Computer hardware engineers design, develop, and test the physical components that power computers and electronic systems, from processors and circuit boards to memory devices and networking equipment. The median annual wage was $155,020 as of May 2024, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 7 percent job growth from 2024 to 2034, which is much faster than average. Getting into this field takes a combination of the right degree, targeted technical skills, and hands-on experience you can start building while still in school.
What Hardware Engineers Actually Do
Hardware engineers work at the intersection of electrical engineering and computer science. Day to day, the work involves designing circuit boards, processors, routers, sensors, or other physical computing components. You might model a new chip architecture, run simulations to verify it works under different conditions, build prototypes, and then test those prototypes against performance and reliability specs.
The role spans far more industries than most people realize. Consumer electronics and semiconductor companies are the obvious employers, but hardware engineers also work in aerospace, automotive, medical device manufacturing, telecommunications, defense, and data center infrastructure. Any product with embedded computing power likely had a hardware engineer involved in its design.
Degree Requirements
A bachelor’s degree is the standard entry point. The most direct paths are a degree in computer engineering or electrical engineering. Computer engineering programs specifically blend digital hardware design with enough software coursework that you understand both sides of the system. Electrical engineering works well too, especially if you concentrate your electives in digital systems, embedded systems, or VLSI (very-large-scale integration) design.
During your undergraduate program, focus on coursework in digital logic design, computer architecture, signal processing, microprocessor systems, and embedded systems. Labs matter enormously in this field. Programs that have you building and testing circuits, programming FPGAs (field-programmable gate arrays), and using industry-standard tools will prepare you far better than theory-heavy programs with minimal hands-on work.
A master’s degree is not required for entry-level positions, but it becomes valuable if you want to specialize in areas like chip design, advanced processor architecture, or hardware security. Some senior and research-oriented roles at major semiconductor companies strongly prefer or require a graduate degree.
Technical Skills Employers Want
Beyond your degree, specific technical skills separate competitive candidates from the rest of the applicant pool. These fall into three categories.
Hardware Description Languages
Hardware description languages (HDLs) are how engineers describe and simulate digital circuits before they are physically built. VHDL and Verilog are the two dominant languages, each appearing in roughly 31 percent of job postings. SystemVerilog, an extension of Verilog that adds verification features, shows up in about 23 percent. If you learn Verilog and SystemVerilog well, you cover the majority of what employers expect. VHDL is equally respected and more common in defense and aerospace work.
Programming Languages
You will also need traditional programming skills. Python is the most requested language, appearing in about 25 percent of hardware engineering job listings. It is used heavily for scripting, test automation, and data analysis during the verification process. C and C++ follow, reflecting their importance in firmware development and low-level hardware interaction. Tcl and Perl, both scripting languages, are used for automating design tool workflows and show up in a smaller but consistent share of postings.
Design and Simulation Tools
Employers expect familiarity with industry-standard design environments. Vivado, made by AMD/Xilinx, is the most commonly requested FPGA design tool, appearing in roughly 22 percent of listings. MATLAB and its companion Simulink are used for modeling and simulation across many hardware roles. ModelSim and Questa are verification tools you will encounter when simulating HDL code. Altera Quartus (now Intel Quartus) is another major FPGA platform. Getting hands-on time with even one or two of these tools during school or personal projects gives you a real advantage.
Building Experience Before Your First Job
Hardware engineering is a field where internships carry significant weight. Many large employers, particularly semiconductor and electronics companies, use their internship programs as direct pipelines for full-time hiring. Aim to land at least one internship before graduation, ideally in a role that involves actual design or testing work rather than purely administrative support.
Personal projects also matter. FPGA development boards are relatively affordable, and designing, building, and documenting your own projects demonstrates initiative in a way that coursework alone does not. Implementing a simple processor, building a custom peripheral controller, or contributing to open-source hardware projects all make for strong portfolio pieces. If you can show a working design alongside the HDL code and test results, you are already ahead of many new graduates.
Undergraduate research is another avenue. Many university labs focus on hardware topics like low-power design, hardware security, or novel computing architectures. Working with a faculty member on a research project builds deeper expertise and can lead to conference publications that strengthen both job and graduate school applications.
Professional Licensing
Most computer hardware engineers work under what is known as an industrial exemption, meaning they do not need a Professional Engineer (PE) license because they are employed by a company rather than offering engineering services directly to the public. Licensing becomes necessary only if you want to work as an independent consulting engineer or need to sign and stamp engineering documents for public agencies.
That said, earning a PE license signals professional competence and ethical commitment, which is increasingly relevant as computing hardware becomes embedded in safety-critical systems like medical devices, autonomous vehicles, and infrastructure. The path to licensure starts with passing the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam, typically taken near the end of your bachelor’s program. After accumulating several years of professional experience under a licensed engineer, you can sit for the PE exam itself.
Career Path and Salary Growth
Entry-level hardware engineers typically start with titles like hardware design engineer, verification engineer, or FPGA engineer. Early in your career, much of the work involves detailed design tasks and testing under the guidance of senior engineers. As you gain experience, you take ownership of larger subsystems and eventually lead the architecture of entire products.
The median annual wage of $155,020 reflects the midpoint across all experience levels. Entry-level salaries are lower, often ranging from the high $70,000s to low $100,000s depending on the employer, location, and your specific role. Senior engineers, principal engineers, and engineering managers typically earn well above the median. Specializing in high-demand areas like chip design, hardware security, or AI accelerator development can push compensation even higher.
The 7 percent projected growth rate from 2024 to 2034 reflects steady demand driven by the expansion of connected devices, cloud infrastructure, autonomous systems, and custom silicon for AI workloads. While the total number of hardware engineering positions is smaller than software engineering, the specialized skill set means competition for qualified candidates stays strong.
Steps to Get Started
- Earn a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering or electrical engineering, prioritizing coursework in digital design, computer architecture, and embedded systems.
- Learn HDLs early. Start with Verilog or VHDL during your sophomore or junior year, and add SystemVerilog for verification work.
- Build programming skills in Python, C, and C++. These complement your hardware knowledge and are expected in nearly every hardware role.
- Get hands-on tool experience with at least one major design environment like Vivado, Quartus, or ModelSim through coursework, labs, or personal projects.
- Complete at least one internship at a company that designs or manufactures hardware, aiming for a position where you write HDL, run simulations, or test physical prototypes.
- Build a project portfolio using affordable FPGA boards or open-source hardware platforms to demonstrate your ability to design, simulate, and validate working systems.
- Consider a master’s degree if you want to specialize in chip design, hardware security, or research-oriented roles at top semiconductor firms.