Really that bad for engineers?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

hmm im a mech enging student now at local uni, but after looking at some of the threads ard in forum saying how bad the pay of engineers are, it sort of make me sad lol.

...

and if we engineers realli get sooooo look down on in company, might as well design our own things and start our own biz.

agree. engineers are good at getting actual things done. others only know how to "talk", "lead" and "manage", which means if they start a biz, they have to invest a lot of capital either hiring people to actually do things or outsource the work.

[freshjunior]

Well, is there any way people with an engineering degree can make it big, apart from going into banking and finance?

I am an engineer with 6 years of exp. My salary right now is $3500 vs my starting salary of $2900. I cannot foresee where will I be 5 years down the road. Mind you, this is my 3rd job. Even job hopping does not guarantee a significant increment. I can work hard for the company but then the company does not even give a ****. My life sux. Engineer sux. The world sux.

I'm not too sure about other industries, but oil and gas generally pays quite well.

Is the previous poster from the electronics or semi-con industry?

Can't agree more with Jonathan. Don't be pressured in your 20s to earn more than your peers. Look at skills that are portable and valuable anywhere in the world. You can be a top earner when you graduate but it doesn't guarantee you won't hit a brick wall in your 40s when the world is overtaken by younger, faster, smarter alecks. Our world is in deep trouble and the future is going to belong to Engineers: Grand Challenges for Engineering

Originally Posted by JonathanSG

If you are willing to put a few years of hard work after Uni with crappy pay; then travel a bit and not bother too much about the 5C's in your 20's you will not go wrong with engineering.
The fact is an engineering grad is not an engineer, (doesnt matter what uni) you have to have experience, the instant gratification society we live in means that grad pay is important. Ask yourself after you finish a degree are you bothered whether as an accountant you get 1K more a month - where are those people in 10 years time. 90% of them will be on 3% PA pay rises tops. After 10 years experience my take home pay doubled every 2 to 3 years.
There is an enormous shortage of experienced engineers worldwide and this is only getting worse. I was a welder, then a QC inspector, (got my degree in mech eng and became chartered part time) worked as a project engineer, tried the corp thing and hated it, back to being an engineer. I now command a day rate of US$1200 per day (I am over 40) and continue to travel the world doing interesting and challenging jobs.
Up to you if you want a decent safe existence in singapore where you move from cubicle to office, to office with window, office with window and PA yawn yawn then go into banking but you will be up against 95% of other people
If you are willing to travel, enjoy the sense of accomplishment out of building things or making them work and find the whole corp ladder / rat race bizzare then go for engineering.

It's still not too late. Study hard and graduate with first class honours and I don't think you will have a problem clinching a cushy job in the financial industry. But if you still want to be an engineer, do keep in mind the following points.

1) Choose the correct industries i.e. industries that pays the most with the highest salaries and bonuses. At the top of this list would be the petrochemical and oil & gas industries. The next would be the offshore & marine and probably the aerospace industries. Avoid construction and manufacturing at all cost.

2) Don't restrict yourself to Singapore. The reality is that Singapore is a financial hub and not an engineering hub. Be open to job opportunities overseas.

3) There are other job roles that require an engineering degree but these roles are not engineering roles. These includes contracts, planner, estimator, sales, procurement, business development, project management, safety i.e. HSE and so on. Depending again on the industries, some of such roles can be rather lucrative too.

Rich Dad, Poor Dad (by Robert Kiyosaki)

The 4-Hour Workweek (by Timothy Ferriss)

And you'll get THE clue.

Sounds cliche but I can't stress this enough - follow your passion.

If you suffer from insecurity or inferiority complex, money and all things material won't fix you up. It's a psychological issue. There is always another Ah-Tan Ah-Lim with more material accomplishments.

Originally Posted by Another Unregistered

Sounds cliche but I can't stress this enough - follow your passion.

If you suffer from insecurity or inferiority complex, money and all things material won't fix you up. It's a psychological issue. There is always another Ah-Tan Ah-Lim with more material accomplishments.

many people don't have passions. you sound like the stupid teacher recruitment ad on tv - "mr siva always asked me: what IS your passion..."

wtf? what passion does a kid have? you go ask the kids around you and you'll probably get these answers: psp, tv, ben10, winx club, soccer, kfc, mcdonalds, anime, jay chou and lady gaga.

passion my foot.

Originally Posted by Another Unregistered

Sounds cliche but I can't stress this enough - follow your passion.

If you suffer from insecurity or inferiority complex, money and all things material won't fix you up. It's a psychological issue. There is always another Ah-Tan Ah-Lim with more material accomplishments.

Money is my only passion.