EASYUNI Ultimate University Guide 2013 July Issue | Page 43

Although all engineers generally work as
part of a team, they do work individually
depending on the project, job and the ?eld
of the engineer. For example, a chemical
engineer conducting research and
development may spend the majority of
his time working independently in a lab. A
civil engineer in the construction industry
may spend most of his time on-site while
working with foremen and tradesmen to
develop buildings or infrastructure.
Although course structure varies by
institute, they would have typically
studied these courses. There are advanced
concepts in physics, chemistry and maths
which builds up on what was taught in
school. And there will be special emphasis
on multivariate calculus, linear algebra
and differential equations. Other than
that, you will be taking a basic course
in computer programming, statistics
and engineering drawing as well as
humanities-related courses which deal
with technical communication skills and
basic management science. Depending
on the engineering discipline, some basic
branch-speci?c courses will be covered.
During the third and ?nal years, students will
be studying discipline-speci?c courses which
de?ne their chosen degree, which includes
lab courses and project courses. Students will
also be required to cover a certain number
of elective subjects before graduating.
These electives can be specialisation courses
in one’s own discipline, interdisciplinary
courses or even related to economics,
?nance, philosophy or others. Additionally,
there will be an internship that the student
must complete where the students will be
interning in a company or research institute
for a couple or months. Usually, students are
paid an allowance.
As mentioned before, there are various ?elds
in engineering that you can venture into. The
?ve largest engineering areas are chemical
engineering, civil engineering, electrical
engineering, industrial engineering and
mechanical engineering. Of course, there are
specialised engineering ?elds as well, such as
aerospace engineering, oceanic engineering,
nuclear engineering, biomedical engineering
and environmental engineering.

Career Options
• Chemical Engineering
Chemical engineers study heat and mass
transfer, thermodynamics, ?uid dynamics
and process design and control. With their
knowledge, they solve problems involving
the manufacturing or use of chemicals and
their byproducts. They work in chemical
manufacturing, they work in a wide range
of other manufacturing industries, including
energy production, electronics, food, clothing,
and even health care and biotechnology. There
are also chemical engineers who specialise in
particular ?elds such as nanomaterials.

• Civil Engineering
Civil engineers belong to one
of the most interdisciplinary
engineering ?elds and
their course work involves
in-depth civil engineering
topics as well as computer
science, applied mathematics,
economics, chemistry and
business management. Civil
engineers build their careers
at construction companies,
government agencies and
private consulting ?rms. There
are also other ?elds that civil engineers
can venture into, such as aerospace, oil,
automotive, power and pharmaceutical.

• Electrical Engineering
Electrical engineering graduates
have good job opportunities despite
minor setbacks such as international
competition in product development.
However, you just need to stay up-todate with technology and continue your
education throughout your careers to
remain competitive.

• Industrial Engineering
Due to the variety of industries that
industrial engineers can venture into,
their opportunities are endless. Not
only in manufacturing, they are also
wanted in service industries, health
care, shipping and logistics, banking,
entertainment, forestry and logging,
military and all levels of government.

• Mechanical Engineering
Many of these engineer s work in
general machinery engineering
such refrigeration systems, heating,
ventilation, air conditioning or industrial
manufacturing equipment. Others
work in energy-related ?elds to aid in
development of new sources of energy
production, or designing methods of
energy conversion like power plants and
combustion engines.

• Transport Engineering
Transportation engineering is the
application of technology and scienti?c
principles to the planning, functional
design, operation and management of
facilities for any mode of transportation.
Transport engineering is a sub-discipline of
civil and industrial engineering and one of
the newer specialisations of engineering
that has emerged to provide safe, ef?cient,
rapid, comfortable, convenient and
environmentally compatible movement of
people and items. Transport engineering
is also a major component of the civil
and mechanical engineering disciplines.
Transportation engineering practiced by civil
engineers usually involves planning, design,
construction, maintenance and operation
of transportation facilities.

• Petroleum Engineering
Petroleum and geosystems engineers
are in high demand as they have the
capability to address and solve important
issues that will lead to energy security.
Petroleum engineering also covers the
activities related to the production
of hydrocarbon of either crude oil or
natural gas. They also do exploration
to focus on maximising the economic
recovery of hydrocarbons from
subsurface reservoirs as well as to solve
the variety of technological, political
and economic problems encountered in
these assignments.

• Environmental Engineering
Environmental engineers incorporate
the principles of engineering with
soil science, biology and chemistry to
develop solutions to environmental
problems. They are involved in efforts
to improve recycling, waste disposal,
public health and control of water and
air pollution. Due to the nature of their
tasks, environmental engineers work in
a variety of settings.

• Forensic Engineering
Whenever there are failures of other
performance problems, forensic
engineers are those who investigate
materials, products, structures or
components using engineering
principles. They also give testimony
on the ?ndings of these investigations
besides retracing processes and
procedures leading to accidents in
operation of vehicles or machinery.
The purpose of forensic engineering is
mainly to ?nd out the source of failure
to improve it. Forensic engineering is
mainly used in civil law, but sometimes
in criminal law.
So, why should you choose this ?eld? First
of all, engineering is the ultimate ?eld for
challenge and creativity. They work on
exciting projects and in?uence how our
world changes and improves.
The amazing structures, vehicles, and
discoveries in modern society have been
in?uenced and created by engineers in some
capacity. Engineering is the perfect place for
you to demonstrate your talents if you are
curious about how things work, or have a
keen mind for applying what you have learnt
to solve real-world problems. You
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