Is the engineering profession respected in our society?

[Hung Kieu]

Do you believe the engineering profession is respected in our society? I have heard that in some places around the world they are not well respected and there are a lot of people calling themselves 'engineers' even though they did not obtain an accredited engineering degree so that may be a reason why. I have also heard that people look down at engineering and see it as 'lesser' than being a doctor or a lawyer.

Leave a comment/post your opinion on what you think of this topic.

[spacebob]

In my opinion doctors and lawyers are overrated. Especially lawyers.

[paulo1919]

i do agree that engineers are underrated compared to doctors and lawyers. especially in the asian society (im an asian) i have a feeling that engineers are slightly looked down on

[js]

I don't think so in the uk. I think the problem is people don't actually know what engineering entails.

[ivan]

Even here in the U.S, people ask what it is that I do and if its hard. I think people have no idea the struggles that we have to go through. They take stuff that engineers do for granted :/

[Nandeesh Jolad]

Engineers do have a great value, many people respect and appreciate about the contribution of engineers for the development of a country's both in economic growth and technology improvements. I do agree with some of them had not obtained accredited engineering degree, but they call themself as ''ENGINEERS'' just because of their work experience they'd got in an industry by working for several years, and they just boldly say that they've a knowledge as equal to an engineer, and they also say that they can do a work or a given task more better than an engineer, but they dont know that they r lacking skill in taking some moral decisions when a industry faces uncertainty barriers, they dont know ethical laws/principles. But other than that engineers have a great respect in a society, now-a-days people know what an engineer is capable of making an huge impact in DEVELOPMENT aspects either in Automobile, Energy & Power systems , Manufacturing, Designing, Research & Development, Aerospace, Environmental studies etc,


On the other hand, i do red so many articles that, some of the people who'd worked as assistants/compounder for a doctor/surgeon for several years, they started their own clinics, hospitals and call themselves as doctors even though they're not specialized in the field of medicine, and they also get caught so many times.

If i put in a more diplomatic way, ENGINEERS, DOCTORS, and LAWYERS are important to build a happy, healthy, and respectful society.. where people can lead their life with less problems n complications..

[FPEPro]

The only person that truly respects me the most is my medical doctor friends, who recognize the real difficulty of what I do. Truth be known I make more than most medical doctors, but as was said earlier in the Facebook group, wealth doesn't equal respect. People still have their own misconceptions that blind them to the truth.



Chris

[thursday]

I think this must be a characteristic of engineers.

I hear people say this in the UK, but I also hear it from people in North America and elsewhere from around the world.

Bearing in mind that in the UK at least, the average bear thinks a vending machine repairperson is as much an "engineer" as a PhD grad, I can't understand how people from places where engineers are paid more/have to take solemn oaths on graduation/live in a country where the title is protected can complain so much.

At the end of the day, we have great prospects. So what if nobody else cares about our chosen profession?

(ps: are lawyers respected? I thought that only lawyers liked other lawyers)

[FPEPro]

For me, since I studied both medicine and engineering, I see them as equals. Both are Engineers in a sort. We both have to look at the facts, do research, experimentation, and solve huge problems that can effect peoples life (and possibly kill them). I suppose the same could be said for lawyers too, but I still view most Lawyers as street urchins that are just sucking the blood out of anyone they can by abusing the law to their advantage... LoL

Personally, I don't need or ever ask for any form of recognition of my self-worth. I can honestly care less what anyone else thinks about my chosen career. The truth is most the general population is simply not intelligent enough to even comprehend what we do, and what the difference between and Mechanical Engineer and a train driver is... When they hear the word doctor, they just automatically assume Medical because that's what they know and see. So many people don't even realize that you can be a doctor of anything, and that is really quite a shame that our society is that out of touch. That being said, I have no interest to teach them what we are, just so they may marvel at my career field. I'm not that pretentious that I need people like this marveling at me for my job. As I said before, I can care less.



Chris

[sroca]

In Spain:

When you are a student, people think that we are intelligent, good at Math and Physics... but bad at social relations. A strange way to show us respect.

Acording to some engineers,at working, that respect sometimes disappears. Spain isn't investing in Science and Technology, getting postgraduate titles doesn't help, etc... Work is coming from universities researches, multinationals or big companies. Unemployment is low, but job conditions should be improved. As a result of all of that a lot of engineers are leaving Spain, in a lot of directions, usually Europe, but America too (North and South).


That's my opinion. I'm still studying, so I can't tell so much about working as engineer here. But is a fact that we think that "escape" is the better way to be respected, and the rest of the population agrees that our country's situation will be worse without us.

[FPEPro]

sroca,

This is why I really consider myself from Earth. I try to avoid any connection to a specific country. I go where the demand is, regardless of where that might be. If you have a job that is abusing you, or disrespecting you daily... Then I would simply leave as soon as possible. No one should be forced to work in such conditions. And if that means leaving your birth nation, then so be it. There's plenty of great countries in the world looking for good engineers. Don't feel you are ever restricted to the place you are currently at, even if that is where you were born and raised.



Chris

[juggernaut]

Engineers are among the brightest. Check out their scores:

gre_guide_table4.pdf (288.11 KB)

[blisters]

maybe because most of the people doesn't really know/understand what we really do
saving the world before bed time is really a very stressful thing you know? lol