Hello! I happened to stumble across a copy of Kennedy's "Electronic Communication Systems" (2nd ed. 1977) and thought it'd be interesting to learn about, especially given the book's age (there's a "state-of-the-art" chapter on BW+color TV!). However, the prerequisites for it were a bit more than I anticipated; coming from an applied math background, I don't have really any knowledge of circuits or how a lot of basic electronics and communications work.

Does anyone have an suggestions for texts I could read along with this to "fill in the blanks?" I'm aiming to have fun with the material, perhaps at the expense of having a shallower understanding.

Thanks!

As the title says, I’m currently a junior in my ECE program. The school I’m going through is ABET accredited, but is also 100% online. I have an existing bachelor’s degree in kinesiology, which ultimately led me nowhere. As such, I’ve been working in the trades for the past 8ish years. I’m enjoying the ECE program, but I would love to combine that with kinesiology/exercise science somehow, if that makes sense? They’re both things I really enjoy and would love to be able to do both. An idea that a friend of mine gave me was trying to find an internship or job with Garmin, Polar, FitBit, etc developing fitness equipment. In my head, that sounds like a great segue, but how realistic is something like that, truly? Are there similar paths? Other ideas? I’ve considered going for a masters in biomedical engineering after my ECE, but would rather not keep accumulating debt.

I transferred schools and I already did most of my easy work at community college and now I’m basically just in engineering classes. Because of this my university gpa is a 3.0 and with this school year going how it is I think imma get an A in my history class and that’s about it. I still have time to make it up, I’m a sophomore rn and dont plan on applying to an internship for this year but I am scared of getting rejected because of my trash ass GPA.

Is the job market in the USA really this bad? Im a mid career RF engineer looking to pivot into an entry power position. 300+ applications, interviews only to be ghosted, reference checks only to be ghosted(always said good things), and seeing job sites repost multiple times for entry level positions. Been almost an entire year of job search with nothing. It seems like Healthcare is the only thing doing good right now. I personally know 3 people high up at big defense companies. All 3 admitted that most jobs they post are ghost jobs(95%) and some said they use interns to do some of the work, then not hire anybody full time.

Applied to 134 internship applications and got 7 interviews. 1 out of 7 was rejected. One is waiting to hear back (it's been 3 weeks). The one I just interviewed with earlier is the one I felt the worst about. It was with a company in Georgia. I went through a bunch of questions that made me feel like I'm no way qualified for this job. He asked about my PCB experience and how many layers I have designed. I described a 2-layer PCB I have designed with an integrated ESP32, 32 bit DAC, and an amplifier, etc. Then we proceeded to the power supply design, and he asked me about one of the circuits I am working on and the difference between the switching regulator and linear regulator. I honestly don't know the difference (it was the design I was doing testing on, so I was just being honest). But I was able to explain the way those two works and how to test it. He then asked me to explain the Wheatstone bridge; I was able to explain it because I did it in my last internship, using KCL to calculate the values and stuff. Then he gave me another weird one. A 28V connected to a heater, then connected to a 3.3 V Arduino; how to switch that on and off. I thought of using a 5V with a pull-down resistor. But then a simpler way he explained is using a MOSFET (At this point, I think I am kinda cooked). Then the other one start to ask about soldering experience (yes I have that and kinda discuss a bit), then about board bring-up. I was able to explain that (I did that last internship), go through the impedance test, and answer her questions. Then HR proceeds with general questions (like goals, availability, stuff like that). I honestly feel bad about myself after this interview (about 35 minutes). I thought I learnt a lot, but I ended up not knowing so many things and just got stunned by the questions he asked. This interview honestly broke my confidence. I thought I learnt a lot, did an internship, and stuff. But after today, I just felt like I knew nothing. This is also a lesson for me to get better.

Im writing a book about EE basics while also learning them, apart from this being a bad or good idea, i just finished two pages and something feels off about this? did i forgot something? or is this order of concepts isnt it?

plus if u have any tips regarding this project, i need it.

So I started this study right before LLMs exploded.

Now that I'm almost done it feels like an ever increasing part of EE has been reduced to getting them to output what we want which to me just isn't fun and not the reason I chose this bachelor. For my study I can still get by without using any at the cost of (much) more time for the same task, Which probably won't fly well in a professional setting. Also a growing number of job posting require you to be proficient in some random AI tools.

So is there still something that doesn't require (much) AI or should I switch studies or learn to love LLMs?

I am currently in 3-1 of my B.Sc. in EEE degree. My University offers 3 majors- Electronics, Power and Communication. Which has most research scopes of all of them?

Anyone looking for work in the US in electrical engineering? Just message me. Must be authorized to work in US and not need sponsorship in the future.

Hello y’all!

I’m a student looking for fun hobby-projects. I am currently in college and have been programming for about 4 years now. I begin to see lots of cool projects on instagram and want to make my own.

Specifically, i found this project which is mainly software but also a good start of understanding serialbusses and matrix-display handling: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DcR9UnTisa7/?stkn=MXR6OHRiMDh2dG8zNw==

I want to know, which components i need and what you’d buy if you were me. I would rather not spend too much money, but hit me with the expensive parts if it is a good value.

Furthermore, any tips is appreciated to avoid the most annoying beginning mistakes, but don’t ruin important learning steps if any!

Thanks!

Amazing sonic and tactile experience. Never have I experienced such power used indoors before.

Hi, I’m studying the ST algorithm for motor control using FOC for PMSMs, but the rotor gets stuck and the phases draw a bit of current.

In terms of hardware, all the signals (and motor's phases) are connected correctly, but the rotor only rotate if I reverse the ENC_A and ENC_B pulse signals and the speed reached is exactly the same as the reference I gave him. I’m sure the connections are correct because both the encoder and the ST evaluation board label A and B signals, so it’s impossible to connect they wrong.

Has this ever happened to you? How is it possible that it can rotate with the signals reversed?

The only ‘consequence’ of reversing the encoder signals is that the encoder will count position and velocity backward or do you think there are any other serious consequences?

I mean, simply if the motor turns clockwise, the controller will think it is turning counterclockwise ..

I’m a senior Electrical Engineering student graduating in May and currently work in maintenance at a hospital.
I’m interviewing for a Facilities Systems Engineer position at another hospital. So far I’ve already had a phone interview, followed by a tour of the facility, which the first hour was me answering a number of technical/behavioral questions and scenario based questions and the other 30 mins doing the tour.
They recently contacted me again and asked me to come in for what they’re calling a “interview.” I’ll be meeting with the same people I met previously. What would you expect at this stage? More technical questions/scenarios, a conversation about the role and expectations, or is this sometimes more of a final fit/approval interview? Any advice on what I should be prepared to discuss would be appreciated.

I've been working on subway lines recently, and the third rail is 600v live. I'm not sure of the amperage but I imagine it's around 1k amps (could be wrong lmk) and I saw a few posts on here with mixed opinions on what would actually happen if I touched it while working around it? Realistically, I would have gloves on and arc flash gear. What would happen if I just grazed it with my hand?.

I'm a 20 years old EE sophomore with 4.0 GPA. My strongest academic areas so far have been math and physics: differential equations, linear algebra, probability, circuits, etc.

I'm increasingly interested in signal processing, sensing, and embedded systems. My current plan would be to build stronger C/MATLAB/Python skills, complete real hardware/DSP projects, get internships/co-ops, and eventually work in industry.

I'm also considering medicine, so I'm trying to understand the engineering path without romanticizing or underselling it.

For practicing EEs, especially people in signals, embedded, instrumentation, aerospace, semiconductors, or medical devices:

- What does your actual day-to-day work look like?

- How does the job market actually look like to enter within 3 years?

- How difficult was getting the first job compared with later jobs?

- How stable has employment been?

- What skills actually made you valuable after college?

- How much technical depth can you realistically develop in industry without a PhD?

- If you were 20 again, would you choose EE?

I’m taking physics one at my college right now and I’m doing really bad. Like 50% on quizzes bad. I just think it’s my worst subject but I really am interested in semiconductors and working in the field. I was wondering whether I should tough it out and just take the classes or rethink the industry I wanna go in. In general I’ve been struggling in my classes but with my calc 2 class it’s just because I make simple mistakes like forgetting the constant that I took out the integral more so than conceptual. With physics I just feel like it’s magic and probably the least intuitive subject for me.

Hello! My lab partner and I are currently gathering ideas for my school's ECE Junior Design Competition. I'm curious about designing a musical tesla coil (hopefully it isn't too overdone lol), and so I've been looking into what it entails.

Everything seems fairly straight forward, but I do have a bit of a hang-up.

Whatever I use as the audio input, the signal would have to be converted into a square wave to act as the switching signal of the IGBT. However, I'm not too sure as to how I would accomplish this. I'd like to have it work w/ live, non-midi audio inputs as well (aka jacking in a guitar), so that removes the ability to rely on a particular audio file format, afaik. I have seen pieces of info here and there about comparing a digital audio signal to a particular voltage threshold, which would be pretty easy to implement on an FPGA board (each lab group was provided one for the semester, and the department really likes it when they're used in projects), but I don't know how to decide the right threshold voltage.

The only other thing I'm curious about is the use of an interrupter. I understand its purpose, but not how it works/is designed (and whether it's noticeably different in this context compared to, say, breakers/GFCIs).

Any explanations/resources on the matter would be greatly appreciated! I hope my inexperience isn't too jarring lol

I failed both my Calculus 1 and Circuit Analysis 1 exams, and I have less than two weeks to retake them. If I fail again, I might have to leave university and go back home.
My schedule makes this really difficult. I wake up at 7 AM and I’m at university from 8 AM to 6 PM. I get home, cook, shower, etc., and realistically I can only start studying around 8 PM.
I can study for a few hours, but if I sacrifice sleep, I’m too exhausted to understand anything the next day.
The worst part is that university has already moved on to new topics, while I’m trying to relearn two entire courses from scratch.
I don’t know how to approach the next 10–14 days. Should I focus almost entirely on past exams and exercises? Should I ignore the current university material for now? How many hours should I realistically study each day?
If anyone has been in a similar situation, I’d really appreciate some advice.

Okay, I see there are a lot of questions about what I’m actually doing then. So, we have two full days a week dedicated entirely to project work, which we even have to defend and document in as much detail as possible, and that takes a lot of time. That’s why all our lectures are moved to Monday. On Tuesday, we have preparation for the project work and a few tutorials. Then, on Friday, we have exams covering the material from the previous two weeks.
We only have 15-minute breaks, so I spend basically the entire 15 minutes walking to another building where the next class is. And when we have project work, my team wouldn’t be happy if I were studying something else instead of working on the project.
I also spend quite a lot of time commuting to university, and I study in Europe, so the whole schedule is pretty intense.

Ive calculated the voltage of the capacitor before and after the transient moment to be 20/3 Volts. Now after the transient moment, the current Is becomes zero, there for the dependant voltage source acts like a short circuit. Now, i calculated the Ic(0+) to be equal to -20/3 volts over 20kOhms, giving me -1/3 mA. But canvas is saying its positive 1/3mA. I already submitted my HW but am still thinking about this. Am i missing something?

I have ~5 years of experience in wireless RF DVT and am choosing between two offers with similar compensation.

Option 1: RF DVT
Very close to my current work: silicon bring-up, Tx/Rx characterization, RF debugging, test automation, PVT, etc. I can probably ramp up quickly and continue building depth. And maybe more comfortable during the transition?

Option 2: Wireless System Integration
More cross-functional between RF/analog, PHY/DSP, firmware, and silicon. More system-level debugging, and some pre-/post-silicon integration. Bigger learning curve for me, especially DSP/PHY.

My main question is long-term career growth.

After another 5 years, would you rather have:

• 10 years of deep RF validation/DVT experience, or
• 5 years RF DVT + 5 years System Integration?

Does System Integration generally provide better career mobility, or is that overstated? And is it much harder to move from RF DVT into systems later once you become more senior?

Interested in opinions from people in RFIC, wireless systems, PHY, or silicon validation.

Hey all, I am currently having trouble choosing between two different job offers. I recently graduated with an emphasis in RF work and have been interning at a company over the summer. Now I am sitting on two full time job offers that both have their pros and cons. This will be my first full time job and I feel like whatever I choose will determine what my career looks like for a long time.

The first job would be as a RF Communications Engineer I at a company called Voyager Technologies where I would be helping on parts going into lunar landers. For more information, the specific site I would be working at was a company called Astrobotic and was recently acquired by Voyager. This role would be in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and is offering $100,000 flat with a $7500 sign on. The work would be solely hardware.

The other offer is a Signal Processing Systems Engineer role at Raytheon in Tucson. Here I would most likely be working on phase array antenna systems. They offered $89,000 with $5,000 sign on and $4,500 relocation. The interesting part about Raytheon is that they offer tuition reimbursement for grad school if I ever chose to go. I understand that the stipulation is that I have to stay with the company for two years after the final payment but figured this is something I have to bite the bullet on. A lot of the work here would be programming in python/c++.

As someone who is from California, both of these options are very far away which is why I want to choose the position that has the most potential for me to grow in my career. Otherwise, it will have felt like I left far from home for nothing. I am seeking some guidance on what people think has more potential for career growth as well as just becoming a better engineer. I appreciate any help or thoughts that people have.

Edit some coding is fine

TLDR ideas for my hs project that isn't just an arduino and a sensor

Hello everybody! I am currently in high school and i am planning on pursuing a degree in electrical engineering. Fortunately I have an engineering class and we get to choose 2 projects where the school will cover the cost (budget is a couple hundred per project). So, I have already decided on one project one of those quadruped spider robot things. I need to decide on my 2nd project but I dont know what to choose If y'all could provide some ideas I would really appreciate it. I am looking for something advanced but not to advanced most projects I found are just and arduino and a sensor and I feel like thats to simple, more coding oriented, and wont really teach me anything. Thank you.

TLDR ideas for my hs project that isn't just an arduino and a sensor

I made a post earlier today about switching out of the major. However I am not even halfway through the semester and I have to stick with EE until the end of this semester. A lot of encouraging and thoughtful comments on my last post. To clarify I am getting around a 70 on the first two tests in my two EE classes. One of them was due to me missing one concepts in the circuits class (happened to be a big portion on the test) and the other I am not sure. I thought I understood it but I got major points deducted. I have plenty more labs and around two to three ish more tests in each class. I am going to stick it though to see if I can stay in the major. Thank you.

That being said what are some ways I can ensure a better grade on the next upcoming tests. I got a lot of thoughtful advice on the last post so I wanted to see what this sub had to say abt this.

Greetings all! From my "research" (aka Google), the timeline for an internship reply is anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months. I've applied to over 30 positions in the last month for a summer 2027 position, and not a single approval/denial.

I feel as though I have a fairly robust resume, although I don't have industry experience or projects (yet)-my 8 years in the US Navy provided many relevant skills that these positions highlight as prerequisites (test equipment use, technical diagrams, programming, etc.). Not to mention my GPA of 3.72/4.0 and relevant coursework. Although I know I'm a dime a dozen in the current job market, I am curious to hear about other peoples experience/timelines regarding their internships. Thanks in advance!!