What is Mechanical Engineering?

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Mechanical engineering is a subset of general engineering. Engineers use science and mathematical principles to solve technical problems. Since they often create new products to solve these problems, they are in high demand.

Engineers are essentially inventors. By dreaming up ideas and turning them into a reality they push technology to its limits. Therefore, there is a great deal of prestige to be gained by becoming an engineer.

Mechanical engineers are specialized engineers who work with mechanical devices. These may include elevators, refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment, robots, electric generators. Mechanical engineers design tools used in other engineering disciplines.

As you can imagine, mechanical engineering is one of the broadest engineering specialities.

Mechanical Engineer Salaries

Like most careers, the range in pay for mechanical engineers varies widely. Your pay will be determined by your level of education and experience. But other factors will also play a role. These include location and the type of employment you seek. Typically, mechanical engineers in government or private sectors earn the most.

The average salary for an engineer was reported at $88,190 in 2015 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The top 10% of all engineers earned more than $128,000.

Remember, these are just estimates. Your salary will depend on a number of factors as well as the current state of the economy.

What Type of Person Makes a Good Mechanical Engineer?

The best mechanical engineers truly enjoy complex problem solving. They are innovators at heart. If you choose engineering as a career, you will turn ideas into reality and solve problems that better society. You will be right on the cutting edge of technology.

Since most mechanical engineers work together, you should be a team player and have excellent communication skills; both written and oral. This will be important when you are planning and creating new projects.

You should also be curious, creative, innovative, and practical about how things work and the world around you. You should have the desire to help people and improve the world around you. At the very least, you should enjoy learning how to make things work more efficiently.

Mechanical engineers are typically very good at math and science. You should especially enjoy working complex math problems.

If you can tackle the math and science hurdles and graduate with your degree in mechanical engineering, you will be positioned to make a very nice salary. Mechanical engineering is thought to be a very prestigious career. Just imagine, you will be working on solving the problems of tomorrow.

What Education is Necessary for a Career as a Mechanical Engineer?

You will at least need a bachelor’s degree from a university engineering program to qualify for a position as a mechanical engineer. The degree must be from a college or university accredited by the ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology).

As an alternative to a degree in mechanical engineering (or general engineering), you may also work toward a degree in physics, math (or applied math or physics), or computer science. Regardless of the exact degree you obtain, your course load will be very heavy in math and physics.

So just how much math is involved with most mechanical engineering programs? Well, there’s a heavy course load in algebra, trigonometry, geometry, and calculus. There is also a great deal of science to master, including; biology, chemistry and physics. You may also need possible computer programming or computer applications coursework as well.

To get into most mechanical engineering programs, a student is expected to have completed two years of high school algebra and one year of trigonometry. They should have also completed one year of both chemistry and physics.

It is possible to start at a community college and transfer to a 4-year college later. You can also join a co-op program where you will both attend classes and work in an engineering-related job. This allows you to graduate with valuable experience. Otherwise, you may include gain experience at a traditional internship during your college years.

If you are interested in gaining an advanced degree (i.e. a Master’s or Ph.D) in Mechanical Engineering, you will need to take the GRE Test. The GRE is the admissions exam required by most graduate schools.

What is a Career as a Mechanical Engineer Like?

Engineers solve complex problems for society. Mechanical engineers create and build mechanical devices. They apply the fundamentals of science and math to create practical, useful solutions that the rest of us can use.

Mechanical engineers research and develop machines, tools and various mechanical devices and components. A mechanical engineer is concerned with the design, planning and development of machines and equipment ranging from jet engines to minute instruments used in medicine and surgery.

Engineering is a challenging job with decent pay (an engineer’s pay is higher than most with just a bachelor’s degree). Of course, an engineer’s salary ultimately depends on location and specialty.

With a career in mechanical engineering, diversity is the key. You can wind up working in a laboratory or an outdoor construction site. Remember, nearly every mechanical device was created by a mechanical engineer so the possibilities for employment are virtually endless!

Areas of Specialization for Mechanical Engineering

There are many areas of specialization for mechanical engineering. In fact, two mechanical engineers can actually have very different jobs and very different areas of expertise. Choosing an area of specialization for your mechanical engineering career can be as conflicting as choosing a career in general. It’s important to understand the different areas before selecting a specialization.

Mechanical engineering overlaps with several other engineering fields, such as civil engineering, aeronautical engineering, and even petroleum engineering. The field uses concepts from many different disciplines, such as physics, mathematics, and thermodynamics, just to name a few.

Mechanical engineers are called upon to work on a variety of projects. But the type of project you wish to devote your career to may be determined by your area of specialization. Mechanical engineering is such a broad area of study that most engineering students choose one area in which to focus their education.

Areas of specialization allow students to become very knowledgeable and capable in one specific area of mechanical engineering. Then, they can apply their expertise in their work. Otherwise, general mechanical engineering is too broad to study the entire field.

A few areas of specialization include mechanics, kinematics, robotics, structural analysis, and thermodynamics. Students can also choose areas of specialization based on how they wish to apply their knowledge, whether they wish to design vehicles and air craft, medical technology, energy systems, or others.

When choosing a college for your mechanical engineering education, you may want to choose your area of specialization before you choose your school. At the livery least, you may want to have narrowed your choices to a few options. Otherwise, you may find yourself enrolled in a program that does not offer your desired area of specialization.

Also, some colleges have better curriculums for specific areas of specialization than others. One college may be the leader in biomedical engineering but weak in environmental studies. It’s important to research where each school’s strengths and weaknesses lie.

How do you choose an area of specialization for mechanical engineering? First, make a list of all the different possibilities for specialization. Next, make a shorter list of all the areas that interest you. You can start this process by crossing out those that you know are not a fit.
Finally, look into each area of specialization. Research the type of training involved with each area. Also, research the career opportunities associated with each one. Some areas may provide better employment opportunities than others. Not to mention, so areas may promise better salaries than others.

Areas of specialization will be even more important if you attend graduate school. Master’s and doctorate programs in mechanical engineering often require students to identify their areas of specialization in very specific terms.

It’s important to know the market for your desired career before you begin your education. However, it’s just as important to choose a career you can enjoy. In the end, choose the area of specialization that excites you. Choose one that you can feel passionate about. Otherwise, the education process could be a long one. But the career path could be even longer.

Where Do Mechanical Engineers Gain Employment?

Mechanical engineers can find employment at virtually any institute where innovation takes place. They commonly work in the government, research, industry, military, teaching, management or consulting sectors.

More than half the mechanical engineers employed in the U.S. are employed in manufacturing.

Some of the businesses that hire mechanical engineers include: hotels, banks, hospitals, construction firms, consulting firms, electronics manufacturers, textile industries, the aerospace industry, the auto industry, the petroleum industry, and the industrial machinery industry. This list could go on much longer. There are dozens and dozens of jobs within the mechanical engineering field in the private sector.

There are also many jobs in government that can be secured. A few of these jobs are Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Energy, Federal Aviation Administration, and Nuclear Regulatory Commission. All of these are very important jobs working for very well-known government agencies.

From developing toys to prosthetic legs, the types of projects you can be a part of are as vast as your imagination.