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Caleb Frost Jessica Camargo English 111 Career Choice Persuasive Paper Oct. 29, 2013 Why You Should Consider an Engineering Field What do you think of when you hear the word engineering? Maybe your mind takes you back to pictures youve seen of the ancient wonders, the pyramids of Gaza or the lighthouse at Alexandria. Or maybe you think of one of the many new inventions in the form of a cellphone, or of an eight gig flash drive that is no bigger than a quarter. But have you ever thought about the people who made these inventions possible? Engineering is a growing, financially stable and fascinating field which should be considered by all those seeking a career. The many diverse engineering fields offer a variety of possibilities. So what is engineering and what do engineers do? Engineering is the profession that puts scientific knowledge to practical use (World Book Encyclopedia 284). This link that engineers create between the scientific and practical worlds is so important in our everyday lives. Almost everything around us is engineered. Buildings, desks, cars, phones, even the clothes you are wearing. Since our world is highly specialized to be proficient, engineers need to have specialized training in their specific fields (i.e. biomedical or Aeronautical). A good example of how engineers affect our lives is seen in those whose work influences the global market place. Engineers influence how much you spend to buy certain thing. Often the prices of a product can be lowered by efficient manufacturing processes that are designed and maintained by Industrial Engineers.

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Engineering and the other engineering related fields are some of the major avenues for one of the fastest expanding aids of modernization; Technology. This is another reason why seeking a career in engineering is promising. Because engineers work is closely tied to the expansion and growth of our society there will always be expanding and growing needs for them. Engineering is also a financially stable career. According to the 2010 Occupational Outlook Handbook an engineers average annual income was between $60,000 and $100,000 a year, which is an above average pay check. Some of the engineering fields do even better than that making over a hundred thousand a year. Another reason choosing an engineering field is a good idea is because engineers are often people who have gained power through their success and knowledge. They are often business owners, lawyers, researchers, planners, or players in the political arena (Richard H. McCuen 92). Those who enjoy problem solving and math will most likely excel in the engineering fields. Every one of the engineering disciplines uses various problem solving skills and the majority of them use higher levels of math. For example mechanical engineers Analyze problems to see how a mechanical device might help solve the problem. This systematic and analytical way of working through problems is extremely necessary since the things engineers work with need to be exact and precise to meet project requirements. They also use the principals of calculus, trigonometry, and other advanced topics in mathematics for analysis, design, and troubleshooting in their work (Occupational Outlook Handbook). Engineers play a major role, though maybe unseen, in the way our world operates as we know it. They are the practical minds that make the ideas of others and their own become reality. Through their training and specialized skills they can design the tools necessary to make the things we need. Because engineering is an ever growing field it is always calling for the

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ideas and inspiration of the young. Todays engineer students are preparing to answer tomorrows questions. They will be the ones who will come up with the practical applications for new scientific discoveries in the future. Maybe you will be one of them.

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Cited Works 1. Engineering. The World Book Encyclopedia. 1996 ed. Volume 6. Print. 2. Engineering Careers Occupational Outlook Handbook 2012-13 Edition. Buroau of Labor Statistics. Electronic. Oct. 2013. 3. McCuen, Richard H. Educating Guidance Counselors on Engineering as a Career and Academic Coice: Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice ASCE (July 2009): 92. Electronic