What is the job outlook for engineering majors in the future?

[undrcvrbro]

I decided to major in Chemical Engineering because I love science and math, but most engineers and engineering majors would be lying if they said salary was not a motivation for entering their field.
That being said, what does the future career outlook look like for engineering in general. I've always heard good things about the job security and good pay, but I've seen some pessismistic posts on this forum. I remember reading a post a while back about guys who couldn't find any work in engineering, and had to teach basic calculus at a community college for cash. Is this really common? I live around the Akron Cleveland area, so it's not exactly a bustling economic area, but what is the job outlook for the rest of the country?

My college claims that 97 percent of their Chemical Engineering major seniors get jobs before graduation(and my school aint nothin special either). I'm sure this statistic is skewed slightly, but is this ever even remotely the truth?

I just don't want to spend four years working my *** off so I can be unemployed, or do work that is below my degree or abilities.

 

[will.c]

Yuck, Akron.

Sorry, I'll try to be on topic. From what I see on here (granted, I'm not an engineer) it seems like the stability of an engineering career is directly proportional to how flexible you are; i.e., if you're willing to relocate for a job, you shouldn't have much trouble finding one - if you are willing to learn some skills outside your field, you're more likely to be hired than "B.S.Chem.E. #4107."

I doubt in our lifetimes we'll see a time when there are literally no open engineering positions for graduating Americans. Although, sometimes you do have to suck it up and work for a little while "below your degree or abilities." I just graduated, and know plenty of unemployed former engineering students who think that they should get to start in their dream job just because they worked their asses off for four years... Well, it takes more than four years.

 

[ks_physicist]

I wouldn't count on getting academic work at a community college unless you have a master's degree, and even then they typically require a master's in or closely related to the subject matter you are teaching.

Larger community colleges in large metropolitan areas will prefer, and usually get, Ph.D.'s.