Engineering Functions/ Career Path

1. Engineering Functions/Career Path EGR483/ME48110/25/13

2. Shift from University to Career • Engineering Foundation • Coursework has provided technical foundation • Important to consider experience foundation • Look for experience that matches your interest for confirmation • Explore options • Build skills • Understand your strengths and how to use them • Establish a track record of accomplishment • Technical vs less techical • Consider your interests • If two equivalent offers, consider more technical position • Ability to apply engineering coursework and theory to on the job challenges • Easier to move to less technical position in future than the reverse • Beginning in research, development, design and then moving to sales or management technically easy • Moving from sales to research unlikely [Document Footer]

3. Career Path Progression

4. Research • Closer to pure theoretical science • Futuristic—viewpoint may be 1-10 years out • Entrepreneurial—may be creating new technology or market that doesn’t exist today • Innovative—may be developing improvements on existing items • Where do researchers work: Universities, Industry, Government • What does the work consist of: • Conceptualizing • Analysis • Lab Experimentation • Qualifications/skills/strengths: • Advanced degrees • Creative imagination, curiosity, technical energy • Patience and tenacity to pursue long-range goals

5. Development • Function following research • Working with a concept to scale up to a marketable reality—targeted customer now in mind • Where do developers work: Industry, Government • What does the work consist of: • Analysis • Lab Testing • Qualifications/skills/strengths: • Advanced degrees likely • Ability to uncover potential customer requirements: use, cost, and quality • Highly technical skills with a practical bent • Strong communication to provide the interface between the researcher and the designer • Understand the time constraint for moving an idea forward to meet market needs

6. Design • Produce a design of a product, process, or facility that can be manufactured or built using the developed technology and intended customer application • Where do designers work: Industry, Government, Consulting • What does the work consist of: • Multi-discipline team function • Project Manager • Individual disciplines relevant to the need • Calculations, Specifications, Drawings, Models • May oversee designers/drafters producing documents • Qualifications/skills/strengths: • Typically BS degrees with some specific areas requesting advanced degrees • Ability to apply engineering coursework to produce a design that meets customer requirements • Knowledge of CAD to produce or understand design drawings • Strong communication to be effective team member and to interface with non-engineering team members—manufacturing, construction, procurement

7. Manufacturing/Construction • Supervise other workers to manufacture or build the as-designed product, process, or facility • Where do manufacturing engineers/construction managers work: Industry, Government, Construction • What does the work consist of: • Oversight of a diverse workforce • Planning, organizing, leading, controlling • Responsible for schedule, budget, quality • Qualifications/skills/strengths: • Typically BS degrees with some specific areas requesting advanced engineering degrees or MBAs • Leadership capability • Technically competent but with emphasis on hands-on practical problem solving • Strong communication to be effective team leader and to interface with non-engineering team members—management, sales, procurement

8. Technical Sales • Key opportunities in sales are breadth of exposure to company’s product line and the range of potential customers and their technology needs • Can make a very positive, measurable impact on the bottom line of company profits • Where do sales engineers work: Industry, Consulting, Manufacturers’ Representatives Firms • What does the work consist of: • Customer identification • Presentations to potential customers • Identifying the interface between a potential customer’s technology, their technical/business improvement needs, and what your company can provide • Qualifications/skills/strengths: • Typically BS degrees or MBAs • Thorough knowledge of products and related technology applications • Ability to quickly understand a customer’s technical need with your product connection • Organized, self-motivated, natural competitors

9. Facility Maintenance/Capital Projects • Supervise other workers to maintain facility equipment • Participate in the design and construction process for new facilities/improvements • Where do facility engineers work: Industry, Government, Commercial Facilities • What does the work consist of: • Delivering expected equipment uptime with appropriate preventative maintenance • Being the client representative to the designer/constructor • Qualifications/skills/strengths: • Typically BS degrees with some specific areas requesting advanced engineering degrees or MBAs • Leadership capability • Technically competent but with emphasis on hands-on practical problem solving • Strong communication to be effective team leader and to interface with non-engineering team members—management, manufacturing

10. Other Options • Forensics • Specialists in determining how or why something occurred in a particular way • Typically consulted after an accident or natural disaster • Conservation • Buildings, objects (art) • Maintaining in desired condition • Evaluation • Code requirement confirmation • Insurance consideration • Law • Patent attorneys • ???

11. Where to Work • Large Companies • Benefits: Lots of options, Training programs, Stability • Small Companies • Benefits: Breadth of Exposure, Growth • Government • Federal: Dept of Energy, EPA, Dept of Homeland Security, NASA, Army Corps of Engineers, Naval Civil Engineering Corps • Offer many of the same benefits as large companies • State and Local: Dept of Transportation, Public Works • May be similar to benefits of small companies • Policy • How might public policy influence be influenced by technical analysis

12. Where to Work • Education • University • Typical combination of teaching, research, and publishing • Middle or High School • STEM options • Consulting • Hired by organizations to provide specialized expertise that they do not have on their regular payroll • Benefits: Breadth, variation, starting positions with BS degrees, management opportunities • NGOs • Engineers Without Borders, Water for People • Organizations looking for analytical skills • Financial services—statistical analysis, problem solving

13. What’s Next • Your self-assessment • Strengths • Interests • Other experience • Do research on areas of engineering practice • Qualifications • Type of placements • Evaluate types of employers • Where do you want to work?