Electrical engineer

Relevant industry experience and an accredited degree can significantly increase your chances of getting a job as an electrical engineer

As an electrical engineer, you'll design, develop and maintain electrical systems and components to required specifications.

The electrical equipment that you'll design and manufacture is used across many sectors, including:

• the building industry and services, including lighting, heating and ventilation
• transportation and transport networks
• manufacturing and construction
• production and distribution of power
• renewable energy.

You could be involved in projects from the concept and detail of the design, through to implementation, testing and handover. You may also work on maintenance programmes.

It's likely you'll work in multidisciplinary project teams, which can include engineers from other specialist areas as well as architects, marketing and sales staff, manufacturers, technicians and customer service personnel.

Responsibilities

The work can vary according to the industry and your employer, but typically you'll need to:

• identify customer requirements
• design systems and products
• read design specifications and technical drawings
• research suitable solutions and estimate costs and timescales
• make models and prototypes of products using three-dimensional design software
• liaise with others in the design team
• communicate with clients and contractors
• attend meetings on site
• design and conduct tests
• record, analyse and interpret test data
• propose modifications and retest products
• qualify the final product or system
• service and maintain equipment
• prepare product documentation, write reports and give presentations
• monitor a product in use to improve on future design.

Salary

• Graduate starting salaries are around £20,000 to £25,000.
• With some experience, salaries can range from £28,000 to £40,000.
• Average salaries for experienced senior engineers, or those with chartered status, can exceed £60,000.

Salaries vary widely according to location, the size of your employer and the nature of their business.

Income figures are intended as a guide only.

Working hours

You'll typically work around 40 hours a week. You may need to work extra and unsocial hours to meet deadlines or resolve design difficulties. Some jobs offer flexible working or shift patterns.

Self-employment and consultancy work are possible after building up expertise and a reputation within the profession. You'll usually need to have chartered engineer status before entering consultancy work.

What to expect

• You may work in a production plant, workshop, office, laboratory or factory, or a mixture of several of these. Depending on the location, conditions can be hot, dusty or cramped.
• Jobs are available throughout the UK, with those in the manufacturing sector concentrated in industrial areas. Travel within the working day is common.
• Women are still underrepresented in all areas of engineering, although numbers are increasing. Initiatives are in place to encourage more women into the industry, including WISE and Women's Engineering Society (WES).
• There are good opportunities to work overseas, particularly in the oil, petrochemical and power sectors, large consulting firms and large building contractors. This could be either an overseas posting with a multinational employer or by applying for a job based overseas.

Qualifications

It's common to enter the profession with a degree in electrical or electronic engineering. Other subjects are accepted though and relevant ones include:

• aeronautical engineering
• building services engineering
• communications engineering
• computing and software engineering
• electromechanical engineering
• mechanical and production engineering
• physics and applied physics
• power and energy engineering.

Some degrees are accredited by a professional body, such as the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET). Check if this is the case for any subjects you're considering as it's helpful for achieving the status of incorporated engineer (IEng) or chartered engineer (CEng) at a later date. A list of accredited courses can be found at Engineering Council - Accredited Course Search.

You can also become an electrical engineer with an HND or foundation degree in subjects similar to those at degree level, but you may enter at a lower grade and will need to work your way up.

A number of university courses allow you to enter directly into the final year of a degree programme if you've got a relevant HND or foundation degree. As some employers prefer graduates, it may be worth considering this route.

If you don't have a degree, HND or foundation degree, you'll need further training or qualifications to reach full engineer level. Some organisations recruit at A-level (or Higher) standard for apprenticeships and select the best candidates for sponsorship on full or part-time degrees.

You don't need a postgraduate qualification to get a job. Employers will be more impressed by your enthusiasm to gain professional status and by relevant industrial experience. However, a relevant Masters can help with career progression.

Search postgraduate courses in electrical engineering.

Skills

You'll need to show:

• relevant technical knowledge and up-to-date sector knowledge
• project management skills
• the ability to multitask
• commercial awareness
• an analytical and problem-solving approach to work
• oral and written communication skills to make technical information easy to understand for non-technical audiences
• flexibility in order to adapt to evolving technologies
• planning and organisational skills, such as time and resource allocation
• the ability to work in a multidisciplinary team
• leadership and management skills to help with career progression
• a commitment to continuing professional development (CPD) throughout your career.

A second language may be useful when applying to international companies.

Some work, for example in defence-related and nuclear power industries, has security implications and the Ministry of Defence (MoD) may debar applicants who have a criminal record, are not UK citizens or do not pass security clearance.

Work experience

Some degrees will include a year's paid industrial or commercial placement as part of the degree. This provides the opportunity to develop your professional experience and to build a network of contacts, which can be useful when looking for a job after you've graduated.

If your course doesn't contain a placement, look for other types of work experience yourself. These can be structured opportunities advertised by employers or ones you seek out through speculative applications to companies in which you're interested in working at. For more information on the types of work experience and how to get it, see IET - Work experience.

Student membership of one of the engineering institutions such as the IET provides up-to-date sector information, including new developments in the industry, regular newsletters and access to networks and contacts. Active membership will help you consolidate and learn from any work experience you do.

If you're on an IET-accredited electrical or power engineering degree, you may be eligible to apply for the IET Power Academy scholarship. This provides a bursary, book allowance and paid summer work.

Find out more about the different kinds of work experience and internships that are available.

Employers

Electrical engineers work in many sectors. Employers range from multinational, multifaceted companies that cover a variety of industries, to small and medium-sized specialist enterprises (SMEs). They include:

• power and renewable energy companies
• manufacturing and industrial production organisations across a range of products
• the construction and building services industry
• transport organisations, including road and rail networks
• specialist engineering and consultancy firms
• telecommunications companies
• petrochemical industries in production and distribution
• research and development companies in the defence-related industries
• the armed forces, mainly the technical corps.

This range gives you a large choice of entry points into the profession and a variety of organisations in which to gain experience and build a career.

Look for job vacancies at:

• The Engineer Jobs
• Engineering & Technology Jobs
• Fish4Jobs Engineering
• JustEngineers

Specialist recruitment agencies, such as Matchtech, handle contract vacancies, particularly for experienced engineers.

Professional development

The type and amount of training you'll receive when in the job often depends on the employer. Some large companies will be able to offer a structured programme that contains CPD activities, possibly with external training providers.

Larger organisations may also offer graduate training schemes, which involve a rotation of posts in the first two to three years in order to help you gain the necessary competencies and experience across the business.

Smaller companies may have fewer structured opportunities and might offer on-the-job training with supervision from more senior engineers.

In some roles, you may receive training in core business skills, such as project management, report writing or presentation skills.

Many electrical engineers work towards gaining professional status at either incorporated engineer (IEng) or chartered engineer (CEng) level. Both qualifications are internationally recognised and are awarded by the Engineering Council. Achieving this status provides a higher earning potential and improved career prospects.

To gain professional status you need to be a member of a relevant body such as the IET, so that you can apply through them. The process of becoming incorporated or chartered is more straightforward if you have a relevant accredited qualification but it's still possible to achieve it without.

You also need to demonstrate that you're working at a particular level and have the required professional competencies and commitment, as set out in the UK Standard for Professional Engineering Competence (UK-SPEC). Find out more at Engineering Council - Professional Registration.

Having membership with a professional body is valuable for providing support throughout your career. For instance, the IET runs workshops, webinars and professional development courses and gives access to networks of others working and studying in the field. Membership also offers advice and support for gaining professional status or for furthering your career in other ways. See IET Career & Learning.

Career prospects

There's no set route for career progression and your prospects will depend to a certain extent on how you choose to develop your career and your preferred specialist area. As you gain experience, you may decide to stay in an engineering role or work in research and design (R&D). Alternatively, you may choose to:

• go into project management
• take on a management role
• pursue an academic career
• become a consultant or contractor.

Professional status and membership of a relevant professional body, for example the IET, is essential for successful career progression. This will enable you to keep up to date with developing technologies, establish contacts and network with other engineering professionals in your field, and related fields, at conferences and regional meetings.

It's also possible to develop your career abroad. UK engineering qualifications are recognised in most countries, although in some you'll have to take additional tests. Most overseas organisations will expect chartered engineer status. Check with your professional institution and the country where you intend to work for further details.