regarding 'do not specialize at undergraduate lvl', dreamer is RIGHT.
at least most of the time.
another point to support: manufacturing industry in our country is still relatively traditional.
there are really not many jobs which require highly specialised skill.
So, a generic engineering will suffice.

i read optical engineering at undergraduate, in europe.
not as a major, but as a core course.
(mmu has BEng in electronics with major in OptEng). <- i almost end up there as lecturer
my major is laser engineering.
1st sem learned classical optics.
2nd sem alr on quantum optics, fourier and linear algebra.
3rd sem on solid state physics and laser (even those in physics will not learn this early).
yet, the course is still considered generic back there.

when i came back, i only realised that job in laser, which is my passion, is scarce (if they even exist).
when i tried to register with bem, they said i can only register under electronics.
and for that i have to sit for exam in electronics (consist only 20% of my course).

i was lucky to find employment across the causeway.
i am but a few in this region with this specialise skill.
so, i worth more than ordinary engineer with the same years of experience.
after one year, i got double my base salary.

some ppl will said that optical engineering is specialised.
and specialised course hard to get job.
i say, it depends.
you can actually go to many other industry.
defense, solar, biophotonics, telecomm, metrology, etc.
coz, light will take over much of the role that electrons played in the last couple of decades.
it just that such industry has not arrive in a big way, in this country, yet.

---

Added on June 11, 2010, 11:16 pmfound this useful website.
O*Net Online
http://online.onetcenter.org/

search career you think you have interest in.
the site will list the general task performed, knowledge and skills employed, required ability in the profession and much more.

this is a link to my profession
Photonics Engineer
http://online.onetcenter.org/link/summary/17-2199.07

Good to have general idea of the chosen profession, then you can decide whether it suits you.



This post has been edited by hypeborea: Jun 11 2010, 11:16 PM

Dreamer,

almost 2 years.
what did you mean by 'come back to bite you...'?

Dreamer,

in some instances i do face difficulty.

e.g. i have limited knowledge of mechanics; i.e. classical mechanics. i only understand up to further mechanics at A-levels. although laser is an electronics/electrical device, designing the machine do require mechanical knowledge. (but i have advance knowledge in CAD i.e. solidworks and proE, currently learning catia)

but my main obstacle is not having good foundation in electronics. i learned electronics up to digital circuitry. learned telecommunication, electrical as well as optical. i hate those things. i consistently got poor marks in electronics papers. even failed my digital circuitry and telecomm paper. i avoid taking job that require that set of skill, which in malaysia is required by almost all electronics jobs.

however, compared to EE engineer, i have advantage in optics. my current work required me to do a lot of optical design and simulation, which an EE engineer usually not trained for. i was trained not only in school but in the industry, while i was still studying. as i said before, this is a highly specialised skill. companies usually hire someone who had years of experience in research. and... i was lucky to land this job.

btw, i have dipl.-ing. in optical engineering which is equiv. to master (although, it is an undergraduate degree. its a german thing). this october i'll be starting my phd, back in europe.