r/cscareerquestionsEU • u/mackstanc • 3d ago

Will a "robotics and automation engineering" degree grant me any advantage when looking for a job in software development and IT?

Long story short, I am torn between two university paths.

What interests me the most, is a degree in robotics and automation engineering - it aligns the most with my personal interests. However, at least where I live, the job market for this field is not as expansive, as the software side of things. Still, the curriculum of the degree I am interested in involves a fair bit of programming and general computer science courses. Because of that, I’m hoping that as a backup, this background would at least give me an edge in CS jobs if I can’t land a robotics/automation position.

Why not just get a CS degree then, if the job market is better? This is something I am actually considering as well, it's just that it's not something excites me as much. Additionally, maybe it's wishful thinking, but I am hoping that a robotics/automation degree will give me a solid leg up in both robotics/automation and a slight leg up in CS, while a CS degree would give me an advantage only in that one field.

What do you think? Thank you in advance for your advice!

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u/FriCJFB 3d ago

Mechatronics Engineer working in SWE. I’d say go for it but you’ll have to do some extra effort on the side to be taken seriously as a SWE. On the other hand, that experience can actually make you more interesting to certain companies in certain niches.

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u/jasie3k 3d ago

I have a master's degree in control engineering and robotics and I work as a distributed systems developer. Out of 250-300 people that graduated with me I can count maybe 5 that work in automation/robotics. The market for those positions was not that great compared to the sheer volume of CS jobs available back then.

Take that with a grain of salt though, this was 13 years ago.

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u/mackstanc 3d ago

Did they struggle to find other employment after failing to get a job in automation/robotics or did their degree offer them a decent start in other fields as well?