Engineering Field of Study

Identifying the right engineering field to study

Engineering is a broad discipline that can be characterised into four main branches:

Mechanical engineering,

Civil engineering,

Electrical and electronic engineering and

Chemical engineering.             

Heriot-Watt University (Putrajaya) is recognised internationally as a centre for high- calibre research in engineering, science and business. Its very name 'Heriot-Watt' commemorates two successful leading edge professionals of their time, George Heriot, the 16th century educational philanthropist and financier to King James, and James Watt, the great 18th century engineer and inventor of the steam engine. Their skills and attitudes are embedded in the ethos of the university today.

In the most recent UK Research Assessment Exercise, the research programmes at Heriot-Watt's Institute of Petroleum Engineering in the UK were recognised as of international standard, with 65% assessed as 'world leading' or 'internationally excellent', reinforcing 20 years of top international performance. Today, Heriot-Watt University offers the same excellence and stature in engineering studies to undergraduate and post-graduate students in the Asia Pacific region at its new campus in Putrajaya, Malaysia.

Choosing a career path especially in engineering can be a challenge for those interested in the field. The best guide is to follow your passion and strength in particular academic subjects, to do extensive research about the engineering field you are interested in and to get an understanding of what your life would be like once you land your first job.

An engineer is basically a designer of things and processes that provide solutions for societal needs.

The engineering profession has a very rich and important history dating back to ancient times when humans invented essential inventions such as the wheel, pulley and lever.

Engineering is responsible for practically everything that happens around us. A passing car, the coffee machine brewing, an overhead pedestrian bridge, a plane landing on a runway, and the list is endless. • An even longer list of everyday-use products also exist because of engineering for example, toothpaste, cooking oil, pesticide, petrol and detergent. In short, engineers solve problems and find new solutions that enrich people's lives every single day.

Engineering is a broad discipline that can be characterised into four main branches, chemical engineering, civil engineering, electrical and electronic engineering and mechanical engineering. These sub-disciplines can be broken down further into other engineering fields such as petroleum engineering, architectural engineering, aviation engineering and more.

If you're looking for an engineering field that best suits you, look at where you want your career to go and what particular passion or interest you have, on top of your academic strengths.

Mechanical Engineering you want a more versatile career, and you can build your very own motorised matchbox car from scratch.

Mechnical engineers have a wide choice of industries to work in such as energy, aerospace, transportation, chemical, manufacturing, and even entertainment. In an export-led economy in Asia, top choice mechanicalengineers are perpetually on demand. Mechanical engineering is one of the broadest and oldest engineering disciplines that can be applied to various jobs involving any product or machinery that moves and is motorised.

Mechanical engineering involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the design, production, and operation of machines and tools. It requires an understanding of core concepts including mechanics, kinematics, thermodynamics, materials science, structural analysis, and electricity. Mechanical engineers today are pursuing developments in composites, mechatronics, and nanotechnology fields. They can also work in the field of biomedical engineering, specifically with biomechanics, biomechatronics and bionanotechnology.

The best mechanical engineers truly enjoy complex problem solving. They are innovators at heart. If you choose engineering as a career, you will turn ideas into reality and solve problem that better society. You will be right on the cutting edge of technology.

Since most mechanical engineers work together, you should be a team player and have excellent communication skills, both written and oral. This will be important when you are planning and creating new projects.

You should be curious, creative, innovative and practical about how things work and the world around you. You should have the desire to help people and improve the world around you. At the very least, you should enjoy learning how to make things work more efficiently. Mechanical engineers are typically very good at math and science. You should especially enjoy working complex math problems.

If you enjoy trying to solve problems, working with your hands as well as spending the day dreaming up solutions, then a career in mechanical engineering may be for you.

"To the optimist, the glass is half full. To the pessimist, the glass is half empty. To the engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be."

Petroleum Engineering: you want to get your hands dirty working in the field while making a lot of money, and you are top of the class for mathematics and chemistry.

Petroleum engineering relates to the production of hydrocarbons, which are crude oil or natural gas. Petroleum engineers must have a thorough understanding of chemistry as well as physics on top of sound knowledge of geology and mechanical engineering. It is a more specialised field that focuses on the exploration and extraction of natural resources for the petroleum industry. Having said that, even though natural petroleum resources have rapidly depleted, there is still demand for petroleum engineers in the industry to find new resources and processes for alternative petroleum products.

Those who choose to pursue petroleum engineering have an added but not mandatory requirement of being more adventurous. There's no such thing as a typical work place for a petroleum engineer, it can be anywhere on the world map. It can also be on various types of terrain from mountains to deserts and the ocean floor. Petroleum engineers do not necessarily need to work offshore throughout their career, but working in the field in the early stages of their career path is highly recommended.

Chemical Engineering: you want to have a job that is always in demand and have the luxury to work in any industry, and you just can't get enough of chemistry and physics.

Chemical engineering applies the natural or experimental sciences and life sciences together with mathematics and economics, for production, transformation, transportation and proper usage of chemicals, materials and energy. Chemical engineers also work closely in the power generation and transmission process of the petroleum industry. They have better skills to calculate the perfect chemical balance needed which is why they can adopt the position of petroleum engineers.

They design new processes to make products more profitable, cost efficient and safer for consumption as well as for the environment. The environment and safety issues play a big part in today's engineering. Because a chemical engineer's career is more versatile and flexible, meaning they can choose amongst any kind of industry in the world, they also end up to be environmental engineers. Environmental engineers are responsible on improving our air quality or creating a more efficient way of waste management and coming up with new water treatment solutions.

Chemical engineers can find work in any industry that involves scientific, industrial and manufacturing processes. It is not confined to manufacturing or processing that only involves chemicals. Chemical engineers can be employed by palm oil refinery, toy manufacturing, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, semi-conductor manufacturing companies and more. It requires a strong knowledge in chemistry, physics and mathematics for complex problem solving and to streamline manufacturing processes.

Civil Engineering: you have a passion for design and construction, and you want the world to be your drawing board.

Civil engineering involves designing, constructing, supervising, operating, and maintaining construction projects that include roads, buildings, airports, tunnels, bridges as well as systems that provide water and wastage management services. In a nutshell, civil engineers develop and improve public services and facilities. If there weren't any civil engineers in our world, we wouldn't have a supply of fresh clean water every day.

Civil engineers analyse material behaviour and focus their work on designing and management of construction projects. They generally work in the office but sometimes visit construction sites in order to monitor operations and solve problems onsite. It can take place in both the public sector such as municipal councils through to government agencies, or in the private sector from private homeowners to international companies and developers.

Electrical & Electronic Engineering: you can build speakers using a box and some wires, and you can't wait to work for GPS navigation systems and satellite communication companies.

Electrical and electronic engineers design and develop electrical and electronic equipment such as motors, home appliances, and broadcast and communications systems. They also design, develop, test, and supervise the manufacturing of any electrical and electronic systems that relate to aircrafts, automobiles, power generation, IT and telecommunications.

Electrical and electronic engineers work in the vast range of engineering sectors, which include electronics, IT, aerospace, automotive, energy and manufacturing. Other work opportunities can also be found in telecommunications, research and development, and petrochemicals. Electrical and electronic engineers generally work indoors in an office but they do visit sites to observe a problem or a piece of complex equipment.
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