<p>Hello guys, I am new on this site. Anyways, I am at a point where I can still decide what kind of engineering discipline I would like to pursue. Currently, I am attending Northern Virginia Community College and will be transferring to George Mason 2012 Spring. </p>
<p>The dilemma I am facing is picking the right engineering discipline. Based on my mathematical ability , EE is out of question. I do realize that any type of engineering discipline will require math. I have already taken some math and did okay. In CE, I seem to enjoy hardware side of it but not so much of programming. From what I have seen, CE seems to be the norm. </p>
<p>I haven't seen many people do Systems Engineering (maybe I am wrong).I just looked into Systems Engineering program at Mason. It seems well regarded compared to the other engineering programs at the school. Of course, vtech is better but I cannot afford anything else. So I wanted to get more information about Systems Engineering, especially at George Mason. On a general note, what kind of jobs are available? Is it a steady career ? What exactly do they do? How is the pay? Would like to hear about it , preferably from people in the field. Thanks.</p>
<p>I cannot tell you about systems engineering at George Mason but I CAN tell you about the field. Systems engineering is a structured development process that proceeds from concept to production to operation. The end product is a “system”…mechanical, electrical or software. As a matter of fact, software engineering is basically the systems engineering methodology applied to developing software. You may hear slight differences in the number of stages, but the stages usually follow in this manner:</p>
<p>When it comes to the defense companies, they are big on systems engineering. They need individuals who can meet with customers to produce clear requirements (Analysis), then convert those requirements to a conceptual model (Design), then interact with developers (mechanical, electrical or software) to help produce the system (Development). After that, the system must be tested and verified so the systems engineer interacts with the testing group…then oversee the deployment and how to maintain the system once it is in production (goes live).</p>
<p>Since systems engineering (and software engineering) are huge with defense companies and many non-defense companies too, it is a very stable career. Systems engineers make very good money because they are the ones who are visualizing this “idea” from start to finish. Very easy for systems engineers to go into either project/program management and management in general because of knowing how to interact and communicate with various teams and knowing the “process” to produce a product.</p>
<p>One word of caution and I mentioned this in another thread, systems engineering is one of those majors that is best taken as a graduate degree than undergraduate. The reason being is that systems engineers are often experienced engineers from a certain discipline. For example, it is better to have a systems engineer working on an aerospace/aircraft system (or subsystem) to have been an aerospace engineer beforehand. Same for software system engineers.</p>
<p>So, it’s management / technical. You have a good point about studying it on a graduate level. Considering the points mentioned above, if pursued as an undergrad major will it adversely affect my career ? Will I be considered like more of a general engineer with no specific set of skills?</p>
<p>I mean…it would be better if you had some expertise in the area that you are going to be “systems engineering”. For instance, you would be able to identify requirements that were “too far fetched” because of your prior experience being a grunt engineer. I cannot say it will adversely affect your career because schools would not offer bachelor-level SysE degree if there weren’t positions open for it in the job world. I am throwing in my own experience is which people are hired for most SysE jobs and they are usually experienced engineers.</p>