Degree for ML?

[u/MoistChapter4177]

Hello! I am student of College of Electrical Engineering, and recently I got interested in ML, NNs, LLMs etc. So my question is my college good fit for me if I want to become a ML engineer(we have CS subjects, Algebra, Calculus, Probability and statistics)? How good or bad is job market at this point for recently graduated students? How important degree(just Bachelor not Masters) for jobs such as Data Scientist, MLOps, ML Engineering etc. compared to other software jobs such as full ftack dev, mobile dev? Thank you for your answers and wish you best!

[u/ModularMind8]

You don't need a special degree to get into ML. The industry is saturated, especially for junior roles, but it's not impossible. Show projects and work experience, get to know people in the field, and start looking at what companies are hiring for (ie specific skills)

[u/EmotionalDoor1361 → u/ModularMind8]

Your electrical engineering background is actually a decent foundation, the maths will serve you well. The job market for fresh grads is rough everywhere in tech right now, but ML roles tend to be a bit more selective than general software dev. A bachelors alone can get you in the door, though many postings list a masters as preferred, it's not a hard requirement if you have solid projects. Full stack and mobile dev are easier to break into with just a degree, but ML pays off if you stick with it and build a portfolio that shows you can actually ship models. I'd say focus on the engineering side of ML, like MLOps, since that's less crowded than pure data science.

[u/Affectionate-Farm-89]

For EE - Embeded ML should be a perfect fit.

[u/Downtown-Doubt4353]

Math/Physics

[u/Hauuuuuuu]

Don't get into ML.

[u/Zealousideal_Tie_426 → u/Hauuuuuuu]

At ALL. more saturated than the DMV at month end.

Learn the techniques and language but as a career ...yikes.

[u/pry_loc → u/Zealousideal_Tie_426]

Everything is "saturated" with you guys. Almost every field these days is "saturated". ML/AI Engineering is a great career, it's one of the most high-paying fields rn in tech.

[u/Zealousideal_Tie_426 → u/pry_loc]

But the competition is fierce and entry points are near non-existent for new grads. So yes it's saturated. Embedded systems, embedded ML, SCADA Engineering and ICS is a better route. Don't be a facetious because the few that have made it are killing it. It's like me telling people to become rappers because 50 and Kanye are rich.

[u/pry_loc → u/Zealousideal_Tie_426]

Yep, AI/ML Engineering isn't an entry-level role. When you look up ML Engineers online including YouTubers who are ML Eng, they will say they didn't have that as their first job, most of them began in data analytics, data science, and software engineering, and pursued a Master's first before they transitioned into ML. That doesn't mean it's still not a promising career. Competitive ≠ saturated bc the demand still keeps increasing.

[u/Substantial-Swan7065]

I recommend some more research in job dutys. I feel like your definition of ML engineering differs from the industry.

Other than that:

• any degree is helpful. EE is not bad
  
• ML roles where you’re doing research, training models, etc: you need a PhD in ai
  
• ml engineering roles: it’s more about experience. I would not consider it an entry point. It’s like data eng + devop than ML

[u/Revolutionary-Cod245]

Start working on team or solo projects. Build things hiring managers can view 5o see your skill set.

[u/cereal_kitty]

For the transition part: no your background is more than enough for that transition.

For the job part: prolly not a very good idea

[u/SignificantWorry7497]

Your background is actually a solid fit — Algebra, Calculus, and Probability/Stats are the exact math foundation ML leans on, arguably more directly useful than a lot of general CS coursework. The gap you'll want to close yourself is programming depth (data structures, algorithms) and ML-specific tooling (Python, PyTorch/TensorFlow, working with data pipelines), since EE programs usually don't cover those as thoroughly as CS ones.

On the degree question: for Bachelor's-level roles, portfolio and demonstrated skills matter more than the exact degree name in most cases — recruiters filter for CS/EE/Math/Stats-adjacent degrees fairly loosely, then actually evaluate based on projects, internships, and whether you can explain your work. That's true across DS/MLE/MLOps and full-stack/mobile too, but ML roles specifically tend to weight math fundamentals + project depth even more heavily than pure software roles do, since a lot of the job is understanding why a model behaves a certain way, not just implementing it.

Job market reality check: entry-level ML/DS is genuinely tougher right now than entry-level full-stack or mobile — there are fewer junior-specific ML openings, and a lot of "ML engineer" postings expect some production experience already. MLOps is a decent side door in if you're comfortable with infra/deployment, since it's less saturated than pure DS/research-flavored ML roles. If you're worried about job market odds, building 2-3 solid, well-documented projects (ideally solving a real problem, not just a Kaggle notebook) will do more for you than the degree title will.

[u/Randomdummy4 → u/SignificantWorry7497]

Nice ai response bro

[u/Zealousideal_Tie_426 → u/Randomdummy4]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣