Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
(OP)
Firstly, I know this is a forum for professional engineers, and I am not. But I think this would be the best place for some legitimate feedback.
After a solid semi-career in restaurant management, I decided that I wasn't using my brain enough every day to be happy. I quit the 80 hours/week job and work much less now, so that I have time to school. I've always considered myself a problem solver, and I'm strong in math and science. I placed into calcI/analytic geometry on a placement test at the local cc after pretty much NO math for the last 12 years.
Thing is, I'm 31, and likely to be 36-37 before I have a degree in hand. Is that too old to start a career in engineering? I think I've had enough of settling, but is this a valid point to settle on a new career with faster training?
Thanks
Tony
After a solid semi-career in restaurant management, I decided that I wasn't using my brain enough every day to be happy. I quit the 80 hours/week job and work much less now, so that I have time to school. I've always considered myself a problem solver, and I'm strong in math and science. I placed into calcI/analytic geometry on a placement test at the local cc after pretty much NO math for the last 12 years.
Thing is, I'm 31, and likely to be 36-37 before I have a degree in hand. Is that too old to start a career in engineering? I think I've had enough of settling, but is this a valid point to settle on a new career with faster training?
Thanks
Tony





RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Fe
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
You still have 30+ years until retirement.
Chris
SolidWorks 10 SP4.0
ctopher's home
SolidWorks Legion
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
"The first problem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn."
Find Electrical Engineer Job listings
http://www.electrical-designer-guide.com/
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
"Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to yourself and others." Buddha
Find Electrical Engineer Job listings
http://www.electrical-designer-guide.com/
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
31 is too OLD!?!?!?!?!?!?!
"If you are going to walk on thin ice, you might as well dance!"
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Go for it dude. You'll be happier with yourself, and that is what will make you successful.
Mike McCann
MMC Engineering
Motto: KISS
Motivation: Don't ask
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
HOWEVER, whatever discipline you choose, make sure you get a full bachelor's degree from an accredited school. DO NOT get a technology degree, DO NOT get an associate degree; neither will pass the threshold usually applied to entry level engineering jobs.
TTFN
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RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Follow IRstuff's advice and choose your discipline carefully. Follow your interests, not the published/touted starting salary data.
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
First, thanks to everyone for the encouragement! IRstuff, I can already see that this will be the hard part. Perhaps not only because I need to find where my interests best intersect with engineering, but also because there is limited schooling in less than a 1 hour commute and I work full-time to support my wife and four children, and we plan on moving to Illinois sometime before I could finish.
Any tips on what kind of personalities/interests best suit particular disciplines of engineering?
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
I got a job at the local factory, and even years later I was still doing calculus problems in my head while working and on lunch (proving to myself that the area of a circle really is pi*r^2 by using double integration with polar coordinates, and similar things). When I was 24 I decided I couldn't take it any longer and started taking classes at a community college - at the time I wanted to be a math teacher. The college was an hour away. I took gen ed classes there for about 2 years while working full time. When I decided to go into engineering I realized that I needed to step up the pace a little. I started taking as many classes (gen ed) as I could anywhere I could find them. I took classes at two different community colleges (in class and online), and at 3 different branch campuses of the university I finally graduated from.
I worked full time while taking classes part time for 4.5 years and then worked part time while taking classes full time for 2 years. During all of this I had a kid, got divorced, then got remarried. I was 30 when I finally finished. It was a long, hard road to hoe, but very much worth it. I get to exercise my brain daily and love my work. I make less money than I did in the factory (by a pretty substantial %), but am much happier.
I would say that if you are passionate about engineering, then go for it. You will definitely be there because you want to and not just because you're good in math/science. That will make a huge difference in your study time and how you take notes and pay attention in class. This will ultimately be reflected in your grades and the opportunities that open up to you.
When I talked to my mother about going back to school and I expressed concern about how long it would take me to finish and how hard it would be she just asked me how old I would be in 7 years. The answer was the same whether I went to school or not. Why not go for it and be happier in 7 years?
11 years later I just found out my application was approved to sit for the SE I exam.
I have a tremendous amount of respect for anyone who has the fortitude to take this road. It's not borne out of a need to please others or expectations from parents/family. It's clearly a desire to better oneself and contribute as much as they can to society. That being said, the bulk of the respect comes from that fact that it is a long, difficult road (I know this first-hand, obviously) and not everyone can make it. Those that can (and do) automatically earn my respect.
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
I had this conversation with someone else recently. We noted that of the engineers we knew, the ones that actually liked being engineers tended to avoid retirement. I'm far from retirement but I could understand the logic. My father is not an engineer but planned to retire a few years ago. He found that he was bored and needed his own time away from my mother (ha!) so he went back to work. If you're an engineer and spend your whole life bettering yourself at some profession that you love, why would you up and quit when you're at the peak of your knowledge base? I could see slowing down but retiring completely? Not likely, at least for me.
That being said, the reason I wrote that is that even at 37 years old, you may think you "only" have 25-30 years til retirement. However, if you're in good health, you may end up doing this the rest of your life. It's an addictive profession when the rules keep changing and the wealth of knowledge is so vast. You just never stop learning something new.
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Rafiq Bulsara
http://www.srengineersct.com
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Also see thread730-265061: When is it too late to pursue engineering professionally?
Hg
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RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
> Introverted engineer: looks at his own shoes when talking to someone else
> Extroverted engineer: looks at the other person's shoes when talking to them.
The main factor is really finding something that you like to do, can do, and are willing to do for the rest of your life. Bear in mind that typical engineering is mostly an office job, but there are exceptions.
TTFN
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RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
As for deciding which degree to pick, I can only tell you about how I decided on mechanical. If you find yourself fascinated by everything with moving parts and can spend hours leafing through manufacturers' catalogs of out-of-date machinery that you have already looked at a hundred times before, then you should probably pick mechanical. Couldn't tell you what turns on the guys who build bridges or radios.
Engineering is not the science behind building. It is the science behind not building.
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Even if it doesn't work out the mechanical side of your degree will be a good fallback.
Cheers
Greg Locock
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RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
I remember a father-son pair when I was in school. Both seemed sharp, Sr. a little more together.
My biggest weakness by far was study discipline, I thought sponge mode was sufficient, it's not for 95%, and a bad idea for all. If you study consistently start, and apply the threshold effort early, start projects early you will step into a world where the material become common sense that others don't.
Work experience and the madness of long-term unemployment (thankfully over this spring)helped me study the 2-5 hours / day for my FE review process. 2 children broke me in on the sleep deprivation.
Tour engineering departments, see what they have to offer, pick what you like. Make sure to participate in student design/build projects like ASCE steel bridge, SAE (formula SAE, Mini-Baja, methanol marathon, hybrid vehicle contests, DARPA autonomous vehicle). Posing & solving design problems, working hands on makes you literate & accomplished in engineering process. Study for & take your FE Sr. Year.
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
In short, so long as it's what you want to do, not you're probably not to old.
What is Engineering anyway: FAQ1088-1484: In layman terms, what is "engineering"?
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Just don't pursue engineering, and all the effort and debt that engineering school might entail for you, without an understanding of the ACTUAL job market for engineers of the kind you plan to be, in the region you want to live in. Don't buy the hype or the reputation- do your research and get the data before you decide. At the risk of boring poor old FeX32 to death, I'll restate that the 2006 census in Canada had two engineers working OUTSIDE engineering for every three who have a Bachelors' degree or higher in engineering. Not all of those folks are patent lawyers or medical researchers either. Not all of them left because they saw greener pastures in some other field- many couldn't get a foothold in the profession after they graduated.
Engineering is still a pretty good gig for the top 10% of its grads. Aspire to be amongst that top 10% from the get-go.
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Too late, the thought of your "persistent-whimper" bores me to death.....
btw, I am far from old....I may even be you next door neighbor's kid or that young prof that you hated in uni. ...
OP, don't listen to those BS stats. Every good engineer I know loves their job and had no trouble finding one.
Look at the uni. stats, they are totally opposite.... I wonder why...duh!
Fe
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
There are also a number of ET members that are currently, or recently, without a job. YMMV, since there's different sectors of the economy as well as different parts of countries involved.
TTFN
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RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Apparently even medical is being hit now.
What is Engineering anyway: FAQ1088-1484: In layman terms, what is "engineering"?
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
TTFN
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RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
Peter Stockhausen
Senior Design Analyst (Checker)
Infotech Aerospace Services
www.infotechpr.net
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
RE: Not really an engineer, but I want to be...
As I mentioned earlier, we've had attrition, but that was losing people to other companies, 2 went off to an Evil Empire, while another went to a commercial company.
TTFN
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