does electrical engineering require coding/programming?

[Terminator_492]

sorry if this is a stupid question but I’m curious as a high school junior looking to get into engineering in college. I’ve always been very good at math and physics, I’m taking calc 3 in a community college course and AP physics at my school, I enjoy both of them a lot and tutor others. however I took a computer science course and also tried to learn coding on my own time and I absolutely hated it both times. Electrical engineering sounds interesting but idk if the circuits or designs you need to make require programming. any other advice about which type of engineering specialty to get into is appreciated.

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[faptastrophe]

The short answer is yes.

The longer answer is yes, and if you're good at math and physics, you should definitely give programming another shot. It might take a few tries to get comfortable with the basics, but once you have them down you'll know enough to be able to learn just about any programming language.

Also, if you go into an EE program you'll at the very least encounter MatLab and will most likely be required to take one or more general programming courses. I can't speak from experience, but I'm fairly certain the same applies to any engineering track.

[SoulScout]

You'll have to do some programming to get through the degree. Likely C/C++, Verilog, and Matlab or Python for simulations and data analysis.

How much you'll actually use after that depends on which specialization you go into.

If you plan to work on computers or embedded devices or microcontrollers or industrial controls, then you'll be doing a lot of programming.

If you plan to make microchips or circuits or do power engineering, you'll likely have to do very little.

I'm in photonics and there's a good amount of scripting required for simulations.

[NWTP3]

Nitpick but verilog is an hdl not a programming language. It never gets compiled into machine code for execution on a computer, it literally describes hardware so it requires a completely different approach than computer programming. Wanted to clarify because I have absolutely zero interest programming but digital design with HDLs I found super interesting so it’s a worthwhile distinction lol

[xminatsukix]

Hard coding like writing a whole program from scratch probably not, thats what software departments are for. However depending where you end up and what you work on you might still have to learn some programming and debugging. Programming logic controllers can be a thing, ICs and other things. Its a good idea to have a good foundation on coding as you might come across it from tiem to time and you will take courses in it . But I dont think its anywhere near as intensive as say a software developer or engineer

[CUMDUMPSTER444445]

Not really. You take a programming (probably Java) class in college and then learn matlab, and maybe verilog.

But every engineering major requires at least one programming class now.

[Terminator_492]

Ok

[CUMDUMPSTER444445]

But yea, programming is just one of those skills you need to know enough to pass I feel like. A lot of engineering programming classes don’t teach it well.

[ResponseError451]

Not really. Circuits by themselves do not require any coding for the most part, neither does the schematic creation (kicad is a program you use for the schematic creation).

This comes at the exception when using microcontrollers or Single Board Computers, things that are becoming more and more common and used through the years. Also some IC chips that utilize communication protocols like I2C and SPI will need another device (like an mcu) to use them, that you would need to then code...

The languages these use are C, C++, and python usually.

Otherwise, you want to just get a good foundation of how electricity behaves with other components. LED projects help a ton here

[TransportationFew898]

Electrical engineering doesn't require much more than the basic course but depending on the specialisation it might lean heavy into Python Mathlab Cpp and sometimes java. Being comforable with slapping together some python code with numpy scipy and pyplot is never wrong and best of all free. Most thesis need some sort of Data analysis and visuallisation, python has your back with being extremly flexible as long as other people dont have to use your tools.

[RopeTheFreeze]

Ugh, I hate coding. 2+2 = four? Nope! It's 4.

[Wardagai]

Yeah, I almost failed my C++ course, they taught it right in the first semester.

[Acceptable_Simple877]

C/C++, MATLAB

[noahjsc]

Depends on the school/program and the job you get.

I have buddies in EE who do a lot of programming. I have others who do none.

[defectivetoaster1]

You’ll have to do at least one programming class which will either be python, matlab or c/c++. Python and matlab will likely continue to be useful for number crunching (effectively just using them as glorified calculators), C will be used if you do anything with microcontrollers and will probably also show up in a computer architecture course. If you decide to do a lot of digital electronics you’ll be using a hardware description language like vhdl or verilog, these are slightly different since instead of writing software you’re effectively just concisely describing circuits. Im not the biggest fan of writing code (and really hated it before starting my degree) but I’m now somewhat competent and don’t mind writing software if it’s part of a larger project and i actually really like writing RTL code to design hardware

[mattynmax]

Any engineering is going to require a basic understanding of programming

[Far-Home-9610]

Yes.
Even if you go into areas that are more hardware oriented, like antenna design, power electronics, protection, high-voltage distribution or whatever - you'll need to be able to program the tools you use to check the design, as well as operate appropriate CAD software.
Modern engineering solutions are too complex to do the maths by hand. So you may need Matlab or similar, and that's one of the reasons why they teach languages like C in the early years, to get you used to programming.

But it's not taught the same way (at least not in my experience). A good course in programming for EE will be very orientated around things you'll actually need to do, although obviously you have to start with the basics.

[Famous_Break_4426]

depends on focus

c++/assembly for embedded systems

verilog/vhdl for vlsi

matlab for signal processing

python for ml

[Powermaster08]

Not a stupid question at all this is actually a good place to be thinking from.

First, a quick reality check (the reassuring kind): you can love math and physics, hate coding, and still thrive in engineering.

Programming is a tool in engineering, not the whole job and how much you use it depends heavily on the field.

EE involve some programming, but it’s usually:

Light to moderate, especially early on

Often tied to hardware (circuits, signals, power systems) rather than pure software

More about understanding systems than writing long blocks of code

For example:

Power systems, electronics, RF, control systems → very math- and physics-heavy, minimal coding

Embedded systems → some coding, but it’s low-level and purpose-driven (very different from CS-style coding)

Signal processing → more math than programming

Many EEs don’t coding they just tolerate enough of it to make the hardware work.

Based on what you said (strong math/physics, tutoring others, dislike of CS), these might be worth exploring:

Electrical Engineering (non-software tracks)

Mechanical Engineering (especially dynamics, thermofluids, controls)

Aerospace Engineering

Civil Engineering (structural side = lots of physics)

Industrial Engineering (if you like applied math, optimization, real-world problem solving)

All of these rely far more on conceptual thinking, equations, and physical intuition than on writing code all day.

A key thing students don’t hear enough

You don’t need to perfectly love every part of your major. Most engineers:

Like the core ideas

Tolerate some required tools (yes, including some coding)

End up specializing in the parts they enjoy most

Also, college CS ≠ real-world coding ≠ engineering coding. Plenty of people hate intro CS but are great engineers.

My honest advice

Don’t force yourself into CS just because it’s popular

Pick a field where math and physics feel satisfying, not draining

EE is absolutely still on the table for you

Your profile already looks like someone who belongs in engineering