Are you an engineer?

[HiHoAudio]

Lately I have noticed that quite a few coin collectors at the coin forums I frequent (NGC, Coin People and Coin Talk) make their living as engineers.

 

Maybe it's because we have a little extra money to indulge in this hobby. Not as much as a doctor, lawyer or investment banker, but a little more than most people. Maybe it's because we appreciate the process of minting a coin. Who knows?

 

Simple poll, either you are an engineer or you are not. Retired engineers count.

 

Please vote! And for the record I am an engineer, 35 years in recording studios and 3 in television.

[Schatzy]

Graduated Last December!!

[Bugmann1974]

Nope, I am not an engineer. Just your typical blue collar worker here. At least not by technical definition, though I do have to do minor engineering on the fly. (Machinist)

[PerryHall]

Retired geotechnical engineer. Still maintain my professional license.

[James_OldeTowne]

Two degrees in Engineering, thank you very much. Why do you think I'm so poor ?

[BillJones]

I started out as an engineering major a college, mainly because my father thought it was what I should do, and hated it. Poor grades in calculus put an end to “my father’s dream.” So far as I’m concerned “the NEW MATH" sucks. When I took calculus again in graduate school using the traditional approach, I had no problem with it.

 

I ended up majoring in accounting with a high powered interest in economics and history. Later I earned an MBA.

 

[cpm9ball]

Nope! No degree. Uncle Sam got me (1969) before I could finish, and then kids came along. When it finally got to the point where I would be able to return, I didn't care.

 

Chris

[Coindude]

No degree, not yet... been working on that for over 20 yrs... I guess I'm just lazy. But.... I make more than most all engineers where I work.... go figure.

[L1ncolnF4n]

I'm still in school. Math major. No clue what I want to do with it.

[cpm9ball]

I'm still in school. Math major. No clue what I want to do with it.

 

Make money! Figuratively, of course, unless you want to go to China and teach them how to counterfeit Somali $ coins.

 

Chris

[SWNGC]

Multiple degrees -> 2 graduate Engineering, 1 in actuarial math, 1 MBA.... (Real objective was to study the people around me while they were studying the course material - Basic premise follows: Goal is to increase wealth - People have and/or control wealth - people can be convinced/motivated to trade their wealth or the wealth they control to you in commerce - therefore the best/most direct route to consistently achieve the goal is to fully understand the people/their desires/motivations/ambitions/weaknesses who are most likely to control the greatest wealth (i.e. All those grad school students)... And become the trusted source for an item/service that they desire... Thought/planned out like an engineer (original undergrad degree) of course...

 

I do however routinely utilize other knowledge gained when making investment decisions... Paper in the pocket is always better than paper on the wall, but both can greatly improve your perspective...

[Old Pueblo]

I Am a heathcare worker shaking in my boots about the Healthcare reform bill

[DWLange]

Electrical engineering, Pacific Gas & Electric Company, 1980-94. I believe I was the last person on the planet who learned to draw gears using drafting tools and create perspective renderings with a compass. By the time I left, almost everything was being done with CADD (computer-aided design and drafting).

[okbustchaser]

I started school as a chemical engineering major. Took the advanced standing tests in chem and first 2 calc classes while in high school. Made a A in final calc course. Started engine math and was so lost after only a couple of weeks that I couldn't even ask a coherent question, So much for my engineering degree...frustrated me so much that I ended up finishing my degree in Political Science---better known as "Would you like fries with that?"

 

Now I am a systems engineer. At least Microsoft says so even if no "real" engineer would.

[WoodenJefferson]

The closest I got to engineering was working with a team of Areo-Space engineers from Huntsville, Ala when we went through and re-wrote the DMWR (Depot Maintenance Work Requirements) for the repair/overhaul & test requirements of the UH-60 helicopter transmission.

 

They requested a mechanic with hands-on experience who could comprehend and analyze functions as relayed through words . Apparently I fit the bill because there was more than one occasion when all eyes and ears were focused on my every word.

 

It’s amazing to watch a bunch of engineers discuss functionality with something no one has ever experienced…for the most part, they are always correct.

[TJ'S Coins]

My daughter is studying to be a ceramic engineer at Missouri S&T but I am not an engineer, nor married to one.

[James_OldeTowne]

My daughter is studying to be a ceramic engineer at Missouri S&T but I am not an engineer, nor married to one.

Tim, I don't think you ever told me that - I went there for two years ! Very tough school, and she will have no problems at all finding good employment with that degree. I seem to remember they are consistently ranked with the top ten or so engineering schools in the country.

[PerryHall]

Electrical engineering, Pacific Gas & Electric Company, 1980-94. I believe I was the last person on the planet who learned to draw gears using drafting tools and create perspective renderings with a compass. By the time I left, almost everything was being done with CADD (computer-aided design and drafting).

 

I used to use a slide rule to make design calculations.

[PerryHall]

My daughter was an aerospace engineer and did design work for NASA. After she married a Marine aviator (C-130 Hercules pilot) she had to leave her job because he was transfered and she's been moving ever since.

[physics-fan3.14]

Graduated in 2007 with a BS in Engineering Physics - basically applied physics degree with a focus on near earth space applications.

 

Worked for 2 years as a field engineer on offshore oil rigs in the Gulf.

 

Now working for the Navy as a nuclear physicist/engineer (my job title is Crew Training Engineer, but that just doesn't have the same *pop* as nucular physicist.)

 

I generally consider myself an applied physicist, which is a brand of engineering.

[Revenant]

I get my B.S. in 8 days. It should be a fiat acompli at this point as the last thing I have to do is a Political Science final (my god, liberal arts freshmen are dumb). I've already secured a 71.5 minimum in that class without the final so there's nothing to fear there.

 

Chemical enginering is my field. I prefer process engineering to materials science within the discipline. I'm hoping to continue my studies with a Ph.D. emphasizing process safety, probabilistic hazards analysis, and process integration/optimization. I've been fortunate enough to participate in undergraduate research for the last year with the Mary Kay O'Connor Process Safety Center, a sub unit of of the Texas Engineering Experiment Station. Making things safer can be surprisingly satisfying work.

[cladking]

I took drafting in college.

I've dumped garbage cans as a sanitation engineer.

I think most physicists are out of touch with real life.

I know how to use a slide rule, CAD program, and The Handbook of Chemistry and Physics.

I've operated various locomotives.

 

Can I be an honorary engineer?

[nwcs]

I'm a software developer, which is certainly akin to an engineer...

[cpm9ball]

I took drafting in college.

I've dumped garbage cans as a sanitation engineer.

I think most physicists are out of touch with real life.

I know how to use a slide rule, CAD program, and The Handbook of Chemistry and Physics.

I've operated various locomotives.

 

Can I be an honorary engineer?

 

Yes, you can borrow my Choo Choo any time you want.

 

Chris

[cladking]

 

Yes, you can borrow my Choo Choo any time you want.

 

Cool.

 

Even if it's a toy train it shouldn't be a problem unless it's computer controlled.

[cpm9ball]

 

Yes, you can borrow my Choo Choo any time you want.

 

Cool.

 

Even if it's a toy train it shouldn't be a problem unless it's computer controlled.

 

I mean the one on my sig line.

 

Chris

[lehigh96]

I have a BS in Metallurgy (Materials Science & Engineering). If you can't figure out what school I attended and what year I graduated you are not an engineer. I only used my degree for about a 1 year. It was obvious to me that labor unions were going to put the plant that I worked at out of business. As I predicted, the plant closed within 3 years.

 

Over 10 years later I make my living as a hotelier. Ironically, labor unions seem to be threatening the viability of my current industry as well.

[Tradedollarnut]

Nuclear. But I hated it and turned to business.

[Coindude]

Dude, from all the Nuclear Engineers I know... and seeing the coins you collect..... I'll have to say you made a very smart decision! Not that that do bad.... but... well, do I have to restate the obvious!

[cladking]

 

I mean the one on my sig line.

 

 

D'oh.

 

That's even cooler. I once operated a steam pump but never anything like a steam locomotive.

 

It should be a real hoot.