Is Engineering - A dead end career ??

[Ultramega]

Quite a few engineering (Mechanical) guys i knew in Marine. I must say their job and pay is quite good, even in bad times. But then, they come to see me more often as compared to other prof. They suffer from stress, minor physical injuries (Strain etc). Oh ya, the hours... Their OT is erhem...i must say can reach half of what they earn.

 

why do they go see u when in stress? are you a doctor? or HC operator?

Edited February 19, 2008 by Ultramega

[Nkps]

ask me for HC operator particular lah...

[Solar]

being pessimistic here... everyone has future until one reaches 40 and above.. will cling onto their job like their dear life, for whatever it takes.

cos by then, it should be the time one has lots of financial commitments.. in sg, difficult to find another job if one doesn't have a very good network and referrals at that age.

i've seen quite a number of examples from managers and engineers..

[Hoppe]

agree... it's all about connections in life.

 

If u connect with the right people and the right time, sometimes it can be an opportunity.

Opportunities do not always come but I think everyone has it as a possible turning point in their career.

[Chickenfarm]

As above .

 

Very scarely sia ,, I'm still a poly student @ engin

 

It's not what you study but who you are ....

Primary school dropout can be a millionaire

a BEng Hons can be a bankrupt...

Remember ... Build your character, Network and protect your face (dont get too ugly)

 

Pie-me school dropout cannot be billionaire meh?

 

[Chickenfarm]

everyone has future until one reaches 40 and above

 

After 40...your future is in MCF Like me...eberyday surf mcf still can survive Connection sure must have...mine's internet connection

[Comnao]

u think is stephen chow movies ah

 

maybe sales will have brighter future?

 

sales is good lah ... that one i can tell you confidently bcos i am in technical sales line also

 

but have to kow tow and kow tow and kow tow to pple lor

pple tell you UP ... you up

pple tell you suck ... you suck

 

you rmbr their birthday, their wife, son and daughter birthday and anniversaries better than you rmbr yr own

 

once i even mistakenly send flowers and card to my wife bcos i mistook my customer's anniversary as mine

[Comnao]

haha. dun be too harsh on him lah

 

but sad to say really... i've seen many aspiring engineers who just could'nt take the tough life and work expectations, later then lament and thought they chose the wrong career.

 

no career is wrong if one thinks positively. or else any job also tak boleh.

 

in terms of starting pay ... engr is better

but long term prospects in the same line ... very very ... pay wise as well as career advancement wise

 

i nvr stopped thanking my fren for selling his business to me ... then i had the opps to break out

else today i will be in the same sxxt as my peers

[UncleWolve]

It seems u havent seen much of the world

[Scoots]

if you are an electrical, mechanical or civil/structural engineer, you can go for Professional Engineer (PE) certification and earn big bucks. with experience, can open a one-man-show company. getting $10k a month shouldn't be a problem.

 

actually in this world, "hang hang chu zhuang yuan". remember the kalipok seller who evaded tax? he earns $200k a year according to newspaper.

 

Can you englighten a bit more about this PE certification? What's the programme like or do you know where to check up?

 

Thanks... me like Albeniz... in semicon engineering for about ~8yrs. Either gotta really move up or move on...

[Destiny03]

i agree with you...

 

his pov kind of naive huh?

 

life up and down is no tat easy

Edited February 20, 2008 by Destiny03

[Ultramega]

You can get more info from http://www.peb.gov.sg

 

I had a brief look and found out that you need to have:

 

- what they call "approved qualification" (either a bachelor's degree from their list or a PhD from any Uni).

 

- at leaast 5 years practical experience in the field.

 

Wish you success!

Edited February 20, 2008 by Ultramega

[Kianbeng]

But thats the same for the nautical studies path lor. To be a captain, they also start from trainee cadet and basically he do all the sxxt also.

 

But I thought if graduate from uni, they start from 3rd mate. So I assumed if uni grad marine engineering, they should start from 3rd engineer? Not so far down like 5th engineer right?

[Kianbeng]

Increasing portfolio means getting into sales, finance, mkting and even HR... you have the edge

 

Take heart... alot of senior management/executive board are engineers by training

 

I agree with you on this. Maybe it's the progression from technical to these other portfolios that probably separates the sheeps from the goats. For some time I was trying to show my bosses that technical dept can also be involved in "upper management". Somehow I realised I was wrong. It's not impossible, but difficult. But it's common for a sales dept to also double up as "upper management".

 

I'm still in the technical line and not quite keen to move on to totally sales because I am worried if that may make me less employable in future due to gradual decline with technical skills.....but maybe I should change this mindset.

 

Generally I find it's difficult to move into finance roles unless we already have some degrees in Accountancy or Finance. But sales/marketing/HR is not that difficult to progress to.

 

I have a few friends who "progressed" to HR and sales from technical. But when they were retrenched, they found it so hard to get back the same kind of job. Seems like softskills are hard to market.

[Mivec9]

so which course u switched to then?

 

Humanities.

 

so u r a lao shi

[Rickster]

Yes, especially if you are in semiconductor. Too many FTs who are willing to do dirty jobs at low pay. I am speaking from experience. I am a highly-qualified engineer.

 

Have a couple of graduate friends in semicon industry as engineers. All of them around my age, 26. At least drawing high 3K to low 4Ks. Not bad wat.

[Car_driver]

[reply]As above .

 

Very scarely sia ,, I'm still a poly student @ engin

 

It makes no business sense to the company running production/operation to keep experienced engineers at 6~8k mth running line which can be replaced by fresh grads or FT...dead end

 

Disagree with you on this point. It makes perfect business sense to keep experienced engineers at 6~8k per month to run, maintain & improve the production / operation, especially in areas like oil & gas, petrochem, pharma etc. This is because safety & efficiency are the main priorities in these industries, and these companies do not want inexperienced ah tiong, ah neh or freshie to meddle with their production equipment and line. Knowledge and experience are gained while working and staying at the job. Eventhough an FT can bring his experience from his home country, it is usually insufficient as the production process, work culture, language medium (just to name a few) are all different. Hence, these companies will want to keep their engineers for as long as they need them.

 

I have known engineers who have been employed in the same company for over 20 years... N their pay is definitely more than 8k per month.....

 

Hence, if a person wants to work in the engineering line for a long time, its important to go into the industry / company that need and treasure experienced engineers. I believe the oil&gas, petrochem, pharma, aerospace and maybe marine are such industies that one can consider going into at the moment. Aim for the big MNCs, as they are the ones who can afford to pay high $$$.....

[Albeniz]

Have a couple of graduate friends in semicon industry as engineers. All of them around my age, 26. At least drawing high 3K to low 4Ks. Not bad wat.

 

Depends. Not all.

Ph.D graduates are typically only drawing 3.8k - 4k flat for a start.