- #1
kuan9611
- 3
- 0
Hi all! I'm an undergrad sophomore in engineering trying to decide on which major to pursue (namely civil/mechanical). Recently I came across this fascinating piece of publication, which contained a massive amount of data regarding engineering enrollments by major, demographic, and school.
There are probably a few dozen interesting points that could be gathered from the data, but I just wish to raise a question about something that really stood out to me: the disproportionate number of mechanical engineering graduates. On the second page, the chart shows more than 25,000 bachelor's degrees awarded to MechE students in 2015 alone, while there are ~277,500 mechanical engineers nationwide according to BLS. Now, compare that to civil engineering, which awarded 11,900 bachelor's degrees even though the discipline currently employs more engineers nationwide (~281,400).
For someone who is trying to decide between the two degrees, what do the figures reveal about the job markets of each? I have gotten the impression repeatedly that MechE is a more secure field and that competition for jobs would be fiercer in CivE; do the data suggest a trend towards the opposite? Or are there other important factors at play that I'm missing?
Also, any other thoughts about the publication are welcome.
There are probably a few dozen interesting points that could be gathered from the data, but I just wish to raise a question about something that really stood out to me: the disproportionate number of mechanical engineering graduates. On the second page, the chart shows more than 25,000 bachelor's degrees awarded to MechE students in 2015 alone, while there are ~277,500 mechanical engineers nationwide according to BLS. Now, compare that to civil engineering, which awarded 11,900 bachelor's degrees even though the discipline currently employs more engineers nationwide (~281,400).
For someone who is trying to decide between the two degrees, what do the figures reveal about the job markets of each? I have gotten the impression repeatedly that MechE is a more secure field and that competition for jobs would be fiercer in CivE; do the data suggest a trend towards the opposite? Or are there other important factors at play that I'm missing?
Also, any other thoughts about the publication are welcome.