• Question: Do you think you'll carry on being an engineer into your old age?

    Asked by charleybondd to Ant, Dan, Matt, Mike, Steph on 13 Mar 2012.
    • Photo: Dan Veal

      Dan Veal answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      Definitely! You’ll find a lot of jobs get better the longer you do them, because you get more experience, get paid more gradually, and it becomes something you’re really good at. Don’t think you’re stuck forver though, if i were to get bored after 10 or 15 years i’d have the option of going into teaching, becoming a manager, going into more business development side of engineering (like a salesman engineer). It’s a good career because it can open lots of doors depending on your interests.

    • Photo: Matt Maddock

      Matt Maddock answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      Absolutely!

      I might not, however, keep working in an engineering company until I’m old.

      Being an engineer (or a scientist) is as much about how you look at the world, think about it and work out solutions to problems as it is about working with a spanner and owning your own drill.

      Part of me would love to spend my time drawing silly cartoons – which doesn’t need a spanner – but I will always half half an eye checking the robots I draw to make sure they look like they could work. Or I might spend far longer than is necessary drawing the evil squirrel’s death-ray because I get caught up in how it works.

      So even if I end my days illustrating the eternal struggle between Monkey Ghost and the forces that would steal his banana, I will always be an engineer.

    • Photo: Anthony Hollingsworth

      Anthony Hollingsworth answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      for sure! even when I eventually retire I expect I will get bored and want to build myself cool stuff to play with. Also one day I hope to fit a turbo to my bike, which may have to wait until then 🙂

    • Photo: Mike Salter

      Mike Salter answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      Hmmmm. I really really enjoy my job, and can see myself doing it for a very long time. But it’s probably 40-50 years untill I retire – and that’s a very very long time! I think the work I do during my career will change and evolve, but I’ll take it as it comes.

      If engineering stops being interesting and inspiring for me then maybe I’ll do something else, but I can’t see that happening!

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