There are many departments in the automotive industry that require software experts. Each department has its own responsibilities to test, verify and deliver accuracy and all these are done through computerized technology.

Candidates who choose career in the automotive industry, have to study mechanical sciences and the auto industry in detail. There is a large gap between the computer platforms and the technical and machinery knowledge of these people.

The industry seeks computer hardware and software experts to bridge this gap. A hardware engineer in the automotive industry environment would be designing, developing and testing hardware for the development of automotive products. Though from the outline the job sounds simple and straight, in reality it is a very demanding and difficult job to execute. The job involves additional responsibilities like managing a team of engineers and keeping track of the project.

The job role involves a lot of critical responsibilities, and hence they are well paid job roles in any department. Candidates who aspire to become hardware engineers should have the appropriate education and an excellent track record right from college, to become a project manager in the same job role.

Education

The minimum qualification required for this job role is a bachelor’s degree in engineering with mechanical, automotive or electrical as a specialization. The person should have expertise on mechanical aspects in order to design and execute the job. The additional computer knowledge required would be knowledge of intricate computer technology like micro processors and micro controllers. This knowledge is essential, because many of the machinery parts that these engineers would be designing deal with the computer microprocessors and integrating them into the hardware.

If the person does not have a degree in engineering from electrical, he should at least have knowledge of digital and analog technologies, and should be well versed with them. Other design tools knowledge like the CADSTAR, AUTO CAD and EDA tools are very helpful in the industry, and help the job role to a great extent. The project undertaken in the college level should show academic and computer expertise.

Education required:

Bachelor of Engineering in Automotive/ mechanical/ Electrical
AUTO CAD, CADSTAR
Microprocessor knowledge
Software design software knowledge

Skills

Candidates have to be good with designing and should have creative skills. They should also be good with communication and team building skills because they will be working in a team or handling it. If they need to handle a project, then their resume should show relevant project and management experience. Their academic knowledge will be applied in designing the hardware and, also testing and verifying their functionalities.

Candidates designing hardware using design software should have very good logical skills to debug the problems. This helps to save time and speed up the designing process in order to meet deadlines. The maximum salary can go above the industry standards depending on the levels of experience a person has, and it also depends on the personal negotiations.

After the initial experience of 5 to 7 years, it is very easy for a person to migrate from one job role to another within the company or the industry. If a person has a master’s degree in engineering, it is all the more easily to grow vertically in positions.

Expected Salary

Beginner: $4000
Mid Level: $5500
Expert: $6500-$8500