Find the Right Career in Mechanical Engineering

If you have an interest in Mechanical Engineering. Then I recommend you look through this article and learn a little bit more about yourself and if it's the right career choice for you. There are many different fields in Engineering so if you don't like Mechanical Engineering then you can always look into something else such as industrial, electrical, or even chemical, etc.

Steps

  1. Assess yourself in Math & Physics
    • The first thing to ask yourself before even thinking about pursuing a career in engineering is do you enjoy Math, and Physics? This is a very broad question, but Math and Physics are a very big aspect of Mechanical Engineering, you need to develop strong skills in both of these subjects in order to be qualified for Mechanical Engineering.
  2. Educate yourself on what type of job fields are in Mechanical Engineering
    • Find classes that will steer you in the right direction, If you like mechanics, machines, dynamics, and moving objects, such as cars, planes, or machines. Then you are in the right place. If you like to put things together, assemble parts, or even if you are interested in modeling, and 3D design. If you like heat transfer, and fluid dynamics, then Mechanical engineering is for you.
    • These are all different types of jobs that are in Mechanical engineering. There are many different career choices that you can find in this field, but taking several classes in college will help steer you in the right direction of what kind of engineering truly interests you the most.
  3. Be Confident in your abilities
    • Being confident in yourself, pushing yourself so that you can have self-confidence is something that will lead to success, not just in engineering, this is something that every employer likes to see in their hires. Confidence is key when coming across many problems that you need to solve.
    • There will be many people who might test your abilities and you must make sure to not overthink what you’re doing and that if you prepared correctly, and you have done what you can to be successful, then you have the right to be confident in yourself.
  4. Acquire Creativity & Innovation skills
    • developing an engineer's mind comes from taking many different classes, student organizations, and internships.
    • Being an engineer there will come problems that require a very specific route to take to solve. There are many ideas that Mechanical engineers have to shape into reality. This is what makes it so special because many of our luxuries are created by engineers and they need creativity and the ability to solve any blockade to their ideas.
    • willing to do new things and understand how things work. You have to think outside the box, and know-how things fail, you must find the root cause of the failure to understand the countermeasure to fix the issue permanently.
  5. Engage in communication classes to learn more about group work in an engineering environment
    • Interpersonal skills are very important for a mechanical engineer tohave and develop, classes like COM 1010, where the focus is around oral communication in the professional environment within one's college.
    • if you want to work in this field you need to be able to communicate with other people in a very respectful and professional manner. There is a lot of group work in engineering so you need to be able to communicate and also flow together plans/agendas through groups of people to help the process for whatever project is at hand.
  6. Establish a degree in Mechanical Engineering
    • When you have found an interest in Mechanical Engineering this is where it really starts to pick up. There will be certain classes that will qualify you for a degree in Mechanical engineering, and once you have made a decision you cannot change majors back and forth between mechanical or something like a chemical engineer. Each field has its required path that you need to take to acquire at least a bachelor's degree in engineering.
  7. Find Internships
    • A lot of companies like to see experience with their hires. An internship is a very early introduction to work experience in the real world.
    • Internships benefit in the long run when trying to apply for a job. It helps if you get an internship at a company that you are interested In because you will learn a lot about whether it is a good job for your interests or not.
    • There are many different resources throughout your college that will make finding an internship with a company easier. Such at Wayne State University we have an online career fair due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While there is also a bunch of different companies that have an interest in the students.
  8. Search through College resources
    • There are so many different opportunities at the college of engineering at Wayne State University
    • More than 50 engineering and computer science programs you can join will help you learn more about the field that you're interested in.
    • There is a career fair scheduled online this year that will help with engineering programs and internships
  9. Acquire the desired education level
    • to qualify for a job in mechanical engineering, you need a bachelor's degree.
    • Get the skills to understand the practical uses of math, science, and engineering.
    • With a bachelor's degree, you are able to become an entry-level engineer, meaning you can get a job right after college. The median pay for Mechanical engineers is about $88,430
  10. Acquire the desired education level pt 2
    • A master's degree in mechanical engineering is a choice up to the person if they want to pursue it, it will boost your career, pay, and will make finding work much easier.
    • This is something that does not need to be done right away and can be done at later stages in life.
    • in general, a master's degree will help Many companies take you to seniority positions because they have developed more experience in the engineering world than an engineer with a bachelor's. Although you can still find a career with a bachelor's degree, a master's makes you being an employee much more valuable.
    • This will also fulfill your resume showing you have the highest level of education in Mechanical engineering
  11. Applying for a Mechanical Engineering Job.
    • Improving job availability over time, making engineering a very stable career choice.
    • Due to the broad and wide range of engineering applications, the demand for engineers, in general, is increasing.
    • The job demand for Mechanical engineers is set to only increase from now and to the future. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has projected Mechanical Engineers' employment rate will go up by 9% by 2026. This is all for the better making the job a very safe option to decide to major in if the other fields of interest have no clear future that you see yourself in.
  12. step 12 Doing lab work
    • Mechanical engineers design, test, and develop, a wide range of products. Many consist of engine parts, transmissions, and control systems. These are just a few examples of what mechanical engineers would work on throughout their careers. They can work on aircraft engines, wind turbines, and even fuel cells. It is a very intricate field so if you ever feel like you need a change of pace you can always find a job in a different subject.