| Engineering is a great career choice for | | | | - Engineers generally work 40 hours per week, |
| many. With 1.4 million engineering jobs in | | | | but the workload may increase under tight |
| the U.S. alone, it's no wonder this career | | | | deadlines. Daily engineering tasks often |
| field is a popular one. Let's take a look at | | | | involve work outside the desk space including |
| a few reasons why engineering is such a hot | | | | lab research, field work, exploration and |
| and rewarding career. | | | | construction sites, monitoring stations and |
| | | | more. |
| Challenging Work | | | | |
| | | | - Engineers need to continue their educations |
| Engineers get to combine their creativity, | | | | to keep on top of the latest research and |
| mathematics and science background with | | | | technological changes. Some companies offer |
| technology in order to help solve everyday | | | | funding for this. Not staying on top of the |
| problems. They get to work on the design and | | | | changes can mean the difference between |
| development of new products, help with their | | | | maintaining employment and being laid off. |
| production, monitoring, maintenance and | | | | |
| testing. | | | | - The Internet has opened the doors for |
| | | | telecommuters (who may often come aboard for |
| In alphabetical order, the main engineering | | | | less money via long-distance arrangements), |
| specializations are: aerospace, agricultural, | | | | but local engineers are still in demand. |
| biomedical, chemical, civil, computer, | | | | Engineers often work on-site teaming up with |
| electrical, electronics, environmental, | | | | others and their support staff. |
| health and safety, industrial, marine, | | | | |
| materials, mechanical, mining and geological, | | | | - In 2004, engineers with higher degrees |
| nuclear and petroleum. | | | | (Master's and PhD's) earned more. And for |
| | | | specialty engineers, workers earned well into |
| Career Tidbits | | | | the 6-figure ranges. |
| | | | |
| The following list includes some interesting | | | | - Rapid growth in the technology sector means |
| information about this career field according | | | | companies must seek the means to stay ahead |
| to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of | | | | of competitors with product and technology |
| Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook | | | | development, testing, and monitoring. |
| Handbook: | | | | Therefore, engineers are in demand and will |
| | | | be for some time to come. |