Research, design, develop, and test computer or computer-related equipment for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use. May supervise the manufacturing and installation of computer or computer-related equipment and components.

Investigative - Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.

1. Update knowledge and skills to keep up with rapid advancements in computer technology.

2. Provide technical support to designers, marketing and sales departments, suppliers, engineers and other team members throughout the product development and implementation process.

3. Test and verify hardware and support peripherals to ensure that they meet specifications and requirements, by recording and analyzing test data.

4. Monitor functioning of equipment and make necessary modifications to ensure system operates in conformance with specifications.

5. Analyze information to determine, recommend, and plan layout, including type of computers and peripheral equipment modifications.

6. Build, test, and modify product prototypes using working models or theoretical models constructed with computer simulation.

7. Analyze user needs and recommend appropriate hardware.

8. Direct technicians, engineering designers or other technical support personnel as needed.

9. Confer with engineering staff and consult specifications to evaluate interface between hardware and software and operational and performance requirements of overall system.

10. Select hardware and material, assuring compliance with specifications and product requirements.

11. Store, retrieve, and manipulate data for analysis of system capabilities and requirements.

Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.

Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.

Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed

Education: Most of these occupations require a four - year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

Training: Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

The college search results are undergraduate programs associated with Computer Hardware Engineers. Further education may also be required to pursue this career.

The training search results include both short and long-term programs associated with Computer Hardware Engineers, and may be more appropriate for adult and non-traditional students. Further training may also be required to pursue this career.

In NY the average wage for this occupation was:

$63,850 for entry level workers, and $122,220 for experienced workers.

Based on the total number of annual openings and its growth rate, the employment prospects for this occupation are described as Least Favorable.

During 2006, there were approximately 4,470 Computer Hardware Engineers employed in NY.

We estimate that in 2016 there will be 4,370  employed in NY. This represents a decrease of 0 job(s) each year, and a total of 140 job openings each year.

Summer Computer Camp at New York Institute of Technology - Manhattan NY - When it comes to learning cool new technologies at your own pace, Cybercamps gives you a lot of options. All of the courses are project based, which means you'll learn by making cool things. The courses are grouped into three main subject areas, User (Graphics),Coder (Programming), and Gamer (Game Design)!

LEGO? MINDSTORMS? - Robotics is a popular and effective way for teachers to cover important areas of their Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths curricula. The LEGO? MINDSTORMS? for Schools series is tailor-made for classroom and after-school club use. It includes construction sets, programming tools and activity packs.

KidSmart - A Guide to Early Learning and Technology for Home - This new website for early learning and technology is presented in nine languages. It includes a guide for parents to encourage early learning at home. This site will help you understand what's possible when it comes to young children and computer time.

FIRST and the Finger Lakes - Upstate New York Region - This year's game, titled Rack & Roll poses a new challenge to the high school teams to design and build robots that can pick-up donut-shaped pool floats and place them on a star-like ten-foot-tall structure on the playing field. The teams have a limited six-week period to design, build and test their robots. Rochester Institute of Technology will host the 2007 FIRST Finger Lakes Regional Robotics Competition.

iD Tech Camps:Fordham University Computer Camps, NY - iD Tech Camps offers summer computer camps for kids and teens. The courses are for beginner to advanced levels, and vary from creating video games and producing digital movies to designing web pages and learning programming and robotics.

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) - The IEEE is the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Through its global membership, the IEEE is a leading authority on areas ranging from aerospace systems, computers and telecommunications to biomedical engineering, electric power and consumer electronics among others.

Robotics: Assistive Design for the Future - The Robotics: Assistive Design for the Future program is designed to integrate engineering and technology into middle school students' after school and in-school curriculum. The curriculum is based on the students designing, building and programming a LEGO robot that will serve as an assistive device for some physically challenged population. The unit consists of ten lessons which take approximately 10 hours of instructional time with students.

Society of Women Engineers - The Society of Women Engineers(SWE), founded in 1950, is a nonprofit educational and service organization that helps women achieve their full potential as engineers and leaders. It is the driving force that establishes engineering as a highly desirable career aspiration for women.

American Society for Engineering Education - American Society for Engineering Education is a nonprofit organization of individuals and institutions committed to furthering education in engineering and engineering technology.

RIT Expanding Your Horizons - The Kate Gleason College of Engineering at Rochester Institute of Technology Women in Engineering offers a program entitled, ?Expanding Your Horizons? for girls in 8-10 grade and their parents.EYH gives young women a look into the field of engineering and how it is used in the real world. An adult track offers tips and advice to help young women be successful in their pursuit of college and provides adults with an opportunity to learn more about engineering as a career option for young women.

KidSmart - A Guide to Early Learning and Technology for School - The computer is a relatively new arrival in many early childhood classrooms. This site will help you understand what's possible when it comes to young children and computer time. It includes introductions to important issues about teaching and learning with technology, practical discussions, concrete tips on evaluating software and useful aids for classroom management and real lesson plan ideas submitted by teachers.

Engineers (Intro) - Visit this link for additional information on this career from the Occupational Outlook Handbook; a publication produced and maintained by the United States Department of Labor.

ScienCentral News: Making Sense of Science - From broadcast news features to educational products, ScienCentral News not only knows how to communicate complex ideas about medicine, health, technology, and the environment, but they also know how to tell a good story!

Cornell University Summer College Program: Engineering - If you're skilled in math and science and would like to use your talents to improve the world, then engineering could be the career for you. This program will give you a first-hand look at this diverse and exciting field. You'll investigate a wide range of technical disciplines including: Bioengineering and earth sciences, chemical and electrical engineering, civil and environmental engineering, computer science and engineering and structural and mechanical engineering.

For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) Robotics Competition - The FIRST Robotics Competition challenges teams of young people and their mentors to solve a common problem in a six week timeframe using a standard "kit of parts" and a common set of rules. Teams build robots from the parts and enter them in a series of competitions.

Internet Science and Technology Fair (ISTF) - ISTF is a web based science and technology competition. Teams of students from across the U.S. compete for certificates awarded by the National Medal of Technology Program at the U.S. Department of Commerce .Students are challenged to use information and communication tools as they work as a team to complete a four-month research project, master email to request technical information from scientists and engineers, search, analyze and synthesize electronic information sources from the Internet and present their final research findings in a website format.

Alliance of Technology and Women (ATW): ATW Tech Valley Albany, NY Chapter - The ATW supports women and men worldwide who share the common interests of empowering women in technology, increasing the number of women in executive roles and encouraging women and girls to enter technology fields. The NY Tech Valley Chapter provides programs for women and girls that enrich, educate and inform.

Alliance of Technology and Women (ATW) - Alliance of Technology and Women (ATW) supports women and men worldwide who share the common interests of empowering women in technology, increasing the number of women in executive roles and encouraging women and girls to enter technology fields.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Center for Initiatives in Pre-College Education (CIPCE) - RPI, through CIPCE, works with area K12 teachers and students, as well as local, statewide and national organizations, to promote the use of robotics and other technologies in the classroom. Since its inception, a series of professional development, academic and after-school programs have been created.

Computer hardware engineers - Visit this link for additional information on this career from the Occupational Outlook Handbook; a publication produced and maintained by the United States Department of Labor.

IBM EXITE (EXploring Interests in Technology and Engineering) Camp - Inspiring middle?school girls to make a difference in the world through math, science and technology is behind IBM's commitment this year for conducting more than 50 EXITE Camps. More than 1,700 girls, ages 11?13 will take part in a variety of engineering and science?related projects at the week?long EXITE camps across the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe and Asia Pacific, sponsored for the eighth year by IBM.

U.S. Space & Rocket Center Space Academy - Trainees who want to be Astronauts must learn to think like astronauts and the Space Academy Programs are designed to do just that! Participants have three fields of specialized study (or track options) to choose from: Aviation, Space, and Robotics.

RIT Women in Engineering: Everyday Engineering Summer Camp - Did you turn on the faucet today? Put on a pair of sneakers? Listen to a CD? Take a ride in a car? If so, then you've come in contact with engineering. Each day of RIT Women in Engineering: Everyday Engineering Summer Camp will demonstrate the engineering in common situations through demonstrations and hands-on activities.

International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) - ISTE provides leadership and service to improve teaching, learning, and school leadership by advancing the effective use of technology in PK to 12 and teacher education.

Summer Computer Camp at Solomon Schechter School Westchester, NY - When it comes to learning cool new technologies at your own pace, Cybercamps gives you a lot of options. All of the courses are project based, which means you'll learn by making cool things. The courses are grouped into three main subject areas, User (Graphics),Coder (Programming), and Gamer (Game Design)!

Bank Street School Upper Camp II Digital Technology - Digital Technology (ages 10-13) offers instruction in video taping, digital camera work, sound engineering, digital editing, and theatrical light design. Campers will work on a variety of creative individual and group digital projects, making their own short films and working together to create a documentary film all about Summer 2007!

New York City / New Jersey FIRST - New York City / New Jersey FIRST is dedicated to inspiring young people's interest in science and technology. Through the FIRST programs young proplr have the opportunity to participate on FIRST Robotics , FIRST Vex Challenge , and FIRST LEGO League and Junior FIRST LEGO League teams and compete in tournaments and competitions in the region and around the nation.

EXCITE, EXploring Interests in Technology and Engineering Camp - Inspiring middle school girls to make a difference in the world through math, science and technology is behind IBM's commitment this year for conducting more than 50 EXITE Camps. More than 1,700 girls, ages 11 to13 take part in a variety of engineering and science related projects at the week long EXITE camps across the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe and Asia Pacific.

Summer Computer Camp at The New School Manhattan, New York - When it comes to learning cool new technologies at your own pace, Cybercamps gives you a lot of options. All of the courses are project based, which means you'll learn by making cool things. The courses are grouped into three main subject areas, User (Graphics),Coder (Programming), and Gamer (Game Design)!

Westchester Community College Children and Teens 2007 - Westchester Community College Children and Teens 2007 programs include Ossining Summer Science Academy, Computer Arts for Teens, and Computers for Kids in Peekskill.

American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) K12 Center - The ASEE EngineeringK12 Center seeks to identify and gather in one place the most effective engineering education resources available to the K12 community. All activities under the K12 Center are shaped by three guiding principles: Building public awareness of K12 engineering education,provide education resources and extend networks among groups with an interest in K12 engineering education.

NASA Quest - NASA Quest connects K-12 classrooms with people,research and science through mission-based interactions and activities. The interactive explorations are designed to engage students in authentic scientific and engineering processes. A link to Women of NASA encourages young women to pursue careers in math and science.

TechXplore:A 21st Century Approach to Science and Technology Learning - TechXplore is a high impact education program and competition that connects teams of students with technology professionals from electronics, telecommunications, and high tech companies to explore the world of technology. Student teams conduct their research in accordance with project guidelines. Once the research process is complete, each student team creates a Web site to present their results which often include a concept for a new technology application or new product.

Summer at RPI: VEX Robotics Engineering Academy - Participants will work in teams to create a VEX robot that will be able to complete a challenge course. During this experience, students will learn to manipulate robots with both remote control and computer programming. Robots will be constructed by assembling a combination of mechanical components, basic electronics and sensors.

SUNY New Paltz Summer Camp: Mad Science Robotics Camp - Mad Science has sparked imaginative learning with their unique brand of engaging and educational live programs and activities. Robotics Camp - Explore the basic technology used to design and build robots and discover how they work. Learn about simple machines, gear structure, battery wiring, motor principles and electronic circuits.

TechGirlz Camp - Science or technology-minded girls who are deaf or hard-of-hearing and entering 8th grade will build their own computers, investigate ?crime scenes,? use high-tech lab equipment to solve problems and more.

NASA Quest - NASA Quest connects K12 classrooms with people,research and science through mission based interactions and activities. The interactive explorations are designed to engage students in authentic scientific and engineering processes. A link to Women of NASA encourages young women to pursue careers in math and science.

Rochester Institute of Technology National Technical Institute for the Deaf TechGirlz Camp - Science or technology minded girls who are deaf or hard-of-hearing and entering 8th grade build their own computers, investigate crime scenes and use high tech lab equipment to solve problems and more at TechGirlz Camp.

Summer at RPI: PREFACE and STEP Program - Explore all the engineering disciplines and engage in leadership, career, and professional development. The primary goal is to enable interested and talented students to explore the opportunities in engineering and engineering-related professions. Through interactive laboratory experiences, lectures, discussions, field trips, and plant visits, participants have an opportunity to explore the challenges and rewards of a technological education. Contact smithc@rpi.edu for more information.

School-Business Partnerships of Long Island FIRST LEGO League - Eight weeks of research and design culminate in the SBPLI-LI FIRST LEGO League Tournament. The challenge and excitement of designing and building an original robot for 9 to 14 year olds demonstrates their problem-solving skills, creative thinking, teamwork, competitive play and sportsmanship. The synopsis of the 2007/08 season is not yet available.

Rochester Institute of Technology, Women in Engineering - RIT's Women in Engineering emphasis is on establishing active outreach programs for middle and high school young women, creating and sustaining a mentoring program for RIT first and second year women engineering students, providing leadership opportunities for all women engineering students, and supporting an environment that allows women to succeed in an engineering program.

Park & Ride 2007 Amusement Park Ride Design Pre-Engineering Program for Middle School Girls - Do you want to: Design and build an amusement park ride? Learn about engineering? Come to RIT for a weekend event! Park & Ride 2007 Amusement Park Ride Design Pre-Engineering Program for Middle School Girls is an annual spring event to increase interest among girls in the field of engineering by guiding them through a hands-on experience with an engineering project.

Computer Support Specialists - Provide technical assistance to computer system users. Answer questions or resolve computer problems for clients in person, via telephone or from remote location. May provide assistance concerning the use of computer hardware and software, including printing, installation, word processing, electronic mail, and operating systems.

Mathematical Technicians - Apply standardized mathematical formulas, principles, and methodology to technological problems in engineering and physical sciences in relation to specific industrial and research objectives, processes, equipment, and products.

Electronic Drafters - Draw wiring diagrams, circuit board assembly diagrams, schematics, and layout drawings used for manufacture, installation, and repair of electronic equipment.

Aerospace Engineering and Operations Technicians - Operate, install, calibrate, and maintain integrated computer/communications systems consoles, simulators, and other data acquisition, test, and measurement instruments and equipment to launch, track, position, and evaluate air and space vehicles. May record and interpret test data.

Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary - Teach courses in computer science. May specialize in a field of computer science, such as the design and function of computers or operations and research analysis.

Computer, Automated Teller, and Office Machine Repairers - Repair, maintain, or install computers, word processing systems, automated teller machines, and electronic office machines, such as duplicating and fax machines.

Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Commercial and Industrial Equipment - Repair, test, adjust, or install electronic equipment, such as industrial controls, transmitters, and antennas.

Numerical Tool and Process Control Programmers - Develop programs to control machining or processing of parts by automatic machine tools, equipment, or systems.