r/ElectricalEngineering • u/MysteriousGuy0 • 2d ago
Jobs/Careers Considering Getting My EE degree
Hey sorta looking for some insight on pay honestly I’m considering going to school to get my EE degree my only concern is pay . I’m currently going to be making next year 120k/yr currently I make 97k/yr I am part of the IBEW for sound and communication I finished my apprenticeship and just need hours to journey out , I could eventually get to $139k then $151k max at Base salary no overtime included I just wonder in the future when I get older if I’d still want to be working in the construction side of things or if I should go to school but pay is important for me since I’m the only one working at the moment with 2 kids. How has your guys journey been i live in San Jose Monterey area in California. I do work in installing fire alarm systems data racks running and herniating fiber installing security systems and access controls and other low voltage appliances. Hence why I’m interested in an electrical engineering degree I’m currently 27 and rather start sooner then later thanks for any responses going to be out so I’ll reply when I can thanks in advance.
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u/Competitive-Day9586 2d ago
Honestly if you have to go back to school for 4 years with no income and student loans you will probably never end up financially ahead getting your EE vs just continuing to work your current job. Do it if you want to switch careers, but realize that it isn’t really a financial no brainer.
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u/Comedic-Scientist 2d ago edited 2d ago
4 years assuming he’s ready for undergraduate math, physics and maybe a chem class or two right out the gate, nevermind his tolerance for impacted course loads which could in total add anywhere from 1-2 extra years of schooling.
If OP started this Fall, he’d be 31-33 years old when he’s done w undergrad.
OP, it’s ultimately your call but you should definitely understand the risks here and that you’ll be starting fresh in a career in your 30s.
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u/Usual_Purchase_9567 1d ago
"Impacted course loads" made me think of impacted poops. Also dude I'm in school and I'll be done around the time I'm 30. Thanks for the anxiety on it.
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u/BongRipsForBuddha 1d ago
There are tons of cases where it makes sense to start a new career in your 30s and beyond, but not for OP who has two kids and is already making good money.
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u/Comedic-Scientist 1d ago
If it helps I went back to school in my mid 20s and graduated at 29. It was an easy decision to go back to school cause I was going nowhere fast before.
Life is good now! Have worked and lived in some great places and I have a good life now. Hang in there, it’s worth it .
I just wanted to caution OP because it sounds like he has a great life as is and dependents, the upsides of going back are debatable in his case IMO.
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u/Usual_Purchase_9567 1d ago
Yeah fair enough. I'm having fun. And no dependents so I'm just cruising along.
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u/n0debtbigmuney 2d ago
He will work while In school.... I worked 40 hours a week. With a sahm of 2 kids. And went to engineering for bsee and msee. Took 8 years. Zero breaks, but it can be done.
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u/Old-Chain3220 2d ago edited 2d ago
The opportunity cost of going back to school in a HCOL area is outrageous. You’d probably be setting yourself back half a million dollars when all is said and done. You already have the high paying blue collar work that people dream about when they skip college. I’d say you already kind of won the game.
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u/Intelligent_Part101 2d ago
OP, I think because you have never done electrical engineering for a living you may be romanticizing it. The day-to-day aspects of an typical EE job are definitely not what most people think it is.
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u/Disastrous_Soil3793 2d ago
If you can end up around $150k base in the future with no OT then pursuing an EE degree doesn't really sound worth it with respect to salary alone.
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u/david49152 2d ago
Honestly, you have to decide for yourself. We can't accurately tell you what decision you need to make. At best, all we can do is tell you some issues to consider.
One thing to consider is what will happen if you take 4 years out of work for school. You're making ~100K now, getting a 20% raise this year. Then, let's assume, a 4% raise each year after that for four more years. That puts you at $140K/year. Now let's assume that you go to school for 4 years, graduate, and then get an entry-level EE position. Today an entry-level EE position is about $80k/year, but in 4 years that will be about $90k. Based on these numbers (and my assumptions) you'd be better off staying where you are than going back to school.
It's also important to realize that EE salaries currently max out at about $200k/year. To go much beyond that you'd have to do management, some sort of leadership, or be one-in-a-thousand amazingly smart.
You can also re-do the math above looking farther out into the future. 10 or 20 years, or into retirement. Then add up how much you made in aggregate over that period. You'd have to handle the difference in salary caps. Don't forget to factor in the cost of school, and any student loans you'd have to take out.
I have to say that it's not all about the money. And to be honest, if you think of it as just money then you're probably setting yourself up for a soul-sucking career. Do what you enjoy! You'll be happier for it, and a happier employee is a more productive employee. And more productive employees get bigger raises and promotions.
It is also not a requirement to go to school. I don't have a college degree, and by all measures I've had an amazingly successful EE career. Granted, it takes quite a bit of effort and energy to do that, but it can be done. You can also go to school part-time. And you can go to a "cheap-and-fast" community college type school for your base subjects and then go to a better school for just the engineering topics.
No matter what you do, I suggest that you do some EE projects as a hobby. It will help you decide what you really want to do, and can also help you get you foot in the door down the line.
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u/Cold_Pin_7676 2d ago
Id definitely stay where you are at. Electricians are much more of a shortage and higher pay. Better everything if you are in a union. EE is saturated and bad job market right now.
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u/Disastrous_Soil3793 2d ago
Not sure where you are but I don't consider it saturated or a bad job market. EE is pretty resilient when it comes to this stuff. Plenty of jobs in the northeast for EEs.
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u/Upset_Counter_6070 2d ago
I did an apprenticeship for electrician. I started my EE degree in 2017 and ended it in 2025. I’m glad I did. I make $147k now but would have topped out at roughly $90k as an electrician. It’s doable but a lot of work. I’m 38 now and I’m glad I can look forward to a desk job going forward because your body does eventually give out.
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u/Few_Whereas5206 2d ago
If your current potential is 151k and salary is your main goal, I think you are wasting your time getting an electrical engineering degree.
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u/MysteriousGuy0 2d ago
Yes I do see I make and could make great money I just figured a EE degree had similar pay and I’d much prefer an office job paying the same then working in construction sites till I retire . And IBEW don’t pay us more for have a degree but could open doors to becoming a construction project manager or construction superintendent which do pay more then what I make and gets me out the field , I’m sure there’s other degrees that can set me up for that then EE degree
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u/Few_Whereas5206 2d ago
Most people with an electrical engineering degree start out about 75k to 85k. Over many years they may make 150k to 200k in management.
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u/Acrobatic_Charge_489 2d ago
Maybe try to study part time like one class a time? It’d definitely take you a while but if you go through a community college your costs will be low.
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u/notthediz 1d ago
I don't think it'll be worth it if we're basing it off of pay. Unless you'll be working for NVIDIA or something you probably won't be making more than $120k. Or maybe just slightly above that. My utility is under IBEW too. We top out at $155k for an associate without a PE.
I would just stay where you're at and start working on your people skills so you can look into being a foreman directing people instead of doing the work yourself
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u/Positive_Initial4504 1d ago edited 1d ago
Ehh I don’t know how much better you’d do when considering the opportunity cost. Let’s say you go to school for four years, then you get a job at PG&E and you start out making about $100k…maybe after 8 more years you max out around $180k base with total comp probably not much more than $225k. By then you’ll be 40. For 8 years you’d be making less on the engineer path than you would sticking with what you’re doing now, the first four making nothing. If you were working retail now with no other skills, then yeah engineering might be the path to go. You make good money already though. Would you ever consider moving to Sacramento where your dollars would go further?
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u/EnduroAmateur 13h ago
Don’t do it, you’re making more than I am when you get to $120k and I’ve been an EE over 7 years doing power for a large EPC. I also hate my job, am always depressed and need to find a way out. I also have student debt. Life sucks.
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u/darkale07 2d ago
If pay is the criteria, stay where you are. As others point out, the opportunity cost in your position is huge. Sure, do EE's command relatively high salaries? Yes, but it is going to require a minimum of 4 years of schooling (many people take longer) and an electrician's skill set does not translate into what an EE does so you would be entering the workforce from square one where entry level salaries in California tend to be somewhere around 70k-90k per year, below where you already are. The jobs that pay more are extremely competitive and/or require graduate education and there is an influx of people attending school for EE as a seemingly more secure alternative to CS. Unless you're extremely smart and lucky, you'd probably end up making around 150k mid/late career with EE anyway.
The one area which your experience might translate into is construction/MEP, which tend to have lower baseline salaries than other EE fields and require getting your PE license to make the big bucks, which is an additional time investment. If the motivation to pursue EE is purely monetary, don't. However, if your motivation comes from a real desire to learn or to change careers, I suggest you do some research about EE (what different fields are out there, different applications, what mathematical and physics fundamentals you'll need, what an EE does day-to-day) and maybe take some college courses part time first so see if that is what you truly want to do.
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u/killa_cali77 2d ago
I am a controls/automation tech. There is a guy under me who has an electrical engineering degree and he complains a lot about pay. He makes 30$ despite not having any prior experience and is extremely lacking in mechanical skills. I make a little over 20$ more than him. If you are going to be in industrial controls get experience first and get the degree when you can but do not sacrifice lower pay for it. In my industry the degree doesn't mean much. If you are in IBEW stay there for life lol.
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u/MysteriousGuy0 2d ago
Yeah based off everyone’s reply it seems that’s what I’m gonna do I just assumed after having time in the field you’d guys would be closer to the 200k/yr salary which is much more preferable like someone mentioned they make $147k and look forward going to a desk job at there age . Good thing is I could eventually work in a office in my current industry so maybe I’ll head towards that direction. I see older co workers doing the same work I do and could retire already being 67 crawling in attic spaces and that sorta something I don’t want to be doing in my 40’s lol.
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u/n0debtbigmuney 2d ago
220k base salary here. DM if youre serious about school. You're gonna get a bunch of silver spoons cry babies on here that have no real life experience.
I wokred full time, went to engineering school , noe make a shit ton if money in air conditioning remote. It's worth it.
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u/Old-Chain3220 1d ago edited 1d ago
My “real world experience” tells me that working a full time blue collar job as the sole breadwinner, while going to EE school in the evenings for 7 years, while also trying to keep a marriage together and also being involved in your kids lives, all for the privilege of making about the same money after all is said and done is probably not the easiest way to go about things. Sure you could do it, but why?
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u/n0debtbigmuney 1d ago
blue collar job sounds good, and feels good in your 20s, maybe in your 30s. You're insane to think your late 40's, 50s, and if you WANTEd to work any in your 60's would be the same.
Again, I am in my fuzzy pajama pants right now, at home, in air conditioning very happy. Without EE school, and my PE, this would not be possible. It's 105 degrees outside. No thank you.
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u/Old-Chain3220 1d ago
My point is that there are way easier ways to get out of the field and in to management.
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u/MysteriousGuy0 1d ago
That’s exactly why I’m considering going for a EE degree yeah it’s gonna be hard but like I said before I see coworkers that are 60+ crawling in attic spaces pulling cable in sketchy areas where if they fall that’s it they retire all messed up.
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u/Positive_Initial4504 1d ago
In the Bay Area you can definitely get to $200k, but unless you’re in Semiconductors or Software that’s just not realistic until ~10 years in
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u/Mundane_Studio_3674 2d ago
I’m gonna be honest man, if you just care about money stay where you are and invest your time into keeping in shape. Electrical engineering degrees are no walk in the park and your electricians experience has minimal overlap to the coursework you can expect to study for or the jobs you’ll end up working at, even MEP. Especially being the sole income for your two kids? Yeah man, I don’t think this is the right move.