Electrical Engineering Salaries Worldwide

To better understand and be able to compare electrical engineering salaries around the world, it is vital first to understand what electrical engineers do.

As the name sounds, they are responsible for designing anything that uses or is related to electricity. They test electrical systems and electronic devices to make sure everything works correctly before they are launched and declared safe to use by the public.

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Electrical engineering salaries often depend on the technical skills and knowledge acquired over the years in college as well as skills acquired from on-the-job training or side activities or “gigs”, which some of the graduating students do to earn a living and, at the same time, gain experiences needed in order to land an electrical engineering job right after college.

How to Land Electrical Engineering Jobs after College

First and foremost, to become an electrical engineer, one must have the required bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or electronics engineering. The second is to identify your passion in the field because love means commitment and willingness to ask questions on how we can improve our machines and systems.

A candidate electrical engineer has to have that constant curiosity to discover how to make devices or appliances more efficient, or what electrical devices could conserve more energy and other questions related to power storage.

Begin by developing the essential soft skills any electrical engineer should have, starting with interpersonal skills, communication and presentation skills.

Then follow the steps below to improve your chances of landing electrical engineering jobs after college:

Go for a Master’s Degree

If you have the time and money to do this, go for it! Otherwise, a bachelor’s degree can suffice to get an entry-level electrical engineering job. However, some students would work on their bachelor’s degree while also doing some part-time work during their spare time to gain experience. After completing their bachelor’s degree they will be ready and confident to begin job searching. This allows them to add to their application letters and resumes that they have experience in the related field! This gives them a big plus in the eyes of hiring managers.

Pass the Professional Engineering Exam

If you have some work experience and want to take on a new venture to grow your career and earning potential, then passing the PE exam will give the newly advantage you wanted for higher paying electrical engineering jobs. To qualify for the licensure exam, the examinee must have graduated from an accredited university.

Work Experience

Again, the shortcut to having work experience in a job application or resume is to take part-time gigs, interning, or volunteering while completing college education at an accredited university.

But for those who may not have thought about it or who may not be able to do this for some reason, they will need to apply for entry-level positions at companies that hire part-time workers or are looking for interns, etc. From there, they can build up their reputation and climb up the ladder.

In the United States, if the applicant has only completed a bachelor’s degree, the title of Professional Engineer will not be honored unless the applicant passes the Professional Engineering exam and gain the required experience.

The Average Salary of Electrical Engineers

The Bureau of Labor Statistics records that the average electrical engineering salary annually is at $99,070 or $47.63 per hour. It also projected a 7% growth in the industry from 2016 to 2026, a promising job outlook for those looking for electrical engineering jobs this year and the next 7 years to come.

The base pay for electrical engineering usually depends on the budget of the companies that hire entry-level applicants. But the average range is from $73,839 to $86,176 per year. Having more experience, even as an intern or as a part-time worker before graduating from college, is a big plus that can make one stand out in the competition.

Electrical engineering is a highly in-demand field, which means the more informed and up to date candidates are, the better their chances at landing electrical engineering jobs at companies they desire to work with.

Training and commitment plus a lot of high-value experiences and connections, whether it is a one-off work or part-time project, all add up to get the candidates not only the position they are eyeing for but also the electrical engineering salary they’ve always wanted to start with.

Salaries of Electrical Engineers around the World

These are average base salaries per year for each country:

Final Thoughts

Working as an electrical engineer was my dream growing up and although I don’t work as an engineer now, I don’t regret studying this great program and building a career based on the still I learned. You can also follow your dreams and learn the skills you desire the most. What you do with your skills after you graduate, are limitless!

Although Electrical Engineering jobs are in high demand, especially with the fact that technology is powered by technology and systems that evolve around electrical engineers, they are not the highest paid in the engineering industry.

One of the highest paid in the industry is the Petroleum Engineer, with a base salary per year that does not go below $100,000. This may quite be another option to consider when applying for a degree in college.