C++ and most importantly Assembly).

Both of these courses can be gotten into with about 320 points. So that should be achievable enough even if you havn't done a spot of study yet. 6 c3's in honours subjects would get it for you.

iggyman

well i do have a very big interest in computers..and i want to find out more about them..i am not that good at maths im doing ordinary level for leaving..im also doing computer engineering not electonic engineering but there probably the same in anyway..mutant fruit i do not need to be good at maths the requirements are a d3 or more in ordinary level to do this course and at the opening day they said you just need to have the ability to do mathes not master them

Mutant_Fruit

iggyman wrote:

im also doing computer engineering not electonic engineering but there probably the same in anyway..mutant fruit i do not need to be good at maths the requirements are a d3 or more in ordinary level to do this course

Ah right. From the title i thought you were looking at either electronic engineering or computer engineering.

The requirement for Electronic Engeering (as a standalone course) is a B3 or higher in honours maths, but i think you can still get an "ordinary" electronic engineering degree with pass maths, and then do an extra year afterwards to get a full "honours" degree.

I'd say a computer engineering or computer science degree/diploma would be ideal for you if you like computers and the idea of programming. I tossed up between computers and electronic eng, and electronic eng won out for me. Mostly cos i'm freakish and like maths :P

darraghrogan

iggyman wrote:

well i do have a very big interest in computers..and i want to find out more about them..i am not that good at maths im doing ordinary level for leaving..im also doing computer engineering not electonic engineering but there probably the same in anyway..mutant fruit i do not need to be good at maths the requirements are a d3 or more in ordinary level to do this course and at the opening day they said you just need to have the ability to do mathes not master them

mutant fruit is right - you need to be good at maths.

I'm doing electronic eng in dit after c2 in honours maths and I struggle at times

Darragh

darraghrogan

iggyman wrote:

well i do have a very big interest in computers..and i want to find out more about them..i am not that good at maths im doing ordinary level for leaving..im also doing computer engineering not electonic engineering but there probably the same in anyway..mutant fruit i do not need to be good at maths the requirements are a d3 or more in ordinary level to do this course and at the opening day they said you just need to have the ability to do mathes not master them

mutant fruit is right - you need to be good at maths.

I'm doing electronic eng in dit after c2 in honours maths and I struggle at times

Darragh

bungeecork

Don't take a course based on what you'd like to do - that should be your hobby.

Take a course based on what you'd most likely have an aptitude for, something that will come easily to you, and something that will (most importantly) be a high earner for you. Ideally something that will allow you to live/work anywhere and will allow you to have flexible later in life.

There is soooo much more to life than training in one discipline and then getting a related job and working 'til you're 65.
(or by the time it comes around for you - 70).

commited

I totally disagree.. You dont want to get stuck in an unchallenging boring job that you have no interest in...

Sam Vimes

i did electronic and computer engineering in blanch. the maths isn't actually too bad there. i did the cert in blanch then went to maynooth and there's massive amounts of maths in all the subjects. its much harder but thats how you do engineering. blanch is challenging but they don't go as in depth into things as they do in maynooth.

my mate in blanch in fifth year (its a 5 year course btw) admits he knows nothing about computers. another friend of mine transferred to maynooth this year after doing the diploma (called an ordinary degree now) and he couldn't hack all the maths and he dropped out.

you do learn some more practical stuff in blanch, e.g. we made circuit boards in first year (chemicals and that) and they've done nothing like that up to third year in may. i think i'd be better in a job than the people in my may class because i've had a good bit of practical experience they never got.

and the social life is much better out in may

iggyman

well i do have a very big interest in computers and i dont think i would get bored of them..the reason why i think its not as hard in the mathes factor is because its a five year course ...id rather do a lot more practical work than doing written work all the time..so i would enjoy blanch more..and why would i go to maynooth or some other place that requires high mathes results in the leaving and has hard maths in the course when i can go to a place that may be on for 5 years but at least ill enjoy it..and i come out with the exact same honours degree in computer engineering..like i dont wanna work in some big industry like intel just a normal computer manafacture place...so i think this will do me..thanks for all the suggestions ..

Sam Vimes

once you do the cert in blanch you can transfer to maynooth so you dont have to do honours in the leaving. i didnt do it. the reason you'd want to go to a place that does hard maths is that you kind of need that hard maths to do the job of an engineer. having said that you'd only need the maths in an intensive "from the ground up" type of stuff so if thats not what you want you can avoid it.

once you get into the computer side of things theres not much maths. most of it is involved in calculating current and inductance and capacitance and the drain current in a mosfet etc etc etc, i.e. the electronics stuff.


the computer stuff is mostly programming and block diagrams of operating systems etc. theres some electronic stuff involved but you generally take them to be a box with an input and an output and dont care about what goes on inside.

now that i think about it if you want computer stuff blanch is probably good. maynooth is almost all electronics down to the subatomic level until third year

iggyman

thanks commander vimes..that was probably the best reply yet..its just the answer i was lookin for..thanks

Tar.Aldarion

I do elec + comp in NUIG and I do like it. If you are intereted it is good...prepared to work for it though!