Engineering Courses

Types of Engineer

AEROSPACE

What does an aerospace engineer do?

Aerospace engineers focus on the design and mechanics behind vehicles of flight. Their role usually consists of the development, construction and testing of aircrafts and related technology (e.g. missiles and weapons, flight simulators, flight instruments). Your duties would range from developing aviation systems, to collecting and analysing test data, to creating avionic prototypes.

What types of aerospace engineering are there?

Aerospace engineering is divided into two branches: aeronautical engineering andastronautical engineering. Aeronautics is limited to aircraft that operates within our atmosphere, while astronatics relates to spacecraft that operates outside of our atmosphere.

AUTOMOTIVE

What does an automotive engineer do?

Automotive engineers are involved in the manufacturing process of automotive vehicles. There are various stages involved, but the main areas are design, development and production. Automotive engineering often incorporates mechanical and electrical elements, making for a diverse set of qualities in each engineer.

As an automotive engineer you would:

  • Assess/test the safety of vehicles
  • Design/configure vehicle dynamics
  • Measure performance (specifically speed, g-force, brake speed, grip)
  • Create electronic systems, which can control anything from HVAC to lighting.

CHEMICAL

What does a chemical engineer do?

A chemical engineer applies the properties of science to the design and production of chemicals for commercial use. A chemical engineer often works acrosspharmaceuticals, energy, food and drink, and plastics and toiletries.

Chemical Engineers are involved in:

  • Developing durable plastics and dyes
  • Creating anything from pharmaceuticals to fuel cells to lubricants
  • Testing and analyzing materials for commercial use
  • Dealing with pollutants and toxins and limiting their involvement in production

CIVIL

What do civil engineers do?

Civil engineering is a discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of building works, such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings.

Civil engineers are involved in the design and building of:

  • Highways, bridges and tunnels
  • Schools, hospitals, airports and other buildings
  • Sewage systems and water treatment facilities

What types of civil engineering are there?

Civil engineering is divided into multiple disciplines, including (but not limited to)architectural, structural, earthquake, transportation, and municipal or urban engineering.

COMPUTER

What do computer engineers do?

As a computer engineer you would deal with the company or product’s computer needs. Computer engineers could be anything from a software developer to IT support, and often:

  • Develop and support network infrastructure
  • Design cables which link computers together
  • Develop devices for the computer, such as printers, modems, scanners and digital cameras
  • Design and develop computer components (such as hard drives, motherboards, etc.)

What types of computer engineering are there?

Computer engineering encompasses many different fields, including electronics, digital computers, power engineering, telecommunications, control systems, radio-frequency engineering, signal processing, instrumentation, and microelectronics.

ELECTRICAL

What do electrical engineers do?

Electrical engineers work with the installation, operation and maintenance of electrical equipment, machines and systems, and take part in the various stages involved throughout, such as design, production, and testing.

Electrical engineers usually:

  • Plan and design electrical components
  • Develop electrical infrastructure for towns and cities
  • Create and design new technologies

What types of electrical engineering are there?

Electrical engineering consists of electronics, digital computers, power engineering,telecommunications, control systems, radio-frequency engineering, signal processing,instrumentation, and microelectronics.

ENVIRONMENTAL

What do environmental engineers do?

Being an environmental engineer means that you get to work closely with the environment. They work towards improving the conditions of our natural environment, with a mind to waste management, radiation protection, environmental sustainability,recycling, and pollution.

Environmental engineers can:

  • Assess and mitigate negative environmental impacts
  • Treat wastewater
  • Manage air pollution
  • Design methods to clean up hazardous materials

INDUSTRIAL

What do industrial engineers do?

Industrial engineers plan, organize, supervise and manage the operations of industries to ensure economical, safe and effective use of materials, energy and people.

An Industrial engineer may:

  • Figure out how to produce a GameBoy Advanced more quickly
  • Examine fish processing plants for safety
  • Oversee an assembly line at Subaru
  • Plan and design systems that increase productivity by improving integration of people, materials, equipment and finance