The future of Controls Engineering? [Need career advice] 4

[digitalcaptive]

I'm a young Electrical Engineer who has been working on PLC/DCS/SCADA Control System Projects in the Manufacturing and Energy (Nuclear) sector for the past 4 years. I've switched from a fast paced private system integrator to a govt job. Right now I'm working on tooling systems and robotics for nuclear maintenance.

I want to know what the future outlook is for this profession in general?

I am making decent money now, but I am not sure if this a good field to "specialize" in because the entry barriers are so low (I just have a Bachelors in EE) and the effort to reward ratio doesn't seem THAT high .....

If I'm just interested in making $$$, shouldn't I just switch to something more lucrative while I have the chance? Like dentistry, medicine, law, finance, my own business, etc.?

I don't hate engineering, but it's not something I "love" either.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks,
dc

 

[KENAT]

There have been many similar/related threads, take a look.

My opinion, if you don't 'love' or at least moderately enjoy/like/have an interest in Engineering why the heck did you study it at College/Uni. Was it the classic "good at mathmatics & physics so must do engineering" situation.

You should be able to make a very nice living doing engineering if you're willing to put in the time effort etc.

You're unlikely to get rich.

Don't do Engineering in the US or UK just for the money.

KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...

 

[digitalcaptive]

I already make a "nice" living, but it's not enough and I'm not satisfied.

When I went to school for engineering, I didn't really think about it. It's just something that came easily to me, and I didn't have much guidance on picking a career path. I did really well in school, so naturally I just stuck with it.

I will say that once got into engineering, I wanted to use engineering as a way to make a comfortable salary for a few years, save up, and probably head in another direction.

I'd like to leverage my career so far, but I am unsure on how and if i should do that.

So that's basically the gist of my question. Where do you think my "field" is headed? How can I use it?

 

[MiketheEngineer]

Even though I am structural - I took a few "Control" (PLC)courses just because I was interested - in my late 30's - long out of school. Tried to find job - couldn't - stayed in Structural.

In the next 20 years - I would imagine that anything that can be done by a robot will be done by a robot - look at the Japanese and Honda. My favorite robot is the dishwasher.....

Can't wait for the lawnmower robot - once it comes down in price!!!

Obviously - you are not a HAPPY camper. So find out what you want and go in that direction!! You are young and probably have few responsibilities other than food and beer!!

 

[ykee]

I think your question also depends on what part of the world you are living in, and where you are willing to relocate to. I think there will always be a demand for controls engineers, it'll just change from industry to industry and country to country over time.

 

[dgowans]

I'd start by asking yourself what it is you really want. Money sounds like a pretty big motivator to you, IMO. You don't sound passionate about engineering, not that you need to be to have a successful career. It does help, though.

Are you passionate about medicine, dentistry, any of the other things you mentioned? If you're not, and choose to go into one of these fields anyway, I'd be willing to bet you'll be back in some other forum a few years into your gig asking the same questions, only this time it will be without the money (or with the debt) it took to put yourself through med/dentistry/law school or start your own business.

My wife is a doctor who absolutely loves what she does, yet there are still days when she comes home and tries to figure out what she's going to be when she grows up. Don't go into medicine strictly for the money. If you do, pick your specialty wisely because having MD behind your name isn't a ticket to riches. Medicine does offer the high entry barrier you seem to think is important - the cost of going through school/residency/sub-specialty training is significant.

Find something you really enjoy doing, and get good at it (not implying you're not good at your current job). You may not get rich, but I know what it's like to go to work every day hating your job. It's not worth it by any stretch of the imagination.

 

[IRstuff]

From what I've seen of my wife's MD practice, it's almost more of a grind than anything else. They've got a quota of 4 patients per hour, and that goes up to 7 or 8 per hour for the partners. So she's on her feet most of the day, and when the last patient leaves, she still has to do the charts.

If you're a surgeon, you get to mix in some surgery, but the entrance requirement jumps from 3 yrs of residency to 7 yrs, not counting the fellowships post-residency.

Me, I'm in my office most of the day, mixed in with some meetings. I can take a break whenever I need or want.

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[melone]

Quit and do something else. If you don't love what you're doing, why waste any more of your life doing it.

 

[KENAT]

"When I went to school for engineering, I didn't really think about it. " Sounds like you made the wrong choice then.

Decide what you really want to do. Even if you can't completely quit Engineering, at least for a while, maybe you can work on it in your own time.

In this case a Government job might be good as you probably have a more structured 40hr week than most private sector jobs, quite likely more leave/vacation too though no guarantee.

Funny, my wife was watching Opera the other day and they had some life coach talking about this. In fact, if you visit her website I recall they had a quiz to help you make the decision.

KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...

 

[Senselessticker]

I enjoy my job. I'm certainly not rich, but I make a decent living, however, engineering was a "fall back" career for me. I suggest trying to do something you really love FIRST. Then, if that fails, use your skills to get by...

I never thought I would enjoy engineering, but as it turns out and as I age a little, I actually wouldn't want to do anything else... I only "thought" I was good at engineering until I learned to love it. Now... its the continual learning that's the real fun....

 

[KENAT]

Here you go, this should get you sorted!

http://www2.oprah.com/money/career/marcus/marcus_workshop_main.jhtml?promocode=HP42

KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...

 

[GTstartup]

If money is the issue, you can make LOTS of money especially in controls work, easily in 6 figures if you don't mind travelling. Don't discount engineering as a money maker, you just have to think a little outside the norm. I read that the median salary for anethesiologists is 180K (it was on the internet so it must be true). Some might not believe this, but you CAN make this kind of money in engineering. It will be hard work and you wont have a life, but for a few years...

 

[GregLocock]

Kenat, did the spell checker get you? I was watching Opera the other day hoping for some career advice and all I got was a fat bint singing in Italian, about killing herself.

I disagree that if you don't lurve engineering it is a bad choice for uni, but I think that would make it a hard degree to stick with.

OP - Anyway engineering graduates are much appreciated in many other organisations, some of them lucrative, such as Wall St. So just find the job you want and go and do it.

"the effort to reward ratio doesn't seem THAT high " uh, does that mean what I think it means?





Cheers

Greg Locock

SIGlease see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[KENAT]

Greg, no I can't blame BG just sloppiness on my part. Given that I'm working late tonight due to someone else’s sloppiness, I really should have learnt to be more careful.;-(

I started out with love, given what I've seen other posters put on similar threads, but then decided that as you say you don't have to love Engineering. Hence I used the phrase:

'love' or at least moderately enjoy/like/have an interest in Engineering

I suppose I have a chip on my shoulder about it though. A lot of people on my course at Uni were only there because they were good at math and physics and either wanted a challenge or were pushed into Engineering by whatever career guidance they got. A lot of these people had no interest in Engineering or, as I studied aero, at least aircraft.

They basically just made it harder for the likes of me, not quite straight A's but a passion for Aircraft and interest in Engineering, to get and stay on the course.

At the end of the degree they went off to be management consultants, programmers, IT consultants etc.

Then again, back to opera, maybe they were emulating Gilbert & Sullivans "Modern Major General".

Effort/reward = effort reward ratio?

Doesn't seem that high suggests either low effort required, large reward or both.

Sounds good to me.

If on the other hand Reward/effort = the effort reward ratio in question then that suggests lots of work for little reward. Not so good, right?


KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...

 

[rtmote]

Some of the richest buggers I know in engineering are people like you (and the pipelines group)! Just be willing to travel. Get the experience and get into the field work in the oil and gas sector. You'll never look back! Chronic shortage and too many old boys trying to retire but they can't! At least you will be managing designed work, getting the credit and loadsa money.

Robert Mote

http://www.motagg.com

 

[GregLocock]

They had a similar policy at my uni. If you weren't quite top stream for maths and physics they recommended you did engineering, rather than maths or pure science.

Absolute catastrophe - huge fall out rate, suicides, etc etc.

What is even more disgraceful is that a couple of my friends did Physics, and at least in the first couple of years there was nothing especially difficult, and the work load was pretty light in comparison.



Cheers

Greg Locock

SIGlease see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[Senselessticker]

Stars to KENAT... I KNOW that I personally carry a big chip on my shoulder... I remember very well sitting with my Freshman Engineering Advisor (14 years ago) who without emotion was quick to let me know that my odds of graduating with a B.S. in Engineering was less than 5%. Wow... was he ever right about how tough it would be.... 197 credit hours and 10 years later I spent a day on an old beat up fishing boat with a smile on my face while I skipped out on the graduation ceremony...

My career has been more than wonderful and rewarding and I am forever grateful that it choose me rather me choosing it... I don't even like most engineers. But I enjoy the struggle of trying to be one...

For the guys/gals that do engineering for the $$$$... If you're not smart enough to know there's better ways to make money... then... well... you need to learn how to do something else because you will not survive in this industry without taking a HUGE fall at some point in your career... Good luck to you though... I'll see ya across the table...

 

[KENAT]

Greg, I had friends doing math & physics and got the same impression about the effort required. Then again I had friends doing some other Engineering courses and got the impression they were easier than Aero, but that may just be arrogance. I remember some of the management consulancy places ranked Engineering higher than most other courses (including management/business courses), and aero and a couple of others even higher. For instance for most courses of study you needed a 1st to even apply to them. For Engineering they'd accept a 2:1 and I believe that for Aero & one or two other Eng specialties they'd even consider 2:2. Then again our lecturers perpetuated some of this attitude that aero was harder/better so I suspect it may not hold water. I know for sure that a lot (most) of the posters here are smarter than I and most of them didn't do Aero.

OP "because the entry barriers are so low (I just have a Bachelors in EE)" while there is lots of talk about increasing it one way or another, at the moment having a bachelors is the minimum qualification for most Engineering fields as far as I can tell.

I only have a bachelors, however a new grad couldn't do what I do. If I recall correctly Greg only has a bachelors, and I sure as heck couldn't do what I understand he does.


KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...

 

[Helicopterjunky]

I think it is great you are motvated to make more money for yourself. Many go into engineering and then go into something else. There is nothing wrong with that. Engineering is also not what it once was. Far less satisfaction or rewards. Having a background in controls/ electronics should allow you to go in differnt directions. Find something you would enjoy doing, medicine, sales, law real estate, investment, product enhancement.. whatever. You will always have the engineering degree to fall back on to make some bucks. Don't feel guilty about wanting something more than an 8-5 engineering job. But also remember career/job is not your life. Concentrate on what makes you happy in life, family, helping others, your church, sports, activities and maybe that will also give you insite into what you should be doing with yourself. Good Luck and happy hunting.

 

[digitalcaptive]

Thanks for the ideas guys. Gives me a lot to chew on. It is truly appreciated.

I just wanted to make some things clear about my particular situation: I didn't do engineering for the $. I just did it because I was obligated to go to school and do something (since getting drafted into the NBA wasn't going to happen), and at the time, all I wanted was a "comfortable" life so engineering seemed like a safe bet for that. My elder brother is also an engineer, and it worked for him sooo(but he's a true engineer, wasn't the greatest student, but loves engineering whereas i'm the probably the exact opposite, lol) .. Also, at the time, I didn't dream too big (I believe a lot of this has to do with my background. My dad came from a very poor rural family in his home country. In his culture, people don't have dreams, just obligations. You do what you have to - what you like doing doesn't enter into the equation).

In terms of delivering a "comfortable" life, engineering has paid off for me. And this may piss some people, but both schooling and finding a job in engineering came pretty easily to me. I mean, I had to put in the hard work and effort, but it wasn't especially grueling (I guess this is a matter of perspective though, I have cousins that work as laborers in the UAE under oppressive conditions for chump change. What they do is grueling!) Anyway, I do earn enough to sustain a comfortable living standard. I am NOT complaining, it's just that since school and since having some success in my career, I'm starting to dream a lot bigger. When I was in school, my attention was so narrowly focused. It was like being a horse with blinders on. Now with the blinders off, I'm seeing a world of possibility but I am hesistant to just throw away 8 years or so of engineering, w/o trying to leverage it in some way into my new career - whatever that is. Right now, I'm at a point where I'm becoming restless with just doing technical work and want to move on to bigger and better things. And of course, I love $$ so I want to chase it.

p.s. Yeah, I screwed up that "effort-to-reward ratio isn't THAT high" line. What I meant is that for a given amount of effort, the rewards in engineering don't seem as high as they are for other professions.