Peter said:
I'm an experienced software developer who is considering making a career
change in the hopes of finding better
employment opportunities. One of the options I'm considering is getting
an A.S. Degree in Electronics (or Photonics).
What is the job/career outlook for hands-on electronic techs in the USA?
Thank you in advance for your assistance.
Peter
I really don't know about the demand in the US as a whole. I know we (small
company of 40 or so engineers and techs) are always looking for good techs.
We recently had the local ITT Tech. campus send us several recent graduates
for interviews. We have a simple test we give techs. It has 10
questions/problems, all of which are very simple. It includes things like
voltage across a resistor in a dc circuit, parallel combination of
resistors, questions on identifying the symbols for differnt types of
transistors (pnp, npn, etc). I have not done anything with electronics or
dc circuits for 7 years and I can answer every question. Out of 6 or so
applicants, none could pass. None even got more than 3 correct!!!!!!! We
ended up hiring a guy whose only training was electronics school in the
Airforce several years ago. He answered all 10 questions correctly with no
problem. We called him back and had him answer some oral questions and also
do some simple things like solder. He is a keeper.
If you do go back for an A.S., please learn something. Don't just beat in
your time to get your grade and go on. A good electronics tech with a
strong software background can do quite well in my opinion.
Charles Perry P.E.
