Architectural Designs

Where are all the engineers?

I have always wanted to be a engineering technician preferably working with electrical/electronic/computer technology but missed my boat due to illness.I am about to enrol for an access course to HE which will get me in to university to study engineering.I am practical and technical minded,'hands on' kind of person and enjoy doing this kind of stuff(as mentioned above).I have now opted for an engineer's route as opposed to a technician's as engineers are better trained,schooled and have to deal with greater challenges not to mention better prospects(no offence to technicians).So what exactly do engineers do apart from designing and building stuff?Do you sit in an office and design things in front of a computer and do you get to do a variety of diffrent jobs or is it routine and tideous work?Compared to an average technician,how hands on do you get? Sorry if i come across as misinformed.Your help will be highly appreciated. I am interested in electrical,electronics,computer,avionics,mechatronics and robotics technology/engineering. I am interested in electrical,electronics,computer,avionics,mechatronics and robotics technology/engineering.

Public Comments

1. As a former computer engineer I can tell you some of the things that I did in my profession: Invent new things, fix things, design things, teach other people how to do these tasks, document things, go to meetings, drink coffee in my cubicle, go to more meetings, read specifications, read trade journals, go to the cafeteria, go the Europe, go to Asia, stay up late at night, listen to other engineers who are solving customer problems, put on weight, .......
2. What field of engineering, Electrical, mechanical, aviation, marine, civil, etc? You haven't provided enough info.
3. I have been an electronics engineer for 30 years now, and have worked in many different areas, so I have seen a lot of changes in the way we work. I work in digital systems (computers, microprocessors, signal processing etc.). When I started I was designing digital systems using integrated circuits. Circuit diagrams were drawn on a drawing board with a pencil and checked by drawing out timing diagrams on graph paper. Then the circuit was built and tested in the lab. using oscilloscopes and logic analysers. Now I work as a chip designer and never get into a lab. Design work is done on a computer and then the design is simulated (also on a computer) and, when it is working, goes off to the "silicon foundry" to be made into a chip. So my working day usually consists of sitting in front of my computer designing the system, simulating it, writing tests for it, documenting it, sending and reading emails etc. A lot of time is spent in meeting rooms drawing stuff on white boards and arguing, walking around and asking questions, or jumping on a plane to visit colleagues in an office somewhere else in the world. Engineering is a multi-faceted thing and you can usually arrange to have as little or as much "hands-on" involvement as you like. Some engineers spend a lot of time in the lab; some none. Some are very practical, and some more academic. It's a very enjoyable and stimulating way of spending your working life and I would highly recommend it. It's certainly not tedious and it is also generally well paid. Getting a degree in engineering is hard work, and requires more than the average amount of brain, but it is well worthwhile. Go for it, and good luck!
4. If you want to be a hands-on engineer, I'll definitely recommend being a test engineer. I'm a mechanical test engineer for defense company which makes military vehicles. We test different parts of the vehicle (structural, vibration, shock, thermal, etc.) As a test engineer, my job is to give good data to the customer. I have to write a test plan to meet the customer requirements, design the test fixture/assembly (definitely involves 3D CAD drawings, machine design, physics, and a lot of creativity), pick out the needed transducers (accelerometers, pressure transducer, strain gauges, etc.), pick out the data acquisition system, perform the test, evaluate the data, and write a test report. I get my hands dirty and work with very smart technicians to perform the tests. I'd say I spend 50% in the test lab and 50% infront of the computer. I'd say it's the best job because I do mechatronics (mechanical engineering and electronics) and I spend my time in the lab and in my cube.
5. they are on a break.
6. I have been one for the past 50 years. Have driven a steam locomotive engine, been inside very large boilers, designed, built and tested various control and high power circuits, literally burnt my fingers with RF plastic welding power supplies, and a lot more hands on engineering in addition to some unavoidable desk and R&D management job. Will not have it any other way. Just do it.
7. Ok, so not being a professional engineer, my answer might be a little less relevant. However, as an Engineering student, I might be able to help out a little. On my course, there's quite a lot of hands-on work. We had about 6 hours of lab time, along with the oppurtunity to go in in our own time to do more. In my current 3rd year, most of the labs are taken away, as you're encouraged to be more independant while working on an individual project. Over the course of the 3 years I've built robots, radio transmitters, control circuits for traffic lights, box beams (yes, that's pretty out of place, but still), heatsinks, electronic locks, all sorts. I've also been doing a lot of computer-based work, with coding and integrated systems being a focus at my uni. I'm only doing electronics, so obviously the things I've done are skewed in that direction. Hope this helps though!
8. You can take the degree route and still get a hands-on job e.g. test engineer, development engineer or a commissioning engineer (and ultimately get paid more to do a hands-on role) but you can also get involved in projects at a higher level. I took the degree route and have had a number of different jobs in engineering ranging from site work to desk jobs. I had one job as a development engineer for a manufacturing firm, where I sat in an office project managing and designing something, then I built the prototype in the lab, then travelled abroad to test and commission it at manufacturing sites. That job had everything. I've had test engineering jobs doing specialist tests day in day out and literally getting my hands dirty but as an engineer I had to do the client test reports and manage technicians during the tests. I've also had a desk jobs doing designs, calculations, specifications, meeting clients, doing presentations but also going out to site to do surveys. It's all really interesting and you can make it as practical or as clerical as you like depending on the job you go for once you graduate. If you are in the UK and take study for a degree and complete the necessary training you could achieve CEng status but as a technician you only attain the EngTech qualification from the engineering council. There is also IEng status which is for those who studied HNC/Ds and Foundation Degrees. I would do a foundation degree instead of an HNC/D these days as you could start work on day one for a large firm who will pay for your degree and train you up at the same time. These courses are gaining popularity but you would have to compare it with doing a full degree and the benefits you would get from that instead. If you are still unsure, the last thing to consider is money. Trawl through the job websites and see what is out there and what you would enjoy. From my experience engineers tend to get paid more than technicians and find it easier to transfer their skills to other areas within the discipline and also to different professions altogether e.g. management, accountancy etc.
9. We are all in Germany! How much hands on you get depends on the industry you go into as much as anything else. If you work in consumer goods, then you will design and play with things yourself all the time, if you design nuclear power stations, then people tend not to allow you to go into the workshop to try things out. Most of my time is spend in front of a pc designing and testing (virtually) but I can also go into the lab the try things out for real if I want. This has been the same in all the jobs/industries I have worked in.