Posted: 6/27/2011 8:04:56 AM EDT
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To the mechanical engineers on here, is an AAS in ME Tech worth pursuing from a jobs availability and job satisfaction standpoint? Is this an in-demand degree, or is the jobs market already flush with candidates? I can't stand my current (completely unrelated) field, and am considering dropping ~$4000 for such a degree at the local CC. My end goal (besides making more money than I do now) is to get into a career field where I can be hands-on with mechanical whatnot, but also be involved in some of the thought process that goes into it.
Would this be a career move likely to see a ROI? Additionally, my (current) dream job is to run a shop like Howe and Howe Tech, where I can frankenstein up whatever whacky offroadism strikes my fancy (bounded, naturally, by client stipulations). Does this seem like even a remotely good idea, or should I just stick out my dead-end job doing something I hate for a company that will probably go out of business in the next 18-24 months but provides a steady paycheck for the time being? |
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Engineering Technology degrees can be very good at getting you in the door with construction companies and other firms that have field engineering services (pipelines, utilities, public works, etc.) Some of the best "engineers" that I've ever worked with face-to-face weren't degreed engineers at all. If you're not positive that you want to be an engineer, but you want to work in a technical field, it could be the way to go. Be advised, though, that if you decide to get a BSME (or BSCE or BSChE,whatever) that very little of your AAS education will transfer to your BS degree. Well, in most cases. Some schooles (and I think VT may be one) have ET programs that are designed to be a stepping stone to BS degrees. Check into it. |
| I'm a BS MET. I'm not sure how an AAS would do, but I've found the BS delivered a good ROI for me. I work in tooling for the automotive industry which as you might guess is expirienceing some tough times. The biggest issue I see with the AAS, not knowing how your local CC runs things, is that you don't get into the classes that are at the core of engineering with just an associates degree. So I'm not sure if it would give the skills desired by at employer looking for an engineer. You might end up doing drawing all day instead of engineering. |
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cant say what today's market is like for sure OP, but i have a BSMET degree from way back in 1980. Different time and different world then to say the least. Both myself and quite a lot of my fellow students obtained and retained very good jobs in the Aerospace industry. Been at it 29 years now with the same company and it has provided a good living and paycheck with excellent benefits.
at the time when i was in school, the MET degree was basically considered a ME degree as far as employers were concerned and they liked the additional "hands on" applications we learned in school. at the time of my degree being granted, my school was a division of Ga Tech, so it had some industry "clout" so to speak. it has done me well sir.... i must say though, that the company i work for no longer hires graduates from my school, as they have decided to "target" only selected schools for current hiring of engineering graduates. i think that's a mistake but its the way big business works these days...pretty much FUBAR as far as i'm concerned, but i dont make the big decisions. good luck to you whatever you decide. |
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I'm one of the engineers sent out by my employer to job fairs to recruit new talent.
In today's world, engineering technology degree = "I couldn't handle the tough engineering math, but this is close enough, right?" You'll take the physics classes, and a few of the engineering classes, but you won't take linear algebra, diff eq, the grad-level engineering classes, etc, and will not be prepared to sit for the professional engineering exam (important if you want to sell a product to the public and get insurance coverage to do so). My work's HR department constantly has to tell engineering tech degree holders it is not the same as an engineering degree and thus they do not qualify for the team leader jobs and most of the techs even have problems finding projects other than the one they were hired to work on when work gets scarce. Kharn |
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I'm not particularly interested in continuing on to a BSME. I've already got two other degrees for what they're worth, and from what I understand "Engineer" engineers mostly do the theory and design work, while the techs get to go play with the actual experimentation or production (Like crash test operators. The engineers design everything and dictate how the run will go, but the techs actually get to ram cars into shit). The end goal being to go off and do my own thing eventually, but gain job skills and make money in the meantime.
ETA: Engineering technology degree = "I couldn't handle the tough engineering math, but this is close enough, right?"
Exactly right. 
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Im an MET.
Kharn viewpoint is pretty spot on. The only differences I will mention are that how far you go in a company is dependant upon the company. Where I work we apply and get the same jobs as ME's and even PE's, though we've got at least a BS. What the hell is an AAS? Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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The ME will design it, the MET will weld it together, and the ME will be the one with his feet to the fire when it breaks on the test track because it was poorly designed or his MET did not weld it properly. Now, would you buy a product from the MET without an ME overseeing him? I definitely would not.
METs will always work under an ME, why limit yourself to always being #2? Kharn |
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The ME will design it, the MET will weld it together, and the ME will be the one with his feet to the fire when it breaks on the test track because it was poorly designed or his MET did not weld it properly. Now, would you buy a product from the MET without an ME overseeing him? I definitely would not. METs will always work under an ME, why limit yourself to always being #2? Kharn Because unless somebody else is paying for it this time I'm not interested in another 4 year degree. |
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Im an MET. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile What do you do with it? Do you enjoy it, make enough money, etc? Would you do it again? Sure I'd do it again. Im currently working for a natural gas company as a field engineer. Its definitely fun, and I definitely dont work under an ME, but the oilfield is a place all its own. I make a decent salary with EXCELLENT benefits. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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It's also a good path to get strapped to a tube in a cube farm. Shit. That's what I'm trying to avoid. I was under the impression that the engineers are the cube farm trogs, while the techs get to go hands on with the designs the engineers come up with. |
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I'm heavily involved with ET and specifically MET programs across the country. All the data I've seen indicates that ET grads are as highly sought after as those from classical engineering programs, with comparable starting salaries. It's important to realize the differences––ET is not as math intensive, requiring only two
calculus based math courses (dif. and integral calculus) and an algebra based physics course rather than calculus based. Beyond that, there's severe overlap in the accreditation the accreditation requirements. If you didn't know, you couldn't tell the difference. You can see for yourself at www.abet.org and make the appropriate clicks. You can also contact ASME and ask for their "Which Path" brochure which is being rewritten as we speak, but the current edition will get you started. ET grads are not best suited for highly analytical, non-hands-on positions, and some companies (like Boeing for instance) wont hire grads into these jobs. That said, Boeing offers a company-paid MET program in-house for their Seattle-based employees. The gvmt will not hire ET grads directly into engineering grade positions––that is being worked on. You need to understand what the advantages and disadvantages of an ET program might be. That info is available with a little digging. As far as METs not being able to sit for the PE exams, that depends on the state regulations. I don't recall what the percentage is, but a lot of states (like Arizona for example) don't discriminate between MEs and METs as far as becoming PEs is concerned. ET is most often criticised by grads or wanna-be grads from classical engineering programs who don't know what they're talking about. The engineering societies haven't done a good enough job in promoting ET and the advantages it offers to student and employers alike. That is changing. My personal academic background is classical mechanical engineering. Didn't have a clue as to what ET until 15 years ago. Good luck. If you need any more info, PM me. |
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I don't have IM access here at work, but this is the degree program I'm looking at. I assume it's pretty standard, any red flags that anybody sees?
ETA: I should be able to skip 15 credits of that thanks to my previous college courses. |
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It's also a good path to get strapped to a tube in a cube farm. Shit. That's what I'm trying to avoid. I was under the impression that the engineers are the cube farm trogs, while the techs get to go hands on with the designs the engineers come up with. You've been talking to very good salesmen. |
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It's also a good path to get strapped to a tube in a cube farm. Shit. That's what I'm trying to avoid. I was under the impression that the engineers are the cube farm trogs, while the techs get to go hands on with the designs the engineers come up with. You've been talking to very good salesmen. "The Internet" is very good at hiding its hidden agenda, it would seem. |
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I don't have IM access here at work, but this is the degree program I'm looking at. I assume it's pretty standard, any red flags that anybody sees? ETA: I should be able to skip 15 credits of that thanks to my previous college courses. John Tyler's MET program is not listed as ABET-accredited. This could be a MAJOR issue especially if you were applying to a big company, and their HR Dept had "ABET Accreditation" as a ticket for entry. It could be a super program, and if it is, it presumably should be ABET accredited. Good or bad, ABET approval is the standard for national accreditation. ASME would be the lead society for obtaining ABET accreditation. |
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I don't have IM access here at work, but this is the degree program I'm looking at. I assume it's pretty standard, any red flags that anybody sees? ETA: I should be able to skip 15 credits of that thanks to my previous college courses. John Tyler's MET program is not listed as an ABET-accredited. This could be a MAJOR issue especially if you were applying to a big company, and their HR Dept had "ABET Accreditation" as a ticket for entry. It could be a super program, and if it is, it presumably should be ABET accredites. Good or bad, ABET approval is the standard for national accreditation. ASME would be the lead society for obtaining ABET accreditation. Wow, there are only two such accredited programs in the entire state? And both BSes, too. Hmmm.... |
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I have a BS degree in Industrial Technologies. It hasn't really held me back at all. I've held positions from Project Engineer, Product Development Engineer to Quality Manager. I've held the same positions as ME's. I do engineering calcualtions just can't stamp drawings, but that's what consulting engineer firms are for. Crunching numbers all day gets boring anyway.
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Im an MET. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile What do you do with it? Do you enjoy it, make enough money, etc? Would you do it again? So far as an MET I've worked as a project engineer for a special machines company where we made custom machines for metal removal and assembly. My second job was at a plant where I was quality engineer for all Toyota hood latches mfg. by our company in N. America. In my current job I'm the only mechanical engineer in a company that builds high speed (up to 250 parts per minute) inspection machines. Every machine we sell currently has been designed by me. I design the machine, build the prototype, and trouble shoot any problems from materials to suppliers. Do I enjoy it? Yeah it's been a pretty good gig. Except for the QE job I've always worked for small companies. This has allowed me to avoid being a "tube in a cube farm". My currently my office is a 210 sq. ft. corner office with two walls of windows looking onto a lovely industrial park. Money!!? Unfortuntely, with the current state of the auto industry most folks I know are happy to be employed. I make around the average wage for an engineer in my area. As long as my company survives I have excellent job security. Would I do it again? Yes, but I think I would get involved in the food industry rather than automotive. Or maybe I would pursure that degree in Liberal Arts I always wanted.  
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snip... Your gig sounds pretty darn good, I wish I got to do more actual machine design. The closest I get here would be pressure vessel or pipeline design, and that's governed mostly by our standards and the ASME. As far as MET's being cubicle all-stars, well sometimes that happens. Right now I'm evaluating some operating procedures for our entire system. It's admin level work as far as the labor involved, but they want an engineer to read through them and verify that they make sense and are correct. So for now, I'm an office trog. Before this I was in the field no fewer than two days per week, and after this I'm being reassigned to a field office where I'll be out an' about everyday. BTW, when I say field I mean I'm avoiding cow pies and truckin down dirt roads, none of this 'field= everything outside the office' BS. One cool thing I have noticed about my position in this industry is that it's damn well rounded. Any given day I may be doing computational fluid flow work, thermodynamics, structural design/stress guessing, instrumentation/electrical, project estimation, and sometimes I even swing a Rigid 24". MET's may not do the intensive math required by Boeing, but we're a perfect fit in other industries; petroleum is one of them. |
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I wouldn't discount the importance of calculus, sure, algebra can teach you the how, but calculus shows the why of different objects interacting. Physics is a big example, and very important for mechanical engineering. Differential equations is another big one, especially for heat calculations.
As a recruiter (and a chemical engineer project lead), my feeling is if someone can't hack four or more semesters of calc and Diff Eq (or won't voluntarily put themselves through it), how will they handle a high pressure job? College isn't so much about what you learn, but showing you can set a goal and have the fortitude to achieve it regardless of the difficulties encountered. I think even if Boeing or the Fedgov opened up higher positions to the ETs, you would not see many advancing compared to the traditional engineers for many reasons, but the perceived quality of ET degrees and ET graduates would be a large factor. Kharn |
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I'm a BS in Electro-mech, which I think is a fairly oddball degree. It was offered by the state school I went to as essentially two associates degrees, one each in electrical and mechanical technology glued together. The idea was to produce savvy, flexible technicians who would do as they're told without a lot of supervision.
It's worked out pretty well for me. I've had jobs doing everything from cleaning optics to being the lone design engineer in a small company. Currently I run a small repair shop at a medical school, fixing lab equipment and occasionally getting to design brand new stuff. The specifics of the job seem tailor made for me, but the level of work is exactly what the degree was intended for. If you go the 'tech' route you need to know beyond any doubt that you're flexible. If you have a specific dream of spending all your time in a machine shop, or all your time drafting or all your time doing X, you're in trouble. Odds are an employer is going to view you as a jack of all trades and assign you to exactly the kind of job you didn't want. As long as you go into it open minded and without a carefully laid out career path, you'll probably be happy. |
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I wouldn't discount the importance of calculus, sure, algebra can teach you the how, but calculus shows the why of different objects interacting. Physics is a big example, and very important for mechanical engineering. Differential equations is another big one, especially for heat calculations. As a recruiter (and a chemical engineer project lead), my feeling is if someone can't hack four or more semesters of calc and Diff Eq (or won't voluntarily put themselves through it), how will they handle a high pressure job? College isn't so much about what you learn, but showing you can set a goal and have the fortitude to achieve it regardless of the difficulties encountered. I think even if Boeing or the Fedgov opened up higher positions to the ETs, you would not see many advancing compared to the traditional engineers for many reasons, but the perceived quality of ET degrees and ET graduates would be a large factor. Kharn Again, you're right, sometimes. The furthest I've gone into physics at work is some statics, and a little fluid flow work. The work that we perform simply doesn't require that level of mathematics; the VAST majority is application based. Between API, ASME, DOT, and company standards/rules there isn't much room to wiggle. Your profession may not recognize an MET as much, but others do. Plus its always better than a liberal arts degree. ;) Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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For Automation I would pursue Mechatronix.
http://www.alextech.edu/en/Students/Programs/Manufacturing/Mechatronics/Curriculum/AASCurriculum2011.aspx The blended science would make you much more diversified. I would then take every Solidworks class, do all the tutorials, this would be the expertise to get you in the door with the least amount of schooling. |