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Tue 27 Mar, 2007 05:57 pm
Hello, I am a student at Reedley College and I am working towards a career in Computer and Electrical Engineering. I know what it takes to be a computer engineer through web page information and brochures but I would like to know more.
I have attended the Institute of Technology in Clovis, California and have earned my A+ and Network+ certifications from CompTIA. I already have the basic knowledge of computers, like being able to setup a home network, or upgrading the computers hard drive, but my interest in computers has grown deeper, beyond being able to perform these simple tasks. I would like to know what it takes to be a computer engineer from the knowledge and experience from someone who has day-to-day experience.
I was hoping that somone could help me out by answering some questions I have included. Any information you can provide for me will be greatly appreciated.
Thank You
Questions about computer and electrical engineering:
10)Why did you become a computer engineer?
9) Does being a computer engineer ever get boring or stessful?
8) Can you work from home, or is this a must sometimes?
7) As a computer engineer, what are your job responsibilities?
6) What does a computer engineer work on?
5) What is the easiest part about being a computer engineer?
4) Do you work in a group or by yourself?
3) How many projects do you usually work on during a month's time?
2) What types of projects do you work on?
1) What is the hardest part about being a computer engineer?
I'm not sure I qualify since I'm a database professional, but I'll take a stab at answering your questions.
10)Why did you become a computer engineer? [color=blue]I fell into it (mainly because I could do Excel so the boss figured I could learn databases) but I turned out to be good at it.[/color]
9) Does being a computer engineer ever get boring or stessful? [color=blue]Constantly. It's also fun and challenging. Depends on how much I have on my plate, how demanding users are and whether what I am doing is new but doable versus new but bewildering. I often don't get very good requirements so there's an enormous amount of inference that goes on.[/color]
8) Can you work from home, or is this a must sometimes? [color=blue]In my last job, yes (I was testing a large platform; tests took 8 or so hours so it was ridiculous to monitor them from work when I could do so from home); in this job, unfortunately, no, but that may be more of a function of me being a contractor than anything else. If I became hired full-time regularly, I suppose it's possible with a LogMeIn or PCAnywhere/VPN client type of setup.[/color]
7) As a computer engineer, what are your job responsibilities? [color=blue]I run regular database reports, craft new ones, perfect and update the older ones and try to fulfill users' [i]ad hoc[/i] requests. I also working on gathering requirements, attend meetings, strategize, etc. to try to put the whole shebang online so that I can stop doing reports.[/color]
6) What does a computer engineer work on? [color=blue]I assume this question is different from #7 and you want to know the programs I use. I use Brio Query 6.something or other, MS Access 2003 (will probably be upgraded to 2007 some time this year) and Excel 2003. I can read and write SQL and vbcode (Visual Basic). For documentation, I use Word 2003. I need to get better at things like Visio and MS Project.[/color]
5) What is the easiest part about being a computer engineer? [color=blue]Helping people. Even if I can only give them 1/10 of what they wanted, it's still an improvement.[/color]
4) Do you work in a group or by yourself? [color=blue]It's just me.[/color]
3) How many projects do you usually work on during a month's time? [color=blue]Not month, day. Every day, 2 queries plus [i]ad hocs[/i] on easy days; five or six queries plus [i]ad hocs[/i] on not so easy days. Last week, I worked on one query all week, with breaks to run regularly scheduled reports.[/color]
2) What types of projects do you work on? [color=blue]Users want to know every aspect of the database, either to take a snapshot in time or to look at trends. I work for a large financial services company so the projects are geared towards that.[/color]
1) What is the hardest part about being a computer engineer? [color=blue]Deciphering impenetrable requirements and reading users' minds[/color].
Thanks for your responce, I really appreciate your help.
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