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March 29, 2024, 08:36:21 am

Author Topic: Future of Engineering  (Read 4292 times)  Share 

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Deceitful Wings

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Future of Engineering
« on: December 18, 2012, 02:57:02 pm »
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Hey everyone,
I want to do engineering/commerce @ monash, and I have a few queries:
-Does engineering have a positive future in terms of jobs?
-at what age does one generally apply for project management?
-I also have a passion for biology and I was wandering if biomedical engineering will be prospectful for the future?
-How can the commerce degree help with my engineering degree?
-Is the workload intense in the degree(s)?

Hope you can help! :P

Mr Keshy

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #1 on: December 18, 2012, 03:41:52 pm »
+1
Hey everyone,
I want to do engineering/commerce @ monash, and I have a few queries:
-Does engineering have a positive future in terms of jobs?
-at what age does one generally apply for project management?
-I also have a passion for biology and I was wandering if biomedical engineering will be prospectful for the future?
-How can the commerce degree help with my engineering degree?
-Is the workload intense in the degree(s)?

Hope you can help! :P

1st bold - things always need to be built :) , so someone needs to design it.
2nd - A lot of employers look for engineers with both degrees. I've heard that after a while, certain engineers may go into project management.
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JinXi

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #2 on: December 18, 2012, 04:04:06 pm »
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Hey everyone,
I want to do engineering/commerce @ monash, and I have a few queries:
-Does engineering have a positive future in terms of jobs?

Yes, like keshimba said, unless the world stops developing, which it won't, engineers will always be needed. Also, less and less people of our generation seems to like engineering, thus the supply of (good) engineers is likely to drop in the near future.

-at what age does one generally apply for project management?

It really depends on you. Some may get into project management with just a few months of experience, while others may be stagnant at their position till they retire. Perform and the company will reward you, connections does help too.

-I also have a passion for biology and I was wandering if biomedical engineering will be prospectful for the future?

As above, technological advancement needs engineers.

-How can the commerce degree help with my engineering degree?

With a background in commerce (especially management) employers may be inclined to see you as someone who is able to lead a team within a few years, as opposed to a backseat engineer. Of course it depends on the employers, as some may argue that the hours spent on the commerce degree would be better spent solidifying your understanding of the concepts in engineering.


-Is the workload intense in the degree(s)?
Hope you can help! :P

In a single engineering degree, you'll be having around 24 contact hours, E.g. Lectures+tutorials+labs. Most students generally spread their timetable over 5 days, while squeezing it into 4 days is possible (probably skipping a couple of lectures) it's not really advisable. (Unless you're like some of the genius around this forum ahem. ahem. TT)

For a double degree, (eng/comm) you'll be having less hours due to the fact that commerce units has lower contact hours, but you'll probably have to spend roughly the same amount of time to do well anyway.

In uni, you generally have to stay on top of the content throughout the semester (or cram like crazy during swotvac, but not many can pull this off) to perform well. Engineering isn't as hard as some people make it out to be. If you put your mind to it, you'll be able to do well.

Hope I'm able to answer some of your questions! Feel free to ask further and hope to see you at Monash next year :)
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Deceitful Wings

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #3 on: December 21, 2012, 12:10:41 pm »
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Thanks! :D
I looked at your signature, how come you picked eng@monash over eng@melb? 
also I am thinking about doing project management soon after I graduate, so what can I do in uni to increase my employability then?

JinXi

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #4 on: December 21, 2012, 02:35:14 pm »
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Thanks! :D
I looked at your signature, how come you picked eng@monash over eng@melb? 
also I am thinking about doing project management soon after I graduate, so what can I do in uni to increase my employability then?

I picked Eng over Monash since it's closer for me to get to Monash then Melb. uni (20mins as opposed to 1hr+) Also, I've been told by Melb uni engineering students to go to Monash. According to them, the facilities in Melb uni are old and outdated, which is true when I visited the faculty on open day a couple of years ago.

They also disagreed with the new Melbourne Model (these are students that finished engineering in Melb. Uni when they had the 4year engineering course) saying that needing to do Masters is essentially a waste of time/money and also has an additional risk factor if you don't get in. I must also say that that is true. In the two engineering firms I've been an intern in, Masters fresh graduates do get a slightly higher starting salary than a bachelor fresh grad., but the difference is negligible, and what promotes you in an engineering firm isn't your qualifications, but rather, your experience. (A bachelor grad and a masters grad both qualifies to sign drawings/designs off)

The last factor was that in Year 12, I wanted to do a double degree with engineering, something which Melb Uni doesn't offer. (I initially wanted to do eng/comm, but I don't know what happened during the change of preference period i.e. this time 2 years ago, I changed to eng/sci.)
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Now onto the second question, there's a heap of things you are able to do at uni to increase your employability. First and foremost would obviously be maintaining a high mark in uni. Alongside that, you'll probably want to look into extra-curricular activities, e.g. Join the committee of clubs, sports, start of a new initiative/project, basically anything that involves management and communication skills. Also, if you're interested in research, it would be good to look up some lecturers/researchers profile and email them. Ask them if they are able to give you an insight to their research topic. Many of them are more than happy to talk to students about it, and if the conversation goes right, they might give you some part-time research work along side your uni studies.

Finally, especially for engineering, internships would play a major factor in your employability. Most average students only do internships after 3rd year, but if you apply yourself well and with some connections and luck, you might get offered interns after your 1st year. Do not be picky in first year as an intern. Accept ANY offer by ANY engineering company, big or small, even factories or front line jobs. Bear in mind that to the company, taking a first year in is more of a liability than an asset, so be prepared to be working without paid or getting a measly amount. By the time you reach the end of 3rd year, you'll already have 2 summer worth of experience in the industry, and that's when you can apply to the company that you want to work for after your graduate as an intern. Perform well as an intern, and I would guarantee that the company would darn near beg you to return to them after you graduate.

Ofc there are infinitely many other ways to improve your standings in the industry, but those are the main ones in my book. Hope I'm able to give you some insight to the field :)
« Last Edit: December 21, 2012, 02:41:39 pm by JinXi »
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Kopite

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #5 on: December 24, 2012, 06:55:34 pm »
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They also disagreed with the new Melbourne Model (these are students that finished engineering in Melb. Uni when they had the 4year engineering course) saying that needing to do Masters is essentially a waste of time/money and also has an additional risk factor if you don't get in. I must also say that that is true. In the two engineering firms I've been an intern in, Masters fresh graduates do get a slightly higher starting salary than a bachelor fresh grad., but the difference is negligible, and what promotes you in an engineering firm isn't your qualifications, but rather, your experience. (A bachelor grad and a masters grad both qualifies to sign drawings/designs off)

May I ask where you interned at? As far as I know, Masters and undergrad graduates would get the same starting salary.

And a grad would not be given the authority to sign P&ID's etc off - you'd be looking at a senior engineer for that.

The last factor was that in Year 12, I wanted to do a double degree with engineering, something which Melb Uni doesn't offer.

I graduated with a B.Comm and am currently doing my M.E at Melbourne University atm....sounds like two degrees to me!

JinXi

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #6 on: December 24, 2012, 08:32:40 pm »
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May I ask where you interned at? As far as I know, Masters and undergrad graduates would get the same starting salary.

And a grad would not be given the authority to sign P&ID's etc off - you'd be looking at a senior engineer for that.

I graduated with a B.Comm and am currently doing my M.E at Melbourne University atm....sounds like two degrees to me!

What I meant by signing off P&ID's are that both bachelors and masters allows you to get the proper accreditation. Neither would give much of an advantage when getting your accreditation. Also I'm currently interning at Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM).
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Kopite

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #7 on: December 24, 2012, 11:18:26 pm »
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Also I'm currently interning at Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM).

Ahh okk....so masters grads get slightly more $$ compared to undergrads there?

JinXi

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #8 on: December 25, 2012, 03:15:55 am »
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Ahh okk....so masters grads get slightly more $$ compared to undergrads there?

Yeah according to my colleagues. But the difference is nearly insignificant. A bachelor degree fresh grad with a year extra experience would get more than a masters would upon entering the company.
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Hancock

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #9 on: December 25, 2012, 03:23:16 am »
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You'd assume BE + 1 year exp pay would be higher than a fresh ME since the Master's grad still has to be trained up. Coming from the Melb Model, I'm not expecting to be getting a higher salary than a BSc/BE or a straight BE student. I'm treating my degree as a double degree and that's how other UoMers should I reckon.
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Kopite

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #10 on: December 25, 2012, 11:15:03 pm »
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Yeah according to my colleagues. But the difference is nearly insignificant. A bachelor degree fresh grad with a year extra experience would get more than a masters would upon entering the company.

Interesting, as hancock said - Masters = double degree. SKM recruiters prob dont have a full grasp of the melbourne model system yet ahhaa.

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Re: Future of Engineering
« Reply #11 on: December 26, 2012, 01:03:58 am »
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I graduated with a B.Comm and am currently doing my M.E at Melbourne University atm....sounds like two degrees to me!



I have no difficulty at all seeing that B.Commerce + M.Engineering are two degrees and two different qualifications.
I also have no difficulty at all seeing that B.Science + M.Engineering are two degrees and two different qualifications.