Career in Engineering.

[JoanneB]

I'm wondering what yalls thoughts on what I'm in for if I go into engineering as a transsexual. The two branches I'm interested in are civil engineering and biomedical engineering. I'm leaning towards civil because I've always wanted to make things that help people (even things like highway systems and efficient drainage systems would make me happy to do) and be able to design would be AWESOME. However I've always loved medicine and helping to find treatment or even cures for the ill would be awesome, too.

Either way, any engineers? Any insight on what to expect as a trans woman wanting to go to school in her 30s? I know it's a very male dominant field, and I'm hoping I can be comfortable doing it in a male environment.

I'll offer you the same advice I gave about 10 years ago to my still unemployed now with a Master nephew. DONT. DONT EVEN THINK OF BEING ENGINEER

I am an EE with a good amount of medical device design experience, both hardware and software including all the FDA approvals :-(  That segment is being killed off in the USA. Worse times to come as even more gets offshored.

Best bet is Civil and get your PE, practically mandatory for the Civil EE job. Absolute best is petroleum followed by chemical. Been that way since the 70's and still holding strong.

[Alainaluvsu]

wow... at first everyone is like "AWESOME! NOTHING IS STOPPING YOU" ... then it's negativity... lovely =/

I wanna do something to take care of my mom as she gets old... I'm an only child. Wth am I suppose to do? Hair?

I'd like to add my uncle just hired a few engineers at his firm... 4 years exp for 100k/yr ...

If I wanna be an architect... "SO MANY HOURS AND YOU WILL NEVER BE PAID!!!" If I want to be a PT... "IT'S SATURATED!!!" If I wanna be an engineer "NO JOBS!!! EVERYONE IS STUPID!!!!" (Even though the list on Forbes suggests many of the top demands in jobs) .. Lawyer "It's HARD and it's FLOODED and you'll be in debt for EVERRRRR!!!!" so like, I'm half way licensed in hair. Apparently, according to everyone in here I can make more doing hair ....

Which I don't see happenin. Stylists make an avg of 18-25k yr. I guess building sewage plants and developing lab test machines gets you less.

[Heather]

wow... at first everyone is like "AWESOME! NOTHING IS STOPPING YOU" ... then it's negativity... lovely =/

I wanna do something to take care of my mom as she gets old... I'm an only child. Wth am I suppose to do? Hair?

I'd like to add my uncle just hired a few engineers at his firm... 4 years exp for 100k/yr ...

If I wanna be an architect... "SO MANY HOURS AND YOU WILL NEVER BE PAID!!!" If I want to be a PT... "IT'S SATURATED!!!" If I wanna be an engineer "NO JOBS!!! EVERYONE IS STUPID!!!!" (Even though the list on Forbes suggests many of the top demands in jobs) .. Lawyer "It's HARD and it's FLOODED and you'll be in debt for EVERRRRR!!!!" so like, I'm half way licensed in hair. Apparently, according to everyone in here I can make more doing hair ....

Which I don't see happenin. Stylists make an avg of 18-25k yr. I guess building sewage plants and developing lab test machines gets you less.

It sounds like you should listen to yourself and not other people. Its not their future it's yours! follow your gut even if it didn't workout at least you'll have a degree. They are a ton of people doing jobs that wasn't their major. You could probably even do hair styling on the side and be raking in money.

[kathy bottoms]

Alaina:

You can do it, and there's no reason why you can't.  And as far as money goes, get a lot of scholarships and grants.  They are available, and especially for women in engineering.

But also don't forget your options.   There are Engineering Management or Environmental Engineering programs that provide rewarding and challenging careers, and selection is all based on your interests.   These degrees can provide the same employment opportunities as a pure engineering curriculum, with good salary equality for well rounded graduates.  Most engineering firms or state agencies either have an Environmental department or hires consulting firms for those critical path requirements.  And every large construction firm has several engineering managers to coordinate projects and keep them in budget, on time and properly staffed.  I worked with these specialists nearly every day on my projects.

I'm not steering you in this direction, but please check these links anyway.  It'll give you an idea of what's available. 

http://www.mtu.edu/admissions/programs/majors/environmental/

http://www.mtu.edu/admissions/programs/majors/eng-management/

Kathy

[Brooke777]

Alaina,
I think that there is some great advice and information in this thread. You are able to get a glimpse of both the positive, and negative sides of engineering.

Yes, there are a lot of engineers that are not very good at their jobs. I have to work with people like this everyday. But, I don't let it get me down. The worse they do, the better I look.

I still think engineering is a good field to go into. It does pay well, and many of the companies have great benefit packages. I don't think any of the posts on here were designed to deter you from becoming an engineer, I think they were written to provide you with useful information. I'm sure you will make the right choice for you.

[Zumbagirl]

To add to what Brooke said, there are good engineers a d bad engineers. I had the great fortune of working with some truly talented IT people and it rubbed off. People are still sometimes dumb founded how I manage to pull the rabbit out of my hat and get something done or find something that was overlooked. That skill has great value but I still thank my education for making me more focused whe. Solving problems.

No matter where you end up, I would still take a degree in engineering over one in poetry. Society values it more as well. Even if I am not called on to compute the deflection. In a beam I would not take away my education one bit. Like I said before there is a place for everyone in this world and as long as you love what your doing then its all good. Just understand that even though a poet earns less in doesn't mean that a poet doesn't enjoy what they do

[suzifrommd]

I'll add my 2 cents, having spent 13 years as a software engineer.

Engineering is a great field if you're someone who likes making stuff work. If you're the kind of person who tinker with things, whether computer programs, structures, gears, or electronics, and feel an exhilaration when it works the way you want it to, then probably engineering is for you.

[lydia_s]

I'm currently a mechanical engineering major going through my transition. I also co op as an OBD calibrator for an auto company. I agree with Bailey about the engineers that don't know a ratchet from a tomato. I highly recommend a school with a good co-op program. You'll graduate with years of invaluable experience in your field. I'm 19 and I'm working alongside verteran automotive engineers, sitting through their meetings and doing actual testing for actual problems. I can't describe how valuable that is. Even better, often times companies hire graduates that co-oped for them. If not, having the experience is crucial for getting a position in another company. You just can't get that from textbooks.

As far as being trans, I haven't had a problem. Not at school, nor at work. I can definitely say the college age group is much more accpting. I've been out since day one. Some figured it out, some I told, some thought I was just a goth. Either way they didn't care. At work, from what I can tell, all they truly care about what you can do for them. If you're really passionate and perform well, you should have a good future. But of course, that goes back to what Bailey said.

[Ms.Behavin]

Well engineering can be fun, but I think its depends on the company you work at.  I always enjoyed working for the smaller companies say 12 to 20 ish people.  The larger the company the more pigeon holed you got and the more management one was under. 

Now me I did things a little differently.   I stated life in the engineering field as a drafts person way back before cad, but moved up to designer, senior designer, etc.  After 12 years I sat and passed the PE exam the first time I took it.  I've been in charge of designs for major portions of several billion dollar projects.  I've worked on just about every type of building including semi conductor fabs and Bio-Pharma plants.   Oh, I have never spent a day in a collage or university classroom.  I still read a whole lot though.

Engineering can be rewarding, but as others have said it can get rather brutal sometimes too.  Personally, I'm not really happy with the way the building engineering field has progressed over the last 12 years or so.  Lets just say I'm a bit jaded too.

But it can be fun, Really I did not have many issues transitioning in that field either.  Bio-Pharma is growing.  I might also recommend chemical and process engineering.  The process engineers in pharma made a fair amount and the work is challenging.  Big complicated systems, lots O fun there.

As in any field, there are lots of collage grads in engineering.  If the OP is 30, your looking at 38-40 before you could get a PE license. Now you don't need a PE license, but it makes a difference how far you go,  and how much you earn.  Probably 60-65% of collage engineer grads never take or pass the PE exam.  Its a bit hard to study for the test, when you working 10 to 12 hour days (or more).

Best of luck to you in whatever field you go into.  The important part is to do what you love to do or have fun doing it.  Otherwise its just work.

[JLT1]

I read an interesting quote the other day talking about getting things done.  "Find the one or two people around here who aren't completely incompetent and work them to death." I propose that some of the previous communications have been from "the one or two people" who are competent in the field for which they have obvious passion.    However, I believe this statement applies to any number of fields of work.  In any field, there are some people who should not be working in it, there are a number who just do enough to keep out of trouble and there are a few, a very few, who really excel and and have that passion.

I looked at my companies job board for engineering positions within 20 miles of where I work.  There were nineteen positions for hard core R&D, six more positions were for technical "team leaders", six more were for team management where a degree in Engineering was required, seven were for plant engineers, two for design engineers, one environmental engineer, one engineer for human resources and a smattering of other engineers including one civil engineer.   Outside of "engineering", there are 53 IT jobs that counted engineering as complying with the requirements and 32 positions in supply chain that counted engineering.  After that , I stopped looking.  Unless someone cannot move, it is difficult to imagine that they cannot find a position.

A degree in engineering opens doors, doors to excel in your chosen field, doors that lead to other fields and doors to other possibilities.  For a four year degree that pays well, engineering is hard to beat and it has enough respect that you can find some part of it, or in some related field, where you will have the passion to succeed.

Over the next two years, we are going to be hiring some 800-2000 additional researchers, best guess is that a significant portion of these new hires will be engineers. 

[Jesslee]

wow... at first everyone is like "AWESOME! NOTHING IS STOPPING YOU" ... then it's negativity... lovely =/

I wanna do something to take care of my mom as she gets old... I'm an only child. Wth am I suppose to do? Hair?

I'd like to add my uncle just hired a few engineers at his firm... 4 years exp for 100k/yr ...

If I wanna be an architect... "SO MANY HOURS AND YOU WILL NEVER BE PAID!!!" If I want to be a PT... "IT'S SATURATED!!!" If I wanna be an engineer "NO JOBS!!! EVERYONE IS STUPID!!!!" (Even though the list on Forbes suggests many of the top demands in jobs) .. Lawyer "It's HARD and it's FLOODED and you'll be in debt for EVERRRRR!!!!" so like, I'm half way licensed in hair. Apparently, according to everyone in here I can make more doing hair ....

Which I don't see happenin. Stylists make an avg of 18-25k yr. I guess building sewage plants and developing lab test machines gets you less.

Alainaluvsu, I am sorry I did not mean to totally discourage you I am a little upset because the field that I have wanted to work in since I was a little kid is unfortunately in its twilight (at least in this country). I really wanted to get my education in Astrophysics or at least Astronomy, but about 10 years ago I took the advice of two very old husband & wife physicists that I knew and respected (the husband was the head of a high profile department for the DOE). They advised that I should forget about my pursuit of physics since I would never be able to support myself with jobs available they told me that the best thing I could do was to pursue engineering. Their advice was well meaning but they could not see the future any better than I could so ultimately I received an education that I did not really want, and the job prospects are no better than what would have been available had I went with what I was passionate about.


I also believe that each person's experience will vary with geographical location, Lydia_S who is only 19 and very early in her education already has a co-op, in my area this was unheard of! Since the manned space flight program was shut down there are virtually no co-ops available (locally). We do have one large biomedical company here that recruits from Mech and Aero students for co-ops, however they were only interested in Engineering students who were within 1 semester of graduation, they only paid $10.00 per hour, and they required a 40 to 50 hour work week (which conflicted with the schools policy of NO MORE THAN 15 hours a week of private sector work). But I have had other people tell me that things are different in other places, so depending on your location you may do much better than the students here.


I guess I am only advising you that (in my opinion) you should pursue what you are truly passionate about and don't choose a degree program (especially Engineering) if it is only for the money! If you truly want to learn how things go from the mind to manufacturing then an education in Engineering is for you, but remember that on top of having an above average aptitude in the area of Mathematics you must also be a GLUTTON FOR PUNISHMENT when pursuing this type of education, while the other majors are cutting loose on the weekends you won't even realize that the weekend has come and gone!



I will also disagree with some who have said you will make more in the engineering field than someone not in it. I do not know your area or anything about hair styling and the money that a person can make, but I know in my area that you can make a small fortune in things that are in demand if you are passionate about it. I personally know a man who has no high school diploma, a convicted FELON and he was in state prison for 10 years, but he now makes over $100,000 per year as an HVAC technician (he is not even a partner in the business) he has worked this job for years has a very nice and large home in a swanky neighborhood, family, children, etc.. He is good at his job and passionate, it is in demand so he does very well.  This person recently said that I may be very educated but he believes that I have the common sense of a dog, and I think he may be correct!



You mention that you are worried about providing for your Mother, definitely watch this short interview with a former senior Lockheed engineer and Cornell graduate who has degrees in Aerospace and Electrical Engineering including a Ph.d.



Sorry for being so longwinded, I wish you the best and hope you will find what is best for you. We cannot see the future so just remember there are no sure-things in life!

One last thing, you look pretty and pass well so if you do choose engineering you will be entering an educational program where you are in a minority (25 boys to each girl on the Mechanical side), I am sure you will be very popular and will do well. Every girl I knew had at least half a dozen boys with puppy dog eyes willing to do their home work and help with exams.  This would definitely be a plus! I was always so jealous 

[Isabelle]

My experience has been, noone actually gives a ->-bleeped-<-. I work in industrial design on large scale projects (can't give specifics sorry) anyway, uni was a breeze and noone I work with cares (if they find out) For a girl like you (passing as cis) You're just another girl to everyone you work with. Never ask you're self if "a transsexual" can do anything. Just do what you want to do, everyone else can eat a bowl of willies.

[SonadoraXVX]

Alaina,

I'm going to keep this simple, since alot of my fellow human beings, have lots to say.

1. A degree in mechanical engineering, is one of the most difficult or the most difficult to get.
2. Switching over to another field would be a breeze, since most people blow at math and engineering/physics stuff, therefore
    you could easily call your further education in, all the hard sciences and soft sciences                                                     (ie.literature/sociology/socialwork/english).
3. As opposed to somebody else who gets a degree in only a soft science, there options are usually limited, why? usually people who pick soft science majors, have a diffiiciency in math/physics.

Really, I wish I had the aptitude for math, since in my opinion, that is the mother of all sciences, of course, its physics, but to get into the hard sciences, , you need higher math, with higher math, you can then take upper division physics, chemistry, biology, et al hard sciences courses.

Lucia,
P.S. Wishing I had the aptitude in math, I would certainly not be sticking around in my field for sure(ie.legal, too too adverserial). I'd be a biochemist 

[Ultimus]

I'm wondering what yalls thoughts on what I'm in for if I go into engineering as a transsexual. The two branches I'm interested in are civil engineering and biomedical engineering. I'm leaning towards civil because I've always wanted to make things that help people (even things like highway systems and efficient drainage systems would make me happy to do) and be able to design would be AWESOME. However I've always loved medicine and helping to find treatment or even cures for the ill would be awesome, too.

Either way, any engineers? Any insight on what to expect as a trans woman wanting to go to school in her 30s? I know it's a very male dominant field, and I'm hoping I can be comfortable doing it in a male environment.

If I recall correctly in another thread you said that you weren't good at or didn't like math? Prepare for lots of calculus, linear algebra, and differential equations.