I am a aerospace engineer at the univerisity of central florida and I have had time to dive several times over the course of my college career. But if you want to be an engineer you must put your studies first and then dive when you can.
Engineering
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jpsexton
Contributor
The things your asking will depend on the company you work for more than anything else. I am a mechanical engineer but work as a manufacturing engineer. The first mechanical job I had out of school was in the automotive industry. It had long hours, average pay, and high stress. Hobbies definately took a back burner. After a few years I left and went to work for an aerospace company. Still long hours, better pay, but it was a cool job. Now some years later I work as a manufacturing engineer in the petrochemical industry. 40 hour work weeks, good pay, and low stress. I attribute some of that to a different job and some to gaining years of experience. I do have time for SCUBA now. 
As an engineer you will definately look at equipment differently. I'm not sure how many people really understand the differences in regulator technolgies, you will. For instance when I chose a regulator I looked at everything in depth and compared performance of each technology. I wound up choosing the best performing unbalanced piston regulator I could find. My expericene tells me that well designed simple mechanical devices are the most reliable. Fewer moving parts mean less to go wrong.
John
As an engineer you will definately look at equipment differently. I'm not sure how many people really understand the differences in regulator technolgies, you will. For instance when I chose a regulator I looked at everything in depth and compared performance of each technology. I wound up choosing the best performing unbalanced piston regulator I could find. My expericene tells me that well designed simple mechanical devices are the most reliable. Fewer moving parts mean less to go wrong.
John
ScubaJackie
Guest
I am a military engineer. I make enough money to suport my habit, so that is not the issue. Time is the limiting factor. I have done two tours to Iraq (2 years, no diving). Also depending on what type of projects I have back here I may work 12 hour plus days, work weekends, work holidays. If there is nothing going on, I can leave at a normal time (and go dive...). Of course when I am in a leadership position this dosen't happen.
I get one 4 day weekend a month, day on day off at Christmas, and 2.5 days of leave acrual every month. In my experiance I either have too much time on my hands, or no time to even think. So if you are not busy and off makeing the world safe for democracy military engineering and diving work well together.
Oh yeah, work hard in college, go to class, study, get internships etc. It will pay off in the end. Good luck!
I get one 4 day weekend a month, day on day off at Christmas, and 2.5 days of leave acrual every month. In my experiance I either have too much time on my hands, or no time to even think. So if you are not busy and off makeing the world safe for democracy military engineering and diving work well together.
Oh yeah, work hard in college, go to class, study, get internships etc. It will pay off in the end. Good luck!
DennisW
Contributor
You have had some very good information given to you about the engineering profession and what you can expect. I have an Electrical Engineering degree from UF and a MBA from Florida Tech. I've been working as an Engineer or Program Manager for 28 years. You will make a very good living as an engineer. You will have decent benefits and that means you will have a fair vacation package from most companies. 2 weeks to start and then usually 3 weeks after 10 years and 4 after whatever. The other thing you will find is that most companies have no loyalty to employees. Engineeers are components that they believe they can plug in and out at will. It is very unusual for an engineer to work at the same company for their entire career. I have worked for 4 different companies over my career. My advise is to understand up front in your career that HR works for the company, not you. I learned that early in my career. More advise, be loyal to yourself and your profession, work hard and do your very best, and maintain your standard of ethics no matter what. Do these things and you will do well in the long run.
On the SCUBA side, I am very mechanical minded and I am a practical engineer, so I have taken gear repair and overhaul courses and cylinder inspection courses. I overhaul and repair my own gear and I inspect tanks for myself and friends.
On the SCUBA side, I am very mechanical minded and I am a practical engineer, so I have taken gear repair and overhaul courses and cylinder inspection courses. I overhaul and repair my own gear and I inspect tanks for myself and friends.
O2BBubbleFree
Contributor
I got my Computer Engineering degree in 2000, just about the time all the jobs went away, and have had a rough time getting in. I worked menial jobs for several years to try to make ends meet, all the while applying for all the entry-level engineering jobs I could find.
In Jan 2004 I started working for the company I'm with now. The first two years I worked through a temp agency, and came on permanent the first of this year.
I work for a research lab that's part of the University of Texas. Universities, and their associated labs, pay squat. I'm making about half what I expected to when I was getting the degree. My wife is a nurse, a profession thats notoriously low-paid, and I make about $.50/Hr. more than she does. We're scratching to make ends meet, especially since we both have student loans to pay off.
On the other hand, the benefits are good (like a week so for Christmas, while UT is shut down), and it's a very relaxed environment compared to the 'bleeding edge' technology companies.
Best thing about it is that we do R&D work for Navy and Coast Guard underwater systems. During the Gulf war, did you hear about the trained dolphins that they were using to hunt for mines? We made the training aids. We also make the hand-held mine detectors that the Navy divers use. But our biggest projects are sonar systems that detect and track divers and swimmers entering restricted areas. One group is playing around with unmanned underwater vehicles for something. We have an in-house dive team that dives every week or two (the team dives that often, but they rotate through the members. Individuals might dive every month or two). Mostly they do long swims at about 20, to test diver detection and tracking algorithms. They also do deeper dives (up to 130 or so) to reposition targets, maintain u/w structures, or occasionally to try to find tools and parts that have been dropped. Unfortunately all those dives are in Lake Travis in low vis, but at least theyre getting paid to get wet. Also, some of the Engineers get to do some traveling to test/set-up/maintain the systems were developing. Those guys usually take their dive gear along and do some personal dives while on the trips. I am going to be doing some of those trips soon.
So, there are jobs out there that allow Engineers to dive, and even pay them to do so, but they are few and far between. And if you are doing scientific/oceanographic research, dont expect to get rich. Im actually looking at getting a second job.
Oh, and one more note. At least where I work, its really difficult to get into the research labs if you didnt graduate from their university. The head of our division told me that I will always be looked down upon when it comes to promotions and pay raises because my degree is not from UT or a top 10 university. Im willing to bet that its the same with other university programs.
My advice would be to get the broadest Engineering degree you can, study hard so that you truly understand the concepts, and participate in as many internships as you can while in school, then look for a job that includes travel to some good dive spots. Just being willing to travel opens up some doors.
That's my perspective.
Oh, and here is another thing you might want to investigate. There are other professions, like Oceanographer, where you still get to play with a lot of cool u/w gadgets, and even help develop them. But, again, they don't get rich doing it.
In Jan 2004 I started working for the company I'm with now. The first two years I worked through a temp agency, and came on permanent the first of this year.
I work for a research lab that's part of the University of Texas. Universities, and their associated labs, pay squat. I'm making about half what I expected to when I was getting the degree. My wife is a nurse, a profession thats notoriously low-paid, and I make about $.50/Hr. more than she does. We're scratching to make ends meet, especially since we both have student loans to pay off.
On the other hand, the benefits are good (like a week so for Christmas, while UT is shut down), and it's a very relaxed environment compared to the 'bleeding edge' technology companies.
Best thing about it is that we do R&D work for Navy and Coast Guard underwater systems. During the Gulf war, did you hear about the trained dolphins that they were using to hunt for mines? We made the training aids. We also make the hand-held mine detectors that the Navy divers use. But our biggest projects are sonar systems that detect and track divers and swimmers entering restricted areas. One group is playing around with unmanned underwater vehicles for something. We have an in-house dive team that dives every week or two (the team dives that often, but they rotate through the members. Individuals might dive every month or two). Mostly they do long swims at about 20, to test diver detection and tracking algorithms. They also do deeper dives (up to 130 or so) to reposition targets, maintain u/w structures, or occasionally to try to find tools and parts that have been dropped. Unfortunately all those dives are in Lake Travis in low vis, but at least theyre getting paid to get wet. Also, some of the Engineers get to do some traveling to test/set-up/maintain the systems were developing. Those guys usually take their dive gear along and do some personal dives while on the trips. I am going to be doing some of those trips soon.
So, there are jobs out there that allow Engineers to dive, and even pay them to do so, but they are few and far between. And if you are doing scientific/oceanographic research, dont expect to get rich. Im actually looking at getting a second job.
Oh, and one more note. At least where I work, its really difficult to get into the research labs if you didnt graduate from their university. The head of our division told me that I will always be looked down upon when it comes to promotions and pay raises because my degree is not from UT or a top 10 university. Im willing to bet that its the same with other university programs.
My advice would be to get the broadest Engineering degree you can, study hard so that you truly understand the concepts, and participate in as many internships as you can while in school, then look for a job that includes travel to some good dive spots. Just being willing to travel opens up some doors.
That's my perspective.
Oh, and here is another thing you might want to investigate. There are other professions, like Oceanographer, where you still get to play with a lot of cool u/w gadgets, and even help develop them. But, again, they don't get rich doing it.
R
redacted
Guest
SharkLover:
Now that is some impressive engineering.
Another young electrical and computer engineer chiming in. Graduated in 2003 and have been in the same job since. I'm the oddball since I'm actually in consulting. Most of the work I do is in the evaluation of others designs, setting requirements, high level architecture, and policy development. Personally, I enjoy the work since it's always changing and challenging.
Like everyone's said, time available is really going to depend on who you work for and what you're currently doing. Leave policies vary greatly depending on the company. The same for expectations in terms of hours. I know I'm expected to put in 45-50 hours a week. (Yes, I'm salaried.) However, I have had weeks where I've put in 35 and others where it's been closer to 80. It really depends on where the project I'm working on is at. That said, I do have the flexibility to have a very active life outside of my job. Diving isn't a huge part right now, but that's mainly due to my geographical location. Financially, I feel I'm well compensated for my work.
As far as my schooling helping me in "DIY", you have to remember ee!=electrician. I don't do the work myself, but I've done a lot of troubleshooting before I call tech support. It helps me solve the problem with them faster since I've done all of the idiot tests.
Lastly, there are two pieces of advice I give everyone I know who's looking to go into engineering. First, do something to set yourself apart in college. This could be taking a major leadership role in a student org, participating in research on campus, or getting internships. When you go looking for a job, this is something that you can highlight on your resume and discuss in an interview. My internships set me apart from other applicants since I had unique practical experiences. Secondly, learn to WRITE! You can have the greatest idea, but unless you can communicate, it will probably go nowhere. I can't even count the number of times I've heard complaints that other engineers on our staff are poor writers. My friends (in other technical fields) hear the same thing at their jobs too. Learning to write in college will greatly help you out in the future.
Best of luck, engineering is a great field to be in.
Like everyone's said, time available is really going to depend on who you work for and what you're currently doing. Leave policies vary greatly depending on the company. The same for expectations in terms of hours. I know I'm expected to put in 45-50 hours a week. (Yes, I'm salaried.) However, I have had weeks where I've put in 35 and others where it's been closer to 80. It really depends on where the project I'm working on is at. That said, I do have the flexibility to have a very active life outside of my job. Diving isn't a huge part right now, but that's mainly due to my geographical location. Financially, I feel I'm well compensated for my work.
As far as my schooling helping me in "DIY", you have to remember ee!=electrician. I don't do the work myself, but I've done a lot of troubleshooting before I call tech support. It helps me solve the problem with them faster since I've done all of the idiot tests.
Lastly, there are two pieces of advice I give everyone I know who's looking to go into engineering. First, do something to set yourself apart in college. This could be taking a major leadership role in a student org, participating in research on campus, or getting internships. When you go looking for a job, this is something that you can highlight on your resume and discuss in an interview. My internships set me apart from other applicants since I had unique practical experiences. Secondly, learn to WRITE! You can have the greatest idea, but unless you can communicate, it will probably go nowhere. I can't even count the number of times I've heard complaints that other engineers on our staff are poor writers. My friends (in other technical fields) hear the same thing at their jobs too. Learning to write in college will greatly help you out in the future.
Best of luck, engineering is a great field to be in.
Engineers are really boring, geeky nerds, try the arts. Just kidding
I just gave a sketch to one of our machinest to make me a custom reef hook for an up coming trip.
If you are creative, like to work with computers, engineering can be very rewarding. You actually help make a better world, engineers always have and always will.
Just kidding I just gave a sketch to one of our machinest to make me a custom reef hook for an up coming trip.
If you are creative, like to work with computers, engineering can be very rewarding. You actually help make a better world, engineers always have and always will.
utdivermatt
Contributor
Wow, I am an aerospace engineering student at the other UT (Tennessee). I had no clue how many engineers were actually on this board. Nothing really to add, as I haven't graduated yet, but thanks for all the posts, answers alot of questions I had about my future!
engdiver
Contributor
I have been a Mechanical Engineer for the last 17 years and most of what the other engineers have said I have also experienced. Hours in this field vary alot depending on your employer and the jobs that you work on.
It is true that company loyalty to engineers is not always very good. I have had to change jobs more then I would prefer due to company changes, buyouts, lack of work, etc. Doing the best job that you can and getting good experience is most important.
As far as diving goes it has been more about time from family and vacation time. It is difficult to do a dive vacation when no one else in your family dives. All my off-time goes to my wife and kids. Of course this is a personal choice you must make.
I am a DIY person and have made things for diving such as a back mount plate for doubles, special weights, a camera housing, and such.
Good Luck on your choice of carreer.
It is true that company loyalty to engineers is not always very good. I have had to change jobs more then I would prefer due to company changes, buyouts, lack of work, etc. Doing the best job that you can and getting good experience is most important.
As far as diving goes it has been more about time from family and vacation time. It is difficult to do a dive vacation when no one else in your family dives. All my off-time goes to my wife and kids. Of course this is a personal choice you must make.
I am a DIY person and have made things for diving such as a back mount plate for doubles, special weights, a camera housing, and such.
Good Luck on your choice of carreer.
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