Career as Engineer

Career as engineer involves work like designing machines, constructing buildings, and oversees public works. Career as engineer is about dealing with the needs of the community and its problems on many other levels. To a large extent, an engineer monitors the flow of pollutants through the soil to clean up oil spills, abandoned industrial areas and other biohazards. At the galactic level, he or she designs a spacecraft to explore other planets. At the atomic level, one increases data storage which focuses on the rotation of electrons in atoms. Clean drinking water, safe food storage, and environmental protection are also under the umbrella of engineering.

Identifying problems

The career as engineer includes identifying problems in for example a machinery system. He or she analyses mechanical and thermal devices to solve a specific problem arising in the proper functioning of the machine. an engineer investigates the failure of equipment or difficulties. He or she diagnoses faulty operations to recommend remedies. One has to carry out similar functions in case of a problem arising in an electronic product, software or an expressway.

Electrical Engineer: Electrical Engineer designs and constructs innovative electrical systems, tests equipment and discovers solutions to electrical problems and devices. In general, electrical engineers deal with large-scale electrical systems such as motor control and power transmission. Throughout their careers, they work on a number of innovations, including the design of household appliances, electrical power stations, building and satellite communications cables, and lighting. 

Mechanical Engineer: A mechanical engineer is a technical professional. He or she is responsible for supervision of manufacturing processes and other technical staff. A mechanical engineer researches, designs and develops equipment, devices and other components of a machine. He or she works with other engineers for successful completion of the project. A mechanical engineer is required to travel to manufacturing site or customers’ offices to test the device and improve its efficiency. 

Electrical Power Engineer: Electrical power engineers are professionals who primarily focus on researching and working on ways to effectively harness electrical energy for various purposes. Through electrical power engineering’s research, they find ways to make electrical reactors safe and efficient. 

Energy Performance Engineer: Energy performance engineer is a professional involved with the production of energy through natural resources, such as extraction of oil and gas, or renewable/ sustainable source of energy, including biofuels, the hydro, wind, and solar power. The main focus of energy performance engineering is to find efficient, clean, and innovative ways to supply energy. 

Flight Engineer: Flight engineer, or the aircraft engineer is responsible for ensuring that all components of the aircraft are in proper operation. It is the responsibility of the flight engineer to make any adjustments if it is a problem with the machinery of the flight. People often wonder if a pilot and a flight engineer is the same thing and often compare ‘flight engineer vs pilot’. They are two very different designations.  A flight engineer interprets the complex flight-related scales and tools, as well as helps the pilots with navigation. 

Locomotive Engineer: A locomotive engineer is also called as a train driver, engine driver or a locomotive driver. In India, a locomotive engineer starts his or her career as an assistant initially and steadily becomes a freight or passenger train driver. Freight or passenger trains are controlled by locomotive engineers. They should, therefore, examine the locomotive thoroughly during and before the operation, and also review the train's speed, air pressure, battery and other complex mechanics while travelling. 

Nanosystems Engineer: A nanosystems engineer is a professional who deals with the material which is roughly 1/1,00,000 of the width of a strand of human hair. Nanotechnology deals with the materials that behave in a much different way on the nanoscale than normal. This is where a nanosystems engineer comes in. The job of a nanosystems engineer is to  study these differences and imagine new techniques for these materials to benefit the environment. 

Nuclear Engineer: Nuclear engineers design, build, run and shut nuclear power stations. They work in multi-disciplinary teams to come up with technical solutions. Depending on their role they could be designing totally new systems, maintaining existing systems, or looking for ways to improve the efficiency, stability, and sustainability of nuclear power plants. 

Petroleum Engineer: Petroleum engineers design equipment that extracts oil from reservoirs, which are deep pockets of rock that contain oil and gas deposits. To do this, they spend a lot of time gathering and analyzing data to extract the oil in the safest and most cost-effective ways possible. They also do a lot of evaluating and refining systems to make them better. They use supercomputers, not only in the analysis of exploration data and simulation of reservoir behavior but also in automation of oilfield production and drilling operations. 

Polymer Engineer: Polymer engineers are involved in the designing and engineering of polymers that include household products that include water bottles, and containers. They develop materials used in making automobiles, and industrial piping Polymer engineers work full time in the laboratory. Sometimes they are required to work overtime to meet the deadlines. A polymer engineer supervises the production process of plastic and other polymers. 

Robotics Engineer: Robotics engineering acts as the bridge between mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, computer science and even psychology. Robotics engineers work with computers and automated machines in technology-driven environments. They use CADD software to create blueprints and schematics for robotic systems. 

Textile Engineer: A Textile Engineer is a professional who completed undergraduate level education in textile engineering or related specialisations. He or she started working in textile plants or related industries. A textile engineer deals with the production of fabrics, cloth, garments, and related products. A textile engineer applies the laws, principles, and scientific techniques to develop innovative solutions for textile manufacturing and processing related problems. 

Geotechnical Engineer: A geotechnical engineer is a professional who uses the applications of scientific methods and engineering principles to improve ground engineering design. Geotechnical engineer uses methods such as acquisition, interpretation, and knowledge of use of materials of the earth’s crust and earth materials for the solution of engineering problems along with the design of engineering works. The role of the geotechnical engineers in mining includes work on various geotechnical engineering projects while using the principles of soil mechanics and rock mechanics. 

Geothermal Engineer: Geothermal engineers are the professionals who research and explore new ways to utilise geothermal energy with the use of technology. Geothermal energy is highly popular and its use is rapidly increasing. Geothermal energy can be defined as thermal energy stored in the earth. Geothermal engineers explore ways to convert this energy into electrical power energy. 

Chemical Engineers: Chemical engineers decipher forms formed in the lab into practical applications for the business creation of items. They work afterward to keep up and improve those procedures.The chemical engineering jobs are to structure and investigate processes for the creation of chemical compounds, fuels, nourishment, pharmaceuticals, and biologicals, just to give some examples. 

Agricultural Engineers: Agriculture engineers find new ways of doing things to improve the productivity of the land without harming the environment, and conserve resources. Agricultural infrastructure such as dams, water reservoirs, warehouses, and other structures are also designed and built by them. In short, agricultural engineers work to improve the efficacy and sustainability of agricultural practices with the help of advanced technologies. 

Aerospace Engineer: Aerospace engineers are professionals who not only design aircraft, spacecraft, satellites, and missiles, they also create test vehicles to ensure optimum functionality. Aerospace engineers develop new ideas and technologies that can be used in defence systems, aviation, and spacecraft. Be it flight technology or aerial defence systems, there are a number of aspects aerospace engineering looks into.

Marine Engineer: Marine engineering deals with the construction, operation and management of mechanical equipment used in the seagoing craft, dock or harbor installations and also maintains vehicles used on or around water. This includes ships, aircraft carriers, submarines, sailboats, tankers and several other marine vessels. Professionals are responsible for the functioning of the ship's internal system which comprises the propulsion, electrical, refrigeration and steering systems.

Mechatronics Engineer: Mechatronics is a multidisciplinary field of engineering. It combines both electrical and mechanical systems, and also includes a combination of fields like robotics, electronics, computer, telecommunications, systems, control, and product engineering. Mechatronic engineers design, develop, maintain as well as manage the high-technology based engineering systems for the automation of several industrial tasks. Mechatronics engineers apply mechatronic or automated solutions to the transfer of material, components or finished goods. Not only that, they also apply advanced electronic control systems, which are usually computer-driven.

Wind Energy Engineer: Wind energy engineer is a professional involved in designing wind farms and its components such as wind turbines, windmills and other related components. There are various types of engineers that work in wind energy projects as considered as wind energy engineers. Mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, civil engineers, material or aerospace engineers working in a wind energy project are also known as wind energy engineers. 

Water Engineer: A water engineer works to build tools and techniques that can increase water efficiency and provide us a sustainable environment to live. If we talk about the key points of a water engineer’s work, we can say that he/she designs various solutions that protect a town from the devastating effects of flooding. As a water engineer, one is also responsible for overseeing everyday’s water supply to make sure it is safe for the population to drink. 

Software Engineer: A software engineer is a computer science specialist who employs knowledge of the concepts of engineering and software development to build software products, design computer games and operate network control systems. A software engineer assesses the needs of the customer, designs, measures and constructs the computer software to meet customer needs. 

Computer Systems Engineer: A computer systems engineer is involved in updating himself or herself with recent developments in computer technology. His or her work responsibility involves improving the existing processes and equipment. A computer systems engineer is required to integrate hardware and software programmes in the computer system to meet requirements of clients. 

Software Quality Assurance Engineer: A software quality assurance engineer ensures the quality of a software is up-to-date and is not compromised at any level. A software quality assurance engineer is required to perform testing at various phases of software development. Additionally, he/she is also responsible for creating various test cases that can be used by both software beta testers and software engineers to check the redundancy of a software. 

Sales Engineer: A sales engineer is an individual who is responsible for selling complex scientific and technological products as well as services to different businesses. A sales engineer should have in-depth knowledge of the products' parts, functions and application. He or she must understand the scientific processes that make these products work. 

Industrial Engineer: Industrial engineering job description is to evaluate and build structures, material handling systems, fabrication and manufacturing systems, information systems and individual and company workplaces as systems integrators. Industrial engineers evaluate, design and manage manufacturing and service processes in the field of operations, planning and monitoring of production systems, allocation and scheduling of resources, assignment and scheduling of staff, quality assurance, management of inventories and system and protection of staff. 

An engineer works in an office environment. He or she is responsible for overseeing the manufacturing process. An engineer communicates with other departments as required for the project. He or she is involved in creating prototypes and product tests.  An engineer is responsible for effectively communicating with other departments as per the requirement of the project. He or she is responsible for checking the manufacturing equipment and machinery. an engineer is required to travel to manufacturing sites or customer offices. He or she may be required to frequent bending and heavy weight lifting.

Does Engineer require travelling?

Likely

An engineer is often required to travel to different sites or custom offices to check the machine is functioning properly and resolving other related issues.

Employment Shifts

Full Time

Yes, the career falls into a certain shift. An engineer works from early mornings till late evenings. Shifts may also vary depending on the requirement of the organisation. An engineer works full-time. Work from home, on-call work, part-time or hourly basis employment shift is not provided in the career of an engineer

Employment Nature

Contractual, Permanent

An engineer finds employment opportunities on both permanent as well as contractual basis. The contractual term completely depends on the requirement of the organisation. The contract’s duration may also be extended depending on the work performance of the engineer.

Work Place

Office

An engineer can work both in an office environment as well as on the field. For example, a computer hardware engineer works in an office environment, civil engineer works both in an office as well as on the field, whereas an agricultural engineer works mainly on the field. An engineer’s job can be both travel dependent or the one limited to office premises only. For example, a flight engineer has a travel dependent job, whereas a nanosystems engineer works within the office premises only.  

Presence in Geographical Area

Semi-urban, Urban

An engineer finds alluring opportunities in urban, semi-urban areas. Bengaluru, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, and New Delhi provide promising opportunities for engineers. Whereas in some cases like that of an agricultural engineer, he or she may have to work in rural areas.

Time Pressure

Likely

Yes, when it comes to career as engineer one is often requires to work under frequent time pressure. There are several deadlines that he or she needs to meet.

Overtime Details

An engineer may be required to work overtime or more than 10 hours a day to meet the deadlines.

Weekly Hours of Work

Min 45 Hours

An engineer works a minimum of 40 to 45 hours per week. The standard working hours may extend due to excess work pressure. An engineer may be required to work overtime or 9 to 10 hours to meet the deadlines.

We have provided below the description of Engineer skills. 

Designing skills: An individual planning to make a career as engineer is required to create sketches of designs of equipment, devices and other components of for example, a machinery system or a dam on paper with charcoal pencils. He or she designs 3-D sketches using AutoCAD software on the computer. 

Research skills: An engineer must be able to research effectively. He or she is responsible for researching and implementing findings for developing new products using various tools and technologies. 

Interpersonal management: A candidate who wishes to make career as engineer is required to supervise the technical staff. He or she is required to effectively communicate with other departments according to the requirement of the project. an engineer works with other engineers as well to fulfil the requirements of the project. 

Technical skills: An individual aiming to make a career as engineer must possess strong technical skills. He or she is required to identify the problems in the manufacturing of products and provide the best possible alternative solutions. An engineer is required to bend and lift heavy objects frequently to test systems and improve them.

Time management: When it comes to career as engineer always works with deadlines. Therefore, he or she must be able to manage the work and complete it on time. It is essential for professionals belonging to this field to have good time management skills. Not just professionally but to have a good work-life balance one should have good time management skills.

We have mentioned below certification courses for aspiring individuals who want to become an engineer. These certification courses may help them to upgrade their skills and knowledge. 

Civil Engineer: A civil engineer is a professional engineer who has specialised in civil engineering. He or she is responsible for engineering projects that include designing, building, supervising, operating, constructing and maintaining infrastructure. A civil engineer may design and supervise the construction of roads, buildings, airports, tunnels, bridges and water supply and sewage treatment systems. 

Aerospace Engineer: An aerospace engineer is responsible for designing aircraft, satellites, spacecraft, and missiles. Design, manufacture, and testing of aerospace products are the basic jobs of an aerospace engineer. One has to make proposals for projects which are technically and financially viable. An aerospace engineer also has to take care of several projects and not only ensure their delivery, but also meet the quality standard. 

Electrical Engineer: An electrical engineer is a professional responsible for designing and developing electrical systems. He or she resolves problems and tests equipment. An electrical engineer applies the principles of physics and mathematics of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. He or she is responsible for processing information and transmitting energy through circuits. 

According to a report, it is expected that India will move up to fifth position from sixth position on the global manufacturing competitiveness index. India will make a stronghold in the manufacturing sector in the coming years. Hence, it will provide numerous opportunities to engineers in India. 

The engineering career salary and remuneration is dependent on the skills of engineers. Skill gaps should be bridged to make new graduates of engineering aware of the latest tools and technologies used in the industry.