My brother is an electrical engineer for a power company and he makes about $250K a year.
I like that idea

 

That is a nice idea, but what kind of odds did he have of getting the job? Or someone else for that matter

I say hit up the local community college and see if they have any begginners classes or something along those lines in a feild your interested in and go for it. A couple "exploratory" classes if you will.

Can't hurt anything but your wallet

 

Everyone else in the world has just as much of a chance as he did. but he's the one that decided to go to school for it, get educated, and work hard to get the job he wanted.
If your waiting for a job just to fall in your lap its not going to happen. If you don't put the effort out you won't get anywhere

 

I have been in the communications field since 1962. Has been a good career for me. I am now working for a national cell company. I do not work on the cell sites, I work on a long haul microwave system that carries traffic for the cell side. There are many different types of jobs for comm. techs in this field. Cell techs, microwave techs, Network Operation Center techs, Switch techs, Alarm techs are just a few of the jobs. There are others such as Generator techs, Installers, wiremen, and the "test man". The major problem is getting in. Best way, I think, is to just keep applying. Check the web sites, lots of info on them. The work is easy, and you are on your own most of the time. Not a lot of heavy lifting, but there can be at times. And as Snake said, lots of windshield time. I drive about 5k a month. (In a Trail Blazer, sorry to say).
I wish you luck on whatever you deside to do. All of the fields you mentioned have their good and bad sides.

 

Odds, not chance. Everyone has the same chance, 50/50. . it either happens or it doesn't. I was curious what those kinds of odds are?

I'm just thinking back to what I remember dicussing with my engineering teacher. You got 1000 EE coming out of school hoping for the 2-3 6+ figure jobs that higher out every 10-15 years. . .I just don't want to get the boys' hopes up

It is good advice though, you got to work for what you want. . or at least try.

I just called him boy, like I know what I'm talkign about

 

I don't know the exact odds, but I'll bet an electrical engineering job with that kind of pay has quite a few people applying for it. But kind of like what I was saying before, if you really want to get a job like that, you have to make yourself better than everyone else that applies for it. The harder you work at it, the better chances you're going to have. If your just another "run of the mill" graduate you probably won't have a chance. Make yourself stand out in the big pile of applications and your going to be doing well

 

According to one of the recent CNN polls the average starting salery for an EE graduate is in the neighborhood of $52k.

 

Well, I am a Mech engineer, and have found it brilliant.
There are substantial job oppurtunities, and if you don't care what industry you work in, you can almost choose your salary. There are few industries you can't work in as a ME.
I know I live in a different country to you, but I still have a contract with the company I used to work for (while I am studying so I can return at a later date), and I have had a total of 4 job offers (with quite attractive salaries) without even looking for a job. I am merely a ME graduate with average marks and 2 years experience...

Your welding background will mean that you possibly can get some credits for the materials subjects (and possibly some manufacturing subjects too).

The biggest annoyance I suppose is studying for 4 years on things that most likely you won't actually use in industry. I appreciate you have to learn it all from first principles, but doing 10 page long derivations of a fluid mechanics formula can get a little old, when in industry you just run a simple Computational Fluid Dynamics analysis that takes 2 minutes.
As long as you feel that you can "tough out" the 4 years at college I think it is a great idea.

I know I am biased, but I honestly couldn't recommend doing ME enough (electrical is pretty good too), to do it was quite possibly the best decision I have ever made.
I might also recommend trying to find somewhere that offers a double degree with business (wish I chose that first time round), as engineers are quite popular as managers.

Above all, what ever you choose, GOOD LUCK

 

Another avenue I forgot to mention is an Engineering Technologies degree. I don't know how the job market treats them out where you live, but around here if you go into the right feild potential employers don't differentiate between Engineering majors and Technologies majors. Its usually quicker, more streamlined, but its industry specific. About the only thing you couldn't do is sign off on final projects. And the pay is almost identical. Most technologies majors start off with better pay becuase they have more relevant experience where as an Engineering major has spent his years learning every aspect of stuf he will never use. But on the other hand the Engineer will end up making more later on (5-10G more on average, depending on the feild. . .could be more).

Something you might want to talk to a counselour about. Its quicker, cheaper but not as universal as a regular degree.

And one last thing, you should ask a couple local firms if they would give you a rundown of what a typical day on the job would be like as a |----| Engineer, maybe let you talk with some of there employees to get a feel of whats involved and if you would be interested in doing that for the rest of your life

One last bit of advice from my English teacher. . .then I will shut up:

Do what makes you happy, not what pays the most.

 

As for what is local, I plan on going back to my roots of a sort, the Cedar Rapids-Iowa City area, home to Rockwell Collins for one (big) company, as well as many other companies of similar nature. Des Moines isn't too far, with many more jobs as well. So as far as opportunities go, they are available. Now if I were to stay where I am now, the jobs get pretty scarce... I like building things, loved my fabrication jobs, so maybe t would be good to go engineering... I started it way back when, then life got in the way...

 

Most fabrication facilities need a Certified Welding Inspector onsite to qualify all welders, keep the records, design and oversee fabrication, etc.

Its not that hard to become certified and the cert is good for 9 years. Your experience as a welder should perqualify you so you will be considered a full CWI not a CAWI (A=Associate).

CWI's work in many fields and are required by almost all fabrication codes.

http://www. aws.org

American Welding Society

 

I did electrical tech, mainly communications equipment while in the service, before that I was welder fabricator/line mechanic in food processing...when I got back from the desert I attended OSU in Corvallis doing a BSEE...hated it though took all enjoyment of electronics etc...ended up working at OSU as sys admin for 9 years...
that was the best job...until the State of Oregon had a budget crisis...good luck