Chapter 1
Surfís Up in Engineering
Engineering is one of the most progressive, challenging, and rewarding fields that can be studied today. Many people want to be engineers. Almost everyone has the ability, but few possess the drive and perseverance. How do you get the drive and perseverance? Simply stated, you have to be willing to make the effort and not let anything stand in your way. You have to know what you are getting into and have a clear idea about what you want.
Individuals with a bachelorís degree in engineering enjoy some of the highest paychecks of all baccalaureate graduates. Look in the classified ads of just about any newspaper and youíll find several ads or even whole columns or pages of fabulous job opportunities for engineers.
Engineering is the second largest profession in the nation; there are more than 2.1 million engineers in the workforce.
So, what is engineering? According to Jeff Lenard of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), the role of the engineer is perhaps one of the least understood in society. In any poll asking what engineers do, the responses invariably include ìfix carsî and ìdrive trains.î We see doctors, lawyers, and police on television, but where are the engineers? What do they do? Engineers use math and science, in practical ways to benefit of mankind.
In Dilbert, comic strip creator Scott Adams debunks the mystery of engineering. In an interview with the American Association for Engineering Education (ASEE), Adams said, ìWhen I grew up, if you had mentioned engineering, I wouldnít have known what it was. But when you read Dilbert, whether you like it or youíre afraid of it, you know what heís doing. You know heís in meetings; you know heís doing things with his computer; you know heís inventing things; you know heís working on things with marketing. You actually have a pretty good idea of what an engineer does.î
Engineering is all around us; as a career it may be the best way to make the biggest contribution to society. Engineers work to improve the quality of life and to make life more efficient or comfortable. They strive for constant improvement by applying scientific principles to solve everyday or specialized problems in practical ways. Engineers may design products such as automobiles or design systems such as the roads, bridges, overpasses, and streets the automobiles travel on.
Not all engineering students are alike; neither is the engineering marketplace. With more than 25 major branches of engineering and 100 specialties, there is something for everyone who pursues a career in the field. Your personal goals, skills, and personality will determine which branch or specialty of engineering is right for you.
People have always held engineers in high regard; after all, engineers make the world go around. Most technological advances ñ televisions, computers, the Internet, the space shuttle, airplanes ñ can be attributed to the work of engineers. Engineers also have prestige because of the knowledge they have acquired through their commitment to finishing college.
There is no standard of intelligence needed to complete a degree in engineering, and there is no limit on the amount of time it takes to complete a degree. Some students take it slowly because of part-time jobs, family responsibilities, or simply the desire to excel in their class-work. An engineering student who is willing to work hard, to develop the necessary math and science skills, to keep at it when things get tough, and to work smart can expect a nice paycheck as well as a challenging and stimulating career.
A degree in engineering can open many doors. People who want to improve society, reduce pollution, end world hunger, invent exciting cutting-edge technology, make life more convenient, or develop new theories to change the ways we think about the world must seriously consider a career in engineering. Anyone who is up to the challenge and has a genuine interest in taking things apart, solving puzzles and problems, or understanding nature can succeed. The skills necessary to succeed in engineering school are attained by determination, perseverance, effort, and creative problem-solving ñ the same skills necessary to be a competent engineer. Excellent grades in math and science through high school, although nice to have, are not prerequisites to becoming a good engineer. Many students do not apply themselves in high school but find out that when they try to work on a stimulating problem, they enjoy the problem-solving process and the solution comes easily. If you feel you have the!
aptitude and you make the commitment, you can and will succeed in engineering school.
Engineers apply math and science to problem solving. Suppose you are a B student in math and science, but you excel at communicating. Traditionally, people would have steered you away from engineering. But if you have the drive and motivation to get through those math and science courses, you could become one of the most valuable types of engineers; not many people can communicate the language of engineering to other nontechnical persons. There is a tremendous need for engineers who have excellent verbal and written skills. Scan the job descriptions of most engineering positions and youíll see what I mean.
With the solid foundation provided by an engineering degree, a career in engineering can take you anywhere you want to go.
Who Chooses Engineering and Why
The engineering field includes men and women from every culture in the world. One element that all engineers have in common is their desire to help solve the worldís problems and make the world a better place. Engineers can be married or single, they can have disabilities, and they often have different perspectives. But they share a problem-solving orientation. Engineering students can be right out of high school, just out of the military, returning to school after several years, or seeking a second degree.
Engineers also receive valuable preparation for a host of other careers such as finance, medicine, law, and management. These professions require analytical, integrative, and problem-solving abilities, all of which are part of an engineering education. Thus, engineering offers an ideal undergraduate education for living and working in todayís technologically dependent society.
A primary reason people choose to study engineering is personal happiness. On the average, people spend 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week, 50 weeks a year at work. With only 24 hours in a day, the largest amount of time will be spent working, getting to work, and talking or thinking about work. Studies show that the leading cause of unhappiness in the United States is job dissatisfaction. With this in mind, why not beat the odds by finding a career that will keep you happy by providing great financial security, diversity, flexibility, prestige, intellectual development, challenges, and personal satisfaction?
People who enjoy working with other people and traveling may become sales or field service engineers. People who enjoy lifeís big picture may become the systems engineers who put all the pieces together. Creative people or people who constantly have new ideas about everything may enjoy working as design engineers. People who enjoy conducting experiments or working in laboratories may enjoy working as test engineers.
If you choose engineering, you can also pursue a career in medicine or law. According to the American Medical Association, students with bachelorís degrees in biomedical engineering have a higher acceptance rate into medical school than students with any other undergraduate degree. If you want to become an attorney specializing in environmental law, a good way to start would be with an undergraduate degree in environmental engineering; a mechanical engineering degree would be a good foundation for someone who wants to become a patent attorney.
Engineering also lends itself nicely to entrepreneurial types. Many engineers form construction, environmental, or computer consulting firms because their knowledge is in demand. Some become inventors, and some become teachers or writers. Three engineering students even went on to become president of the United States!
Many engineers obtain higher degrees in business to become better managers and to receive a broader understanding of the inner workings of engineering companies. Many graduates work for financial companies; they may write software programs or construct financial models to predict Wall Street activities.
An engineering education teaches you how to think through a problem in order to solve it. These mental agility skills will help you solve problems for the rest of your life. The fascinating aspect about problem solving in engineering is that there is almost never a ìrightî answer. You access several different approaches to solve a problem, and then it is up to you to show everyone how your solution meets the needs of the design.
A bachelorís degree in engineering can lead to a multitude of opportunities. Engineers are on the cutting edge in industry, research, consulting, management, teaching, sales, business, and government. Engineering can require a tremendous amount of time and effort; but, as technology continues to develop, the need for engineers will increase too.
Your Success Depends on You
If you are considering a career in engineering, keep in mind that it will be a lifelong learning experience, and everything you do to prepare for it will help you reach your intended goal. The more you expose yourself to the world of engineering, the more opportunities you may have. According to George D. Peterson, the executive director of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), ìEmployers claim that engineering success today requires more than up-to-the-minute technical capability; it requires the ability to communicate, work in teams, think creatively, learn quickly, and value diversity.î
It is important to examine the shape of the career you want. Identify what kind of career you really want, and try to picture yourself in that role. Engineers fall into two primary categories: one that focuses on doing engineering, and one that focuses on applying engineering. For example, do you want to be on the engineering team that designs the next space shuttle, or do you want to be on the space shuttle? Do you want to be the engineer who oversees production in an automobile factory, or do you want to be the expert engineer who gives presentations and answers technical questions on the new specialized suspension of that automobile? Innumerable doors open for engineering graduates.
You can never begin preparing for this career too soon. Get involved in extracurricular activities that involve math or science. Part-time or summer jobs in engineering or manufacturing companies also show college admissions departments that you are serious. There are numerous science and engineering camps available to motivated students. And there is a junior engineering society that offers several ways to get exposure to engineering.
Important Early Preparation
Remember that this book is only one source of information to help you decide whether you want to become an engineer. Right now, you need to begin reading everything you can find about engineering and talk to every engineer or engineering student you know about the challenges ahead and how to prepare for them. Attend a summer camp or programs pertaining to engineering at your school. Obtaining this information now may save you lots of heartache if you decide later that you are on the wrong path.
Academic preparation is also essential to exploring engineering as a career. In addition, getting involved in extracurricular activities pertaining to engineering can give you invaluable exposure. In high school, classes in algebra I and II, trigonometry, biology, physics, calculus, chemistry, computer programming, or computer applications can tell you if you have the aptitude and determination to study engineering. All of the above courses are not required to get into every engineering school, but early preparation can mean the difference between spending four years in college or six. Some universities also require two to three classes in a foreign language for admission. Check into the programs that interest you and begin to fulfill their requirements. Advance Placement or Honors courses and an ACT score of 20 or SAT of 1000 are recommended.
JUNIOR ENGINEERING TECHNICAL SOCIETY (JETS)
JETS is a national society dedicated to providing students with guidance and information about engineering. The Society offers many programs that will help you decide if engineering is the career for you. Teachers and parents also gain exposure to the social, political, and economic impact that engineering can have on our lives.
JETS offers activities, events, competitions, programs and materials to educate students about engineering. Example competitions and programs include:
Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics, and Science (TEAMS).
TEAMS is a national academic competition that enables groups of high school students to learn team development and problem-solving skills. Students learn how math and science concepts are applied to real-world problems. Teamwork is promoted in an open-book, open-discussion environment, and students often have an engineering mentor.
In the past, competition problems have included real-world challenges such as bridge design and rehabilitation, flood analysis, food preservation, solar-powered vehicle design, and air transportation. The wide range of real-world problems shows students the diversity of specialties within the engineering field.
National Engineering Design Challenge (NEDC).
NEDC is a competition that challenges high school students to design, fabricate, and demonstrate a working solution to a real-world need.
National Engineering Aptitude Search+ (NEAS+).
NEAS+ helps individual students determine their level of basic engineering skills. Students can determine if additional math, science, or reasoning skills should be acquired.
Uninitiates' Introduction to Engineering (UNITE).
In cooperation with the U.S. Army, JETS offers UNITE, a summer initiative for minority students who want to pursue their interest in engineering and technology study and build their math and science knowledge and skills.The site is packed with additional information about the different careers in engineering, programs offered, competitions, activities, and events. JETS is an excellent source of information for you as you continue to explore the many aspects of engineering as a career.
SUMMER CAMPS
Summer camps provide another innovative approach to preparing for a career in engineering or evaluating if that career is right for you. Find out what it is like to study engineering, about the different types of engineers and what engineers do on a daily basis. Many universities across the country offer residential and commuter summer engineering camps for high school students; the camps become more popular everyday. They can help students develop leadership and professional and personal organizational skills; and they provide opportunities to meet and talk with engineers during visits to local engineering companies.
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Engineering Education
