The products of engineering careers are present in modern life nearly everywhere we look. Like right now: engineers designed the computer you’re using, the electrical grid that is supplying power to that computer, the road that leads up to your house. This means that there are a huge range of different industries and fields to explore if you’re interested in an engineering career.
Engineering Careers Start with the Right Degree
Engineering Career Paths
There are nearly as many engineering careers as there are materials to build and work with. Engineers specialize in a range of fields, from nuclear engineers working with devices to work with material at the atomic level, to aerospace engineers, building massive planes and spacecraft. It’d be impossible to discuss all types of engineering here, so we’ll just discuss a few fields that are growing very rapidly.
Biomedical engineers work on the devices that solve medical and health-related dilemmas. From prosthetic limbs and artificial organs to diagnostic devices to imaging systems, biomedical engineers help us live longer, healthier lives.
Civil engineers study, design, and supervise the construction of a wide range of structures. From roads and bridges to buildings and dams to city infrastructure and transportation systems, civil engineers help create the structures and systems that make modern life move so smoothly.
Environmental engineers develop solutions to our society’s ecological problems. Environmental engineers are involved in everything from waste management to public health to air pollution control. They conduct studies on environmental impacts of proposed projects, and work to clean up and minimize environmental hazards.
Salaries for Engineering Careers
Salaries in the engineering field will vary widely depending on the area of specialty, the amount of seniority the engineer has, and the employer he or she works for.
Biomedical engineers earn a median salary of around $77,000 annually, with most earning between $59,000-98,000. According to a survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), recent graduates with a bachelor’s degree in the field of biomedical and bioengineering can expect to earn a starting salary of around $54,000.
Civil engineers earn only slightly less, with a median salary of around $74,000, and most earning between just under $58,000 to 94,000. The NACE survey finds that civil engineers earn an average starting salary of around $52,000.
Environmental engineers are nearly identical to civil in terms of salary, with the median salary also falling around $74,000, and most earning between $56,000-94,000. NACE survey data are not available for recently-graduated environmental engineers, but engineers with similar degrees earn average salaries between $52,000-64,000 out of college.
Engineering Career Education
Regardless of the specific field, nearly all engineering disciplines require a bachelor’s degree in order to obtain entry-level jobs. For those seeking to be engineering technicians, associate’s degrees or certificate programs may be sufficient to gain employment.
Many engineers start their careers following completion of their bachelor’s degree and earn graduate degrees after gaining work experience – either by returning to school or completing a degree part-time. Engineers with graduate training – particularly those who’ve taken some business or accounting courses – will find they have excellent employment prospects moving forward.
Featured Degrees For Engineering Careers
- Schools and Degree Information in Biomedical Engineering
- Schools and Degree Information in Civil Engineering
- Schools and Degree Information in Computer Programming
Outlook for Engineering Careers
Engineering careers are expected to grow at a rate about equal to the projections for all occupations nationwide. Certain engineering specialties will grow slower than others – such as chemical, electronics, and computer hardware engineers – largely due to declines in manufacturing and intense foreign competition.
All engineers regardless of specialization will do well to remain connected to breakthroughs in their field, and continue learning as their careers progress. Engineering fields are more reactionary to changes in technology and techniques than most, and engineers who fail to keep pace with the cutting edge will find themselves behind.
Looking at the engineering specialties we’ve focused on, biomedical engineers can expect the most robust growth of all engineering fields (and indeed, are among the fastest-growing professions nationwide) with an expected 72 percent increase in opportunities. As our population continues to age and our health needs continue to expand, this field should see robust growth for the foreseeable future.
Environmental engineers will also find extraordinary growth, with a 31 percent expected growth in employment. Companies need more and more expertise to deal with complex environmental problems and increasingly-complex regulations, as well as to develop methods to prevent and mitigate costly environmental disasters.
Civil engineers will experience a growth in prospects of 24 percent. As our population continues to expand, transportation, water supply, and other infrastructure elements will require expansion and construction. Additionally, large portions of our existing infrastructure are aging, and will require repairs and redesigns.
