Electrical Engineering

Electrical power and systems are at the heart of modern society – and so too are electrical and electronics engineers. Engineers specializing in these fields have transformed the 21st century with technologies such as universal electric power systems, television, radio and medical imaging to name just a few examples. Among the most famous electronics and electrical engineers that you may have heard of are Nikola Tesla (pioneer of commercial electricity and electromagnetism), Thomas Edison (developer of the light bulb and inventor of the record player), Jack Kilby (inventor of the pocket calculator and the integrated circuit), Marcian Hoff (inventor of the microprocessor) and Martin Cooper (inventor of the mobile phone). Electrical engineering degrees will equip students with knowledge of how the industry works, as well as giving them the engineering skills and technological knowledge needed to design, assess and improve electrical and electronic systems. What's the difference between electrical and electronics engineering? The difference between electrical and electronics engineering is often blurred, but it is generally true to say that electrical engineers are concerned mainly with the large-scale production and distribution of electrical power, while electronics engineers focus on much smaller electronic circuits. In an electronics engineering degree, you are likely to develop an expert understanding of the circuits used in computers and other modern technologies, and for this reason electronics engineering is often taught alongside computer science. An electrical or electronics engineering degree will also overlap with mechanical and civil engineering.