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by Jeff Bateman |
Engineers technical troubleshooters who continually reinvent the wheel and make it roll more efficiently than before are in greater demand than ever.
We need them to dream up cleaner, more efficient, less wasteful ways of doing just about everything in a world that's in a state of red alert as a result of environmental pollution and the inside out decay of overburdened cities.
They're the problem-solvers who discover practical, cost-efficient ways to utilize mankind's fast-accumulating scientific knowledge.
Robotics, genetic engineering, earth satellite stations, artificial hearts, and all manner of bio-medical marvels seem to be the stuff of science-fiction, but as engineers, and students of the applied sciences know, all is science-fact.
Engineering is a huge, unwieldy profession, encompassing numerous disciplines as far-reaching as technology itself.
"Once you've said you want to be an engineer you really haven't said much," emphasizes civil engineer Jerry Dobrovolny, profiled here.
"But if you are interested in the sciences and not sure where you want to go, engineering is a good bet because once you're in, there's a lot of choice."
Chief among the misconceptions about the profession is the blurred distinction between engineer and engineering technician.
The latter has a hands-on involvement with his or her work, be it as a maintenance person, assembly line worker or toolmaker. Technicians are trained in trade schools and colleges, entering the work force after a two-year certificate program.
Engineers, on the other hand, are white-collar workers. They use their brains and imaginations in a computer-driven office environment. They cook up practical solutions to real-life problems, developing their ideas into working products, devices, processes and structures which serve human needs.
The career breaks down into numerous job types, though fully 80 percent of Canada's professional engineers (they can call themselves that after a two-year accreditation program with the Association of Professional Engineers) fit into three broad categories.
Civil Engineers are the master builders responsible for planning and design of roads, bridges, tunnels, building, sewers, water pipelines, housing, etc. Municipal and provincial governments are a major employer of civil engineers, as are engineering construction and architectural firms. Areas of specialization: pollution control, highways, airports, irrigation and drainage, water resources, and soil engineering.
Electrical Engineers oversee design, testing and manufacture or telecommunications equipment and understand the whys and hows of electric power. Such companies as hydro commissions and telephone research are prime employers of electrical engineering grads. Areas of specialization: computers, communications, instrumentation and power systems.
Mechanical Engineers develop mechanical products and co-ordinate the operation and repair of power machinery and generators. Most work in the manufacturing sector, keeping production lines rolling to maximum efficiency. Areas of specialization: refrigeration, automotive, heating systems, heat transfers and thermodynamics, air-conditioning and hydraulics.
Outside the big three disciplines, the profession encompasses Aerospace, Chemical, Industrial, Geological, Petroleum, Forest, Agricultural, Mining and Medical specializations. Along with the iron rings they wear on their hands ( a century-old tradition initiated by British author Rudyard Kipling) engineers inevitably have a framed university diploma over their desks.
Schools of Applied Science at more than 30 Canadian universities have four-year engineering programs. The most popular, and best known of these are found at Waterloo (ON), University of Alberta, the University of Toronto, and University of British Columbia.
Students begin with a general science program in first year, branching off into any of a dozen fields for the remainder of their university life.
Objective of most four-year programs is to turn out generalists rather than narrowly focussed experts.
"We can't predict where the technology is headed or where the jobs will be; nobody can," says Sal Mindess, director of the engineering core program at UBC. "We produce engineers with a breath of knowledge that can be applied to specific areas."
The real specialization takes place when graduates forge on for a masters or doctorate in, for example, aerospace program at the University of Toronto.
Invariably, admission standards are high. Nothing less than a B average will do in grade 12 physics, chemistry, algebra, and somewhat surprisingly, English.
This last prerequisite is evidence that engineering is much more than brass tacks. The profession requires solid communications and managerial skills.
"The road to success is on the corporate/management side, not number crunching," explains UBC's Mindess. Ten years after graduation, most engineers are group leaders or division heads. They must be able to speak the language of not just other engineers but of lawyers, politicians, and the public.
It's one of the best-paid and most secure professions. Salaries begin at $30,000 and rise rapidly thereafter. It's also a field with a future for high school students of the 90s; the last big boom in engineering grads took place 30 years ago and these veterans are now approaching retirement. In fact, something of a crisis is forecast by employers for the mid-90s.
"Enrollment is declining across Canada and even in places like Japan, which until lately has produced a high percentage of engineers," says Darrell Zarn of Simon Fraser University's School of Engineering Science.
"Universities are going out and beating the bushes for engineering students."
Final word from Zarn and others: Engineering is a career with a future. If you've got a head for science, it's a field you should consider.
tgmag@tgmag.ca