In today’s technologically advanced world, understanding programming languages is an essential skill, especially for engineers. These skills are useful in the development of a large number of digital tools. This upsurge of skills has resulted in high demand for engineers with programming knowledge.
As an engineer, you are a developer, problem solver, and designer of technical structures. Knowing the details of these technical structures will help you excel in your career and open a world of possibilities. However, it is an incredibly creative field. You will still have to perform thousands of monotonous tasks before you can go anywhere near inventing the next induction motor.
Programming languages help make these tedious tasks simple. They use algorithms to deal with analytical and computational problems. Any electronic device that you use has a certain programming language at its back end that is running the device.
Does this question pop up in your mind? With so many different programming languages that have emerged over the last few decades, which ones should you go for? To ease your dilemma, here is a list of the top programming languages that an engineer should know:
Covered Topics
1. JavaScript
Java is one of the most popular programming languages. It is used on many different operating systems and is owned by Oracle. It is secure, reliable, swift, and used in mobile phones, desktop applications, games, and other electronic media.
Java is the programming language of HTML and is also used in web development. Java is one of the top most sought-after languages for most engineers, so ensure that it is amongst the top choices on your list.
It is better if you have some understanding of what programming languages are before you take the dive and opt for learning Java. It cannot be easy to understand if you don’t know what programming languages are and their general structure.
If you don’t have any prior knowledge of programming languages, then you should study computer engineering. It will help you understand programming languages, develop applications, and execute complex new inventions.
2. Python
Like Java, Python is also one of the most important programming languages in the world. It is a powerful software programming language. It is a general-purpose programming language and can be used for many functions. It can assist in simple and complex software development and help develop programs that can make the general public’s life much easier. Moreover, it emphasizes reliability and security.
It is also involved in back-end development, data sciences, software development, and writing system scripts. Unlike Java Script, Python is easier to read and use. The main purpose of its design was to aid programmers in writing straightforward and readable codes for projects. Moreover, it is more dynamic compared to Java.
3. MATLAB
The multi-paradigm programming language MATLAB, also known as Matrix Laboratory, was created by MathWorks. Most of the calculations and numerical analyses performed by engineers are done in a numeric computing environment. It greatly facilitates their work and is one of the most popular programming languages engineers studies.
MATLAB is fast, flexible, simple, and can be easily learned. It is based on a mathematical model and is a great mode for engineers to make precise and accurate calculations. There are 5 million users of the Matrix Laboratory worldwide.
4. Structured Query Language (SQL)
SQL is an important programming language for engineers because it can increase their marketability in the job market to a great degree. It is said to be the core of many applications and software programs. It is used in database management and helps build, manipulate, and maintain data in a database.
SQL is the most widely used database language; practically any business that wants to store relational data can use it. If you are an engineer working with databases, you will need an understanding of SQL. It isn’t hard to learn and can make many tasks much easier for you.
5. Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP)
PHP is one of the most popular programming languages in the world due to its open-sourced, general-purpose nature. It is mostly used in web development and is embedded in the website through HTML.
It processes data before it is sent to the user. It helps in back-end development, outputting messages, and retrieving data from databases. Moreover, it generates pages and encrypts data as well. There are many other functions that PHP can perform. It is the simplest of all programming languages. Hence, we recommend learning PHP to engineers actively working on web development and execution.
6. C++
C++ can be run on Windows, UNIX, and Mac OS. It is a case-sensitive, free-form, general-purpose programming language that supports generic and procedural programming. It also supports Object Oriented Programming (OOP) and helps with encapsulation, inheritance, polymorphism, and data hiding.
C++ is used in a variety of programs like games, browsers, software applications, and even the development of operating systems. As an engineer, it will help you understand the programming of many programs, and you can design and develop many applications too.
7. C Sharp (C#)
C Sharp (C#) is used in developing desktop applications and web development. It is very popular amongst the engineering fraternity as it is one of the main languages used for developing programs used in Microsoft.
It is derived from C and C++ and is an Object-oriented programming (OOP) language. However, it is much simpler to learn. Programmers use it to design, develop and execute efficient and effective programs. Moreover, it can be installed in Windows, Mac OS, and other operating systems. If you’ve learned C and C++, then C# should be a piece of cake.
Bottom Line:
All the programming languages mentioned above are very important if you want to excel in your engineering career. It adds talents and skills to your portfolio and makes you a viable candidate during recruitment. However, we recommend you learn Python first and then move on to the other languages. It is a general purpose, simple, and incredibly flexible language. It will help you get a basic handle on programming languages. Then you can pursue SQL, C++, and other such programming languages.
