It's National Engineers' Week. Engineers are an important part of our business and we love them. They are capable of solving so many different problems and for that we are grateful!
To celebrate our engineering friends, we came up with a few reasons why you should consider becoming an engineer!
1. Hands-on Work
As an engineer, you'll most likely at some point get to get your hands dirty. If you like being hands-on and working with machines, electronics or even in a lab-based setting, engineering is a great fit.
2. Compensation
It's no secret that engineers are some of the best paid positions even for those just holding a Bachelor's degree. For instance, petroleum engineers average a starting salary of $103,000; chemical engineers average $68,200; and mechanical engineers average $60,900. Those aren't bad starting salaries and it goes up from there. Most engineers will approach six-figure salaries in their careers.
3. Respect
Many in our society are impressed if you tell them you're an engineer. If you like feeling as if you have some klout and status, becoming an engineer could be a good thing for you.
4. Almost every company needs some type of engineer
Whether they're service-based or product-based, every company has a need for an engineer. Working at a plant or as part of a product development team, engineers help companies solve problems, make processes work better than they did before, or develop new processes or products that provide new value to the company as a whole.
5. Live wherever you want
There are engineering jobs all over the country. Since almost every company needs you, you'll have your pick of where to live! This is less common with petroleum engineers, but there's still plenty of companies around the country. To see just where you could work, check out our jobs page!
6. Highly sought after by employers
If you've attended a job fair recently, you've probably noticed that many of the companies present wanted to talk to potential engineering candidates. Employers are looking for engineers: job growth from 2010 to 2014 has been in the double digits for four types of engineers (civil, petroleum, mining and industrial), but all engineering fields have exhibited growth of 7%.
7. Exhibit cross-functionality and deal with different departments within a company
Engineers get to work on projects with other departments often. You're likely to come into contact with project managers, finance, business development, marketing and more. If you like working as part of a team to solve problems, engineering is for you!
8. Feel like you've made an impact.
Whether you're helping to launch a new product or making sure a facility is up and running, being an engineer means that you're making a direct impact on your company's bottom line. You get to be a part of a lot of the behind-the-scenes day-to-day running of the processes that make companies work. How cool is that?
If you're looking for an engineering job, check out our listings.
