What Can You Do With an Electrical and Computer Engineering Degree?

Below are 14 occupations that electrical and computer engineering graduates commonly move into, most common first. Electrical Engineer leads at $120,630 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025); across the whole list the middle occupation pays $122,930 and 0 of 14 typically need a graduate degree. A major is a body of study, not a job assignment, so treat every entry as a common destination rather than a promise.

What the degree actually involves: Circuits, signals, embedded systems, and labs where things occasionally smell burnt.

This degree sits between physics and software, and the destinations do too. Some graduates go deep into hardware, some into the embedded software that runs on it, and a large share cross fully into software or network engineering, where the degree is treated as interchangeable with computer science.

Common destinations: 14
Median pay range: $78,190–$171,270
Projected to grow: 14 of 14
Need a graduate degree: 0 of 14

How this list was built

The destinations are the occupations electrical and computer engineering graduates commonly move into. They are ordered by how common the destination is, not by what it pays, so the ordinary outcomes sit at the top where they belong rather than being buried under the flattering ones.
Every destination is matched to a real occupation in the 923-occupation NueCareer career bank. A destination that does not resolve to a bank occupation is dropped rather than shown without data.
All pay, growth, openings and education figures come from that bank: BLS OEWS May 2025 for wages, BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 for projected change, annual openings and the typical education needed for entry, and O*NET 30.3 Database for what the work involves. Nothing is estimated and no figure here is generated by an AI model.
Destinations whose BLS typical entry education is a master’s or a doctoral or professional degree are marked Graduate study on the list. That flag is read from the federal data, not asserted by us.
What this list is not: a ranking of which destination you should pick, a statement of how many graduates reach each one, or a promise that the degree entitles you to any of them. Read the full methodology.

14 careers an electrical and computer engineering degree commonly leads to

Most common destination first. Every card carries the national median annual wage, projected employment change and openings over 2024–2034, and the typical education people already in the job hold.

1. Electrical Engineer
Architecture and Engineering
Median pay
$120,630
Growth
+7.2%
Openings/yr
11,700
Education
Bachelor's
Research, design, develop, test, or supervise the manufacturing and installation of electrical equipment, components, or systems for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use.
Electrical Engineer salary & outlook →
2. Electronics Engineer, Except Computer
Architecture and Engineering
Median pay
$130,220
Growth
+6.2%
Openings/yr
5,700
Education
Bachelor's
Research, design, develop, or test electronic components and systems for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use employing knowledge of electronic theory and materials properties.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
3. Computer Hardware Engineer
Architecture and Engineering
Median pay
$161,740
Growth
+7.3%
Openings/yr
4,700
Education
Bachelor's
Research, design, develop, or test computer or computer-related equipment for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
4. Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologist and Technician
Architecture and Engineering
Median pay
$78,190
Growth
+0.6%
Openings/yr
8,400
Education
Associate's
Apply electrical and electronic theory and related knowledge, usually under the direction of engineering staff, to design, build, repair, adjust, and modify electrical components, circuitry, controls, and machinery fo…
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
5. Software Developer
Computer and Mathematical
Median pay
$135,980
Growth
+15.8%
Openings/yr
115,200
Education
Bachelor's
Research, design, and develop computer and network software or specialized utility programs.
Software Developer salary & outlook →
6. Computer Network Architect
Computer and Mathematical
Median pay
$134,050
Growth
+11.9%
Openings/yr
11,200
Education
Bachelor's
Design and implement computer and information networks, such as local area networks (LAN), wide area networks (WAN), intranets, extranets, and other data communications networks.
Computer Network Architect salary & outlook →
7. Computer Systems Engineers/Architect
Computer and Mathematical
Median pay
$116,580
Growth
+8.2%
Openings/yr
31,300
Education
Bachelor's
Design and develop solutions to complex applications problems, system administration issues, or network concerns.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
8. Telecommunications Engineering Specialist
Computer and Mathematical
Median pay
$134,050
Growth
+11.9%
Openings/yr
11,200
Education
Bachelor's
Design or configure wired, wireless, and satellite communications systems for voice, video, and data services.
Telecommunications Engineering Specialist salary & outlook →
9. Microsystems Engineer
Architecture and Engineering
Median pay
$122,930
Growth
+2.1%
Openings/yr
9,300
Education
Bachelor's
Research, design, develop, or test microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
10. Mechatronics Engineer
Architecture and Engineering
Median pay
$122,930
Growth
+2.1%
Openings/yr
9,300
Education
Bachelor's
Research, design, develop, or test automation, intelligent systems, smart devices, or industrial systems control.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
11. Validation Engineer
Architecture and Engineering
Median pay
$102,440
Growth
+11.0%
Openings/yr
25,200
Education
Bachelor's
Design or plan protocols for equipment or processes to produce products meeting internal and external purity, safety, and quality requirements.
Validation Engineer salary & outlook →
12. Energy Engineer, Except Wind and Solar
Architecture and Engineering
Median pay
$122,930
Growth
+2.1%
Openings/yr
9,300
Education
Bachelor's
Design, develop, or evaluate energy-related projects or programs to reduce energy costs or improve energy efficiency during the designing, building, or remodeling stages of construction.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
13. Information Security Engineer
Computer and Mathematical
Median pay
$116,580
Growth
+8.2%
Openings/yr
31,300
Education
Bachelor's
Develop and oversee the implementation of information security procedures and policies.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
14. Architectural and Engineering Manager
Management
Median pay
$171,270
Growth
+3.8%
Openings/yr
14,500
Education
Bachelor's
Plan, direct, or coordinate activities in such fields as architecture and engineering or research and development in these fields.
Architectural and Engineering Manager salary & outlook →

Does an electrical and computer engineering degree decide your career?

For most people, no. Federal survey data has consistently found that only a minority of US graduates work in a job closely related to their degree field, and that share falls further with each year after graduation. The exceptions are the fields where a licence sits at the end of the degree, and they are exceptions precisely because the route is fixed.

The practical reading of the list above is this: every destination on it lists a bachelor's degree or less as the typical entry requirement (BLS Employment Projections, 2024–2034), so the decisions that matter after the degree are about experience rather than more study.

Not sure this is the right major in the first place? Take the free college major quiz — fifteen questions that score what you like doing against what each major actually asks of you, and show the same real occupations underneath every match.

Electrical and Computer Engineering degrees: FAQ

Do you need a master's degree after an electrical and computer engineering degree?

Not for the destinations on this page. BLS Employment Projections (2024–2034) list a bachelor's degree or less as the typical entry requirement for all 14 of them. Individual employers can still ask for more.

What is the highest-paying career an electrical and computer engineering degree leads to?

Of the 14 destinations on this page, Architectural and Engineering Manager has the highest national median wage at $171,270 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), against $50,980 for all US occupations. Typical entry education for it is bachelor's. A median is the midpoint of everyone in the job today, so a first salary normally sits well below it.

Which of these careers hires the most people each year?

Software Developer, with about 115,200 projected openings a year (BLS Employment Projections, 2024–2034). Across all 14 destinations on this page the combined figure is roughly 298,300 openings a year. Openings include replacing people who leave, not just new jobs, which is why a slow-growing occupation can still hire heavily.

Is an electrical and computer engineering degree worth it?

That depends on the price you pay for it, which this page cannot know. What it can tell you is where the destinations sit: the middle occupation on this list pays $122,930 a year against $50,980 for all US occupations, the range runs $78,190–$171,270, and 14 of the 14 are projected to grow over 2024–2034 (BLS OEWS May 2025, BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034).

How was this list of careers put together?

The destinations were curated as the occupations electrical and computer engineering graduates commonly move into, ordered by how common rather than by pay, then matched against the 923-occupation NueCareer career bank. Every figure shown comes from that bank: wages from BLS OEWS May 2025, projected change and annual openings and typical entry education from BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, and occupation descriptions from O*NET 30.3 Database. Nothing is estimated, and no figure on this page is generated by an AI model.

How this list was built

14 careers an electrical and computer engineering degree commonly leads to

1. Electrical Engineer

2. Electronics Engineer, Except Computer

3. Computer Hardware Engineer

4. Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologist and Technician

5. Software Developer

6. Computer Network Architect

7. Computer Systems Engineers/Architect

8. Telecommunications Engineering Specialist

9. Microsystems Engineer

10. Mechatronics Engineer

11. Validation Engineer

12. Energy Engineer, Except Wind and Solar

13. Information Security Engineer

14. Architectural and Engineering Manager