Becoming an Engineer: Considerations and Personal Experiences

[sweetpotato]

I don't think engineering is the only major that leads directly into a career. How about education, nursing, accounting? For post-undergrad degrees, you have medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, law school... If I left something out I didn't do it on purpose, I just think there are more options out there than you think. Not that any major necessarily guarantees you a job.

Remember, you can become a teacher or doctor with any major (for teaching, you will probably want to seek licensure if you want to teach in a public school, there are programs for doing this both during and after you finish undergrad school). For medical school, you have to take premed classes. If you major in engineering, that is good preparation for many other careers (math/science teacher, med school, law school, business school...). If you like biology, how about a major in Biomedical Engineering? Just a suggestion.

 

[JJ_]

I finished my Mechanical Engineering degree about 4 years ago, it was a good course and opened up some great career paths.

The big money is probably as everyone knows in Oil, I choose to start my own company a few years ago and I was a Sales Engineer which can bring you a great salary c£60 on targets.

You have so many options, however, I have a friend who started in a similar course and is now finishing up his Physics degree.

Thankfully the computer does most of the equational work now, they didn't when I was at University :(

 

[RugbyEng]

I posted a thread and got no replies, I think this may be the better place.

I graduated in 2010 with a BS in Kinesiology, realizing that I didn't enjoy PT I did some "soul searching" and decided engineering was the route for me. I took classes at the CC and am now starting my first semester at a University. After this semester I will have taken all the maths required, as well as the engineering classes through thermodynamics. Unfortunately, I've recently learned that I will need to take some random general classes that will increase the length of time to graduate. I was wondering if you think it was possible for me to get into the Graduate program in ME after this semester? Maybe I would be required to take a couple extra courses like Fluids, Vibrations, and heat transfer first?

I e-mailed the program and I'm eagerly awaiting the response, just figured I'd post here to see if I should get my hopes up.

 

[e^(i Pi)+1=0]

I planning to dual-major on physics and engineering. Anyone care to try and talk me out of it?

 

[OnceMore]

I planning to dual-major on physics and engineering. Anyone care to try and talk me out of it?

If it is what you want to do I'd like to think no one could talk you out of it :)

 

[kdoyle13]

I am thinking about going into aerospace engineering. I went to school for business management but only ended up with an associates because I didn't really enjoy the coursework at all. I then got a job through a friend of mine and it was business related, I hated it so It only made me happier with my choice. I wanted to take time to figure out my interests. I've never been great at physics or math, I've always made b's or higher because I'm never to proud to see a tutor. If I have the head to stick through those areas of the degree, do you think I'd be ok going into this field? I'm very interested in everything aerospace.

 

[shurlee]

I'm currently a sophomore in college. I like biology, but a little weak in math. last summer I decided to go for engineering, but got discouraged after I flunked my trig class. I'm retaking it again this semester, but I'm not sure if I can handle the other math classes
I was opting for biomedical engineering, since I like biology, but still torn between bioprocess or chemE. Like kdoyle123, I'm a little weak in maths and phy, but really excited to learn calculus soon. any suggestions on this? also, is this the right field for someone a bit weak in math and phy? I don't like computer science so... yeah
thanks a bunch!

 

[kdoyle13]

I'm currently a sophomore in college. I like biology, but a little weak in math. last summer I decided to go for engineering, but got discouraged after I flunked my trig class. I'm retaking it again this semester, but I'm not sure if I can handle the other math classes
I was opting for biomedical engineering, since I like biology, but still torn between bioprocess or chemE. Like kdoyle123, I'm a little weak in maths and phy, but really excited to learn calculus soon. any suggestions on this? also, is this the right field for someone a bit weak in math and phy? I don't like computer science so... yeah
thanks a bunch!

I think it's the right field for someone who will willingly apply themselves to their work.

 

[seancss]

Hi Firstly I have read through the form here, well as much as I could in 30minutes and still am at war with myself,

I am 25 and am seriously confused with my life, I have a degree in Software Engineering and a masters in Eccomerce, Every month or so I get depressed about what way I should have chosen my career, I try to convince myself that I would not have liked engineering,

In school I took a subject called Engineering It was a very dumed down version of Engineering, no Maths, little physics it was very practical and theory like different types of welding etc..
I suppose I loved the practical side of things and the theory was interesting, I achieved high marks in this.

What I'm trying to figure out would I like or should try to do a masters in Engineering at some point and is it what a perceive it to be or with my relative degree / masters could I get into a company some way,

I wasn't that interested in Physics in school at all, and Maths no real interest also, I did electronics module in second year of my degree and god it was all maths I wanted to start making things but it was math math math I hated it, I like to know how things work and am extremely good with my hands and building things, I like to analyze things and see how they could be improved I suppose I do this in the IT field I am in already, I don't see myself liking doing allot of maths to prove a concept.

So if anyone could comment back on this it would really put my mind at rest i know I'm a weird one, but to be honest down in the dumps at the moment,

Thanks.
Sean.

 

[shurlee]

kdoyle13 -- thanks man. I feel much better now and doh, I got your name wrong in the first post XD

seancss-- well the engineering class you took sounds a lot like engineering technologies. I'm not sure if it uses a lot of math or physics (but most engineering majors do), but what my friend did was mostly lab work; like welding of the sort.
since I'm not sure and don't know how it works, hope this wiki article helps for the time being.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engineering_technologist :)

 

[kdoyle13]

shurlee.. it's thanks.. WOman. haha

 

[seancss]

Thanks Shurlee, I will be sure to give this a read, I forgot to add I almost entered into a masters doing renewable engineering this year but held off as it was heavily Electronics based and I think if I wasnt 100% sure about it would have been a bad decision.

 

[bael]

i am majoring in chemistry but i hear there are no jobs and chemical engineering has lots of jobs. should i switch.

 

[j450n]

Don't ask the internet a yes or no question about making an important decision in your life. Asking for guidance is fine. I would suggest talking with your undergraduate advisor, and also some people in the ChE department to understand what it is that distinguishes the two fields. Employment is always a consideration, but if you choose solely on employment prospects, perhaps Petroleum Engineering is your calling.
-- Jason

 

[bael]

Don't ask the internet a yes or no question about making an important decision in your life. Asking for guidance is fine. I would suggest talking with your undergraduate advisor, and also some people in the ChE department to understand what it is that distinguishes the two fields. Employment is always a consideration, but if you choose solely on employment prospects, perhaps Petroleum Engineering is your calling.
-- Jason

thank you. that is good advice

 

[cdotter]

i am majoring in chemistry but i hear there are no jobs and chemical engineering has lots of jobs. should i switch.

http://chemjobber.blogspot.com/2012/01/uh-oh-bls-measures-chemist-unemployment.html
http://chemjobber.blogspot.com/2011/03/well-thats-not-good-news.html
http://chemjobber.blogspot.com/search/label/awful statistics

 

[Altekameraden]

Hello all, I'm trying to decide between Physics, Physical chemistry, Ocean engineering, Chemical engineering, and Materials engineering. I'm excellent in math, physics, and chemistry. Love problem solving, and love being able to explain daily processes mathematically. Not to worried about salary, just want to do something that makes a difference. I would ideally like to be at the leading edge of a new process or technology. I live in a rural area that is abundant in petroleum engineers, and that’s it. I'm looking at one university offering dual B.S. in ChemE and Computer science (5 yr. program), to put my G.I. bill to good use. Some info from people involved with these fields would be great, or any info on the working conditions works too. Thanks

 

[vex]

Hey guys, I have already completed a double degree in accounting and law.
I've decided that i want to continue my education in science(out of interest) and I've enrolled in an online associate eng degree (Eng as it seems more practical to me). Now I want to see how I go with this but if I like my first semester I am thinking of enrolling in a full degree. I would like a degree with a wide scope (ie. learn about many different things). I was told that either Chem Eng or Mechantonics would be good options. Is this true?

Also any ideas how I could get some exposure to eng work ... for placements and such i understand i would have to be in my third or fourth year of Eng degree but is there anything I could do?

Thanks

 

[nevmx]

I just wanted to ask a simple question, I didn't feel like starting a thread for it.

What branch of engineering studies the application of optics, lasers and photons?
I figured that science degrees probably study such things, but I was looking for more of an applied perspective.

 

[e^(i Pi)+1=0]

I just wanted to ask a simple question, I didn't feel like starting a thread for it.

What branch of engineering studies the application of optics, lasers and photons?
I figured that science degrees probably study such things, but I was looking for more of an applied perspective.

You might want to look into applied physics.

 

[connornm777]

I'm currently a freshmen with an electrical engineer major, but I've been debating whether to switch to a physics major.
I am much more of a 'why' person than a 'how' person, and I find the idea of strenuously chasing after the mysteries of the universe to be deeply poetic in sense, and learning about them feels very fulfilling and empowering to me.
However, I'm reluctant to choose that career path because an engineering degree seems to be much easier to get a job with and live a stable life, even if I'm not spending much time on what I'd truly like to be doing.

 

[pongo38]

connornm777: You are not alone in your dilemma. It's not just career decisions either. To every decisive action you take, their remains the unknown of what would have happened if you made the other decision. Two things I would say are: (1) having a career in Electrical Engineering does not preclude you from following your interest, and might even enhance it; (2) Doing Physics has no guarantee that you will be able to follow your interest as a career. In general, many professional people find that their career plan does not work out for all sorts of reasons. That doesn't stop them from being happy. Reading your letter again, I think you have answered your own question for yourself.

 

[connornm777]

Yes, I suppose your right pongo... It's pretty similar classes either way, I just need to work on sucking it up when the work becomes stressful. For some reason I had the silly idea that being a physics major would make the classes more interesting and fun, because thinking about why all the subject material is true makes it much more engaging and memorable than rote learning, but I suppose I don't need to be a physics major to be able to do that.

I guess my real dilemma is between telling myself to work hard [how parents tell me how to get through it] and cultivating an interest in order to make the work more engaging. When something is legitimately interesting, I would hardly say it's work at all... It's a weird love hate relationship with school, sometimes you learn a lot of stuff that would be difficult on your own, and sometimes it just makes you want nothing to do with what you previously were interested in. Guess it's just one of those things you have to get over as you grow up.

 

[WinnieDaPooh]

Hey guys i live in Colorado and college is coming up in the next few years so I'm starting to focus on possible careers. This forum has had a lot of influence on my choice of engineering. I've narrowed my engineering choices to Electrical or Mechanical engineering. I like everything about both majors and i have a few options i want to consider in the college i want to go to ( Colorado School of Mines)
1. Major in electrical engineering and minor in Mech.
2 Major in Mech. Eng. and minor in electrical
3. Double degree in Mechanical and Electrical

If the best choice to choose is number 3 i want to know the general time it will take me to graduate with the double degree by taking out classes that both disciples take so i know the number of classes I am required to take ( without repeating classes) and so i can compare it to the number of classes i would normally take with 1 degree. Heres the college website http://www.mines.edu/

Sorry i would do the calculating myself but I don't really know how to do it and the website confuses me :S
Thanks in advance

 

[DeathNinja]

Any civil engineers on here have any stories about how they came about their career choice?

I am studying year 2 of an Advanced Diploma in Civil Engineering. I thought I would have liked to do mechanical or aerospace engineering but after being exposed to what is really involved ( so many small intricate details!) I believe I am more suited to studying civil. After completion of the diploma I will be able to articulate and complete the Bachelor in 2 years or so and I have already done the BA level maths 1 and 2 in the evenings.

Problem is I am scared of committing to studying more because -
a) I feel I am getting old I will be 28 or 29 by the time I am finished

b) I HATE the job I do to support myself to study. I wish I could find a job doing CAD drawings but they just don't work with my timetable. The thought of spending 5 years of my life in the sh$thole job I do now is terrible, though I am grateful I am able to support myself.

C. My other main passion in life is music. I've been playing electric guitar for over a decade and have never been in a band. I want the time to make music too.

And I could die tomorrow and hardly any of my life would have been enjoyable. I like uni hate my job and not having enough money to have the freedom to have life experiences. :-(

Any thoughts on what I should do?


Advice for others: I barely did any maths in high school because I didn't no why i needed it or what engineering was, also I had many issues with my personal life so didn't do particularly well. I was always good at english and arty stuff when I was little. My family was a very misogynistic negative environment and I was brought up believing girls were unable to do many things...

Anyway, for those of you a bit scared of the maths or physics. Dont be! You can do whatever you want to if you just want it enough and put the work in. I am in the top 3 of students in my course because I worked hard. Things may not come easy to you but just work harder and it becomes easier! Trust me if I can do it you can. Also my partner who didnt even finish high school and has terrible spelling is one of the top students in his group studying Radiation Therapy and is even thinking about becoming a Doctor. Its all just about trying and being patient!

 

[iceland]

Hello everyone (I'm from Iceland so my grammar will not be perfect). I´m really interested in becoming a engineer.

I´m not sure if I got what it takes. When I first started school at the age of 6 the teachers had me sent to a psychiatrist for some kind of intelligence test, because they thought I was a little behind/stupid.(Came out with 149IQ) and was also diagnosed with ADD. I had a really really strict father (still have) so I can get easily stressed by some people and shy.

I never had good grades in school, mostly because I didn't study at all, but still always managed through with average grades of B+. But when i got to high school I started studying even less, but still I managed with an average of B+.

If i put myself really into it, would I be able to study engineering, or would it be to hard for me? Math or physics have never really been a problem for me, I just never studied so my grades were not that good.


Ps. I´m also horrible at drawing...hope that doesn't matter.

 

[MECHster]

My quick, non-expert reply:

IQ and ADD won't play a part in your success or failure, in my opinion. If you put in the work you can become an engineer, if you don't, you won't. I'm not sure which grade you're in, but I'd suggest you start studying ASAP so you can build a good foundation for math and science.

 

[pongo38]

To Deathninja post 900: 1 Small intricate details can be just as important in Civil Eng as anywhere else. 2 You are never too old, and can bring your previous experience to bear, whatever you do. 3 Be more positive about your current job, or change it. I have run a negotiated MSc for someone filling supermarket shelves, because they were able to study business management in parallel with real experience of how it affects the bottom rung of the ladder. Could you do something similar with the job you currently dislike so much. Could you, for instance, write a short story about it, fictional or not? I became a civil engineer because it combines my personal skills in drawing and design with some creativity, and a touch of pride in what I achieved excited my vanity too. As for the music, let it be a hobby unless you are really good.

 

[Pronghorn]

I'm a high school senior from Europe and in a few months I'll be heading to university.
I have a keen interest in the human body. As such, I would like to work in emerging interdisciplinary fields of biological-related sciences, such as stem cell transplantation and suspended animation.
I could go on to study, say, Biology or Biomedical Science, but I'm also fascinated with Engineering. That is, I think that my aspirations, which are to improve human condition, could be well served from an Engineering standpoint.

What do you think? Would my interest in the human body and its applications be better suited for Engineering or for a biological science?

 

[elterrible]

Hey guys i live in Colorado and college is coming up in the next few years so I'm starting to focus on possible careers. This forum has had a lot of influence on my choice of engineering. I've narrowed my engineering choices to Electrical or Mechanical engineering. I like everything about both majors and i have a few options i want to consider in the college i want to go to ( Colorado School of Mines)
1. Major in electrical engineering and minor in Mech.
2 Major in Mech. Eng. and minor in electrical
3. Double degree in Mechanical and Electrical

If the best choice to choose is number 3 i want to know the general time it will take me to graduate with the double degree by taking out classes that both disciples take so i know the number of classes I am required to take ( without repeating classes) and so i can compare it to the number of classes i would normally take with 1 degree. Heres the college website http://www.mines.edu/

Sorry i would do the calculating myself but I don't really know how to do it and the website confuses me :S
Thanks in advance

I knew one guy who did a double in mechanical and electrical actually. I don't think I would personally recommend it because a lot of companies would be looking for one or the other and having both wouldn't benefit you as much as doing a BS+MS in one. He basically did one whole degree and then the last 2 years of the second one so he graduated with both undergrads at the same time.

Its a hard choice to pick your major now or to pick what you want to do out of the 3 options but you don't have to pick now. I thought I was going to do EE but then switched to civil after a year and only one course I took the first year didnt apply to my civil degree.

What I would suggest is you look at both the Mechanical and EE courses and pick your first year courses so that you could go in either direction. Then during the first year go to all of the ASME and IEEE meetings where they will have guest speakers from companies and possibly field trips ect and you can get a good feel for what both of them are like and make your choice from there.

 

[e^(i Pi)+1=0]

I'm sure this has been brought up in the past 57 pages, but could someone post a breakdown of all the various engineering disciplines? I am leaning towards a dual major in physics and mechanical engineering. I've always loved astronomy, and was initially planning for an astrophysics degree, but I also have a strong interest in engineering and was thinking of combining that with a vanilla physics degree. I think I would also be happy using these disciplines in the green sector for example - designing the next-generation wind-turbines and solar panels, or researching new energy production methods. Not sure what to do...

 

[MECHster]

I'm sure this has been brought up in the past 57 pages, but could someone post a breakdown of all the various engineering disciplines? I am leaning towards a dual major in physics and mechanical engineering. I've always loved astronomy, and was initially planning for an astrophysics degree, but I also have a strong interest in engineering and was thinking of combining that with a vanilla physics degree. I think I would also be happy using these disciplines in the green sector for example - designing the next-generation wind-turbines and solar panels, or researching new energy production methods. Not sure what to do...

You should first check out if it is possible to double major in engineering and physics in the schools you are interested in. If it is possible you will be likely be an undergrad for at minimum 6 years, and your astronomy courses will probably not help you get a better engineering job. Just because you like another subject does not mean you have to major in it. You can learn just as much about astronomy by reading about it on your own, and not having to pay for it in years and money.

I'd suggest looking into electrical or mechanical engineering (although I'm sure you have). If you can't decide before university/college you can just pick one and switch into the other if you change your mind. I would stay away from environmental engineering because it will give you less flexibility and, at least in my school, the courses are not as technical.

 

[elterrible]

You should first check out if it is possible to double major in engineering and physics in the schools you are interested in. If it is possible you will be likely be an undergrad for at minimum 6 years, and your astronomy courses will probably not help you get a better engineering job. Just because you like another subject does not mean you have to major in it. You can learn just as much about astronomy by reading about it on your own, and not having to pay for it in years and money.

I'd suggest looking into electrical or mechanical engineering (although I'm sure you have). If you can't decide before university/college you can just pick one and switch into the other if you change your mind. I would stay away from environmental engineering because it will give you less flexibility and, at least in my school, the courses are not as technical.

Environmental engineering is a lot more of water treatment, land development and watershed analysis rather than alternative energy stuff.

 

[e^(i Pi)+1=0]

That's really what I was asking for, the difference between mechanical & electrical, what one is qualified to do that the other is not, ect..

 

[DirtyLeeds]

I'm a high school senior from Europe and in a few months I'll be heading to university.
I have a keen interest in the human body. As such, I would like to work in emerging interdisciplinary fields of biological-related sciences, such as stem cell transplantation and suspended animation.
I could go on to study, say, Biology or Biomedical Science, but I'm also fascinated with Engineering. That is, I think that my aspirations, which are to improve human condition, could be well served from an Engineering standpoint.

What do you think? Would my interest in the human body and its applications be better suited for Engineering or for a biological science?

My university has a course in Biomedical Engineering and also Materials Science and Engineering with an emphasis on biomatierals, maybe you could look at something like that?