What is a good career for an engineering major?
To help engineering majors discover the best career options, we asked career coaches and recruiters this question for their best suggestions. From lighting designer to civil engineer, there are several promising career options for engineering majors.
Here are eight careers for engineering majors:
- Lighting Designer
- Environmental Engineer
- Design Engineer
- Technical Writer
- Sales Engineer
- Cartographer
- Computer Hardware Engineer
- Civil Engineer
Lighting Designer
As an engineer myself, I highly recommend lighting design. Before I became a doctor, I designed fiber-optic illuminators and lighting systems that can be seen all over the world—including the Las Vegas skyline. It was a fun and rewarding path, and I would highly recommend it!
Jae Pak, Jae Pak MD Medical
Environmental Engineer
An engineering degree has many sub-specialities, and among them is environmental engineering, which includes duties like research and developing methods to improve and protect the environment. Among the most current issues globally are environmental concerns, giving this career not only an important and critical role to play in the world, but also a very essential one—a bid to sustain life on earth. An environmental engineer career has a very fast growth rate of up to 5% job growth outlook.
Leah Wanjiku Gathoni, NearbyMovers
Design Engineer
If you have an engineering degree you can apply for the post of a design engineer. The basic duty of a design engineer is to use software like CAD and CAE for designing or creating a prototype of any product. Virtually creating the prototype of the products helps figure out the flaws in the design and make the necessary changes to overcome the issues.
A design engineer first gets a brief of the product and the design from the clients, and then starts working on it. After all the flaws are eliminated, he or she presents the design to the clients, along with an estimate of the materials to be used and production costs.
Shivanshi Srivastava, Payday Loans UK
Technical Writer
If you are currently finishing up your engineering degree and hoping to make a pivot in your career trajectory, consider becoming a technical writer. All the information you have gained in your time as an engineering student will have more than set you up for success in this field. A technical writer writes instructions and descriptions for products or tools so that an individual can learn how to use them. Your analytical brain will be perfect for this kind of role, especially if you have a knack for writing.
Sacha Ferrandi, Source Capital
Sales Engineer
Sales engineering, or the work of producing intricate scientific and technological products, is one ideal career for those who study engineering. In addition to having a deep knowledge of their employer’s products, sales engineers deliver presentations which explain how those products will benefit their clients’ businesses.
More often than not, sales engineers work with sales representatives, who reach out to buyers and close deals.
Sales engineers use their knowledge to collaborate with reps to increase overall sales. For those with degrees in engineering, becoming a sales engineer can be the perfect fit!
Jonathan Zacharias, GR0
Cartographer
Using a wide range of tools and techniques such as ground surveys, reports, remote sensing systems, satellite photos and aerial photography, cartographers gather and analyze data. Maps and charts for design, social, political, cultural, educational and environmental objectives are produced and updated using this data. It is possible to utilize these maps to aid in the decision-making process in a wide range of fields, including regional and urban planning, land use and zoning, and marketing and environmental studies.
Ayman Zaidi, Great People Search
Computer Hardware Engineer
With a median pay of $119,560, it is one of the highest paying engineering jobs. The good-news list doesn’t end here. Jobs for computer hardware engineers continue to grow. In more and more digitized times, a career of that kind is—and will be—in demand. A computer hardware engineer’s duties include designing and developing computer systems and components such as processors, circuit boards, memory devices and routers.
In other words, people doing that job help to accelerate new computer technology by creating advancements in computer hardware.
If you have a technical and logical mindset, a will to work hard despite failures and are ready to complete many challenging and difficult courses, this job may be a perfect match for you. Computer hardware engineering is an excellent field, especially for analytical problem solvers with an interest in mathematics or physics.
Agata Szczepanek, Resume Now
Civil Engineer
In general, there are two types of civil engineers: consulting civil engineers and contracting civil engineers. Consultancy jobs in civil engineering will likely require working with architects and other experts during the project’s design phase. As an alternative, contracting civil engineers carry out the plans of consulting civil engineers, dealing with real-world challenges like acquiring supplies and fulfilling deadlines while also assisting in problem-solving. Additionally, some positions mix the consulting and contracting phases.
Shashank Kothari, CocoLoan
Terkel creates community-driven content featuring expert insights. Sign up at terkel.io to answer questions and get published.