The world of engineering has undergone tremendous change in the past few decades. While established fields such as mechanics and electricity have advanced, new fields such as space travel, nanotechnology and fiber optics have emerged. What's more, the materials and tools that engineers work with have improved and increased dramatically. For example, engineers can now build things with designer materials for which they can specify properties such as conductivity and elasticity. And when it comes to tools and technologies, they are seeing explosive growth—with many of the innovations generated by the profession itself—including the development of much more powerful computers, finite element analysis and computer simulation.

At the same time, however, rapid improvements in tools and technologies are contributing to the growing tendency of companies to view engineers as commodities, notes Teresa A. Helmlinger, president of the National Society of Professional Engineers in an interview with Machine Design. This is because such advancements allow less-qualified people to perform design and analysis. And the commoditization of engineering is feeding a disturbing trend—offshore outsourcing. In pursuit of the cheapest engineering hour, companies are not only taking engineering jobs overseas but bringing talent into the U.S. from abroad.

Once viewed as a stable and steady career, engineering is now grappling with the consequences of outsourcing. And the predictions are dire. By 2015, business analysis firm Forrester Research expects that some 3.3 million high-tech and service jobs—representing $136 billion in wages—will be transplanted from the U.S. to other countries. Meanwhile, research and analysis company Gartner predicts that by the end of the year, 1 in 10 U.S. technology jobs could be moved abroad. In fact, according to economists at the University of California, Berkeley, a whopping 14 million positions in the U.S. could be in jeopardy by 2015.

The lack of job security in engineering is making the profession an even tougher sell to U.S. students. "The fact is, the U.S. exports jobs and imports talent, so we're losing much of the incentive for native-born students to pursue engineering," John Brooks Slaughter, president and CEO of the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering, tells Machine Design. Last month, Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan noted that U.S. colleges produce one-sixth as many graduates with science and engineering degrees as Asian schools do. And according to recent data from the National Science Foundation (NSF), the number of science and engineering doctoral degrees conferred in the country dropped again in 2002 to about 24,550 nationwide—the lowest number since 1993 and a 10% decline since 1998. In fact, of the four broad fields (physical sciences, humanities, social sciences and engineering) that registered decreases in the number of doctorates awarded between 2001 and 2002, engineering posted the steepest decline. And many believe that the U.S has to shore up such numbers and provide better training to engineers in order to stop them from being seen as commodities and to stem the tide of outsourcing.

The profession also suffers from a lack of recognition, with few Americans aware of how profoundly it contributes to society. "Unfortunately, people no longer understand what's going on inside all these black boxes, and engineering has become a process that just a few people really understand," observes Slaughter. Betty Shanahan, executive director and CEO of the Society of Women Engineers, cites a 1998 survey which found that most Americans (61%) know little about what engineers are or do. "Parents, teachers, and even guidance counselors don't know enough about engineering to know its value or why it's important to study math and science for an engineering career," she notes. Exacerbating the problem, the term "engineer" is often used to describe non-engineers. For example, garbage collectors are now referred to as sanitation engineers.

Despite these issues, engineering remains a fulfilling career choice for many in the profession. In its annual salary survey, Machine Design collected responses from over 900 readers and found that annual salaries had climbed by $2,600 from last year to an average base of $68,000. Moreover, the survey showed that most engineers derive satisfaction from their jobs, with 44% reporting they are "somewhat satisfied" and 23% indicating they are "very satisfied." In fact, a healthy majority (78%) said that they would recommend the profession to their children or friends, while an overwhelming 91% described it as fun. "Engineering is very rewarding," Shanahan tells Machine Design. "There's no better feeling than seeing the fruits of your work and the good it does for others. Almost every engineer can stand back at the end of a successful project and know they've improved the quality of life for someone."

Sources:

Changes in Engineering
Stephen J. Mraz
Machine Design, February 19, 2004
www.machinedesign.com

Engineering: A Dead End Career?
Sherri L. Carmody
Machine Design, February 19, 2004
www.machinedesign.com

It's Good to Be an Engineer
Victoria Reitz
Machine Design, March 18, 2004
www.machinedesign.com

Fewer Engineers
Design News, March 15, 2004
www.designnews.com/article/CA387455?stt=000&pubdate=03%2F15%2F04

Is There a Doctor in the House?
Gayle Ehrenman
Mechanical Engineering: News and Notes, March 2004
www.memagazine.org/contents/current/departments/news_notes/news_note.html

Outsourcing
John G. Falcioni
Mechanical Engineering: Editorial, April 2004
www.memagazine.org/contents/current/departments/editorial/editorial.html

Science and Engineering Doctorate Awards: 2002
National Science Foundation
www.nsf.gov/sbe/srs/nsf04303/htmstart.htm

Resources:

Design News www.designnews.com

Machine Design www.machinedesign.com

Mechanical Engineering www.memagazine.org

Society of Manufacturing Engineers www.sme.org