What Engineering will I least likely be chained to a desk?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the question of which engineering fields offer opportunities for work outside of a traditional desk job. Participants explore various engineering disciplines and their associated work environments, considering factors like fieldwork and hands-on applications.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Conceptual clarification, Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant suggests Civil Engineering as a field that allows for outdoor work, mentioning experiences with field engineers involved in construction projects.
  • Another participant proposes Engineering Technology degrees as a pathway to practical application of engineering knowledge, implying less theoretical work.
  • A different perspective indicates that many engineering fields, including Petroleum Engineering and Mechanical Engineering, can offer fieldwork opportunities, depending on specific job roles.
  • One participant humorously mentions "combat engineering" as a potential field, implying a non-traditional engineering role that likely involves significant fieldwork.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree that several engineering fields can provide opportunities for work outside of a desk environment, but there is no consensus on a single best option, as preferences and job roles vary widely.

Contextual Notes

Participants express varying levels of certainty about the nature of fieldwork in different engineering disciplines, and there is a lack of detailed exploration into specific job roles or requirements for each suggested field.

Who May Find This Useful

High school students considering engineering careers, individuals interested in hands-on work in engineering, and those exploring different engineering disciplines.

Jemal
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I want to go into an engineering field... I love math and science and would love to challenge myself in college with an engineering degree.

But when I graduate, I don't want a job that will require me to be chained to a desk 8 hours a day. Any suggestions in which field I should go into? I'm still in high school btw... I'm just trying to figure out what I am going to do early.
 
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You might consider Civil Engineering. When I was a soils scientist, I worked with a lot of CEs on construction jobs and they spent time outdoors monitoring the building of earthen structures, roads, the placement of concrete for abutments, etc. They still had paperwork to do and forms to file, but they got to spend time in the field. There are CEs who work more on design and spend lots more time at their workstations, but the field engineers had pretty attractive jobs. One drawback is that you may have to be pretty mobile because construction jobs tend not to be really long-term projects. Good luck.
 
A guaranteed job "applying" knowledge of engineering would come from having ANY sort of Engineering Technology degree. Those with an ET degree "specialize" in the application of engineering, as silly as that sounds. Less theory is involved.
 
Jemal said:
I want to go into an engineering field... I love math and science and would love to challenge myself in college with an engineering degree.

But when I graduate, I don't want a job that will require me to be chained to a desk 8 hours a day. Any suggestions in which field I should go into? I'm still in high school btw... I'm just trying to figure out what I am going to do early.

Any specific science you like? Or do you like tinkering with cars/stuff? To be honest, I'm pretty sure you can find a career in most engineering fields that will allow you to work in the field. Off the top of head though, I would think that Petroleum Engineers and Civil Engineers (like turbo-1 said) work in the field routinely. But I know Mechanical Engineers who work on oil rigs and ChemEs who work in refineries and oil fields. So, there's no specific degree for field work.

It really depends on what you want to do.
 
I keep looking at the thread title and wanting to answer "combat engineering".
 

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