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and processes.

There are also countless engineering jobs requiring almost no design work. Technical salespersons are often engineers. Engineers who work as contract managers spend most of their time managing personnel, negotiating business deals, and planning engineering projects. These jobs work on the periphery of engineering, so a solid technical acumen is required to understand the processes and products, but it does not directly require engineering knowledge to perform the day to day management, business and sales tasks. To enhance their career, this type of engineer may pursue an advanced degree in business or engineering management.

Other types of professions related to engineering

Many engineering disciplines do not require a deep understanding of mathematics and technical subjects. If you are not the best at calculus or if you want something more creative than the offerings of the traditional engineering disciplines, these fields may be something to consider. Beware, though, many cousin professions of engineering do not have the prestige or the pay of a traditional engineer.

These fields and degrees might have titles like "engineering technology" or "architectural draftsman." A person with a engineering technology degree might work as a power plant operator, in a computer chip manufacturing plant, or as an architect's assistant.

Things to consider

Evaluate your aptitudes, likes and dislikes. This can be a great starting point for you when deciding what path to take.

For example, if you love doing linear algebra, writing PHP code and find yourself staying up late at night troubleshooting bugs with the program you are writing in machine code, it is likely you are a good fit for computer science. On the other hand, if you understand PHP, get more of a kick out of designing visually dazzling websites and could care less about memory architecture, you may be more driven by the visually creative field of web design; a profession that is not exactly engineering, but technical in nature.

These examples are true for traditional engineering as well. If you are more communicative and expressive, but have no trouble with complex calculus and algebra, a career in engineering sales or civil engineering is something to consider. These fields, while technical, require extensive interactions and negotiations with clients and business partners.

If you understand calculus and advanced algebraic concepts, but hate public speaking, a more cerebral' design and research intense

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