4 ms·

Engineer from India here, let me tell you my story. In my final year of engineering, I dreamt of being an Integrated Circuit Design Engineer. While the rest of

Engineer from India here, let me tell you my story. In my final year of engineering, I dreamt of being an Integrated Circuit Design Engineer. While the rest of the folks from my class took up microcontrollers based project, my team was the only one to take up a FPGA based project, because that was as close as I could get to VLSI (Obviously at my insistence, I'd to fight with my partners over FPGA vs Microcontroller) After engineering, I searched for a job in VLSI in Pune & Bangalore for 6 months, but in vain. Got to know they don't hire freshers. So, I did a 6 month Post Graduate Diploma in VLSI Design from CDAC (Center for Development of Advanced Computing - makers of India's supercomputers) (Its like finishing school) . Agtee the course got over, interviews began. While folks who did their course in .NET/ Java got 20-30 interview calls, we got an average of only 5 calls. All 5 were very selective in interviews. Tried for a job in VLSI for another 1 year, and then finally took up a job in IT in Enterprise Automation. One year after my IT job, spoke with a few classmates. Some people were really doing well making 70k INR/ month while my lab partner was stuck on 12k/ month. I was making 35k/ month. Lab partner said - "IT folks make much better than we do. What was the point of getting into VLSI?" This was one point. Another point for me is immigration. I am planning to immigrate to Canada (Starting my PR process soon - am 28, unmarried). My father (GC holder) has filed for my GC abut my priority date is 10 years away) So US gonna be tough. But even if I had made it in VLSI, how many jobs are there in Canada for Chip Designers / RTL Design Engineers or maybe FPGA Engineers ? If I stay in IT doing my BMC Software stuff, I know I may get a job in some ITSM company. There aren't many VLSI jobs in every book and corner of earth. Whereas IT ensures that jobs are available in plenty everywhere. Comments / feedback would be highly appreciated.

pkaye 9y ago
I'll be honest I think even in US getting a good chip engineering job is tough. I've a firmware engineering background so I straddle between hardware and software. I see lots of EE students come into the workforce and realize the software is where the action is and struggle to switch over. As a hiring manager, I feel for them and try to help their transition but many are not prepared in their coursework even for firmware. Even some chip designers I worked with were asking me how to transition over. A few were taking courses on the side. Even I switched over the general software side though I try to keep my foot in the door should it even improve.
- godelmachine 9y ago
  When I do apply for MS in US, I'm planning for AI/ Machine Learning. Yesterday, I was reading https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16196421 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16196421 This also looks promising. Combines stocks & software engineering. C++ mastery is required and also knowledge of Computer Architecture. Another field I've shortlisted is Management in Information Systems, since I'm in Enterprise Automation (BMC Software) Would you kindly bring to my attention any more promising fields that you know of? Thanks.
  - pkaye 9y ago
    It is hard to predict where things will be 2-5 years down the line even for AI/machine learning (which I personally don't know a lot about.) What if AI becomes more automated in a few years so less people are needed? But atleast for now it seems like a good place to start. My general thoughts are get into a top tier university as that gives you a head start to find a promising company to join. Pick a field that really interests you yet balance with market demands. Focus on the broad computer engineering skills that will be applicable in many industries. Work hard to make a name for yourself at your first job. At some point it will build up a network of people who can transition you into other industries as you change jobs. Eventually you will hit the leading edge of some hot technology and can make your success.
    - godelmachine 9y ago
      This is a very good idea that you told me. Thanks for this :)
calvinbhai 9y ago
FPGA and ASIC design as a field is very vast. Tool sets cost high and once a company invests in an ecosystem, they generally don’t switch. In such a case, if you showcase your expertise with say ALTERA at a company that uses Xilinx, it may not come across as impressive to those looking to fill in a new spot. I think it’s better to keep your feet in non hardware fields if you want to be sure of getting a job as the first thing. To continue in FPGA/ASIC design, I’d suggest you do a MS degree in a US university in a location that has a lot of chip design industries (I’d guess Bay Area, Texas), because that’s where you can have a good chance of getting an internship and that’s going to be your foot in the door, to start a career in the field of FPGA/ASIC design. Getting an internship is very very crucial if you want to get started with a career in hardware engineering since the situation is similar in US also, where you need to hit the ground running from day 1. With an internship/co-op it becomes much easier since they give you some slack because you are a student . Whatever you do, dont just get stuck in the cess pool of IT Services jobs in India, because your friends in those fields have magnificent titles and pay. If you get to work on a product at a product company, great. But orherwise for someone like you IMO a graduate degree in the US is the best bet. (I’m from b’luru, did grad course in FPGA Design in the US and later switched to s/w dev because I was not awesome at h/w)
- godelmachine 9y ago
  Many thanks for your suggestions. Went through your reply couple of times. Would you kindly give me pointers on how to get scholarships for MS in US? And how to successfully get RA or TA. Asking since you have already finished yours. As I've previously mentioned, I am in IT now working in Enterprise Software.
  - calvinbhai 9y ago
    I went to a good university with an ok EE dept in a very bad location, and didn’t look for assistantship. But based on what I have seen, look for universities / departments that are well funded for research (I don’t know how you can get that info), which often means more assistantship opportunities. Getting an RA/TA can also be competitive but since you have some work experience, it depends on how well you market your experience to fit the RA/TA role.

pkaye 9y ago

I'll be honest I think even in US getting a good chip engineering job is tough. I've a firmware engineering background so I straddle between hardware and software. I see lots of EE students come into the workforce and realize the software is where the action is and struggle to switch over. As a hiring manager, I feel for them and try to help their transition but many are not prepared in their coursework even for firmware. Even some chip designers I worked with were asking me how to transition over. A few were taking courses on the side. Even I switched over the general software side though I try to keep my foot in the door should it even improve.

godelmachine 9y ago
When I do apply for MS in US, I'm planning for AI/ Machine Learning. Yesterday, I was reading https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16196421 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16196421 This also looks promising. Combines stocks & software engineering. C++ mastery is required and also knowledge of Computer Architecture. Another field I've shortlisted is Management in Information Systems, since I'm in Enterprise Automation (BMC Software) Would you kindly bring to my attention any more promising fields that you know of? Thanks.
- pkaye 9y ago
  It is hard to predict where things will be 2-5 years down the line even for AI/machine learning (which I personally don't know a lot about.) What if AI becomes more automated in a few years so less people are needed? But atleast for now it seems like a good place to start. My general thoughts are get into a top tier university as that gives you a head start to find a promising company to join. Pick a field that really interests you yet balance with market demands. Focus on the broad computer engineering skills that will be applicable in many industries. Work hard to make a name for yourself at your first job. At some point it will build up a network of people who can transition you into other industries as you change jobs. Eventually you will hit the leading edge of some hot technology and can make your success.
  - godelmachine 9y ago
    This is a very good idea that you told me. Thanks for this :)

calvinbhai 9y ago

FPGA and ASIC design as a field is very vast. Tool sets cost high and once a company invests in an ecosystem, they generally don’t switch. In such a case, if you showcase your expertise with say ALTERA at a company that uses Xilinx, it may not come across as impressive to those looking to fill in a new spot. I think it’s better to keep your feet in non hardware fields if you want to be sure of getting a job as the first thing. To continue in FPGA/ASIC design, I’d suggest you do a MS degree in a US university in a location that has a lot of chip design industries (I’d guess Bay Area, Texas), because that’s where you can have a good chance of getting an internship and that’s going to be your foot in the door, to start a career in the field of FPGA/ASIC design. Getting an internship is very very crucial if you want to get started with a career in hardware engineering since the situation is similar in US also, where you need to hit the ground running from day 1. With an internship/co-op it becomes much easier since they give you some slack because you are a student . Whatever you do, dont just get stuck in the cess pool of IT Services jobs in India, because your friends in those fields have magnificent titles and pay. If you get to work on a product at a product company, great. But orherwise for someone like you IMO a graduate degree in the US is the best bet. (I’m from b’luru, did grad course in FPGA Design in the US and later switched to s/w dev because I was not awesome at h/w)

godelmachine 9y ago
Many thanks for your suggestions. Went through your reply couple of times. Would you kindly give me pointers on how to get scholarships for MS in US? And how to successfully get RA or TA. Asking since you have already finished yours. As I've previously mentioned, I am in IT now working in Enterprise Software.
- calvinbhai 9y ago
  I went to a good university with an ok EE dept in a very bad location, and didn’t look for assistantship. But based on what I have seen, look for universities / departments that are well funded for research (I don’t know how you can get that info), which often means more assistantship opportunities. Getting an RA/TA can also be competitive but since you have some work experience, it depends on how well you market your experience to fit the RA/TA role.