PLEASE HELP! career prospects for enginnering (1 Viewer)

[CrashOveride]

we think it's boring, Mojako.

 

[Zarathustra]

I've got BEng/MBiomed at UNSW as my first preference but it seems like the masters isn't recognised by Engineers Australia... which doesn't sound good for me - anyone know about this?
Why do think management sounds good, Affinity? Is it that it is good or just sounds good?

Laney, isn't an MBA the premier qualification for management - do you seriously think a commerce degree majoring in managemet to be better?

Chemical engineering seems really interesting - especially bioprocess. - does anyone do that stream - and how do you go about doing it at UNSW. I've only seen it on the USyd site.

P.S. Check out this site if you don't believe me....
www.whynotchemeng.com

 

[mojako]

we think it's boring, Mojako.

We? your view doesn't represent everyone... Zarathustra's reply proves it
and didn't u say electrical eng was boring?

also, dont capitalise the m in mojako

 

[Slidey]

"Chemical Engineering is not about labs and white coats."

Screw that. I WANT A LAB COAT!

 

[Zarathustra]

Why should you become a chemical engineer, you may ask...

'Chemical engineers have the chance to save the world'

'the whole area of engineering will become increasingly vital for the advancement of the economy, nationally and internationally.'
The Independent, 12th October 2000
'Engineers study the basis of everyday life, and are at the forefront of tackling the impact of our consumer society on the world's fragile ecosystem.'

The Times, 14th September 2000
'Cool Chemists'

'Chemical Engineers continue to be highly sought after in the marketplace, with an employment rate approaching 70 per cent within a few months of leaving university'

'Without Chemical Engineers, you couldn't make anything'
'Job prospects for Chemical Engineers are very good'

'Chemical Engineers continue to be highly sought after in the marketplace, with an employment rate approaching 70 per cent within a few months of leaving university'

'Chemical Engineering involves problem-analysis, teamwork and conceptual thinking, which women are good at.'

'Engineers today are computer-literate, numerate, creative designers. They are also good communicators and team workers who enjoy turning ideas into reality.'

'Chemical Engineers convert discoveries into the useful products that improve the quality of people's lives'

'Finding environmentally friendly ways of developing industry is a bedrock of engineering. Catalytic converters, lead-free petrol, reduced-sulphur diesel and new recycling technologies are all the result of Chemical Engineering'

Plus Cindy Crawford is one...

 

[laney]

god damn ... im interested in doing civil engineering, but sticking on the design side of things ... i hope i can score a job like him

how are you/did you find engineering @ UNSW ?? i applied for civil and enviro ... but im 0.3 under the cut-off ... so i may have to do it @ UTS ... is there much difference ?

the place i'm working at is actually a mining company, but, a lot of the stuff that the engineers are doing is design work, and also earth moving planning (which is essentially civil engineering). i was told at the place i'm working, that open cut mining is just civil engineering, underground mining is more mining engineering.

also, did you guys know, monetary wise, truck drivers at the mine site i'm at earn $1000 a day. fuck a day! i almost wanna throw my studies away and become a trucky for that much money.

Laney, isn't an MBA the premier qualification for management - do you seriously think a commerce degree majoring in managemet to be better?

i don't know about premier...
but, mbas only take 2 years to complete and because they are 2 years long they're very easy to get, and a lot of people get them BECAUSE they're easy to get - employees know they're easy to get. i mean, maybe some employees think they look good, but most of the stuff is really common sense anyway, just like commerce hehehe.
and since it looks as if you do want to do some combined commerce degree (which is a whole lot better than an mba for starters), forget about doing the MBA right now. i mean, you've got 4 years to decide if you think you need it...

 

[Slidey]

If you want to truly save the world, you'd have a much higher chance of doing so by doing PV (photovoltaics). Not only that, but it's got a consistently higher undergraduate salary than chem eng.

 

[Li0n]

I've got BEng/MBiomed at UNSW as my first preference but it seems like the masters isn't recognised by Engineers Australia... which doesn't

Please Explain (@ masters thingo)

 

[doe]

i would wait before you go and get an mba. you will probably spend five years or so working before being considered for a management role. i think you would get more out of doing an mba at that stage as you would have a wealth of experience. that way you could compare what you learn in the mba with what you have experienced firsthand to weed out what you think is crap. i did a comp sci degree after a few years of working as a programmer and i think i got a lot more out of it than someone just out of high school. this is because i could relate what i learnt to real world experience and filter the things that were important from the things that maybe werent so important.

the notion that you need an accounting degree to get into management is wrong, i wouldnt worry about that. you would need some money management skills ie planning with your given budget, but that can be learnt elsewhere or even mentored on the job. so yeah, do civil engineering.

 

[Slidey]

the notion that you need an accounting degree to get into management is wrong, i wouldnt worry about that. you would need some money management skills ie planning with your given budget, but that can be learnt elsewhere or even mentored on the job. so yeah, do civil engineering.

I agree, except for the bit about do civil eng.

 

[Zarathustra]

Engineers Australia accredits a Master's degree only where it is the primary award with no intervening Bachelor award

It seems clear that the Masters part of the double degree isn't accredited so what does this mean? ...and most importantly can you still have MBiomedEng (or similar) after your name ?

 

[Curry]

So, supposing I do Mining Engineering, it would be wiser to wait a while into a position where I can be considered for a management position before atempting a management degree?

But then again, if i don't complete a management degree before work, will I be considered for a management position at all?

 

[Slidey]

It seems clear that the Masters part of the double degree isn't accredited so what does this mean? ...and most importantly can you still have MBiomedEng (or similar) after your name ?

Engineers Australia accredits dual degrees. BEME is a dual degree. You can still do your Fasttrack Bachelor of Eng + Master of Biomed Eng, and your Bachelor of Engineering part will be accredited.

In fact, as far as I know, Engineers Australia doesn't accredit any post-graduate degrees - probably because you need an undergrad degree in engineering to do them, and if you have an undergrad degree you're already accredited!

Being accredited just means you qualify for membership to Engineers Australia, which has some benefits.

 

[Zarathustra]

Thanks for clearing that up Slide Rule.
So accreditation means that the person is accredited not the degree, good.
I was getting worried there...
I still plan to do an MBA... much later on - JOBSEARCH - chem engineer - the government 'jobsearch' site contadicts that other site posted by Slide Rule...

 

[Slidey]

Essentially, yes.

To be honest, it's hard to tell whether or not that site does contradict known information.

The sites I linked to are both correct for what they are used for: one is for post-degree salaries, the other is for full-time professional salaries. Considering that fact that the figures for post-degree salaries correlate strongly with salaries worked out with the figures given by your site, I would assume that it is not talking about professional salaries - the salary of someone who's been in the job for a while, say 5 or 10 years - but post-degree salaries. Also note that the site itself seems to place little faith in its own figures:

"It is important to note that these figures can not be used in determining a particular wage rate or as an indication of what a particular person will earn in a particular job. The data are not specific enough to be used for this purpose."

Consider further that electrical, mining, mechanical and civil engineering are not included in the salary of the site you link to - and these are roughly the four highest paying.

Using its dodgy figures, 'other' engineers (chem, industrial, aero) would get $50K a year.
Civil would get $62K a year
Mining would get $68K a year
Electrical would get $60K a year
Mechanical would get $65K

Even the UNSW undergraduate prospectus states that an undergraduate can expect average starting salaries between $40K to $60K.

But that's not all. Let's look at the figures it gives for "Engineering Management":
Roughly $73K a year. A bit low if you ask me. What's worse is that it places dentists at $78K a year - and that is certainly wrong.

Another reason I don't trust these figures is that simply looking at job ads contradicts them. Try CSIRO.

 

[laney]

So, supposing I do Mining Engineering, it would be wiser to wait a while into a position where I can be considered for a management position before atempting a management degree?

But then again, if i don't complete a management degree before work, will I be considered for a management position at all?

One of the mining engineers that i'm working at now is doing a masters in management. He's been at the place for a while now, and after he gets his masters he's planning on doing management. Lots of choices

 

[Courtenay]

i am going to do renewable energy engineering at unsw...the way of the future!!

 

[Slidey]

^ Cool. Thought about photovoltaics - renewable energy but specifically solar cells? Heh heh.

 

[aditya]

its funny though, some peopel do reneable while others do petroleum.... hus gonna suffer :S

 

[Affinity]

well do a bit of both, then you are hedged against uncertainties