Electrical Engineering

Electrical engineering is all about using electricity to power devices, machines, and systems. It’s a really broad field with a lot of different specializations, but at its core, electrical engineers are responsible for designing, building, and testing electronic circuits and devices.

Incandescent light bulb, a simple example of a basic electrical circuit
A light bulb is one of the simplest circuits electrical engineers study, made up of a voltage source, a conductor, and a resistive filament.

Some of the areas of specialization within electrical engineering include power systems, electronics, control systems, and telecommunications. So, depending on what interests you most, there are a ton of different career paths to choose from. And the good news is, electrical engineering is a high-paying field! According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median salary for electrical engineers in the United States is around $100,000 per year. However, it’s important to remember that the pay will depend on where you live and what industry or company you work for.

As far as industries go, there are a lot of options for electrical engineers. Some of the most common industries that hire electrical engineers include technology, energy, aerospace, automotive, and telecommunications. You could work for a big tech company like Apple or Microsoft, designing the latest gadgets and devices. You could work for an energy company, helping to develop renewable energy sources. Or you could work for an automotive giant such as General Motors or Ford designing all their wiring harnesses which are integral in modern vehicles. The possibilities are endless!

Electrical engineers designing a vehicle wiring harness
Electrical engineers designing a wiring harness for a vehicle, one of the many automotive systems that depend on electrical engineering fundamentals.

So, if you’re someone who loves tinkering with electronics and wants to make a great salary doing it, electrical engineering might just be the perfect field for you. It’s a challenging and rewarding career that offers a lot of opportunities for growth and innovation.

Electrical Engineering: Your Path Into Automotive Engineering

Modern vehicles are packed with electrical and electronic content — from the wiring harness and battery system to motor controls, driver-assistance electronics, and infotainment. As vehicles have shifted toward electrification and increasingly sophisticated electronics, electrical engineering has become just as central to the automotive industry as mechanical engineering. And since most colleges and universities don’t offer a standalone “automotive engineering” degree, an electrical engineering degree, often paired with automotive-focused electives or an internship at an OEM or supplier, is a common and increasingly important path into the industry.

The core EE curriculum — circuits, control systems, electromagnetism, electrochemistry, and power electronics — maps directly onto the electrical systems that make up a modern vehicle:

  • Circuits & Power Distribution — the same circuit fundamentals taught in an EE program are directly applied to designing a vehicle’s wiring harness and electrical architecture. See how this plays out in our guide to automotive electrical and electronic systems.
  • Control Systems — classical feedback control theory is the basis for X-by-wire systems, which are steadily replacing mechanical and hydraulic vehicle controls with electronic ones.
  • Electromagnetism & Motor Design — the same electromagnetic principles used to analyze motors in an EE course directly apply to the traction motors that power EVs. See our guide to AC motor design.
  • Electrochemistry & Battery Systems — the electrochemistry taught in an EE curriculum underlies how EV batteries are designed and modeled.
  • Power Electronics & Thermal Management — power electronics and heat-transfer fundamentals come together directly in EV battery thermal management.
  • Circuit Design & Ignition Systems — the same circuit design principles taught in EE programs are applied directly in the automotive ignition system.

This is the whole idea behind this site: the topics below aren’t a random grab-bag. Some are core EE fundamentals, and others are their automotive-specific applications — and understanding both sides of that connection is exactly what prepares an electrical engineering student to walk into the automotive industry with a head start.

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Electrical Engineering Cheat Sheet

Electrical QuantityDefinitionUnit
VoltageThe electric potential difference between two pointsVolt (V)
CurrentThe flow of electric charge in a circuitAmpere (A)
ResistanceOpposition to the flow of electric currentOhm (Ω)
PowerThe rate at which work is done or energy is transferred in an electric circuitWatt (W)
CapacitanceThe ability of a system to store electric chargeFarad (F)
InductanceThe property of an electrical conductor by which a change in current induces an electromotive forceHenry (H)
Electric ChargeThe fundamental property of matter that gives rise to electric forceCoulomb (C)
Electric FieldA region around a charged object where an electric force is exerted on other charged objectsNewton per Coulomb (N/C)
Electric PotentialThe electric potential energy per unit charge in an electric fieldVolt (V)
Current DensityThe electric current per unit area in a materialAmpere per square meter (A/m²)
ConductanceThe measure of a material’s ability to conduct electric currentSiemens (S)
Magnetic FieldA region around a magnet or current-carrying conductor where a magnetic force is exerted on other magnets or conductorsTesla (T)
Magnetic FluxThe total magnetic field passing through a surfaceWeber (Wb)
Inductive ReactanceOpposition to the change of electric current in an inductive circuitOhm (Ω)
Capacitive ReactanceOpposition to the change of electric current in a capacitive circuitOhm (Ω)
ImpedanceThe total opposition that a circuit presents to alternating currentOhm (Ω)
FrequencyThe number of cycles of a periodic wave in one secondHertz (Hz)
Ohm’s LawDescribes the relationship between voltage, current, and resistance in an electrical circuitV = I * R
Electrical Quantity Definition and Units
Electrical Law/ConceptDefinitionEquation/Formulas
KCL (Kirchhoff’s Current Law)The total current entering a junction in a circuit is equal to the total current leaving the junction∑ I_in = ∑ I_out
KVL (Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law)The total voltage around any closed loop in a circuit is equal to the sum of the voltages across all the elements in the loop∑ V_loop = 0
HyperloopA proposed mode of passenger and freight transportation that uses pressurized capsules in low-pressure tubesN/A
HypermeshA finite element pre-processor for generating complex meshes for various physics simulationsN/A
Equivalent ResistanceThe single resistance value that can replace a network of resistors while preserving the same current-voltage relationshipReq = R1 + R2 + …
CapacitanceThe ability of a system to store electric chargeQ = C * V
InductanceThe property of an electrical conductor by which a change in current induces an electromotive forceV = L * di/dt
Thévenin EquivalentA method of simplifying an electrical circuit to a single voltage source and series resistanceV_th = V_open, R_th = R_eq
Norton EquivalentA method of simplifying an electrical circuit to a single current source and parallel resistanceI_N = I_short, R_N = R_eq^-1
Definition of electrical laws

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need an automotive engineering degree to work in the automotive industry?
No. Most colleges and universities don’t offer a standalone automotive engineering major. Automotive engineers commonly hold a mechanical or electrical engineering degree, often paired with automotive-focused electives or internships at an OEM or supplier.

What role does electrical engineering play in the automotive industry?
Electrical engineering underlies a vehicle’s wiring harness and electrical architecture, motor and battery systems, control systems (including X-by-wire), and power electronics — all of which have grown significantly in importance with the shift toward electric and increasingly electronic vehicles.

What EE topics matter most for automotive electrical engineers?
Circuits and power distribution, control systems, electromagnetism and motor design, electrochemistry and battery systems, and power electronics are the core EE topics with the most direct automotive applications.

Deep dive into one of the following topics:

Circuits

Controls

Electricity and magnetism

Electrical Architectures

Electrochemistry

Hybrid Systems

Vehicle Electronics