An understanding about the different fields of engineering can help a student choose his/her field of interest. This CareerStint article enlists the different types of engineers and provides brief information about their job description.
An engineer is a professional who implements various laws of science and mathematics and invents new technologies that can benefit mankind. Almost everything that we use in our daily lives is an invention of engineering, it can be a simple pen used for writing, or a space craft launched in the space. We can thus say that engineering is a very vast technical field of career development.
There are different types of engineers who specialize in specific disciplines of engineering. Mechanical, civil, chemical, electronics, and mining engineering are considered as some of the core branches of engineering. These disciplines are further divided into more specialized fields, like automobile, instrumentation engineering, etc. Each of these has different set of duties to perform. Logical thinking, good analytical ability, good understanding of scientific and mathematical laws, and implementing these laws in designing various equipment, are some of the basic requirements needed to be an engineer.
Different Types of Engineers
Mechanical Engineers
Mechanical engineers, as the name suggests, are engineers who deal with machines and tools. This is a vast field that implements the laws of physics and material science in producing various machinery and tools. The main courses included in study of mechanical engineering include, thermodynamics, kinematics, mechanics, fluid engineering, energy, material science, technical drawing, etc. Mechanical engineers use these principles in designing, building, and analyzing various equipment and machines required in different fields like production plants, industrial machines, automobiles, etc. Mechanical engineering is one of the core fields of technology and these engineers earn a good salary.
Automobile engineering and aerospace engineering are sub fields of mechanical engineering.
Electronics Engineers
Electronics or electronic engineers are those engineers who design, analyze, test, and supervise electronic equipment. They implement the typical behavior of electrons in producing various electronic devices, systems, and components. Transistors, diodes, integrated circuits, printed circuit boards (PCB), etc., are some of the basic components of any electronic device. These engineers are also involved in development of communication and broadcast systems and some of them also work in designing and developing computer hardware.
Instrumentation engineering, telecommunication engineering, signal processing, and control engineering are some of the sub fields of electronic engineering.
Chemical Engineers
Chemical engineers utilize various chemicals in manufacturing useful products that are used in daily life. They work on machines that can produce chemicals on a large scale. Planning, testing, and supervising these products are some of the main duties performed by chemical engineers. They research and try to produce environment-friendly products, and work to improve the quality of products like paints, fuels, plastics, etc. Chemical engineers are also involved in research and development of all the products that involve use of chemicals that include, pharmaceutical products, cosmetics, and even food products.
Civil Engineers
The roads on which we drive our cars, the bridges which we use to cross rivers, the buildings we live in, the dams that provide water for us, are few of the infrastructures built by civil engineers. The main duties of a civil engineer can be listed as planning, designing, constructing, and maintaining the infrastructure built. These engineers are basically involved in the development of public projects. Other infrastructure projects handled by civil engineers are, building highways, railway bridges, tunnels, water reservoirs, sanitation plants, etc.
Structural engineering, coastal engineering, construction engineering, environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, etc., are some of the branches of civil engineering.
Other Types of Engineers
- Aeronautical Engineers – They design, construct, launch and operate spacecrafts, aircraft, missiles, and rockets.
- Biomedical Engineers – These engineers apply engineering laws for development of medical equipment.
- Bio-mechanical Engineers – They work on research and development of mechanical equipment that can be used for human comfort and safety.
- Computer/Software Engineers – These engineers are involved in design, construction and operation of computers to benefit mankind.
- Nuclear Engineers – They work on nuclear plants, and devise different methods of utilizing nuclear energy to serve various purposes.
- Agricultural Engineers – These engineers apply various engineering laws for development of the agriculture filed.
- Mining Engineers – They work on extracting and purifying various minerals from Earth’s crust.
- Electrical Engineers – These engineers are involved in research and development of electrical equipment like electric motors, electric supplies to buildings, etc.
- Marine Engineers – They deal with design, construction, and maintenance of all equipment used in ships and boats.
This was a summary on the different types of engineers. Engineering is a growing field with great career opportunities in each of its discipline. It is therefore necessary to research the topic well before opting for a particular field.
