A little context about me: I'm finishing my first year of general engineering courses in college and plan to transfer into computer engineering. I've done my entry level C++ courses and tinker around with Arduino (nothing too complex). I've built about 10 computers and love hands-on hardware work, but also have really enjoyed all of my coding classes. I also have an interest in security and networks.
First question: I understand computer engineering to be a mix of electrical engineering and coding, is this study path a good one to follow if my aim is to possibly work in security and networking? Should I consider CS instead?
Second: I will have some free time over the summer and would like to focus on learning something useful, but I don't really know where to start. A new coding language? Set up a few computers and learn some basic pen-testing? Learn UNIX, Linux, some other OS?
I'd also be really interested in hearing what educational path everyone on the Tek Team took back in the day, and what they would recommend for my generation. Thanks for any responses!
Is computer engineering a good study path one to follow if my aim is to possibly work in security and networking?
Firstly, I recommend having a very firm grasp on mathematics. The electrical engineering component would be heavily comprised of differential equations, complex numbers, integrals and series. Topics like signal processing (Fourier transforms, filters, convolution) analogue systems (circuit analysis involving capacitors, inductors, diodes and transistors), communications (error detection, error correction, parity, Hamming code) and programming (assembly language, machine language) are expressed almost entirely through mathematical language. Being good at mathematics is of paramount importance to succeed in such a course.
Computer engineers are definitely sought after in the security and networking industries, but a computer science degree is probably just as effective and demands less effort compared to an engineering degree. It depends on what your interests are and what topics you want to learn. Engineering definitely has a broader scope of job opportunities so if you're still unsure about career paths, maybe try engineering and if you don't like it switch to computer science.
What should I learn over the Summer?
Learn how to install Arch Linux, then Gentoo; right from command line to a graphical interface. When it comes to working with other mainstream distributions like Fedora, Ubuntu, Mint, etc you will have so much more knowledge on how the Linux environment works compared to if you had just used a pre-configured distribution.
Maybe learn some Java as a second object-oriented language. To what degree do you know the C++ language? Can you create and manipulate a linked list? Which libraries are you accustomed with?
Get a head start on your next semester. Research which topics you will be learning and find some resources on the Internet to do some reading. Maybe write up some basic notes so you've got your head into what it is you're learning next.
Definitely learn Java like A5H said, assuming you haven't already. Java is derived from C++ and a lot of the syntax is the same. You'll be able to pick it up twice as fast, again assuming you haven't already.