Kaplan: Are We Educating Enough Engineers? | Newsweek Kaplan College Guide

Posted By: cajademierda @ 08/29/2008 2:16:51 PM

Comment: Good column. Unfortunately there were probably 5 others written this week with the opposite, albeit false, conclusion based purely on hyperbole. There is absolutely no shortage of engineers. KidPrime, good for you that you were able to get a lucrative job offer. Job markets are cyclical and generally lag the economy at large. 2002 sucked 2007 was good, 2010 probably won't be. There are plenty of finance majors with lucrative job offers too and there are plenty of comp lit majors with good gpas who will go to law or business school and make more than engineering money. None of them ever stayed till 2am in a computer lab. And jet-engineer, engineers in no way dominate finance and strategy consulting. They may dominate the management ranks at technology oriented companies, but those are a minority of all companies. And an engineering degree is no more a ticket to business, law, or medical school than any other major. Of those three, only medical school has significant prereqs and even a liberal arts major could take the 4 semesters of chem and 2 semesters each of bio, math, and physics in their electives or by adding a summer session. Heck, most engineers don't take that much chem. The engineering profession has been decimated by excessive immigration and outsourcing. I only wish I had more forsight to all that when I chose it.

Posted By: jet_engineer @ 08/22/2008 10:29:02 AM

Comment: There is a demand for engineers from top schools with decent GPA's and/or advanced degrees. The fact that trained engineers have come to dominate areas like finance, managment, and strategy consulting is proof that the degree itself is a 'ticket to everywhere.' The degree combinations of egineering/business or egineering/law, even engineering/medicine are highly sought after, much more than the non-engineering counterparts -- and are highly compensated as well. Finally, if your passion is science or engineering, do not abandon it. At the end of the day, it is innovation that drives economies. Sure, your job (and many others) will be under threat from Chinese, Indians, etc. That's why it is important to grow as an innovator, and not remain a cog in globalization's increasingly redundant machinery. As an engineer you may be vulnerable to outsourcing, but you are also the best equipped to reinvent your career.

Posted By: EffYou @ 08/21/2008 8:42:07 PM

Comment: IF there is a shortage, America will just import them in. Just like I I've always seen in grad school. No Americans. Just Indians and Chinese.

Posted By: KidPrime @ 08/21/2008 4:32:45 PM

Comment: Sharon, I find this column idiotic. I graduated with a computer science/software engineering degree from a nationally-recognized university last year. I had no less than 15 job offers, most at a significantly higher pay rate than the national average start salary with my regional cost of living factored in. Sure, I had a 3.6 and internship and co-op experience, but I didn't have any opportunities that anyone else who isn't afraid of a little elbow grease doesn't have. I still have companies falling over themselves for my expertise. The fact that this "report" might serve to steer intelligent kids from a fulfilling and lucrative career in tech is a travesty. Boo on you, madam.

Posted By: KidPrime @ 08/21/2008 4:31:05 PM

Comment: Sharon, I find this column idiotic. I graduated with a computer science/software engineering degree from a nationally-recognized university last year. I had no less than 15 job offers, most at a significantly higher pay rate than the national average start salary with my regional cost of living factored in. Sure, I had a 3.6 and internship and co-op experience, but I didn't have any opportunities that anyone else who isn't afraid of a little elbow grease doesn't have. I still have companies falling over themselves for my expertise. The fact that this "report" might serve to steer intelligent kids from a fulfilling and lucrative career in tect is a travesty. Boo.

Posted By: fsilber @ 08/21/2008 1:45:20 PM

Comment: Has anyone thought to try paying scientists and engineers like lawyers?

Posted By: RedRockTexan @ 08/21/2008 12:18:57 PM

Comment: Electronics is a dead end job unless you are willing to change jobs every few years and study like hell all the time. The pay does not justify the constant need for re-education, and you never catch up. I retired early (at 62) because I couldn't find a job at a decent salary and I'm tired of having to relearn a new technology every five years. I should have been a plumber!

Posted By: Thegroovyguru @ 08/21/2008 12:27:30 AM

Comment: The author is missing the point. There is a shortage of AMERICAN BORN engineers. Most of the engineers at my wife's company, which is in the Fortune 500, are from Asia, particularly from China, India, and Pakistan.