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Engineer vs. Manager

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(@srp98)
Posts: 78
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At the current moment, I would take on an engineering role. Being fresh out of school, it is appealing to want to get in the field and get as much hands on experience as possible and applying all the skills developed in school and apply them to industry. It is extremely satisfying and rewarding to finally be physically working on real products and projects that are meaningful. For these reasons, I would very much lean towards an engineering role. However after maybe 4-5 years, I would want to transition to more of a management role and oversee projects because by then I'll have acquired enough knowledge and experience to be successful in a manager role. Working on a project as an engineer helps to give perspective on the project as well as what responsibilities are involved in running a project. Project managers are typically in contact with customers and that type of interaction would be interesting and different after being an engineer and primarily being in contact with people only in the company. I believe as a project manager it will be rewarding to keep thee schedule of a project on track while meeting the budget and collaborating with others to ensure everything is running as smoothly and efficiently as possible. 

 
Posted : 24/04/2022 3:57 pm
(@ac825)
Posts: 55
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I think I would like to be an engineer I don't really see myself going into a managerial role since I feel like it is more fulfilling to be the actual engineer doing the project than managing it. It is also what I have much more experience with so at the very least I will feel more at home as an engineer. As many people have said Maybe once I am older I will shift into a manager role since it is less physically taxing than that of an engineer.

 

 
Posted : 24/04/2022 4:01 pm
(@jal58)
Posts: 60
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The preference between engineer and manager is certainly a personal opinion. The engineering field does often call for the manager to have more technical background. Manager positions are found in pretty much every industry. However, an engineering manager is expected to have a little more experience in the field. An engineering manager must have a good understanding of all the technical functions a team might provide. They must be able to provide feedback or guidance to the team.

 
Posted : 24/04/2022 7:25 pm
(@ma818)
Posts: 28
Eminent Member
 

Personally, I would chose working as an engineer rather than being a project manager. I believe that my specific skill sets, such as problem solving and time management, support my devotion to becoming an engineer. I find that I am better at focusing and completing specific tasks that are handed to me rather than overseeing the overall progress/success of a project. Choosing which career path to pursue is a personal choice: individuals should chose what they enjoy doing most, and what they feel like they may excel in. 

 
Posted : 24/04/2022 10:29 pm
(@ma818)
Posts: 28
Eminent Member
 

Personally, I would chose working as an engineer rather than being a project manager. I believe that my specific skill sets, such as problem solving and time management, support my devotion to becoming an engineer. I find that I am better at focusing and completing specific tasks that are handed to me rather than overseeing the overall progress/success of a project. Choosing which career path to pursue is a personal choice: individuals should chose what they enjoy doing most, and what they feel like they may excel in. 

 
Posted : 24/04/2022 10:29 pm
(@ma818)
Posts: 28
Eminent Member
 

Personally, I would chose working as an engineer rather than being a project manager. I believe that my specific skill sets, such as problem solving and time management, support my devotion to becoming an engineer. I find that I am better at focusing and completing specific tasks that are handed to me rather than overseeing the overall progress/success of a project. Choosing which career path to pursue is a personal choice: individuals should chose what they enjoy doing most, and what they feel like they may excel in. 

 
Posted : 24/04/2022 10:31 pm
(@ma818)
Posts: 28
Eminent Member
 

Personally, I would chose working as an engineer rather than being a project manager. I believe that my specific skill sets, such as problem solving and time management, support my devotion to becoming an engineer. I find that I am better at focusing and completing specific tasks that are handed to me rather than overseeing the overall progress/success of a project. Choosing which career path to pursue is a personal choice: individuals should chose what they enjoy doing most, and what they feel like they may excel in. 

 
Posted : 24/04/2022 10:32 pm
(@cassiem)
Posts: 78
Trusted Member
 

I want to be an engineer or a scientist. I love to build projects and problem solve. I also recently had the opportunity to be involved with research for the first time during my thesis and I absolutely loved it. I want to put my 6 years of schooling to good use, and not waste it towards a management role. Taking this class has made me realize a management position is not for me. Too much paperwork and not enough hands-on activities.

 
Posted : 26/04/2022 2:51 pm
 njq3
(@njq3)
Posts: 53
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It can be said that it is an ultimate goal for most people to end up in a managerial position (perhaps even a director or even higher), while I have held some managerial positions as well as engineering positions, I will say both have their ups and downs. Managers are different in that now you have to add people into the equation, which I would say is trickier than any technological or engineering problem, but for some people that can be an attractive aspect and I would say some people are more suited to a leadership position than others. Personally, I see myself trying out different positions within the next few years. Right now I am comfortable where I am, but I have been thinking about what lies in the future in terms of moving up in my company or moving to a different company. I've held a manager position before although a low manager position, and dealing with people is rewarding yet difficult. I feel I should get a bit more experience under my belt and become more well-rounded before making the decision that I should go for manager or not.

 
Posted : 01/05/2022 7:40 pm
(@jbarbee)
Posts: 78
Trusted Member
 

This is a great question that I can actually personally relate to. I currently work as a clinical scientist in a large laboratory within a specialized hospital. In this role, I've learned a great deal and have had lots of hands on experience with different forms of bioinstrumentation. My plan from here is to then move into an engineering role within the laboratories, working on a small team of engineers. From personal experience within the laboratory, management positions are very limited in not getting the hands on experience with instrumentation. Because of this, I'm unsure if a management role within my current institution would fit me. Although I do feel that I hold great leadership skills, I think I would prefer staying within an engineer/scientist role.

 
Posted : 02/05/2022 12:35 am
(@anthonynjit)
Posts: 78
Trusted Member
 

I see myself as finishing my career in a managerial type role. As I start my career I plan to be more technical oriented especially being fresh from college. Maintaining a technical role will allow me to better understand company dynamics and processes which will eventually prepare me for a manager's position. Although the technical work may be more interesting at times, I feel I could be a great enabler and supporter of future engineers. Additionally, having a core understanding of the work involved with day to day engineers, would allow me to be a better manager.

 
Posted : 02/05/2022 6:17 pm
(@reginabarias)
Posts: 65
Trusted Member
 

Recently just graduating from undergrad and now almost done with grad school, working as scientist has been most fitting since I am still learning different roles, and the "work culture" along with getting to know my position. Currently, learning how the people above me work, create structure, along with me doing my own position, its still new and sometimes i would like to be confident enough to do that i could teach someone incoming into my role in the future. 

I definitely do want to move up in a few years since i would have much more experience and finally reached a point in my current area where i would not be challenged and it would be time to undertake a more management role. Being in a position of management you have to know how to do the tasks youre delegating, so eventually in the future i would be confident enough to do so and take on a management role. 

 
Posted : 03/05/2022 11:58 pm
(@sm2744)
Posts: 77
Trusted Member
 

Similar to my peers, I think that at first I would like to work as an engineer and work my way up to management. I think that starting off as an engineer would provide me with skills that would allow me to be a better manager. I would have a realistic view of when things could get completed, I could build better relationships with my coworkers that would probably only help me as a manager. Recently, I've been hired as an investigative specialist. In this role, I'll be working a lot with pinpointing deviations in manufacturing and writing reports on them. While this position is not my end goal, I'm excited to start it because I know that I can take what I will learn here and apply it to the regulatory or quality department, which is were I want to end up. This position will help me learn to think outside of the box and will increase my technical writing skills that in the future would help me be a regulatory manager -- writing technically, communicating my thoughts clearly, thinking of various applications, etc. My ultimate career goal is to be involved with something that greatly impacts my community or the scientific industry. I believe that I'll be able to accomplish this by being a high-level manager, but truthfully, I think that the most important skills I'll learn would be as an engineer. 

 
Posted : 18/04/2023 5:08 pm
(@mb846)
Posts: 33
Eminent Member
 

If I were given a  choice between a management role vs an engineering/tech/scientist role, I would choose the management role. I believe that my skills are more aligned with management roles because I have good communication and organizational skills. This role also requires strong leadership and interpersonal skills, with the ability to also think critically and strategically. An engineering/tech/scientist role requires more technical skills and involves applying specialized knowledge to solve complex problems. This role requires strong analytical skills and a deep understanding of technical concepts, and being able to develop innovative solutions. I enjoy coordinating and managing projects than actually working on the project myself and I believe that my skills align more with management.

 
Posted : 24/04/2023 9:46 pm
 knm7
(@knm7)
Posts: 78
Trusted Member
 

Personally, I think I would choose to stay as an engineer and just eventually become one of the senior/lead engineers in the lab. I have seen what management goes through and I don't think I would find any fulfillment in being a manager. I like to be more hands on with projects and research and most of the time management has to deal with either upper management, clients or are mostly in meetings. In my opinion, if a project succeeds, there is no sense of fulfillment because you had no real input or any hands-on work that directly impacted the project. At the same time, I understand why engineers eventually go into management so that they can try to help their peers have smoother projects and any issues that arise is easily understood since you were once in their shoes. I feel like it is also easier to communicate with a manager that has experience in the field rather than a manager who has never done the specific job that the employees under them are doing. 

 
Posted : 27/04/2023 2:31 pm
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