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What is a junior electrical engineer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted expert
Dr. Angela Rasmussen

A junior electrical engineer is an expert in improving and designing electronic devices, utilizing and making sure of system safety. In an organizational setting, you will be required to oversee appliance troubleshooting and document electronic reports. You also have to make technical materials presentations when necessary. In addition to this, you must always obey the instructions of the executives or more experienced engineers. You must also provide them with consistent improvement reports.

Essentially, you are expected to communicate with customers to know their desires and create designs and prototypes. You have to cooperate with various engineers and technicians for optimum results. Also, you have to handle the work efficiency of plans and programs with the organization's procedures and policies being executed. As a junior electrical engineer, you may have to take part in teaching recently hired members of the workforce.

To fit into this role of a junior electrical engineer, you must have a bachelor's degree, although an associate degree would also suffice. Additionally, you need to display great teamwork, interaction, problem-solving, and concentration skills. You must also be creative and technologically adept. You will earn an average of $60,178 annually or $28.93 an hour.

What general advice would you give to a junior electrical engineer?

Dr. Angela RasmussenDr. Angela Rasmussen LinkedIn profile

Professor (Lecturer) Director of Mentoring and Advising Director of Electrical Engineering Senior Projects, University of Utah

Take heart that while Electrical Engineering jobs have been impacted by COVID19, it's impact is minimal in comparison to most other areas. While many areas have been hit hard by layoffs, Electrical Engineering has only slightly been affected in comparison. Many companies have declared hiring freezes and many others are still hiring. Therefore, don't get discouraged. There are Electrical Engineerings jobs needing to be filled! Make sure to be professional in all your interactions and work on improving your online presence.
ScoreJunior Electrical EngineerUS Average
Salary
5.3

Avg. Salary $68,365

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
5.7

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
6.1
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.18%

Asian 17.13%

Black or African American 4.79%

Hispanic or Latino 11.09%

Unknown 4.70%

White 62.10%

Gender

female 10.84%

male 89.16%

Age - 44
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 44
Stress level
5.7

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level
8.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance
6.2

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Junior electrical engineer career paths

Key steps to become a junior electrical engineer

  1. Explore junior electrical engineer education requirements

    Most common junior electrical engineer degrees

    Bachelor's

    78.8 %

    Associate

    9.1 %

    Master's

    5.3 %
  2. Start to develop specific junior electrical engineer skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Revit10.08%
    RF7.33%
    C++6.79%
    Electrical Components5.72%
    UL5.70%
  3. Complete relevant junior electrical engineer training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New junior electrical engineers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a junior electrical engineer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real junior electrical engineer resumes.
  4. Research junior electrical engineer duties and responsibilities

    • Coordinate with senior electrical engineers and achieve hands-on experience on coal fire plant power generation and power transformers, circuit breakers.
    • Design PLC schematics for system relaying and protection.
    • Design RTL modules in Verilog HDL to develop algorithms in Matlab, and verify them by writing test benches.
    • Upgrade a chemical exhaust scrubber with a newer PLC to allow data logging and process monitoring to meet EPA standards.
  5. Prepare your junior electrical engineer resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your junior electrical engineer resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a junior electrical engineer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable junior electrical engineer resume templates

    Build a professional junior electrical engineer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your junior electrical engineer resume.
    Junior Electrical Engineer Resume
    Junior Electrical Engineer Resume
    Junior Electrical Engineer Resume
    Junior Electrical Engineer Resume
    Junior Electrical Engineer Resume
    Junior Electrical Engineer Resume
    Junior Electrical Engineer Resume
    Junior Electrical Engineer Resume
    Junior Electrical Engineer Resume
  6. Apply for junior electrical engineer jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a junior electrical engineer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first junior electrical engineer job

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Average junior electrical engineer salary

The average junior electrical engineer salary in the United States is $68,365 per year or $33 per hour. Junior electrical engineer salaries range between $48,000 and $95,000 per year.

Average junior electrical engineer salary
$68,365 Yearly
$32.87 hourly

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Junior electrical engineer reviews

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A zippia user wrote a review on Nov 2023
Pros

continuous learning


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2020
Pros

Working in electrical department is like a lifetime goal. And coming to the internship I can get to work with new people on my favourite site then put on some skills.

Cons

I like everything about it.


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A zippia user wrote a review on Apr 2020
Pros

To Install And Maintain Mostly In Building And Industrial Installation.

Cons

Repair, And Any Over Head Installation


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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