did you need a college degree?

[VEExe]

Did you need a college degree to get into engineering?

like how did you get your first job? was your college degree really important or is it purely experience in other engineering jobs that made you get a/the job?

i really dont want to go to college due to the college loans and basically wasting a **** ton of time for a thing that might get me into jail if i dont pay it off or maby it wont even help me in the future.

i would really like to get the engineer without a degree's view.

 

[matt267 PE]

An engineering degree was needed for my current job. 

If you're interested in engineering, there are ways of going to college without too many loans. Have you looked into community college programs? Some offer a 2 Year engineering program and then you transfer to a local 4 years school. This saves ton of money.

Or, join the military.

 

[Ranger1316]

This really depends on which discipline you want to go into. I know college helped tremendously with Transportation even though a lot of what I use day to day was learned on the job.

 

[Tiger15]

In my experience it's VERY difficult to become an engineer without a college degree. Every job posting I see requires a degree, not just "first" jobs. If you want to be a real engineer, a 4-year bachelor's degree is required. (I say "real engineer" because there are lots of examples the title "engineer" being overused for what most people would agree are not engineering positions. But that's a seperate conversation.) 

I have known a couple people who were able to come up from a technician or drafter position to a engineering position after spending many years with the same company (usually more than 10 years). But I've seen those same people get stuck because another company won't hire them as an engineer because they don't have a bachelor's in engineering. Even engineering-related positions like technician or drafter usually require a 2-year associate's degree.

And I would say the degree isn't just BS like with some careers. Most engineers actually use the stuff they learned in school (not everything, but something from school).

 

[ChebyshevII PE PMP]

My dad was a music major, got an electrician job to support my family, and eventually transitioned into a control system engineer role, although he never got licensed.

I work with several people who started out as electricians and eventually transitioned to the engineering role.

The point being, it is “possible” to become an engineer without an engineering degree. Some of them are better than degreed engineers simply because of the practical experience they bring.

This being said, if you want to go directly to an engineering role without having to go through the above, you need an engineering degree, and more specifically a 4-year degree.

 

[Tiger15]

I would add, if cost of college is your biggest concern, there are ways to save money (like @matt267 PE pointed out).

I went to my local state college (which was cheap) and had some scholarship money. I graduated with less than $3,000 in loans. There are cheap state schools out there with decent engineering programs. And transitioning from a 2-year community college to a 4-year college is another way to save some money (just make sure the credits transfer IN ADVANCE).

Even though (IMO) a degree is required to be an engineer, where that degree is from and what your GPA was become less and less important as you get further into your career.

Another option is get on with a company that offers tuition reimbursement. That's easier said than done. But most of the big fortune 500 companies (think Exxon, GE, Boeing, etc) will pay for school for their employees. That may or may not be a realistic option for you, but something else to consider.

 

[goodal]

You can get the title of "engineer" in just about any profession.  I had the title of sanitation engineer when I worked midnights cleaning floors during college, but that didn't mean I was an engineer.  To legally use the title of "Engineer" outside of the plant you work in you, must have a degree.  If you don't want to go to school you, can eventually get the title, but it will more than likely take many years of work in your field to attain it and in all probability you will be at a lower paygrade than degreed individuals.  If money is an issue, and it usually is, go to a community college.  $40,000 a year for college is stupid IMHO and unless youre going to work at NASA or a fortune 500 company, the prestige is worthless.  "Oh you went to Duke?  Cool, now when are you going to get my drawing done?"  I went the community college route and wouldn't have it any other way.  

 

[ruggercsc]

In the construction field, you do not have to have a degree, but it is very helpful and it opens doors:

1.  One of my best direct reports has a theology degree.  He previously owned a home building company (went broke like most I know), worked as a lumber buyer, worked for a national home builder, and now is helping coordinate CLT designs and construction. He is practical and at times and challenges our head SE, who is very theoretical.   

2.  We had a Senior Project Engineer who was getting ready to get promoted to a Project Manager and run his own site for a $70M project at 30 years old.  He went to college for 6 months and left.  He never would have been hired, but his dad worked for us, was a good employee, and helped him get the door opened for him.  He started out very entry level position that we rarely hire for and worked his way up before being recruited away to another firm.  His dad got the door opened for him, but he took advantage of the opportunity and ran with it.  He probably would not have been hired if his Dad was not an employee.

3.  We had a cost planner/estimator who had three years of college as an architect, but left before he got his degree.  I worked with him at two different companies and he was very good at what he did.  He got let go during the Great Recession and head a difficult time getting employment because most jobs he wanted required a college degree.  It took him years to find a job that paid him what he was making when he was let go (changed jobs at least 6 times), but is doing well now.

A college degree does not guarantee success, but it opens doors that you would not have if you did not have one.