Systems engineer deemed best job in America
If you're a systems engineer who wonders whether you've chosen the right profession, I bring you good news.
Please take a deep breath, stand up, and be prepared to leap so high, you will touch the sky. Then you will, perhaps, want to touch the Skyy. For a survey has declared that systems engineer is the best job in America.
Focus.com, perhaps spurred on by the grumbling that can be heard from so many places of work in the world, performed this most important of tasks.
The site first looked at more than 7,000 jobs. It then poured its eyes over numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. It selected jobs that would grow by 10 percent or more in the next decade, according to these statistics. Oh, and it had to be a job that required at least a bachelor's degree.
It then excluded any job in which the median pay was less than $65,000 for those it deemed "experienced workers." It also excluded any job that had less than 10,000 openings.
But these dedicated happiness seekers didn't stop there. For the top 100, they erased jobs that didn't seem to fare so well during recessionary times.
For the top 50, they surveyed 35,000 workers and asked them to rate their current employment on a variety of factors that might be described as "quality of life." The top 50 were then placed in order, according to long-term growth, pay, security, projected openings, and other human factors (I'm guessing things like quality of coffee machines and loathing for the bosses.)
To pick the top 10, Focus.com was a lot more thorough that the judges on Miss World. It spoke to industry experts and people who actually held down these lucky, lucky job titles.
If you're wondering what jobs were beaten out by the joys of system engineering, well, second came physician assistant. Have you seen how much money these people make? Quite astounding. In third place was college professor. Yes, really. Followed by nurse practitioner, IT project manager, and--breathe now, breathe--CPA.
Please, all you fortunate people who engineer systems on a daily basis--you who make things happen when all those around you have no idea what things to make happen, nor how to make them happen. You have the most happening jobs in America. Please tell us how you got so lucky. Please tell us how it feels. The rest of us would really like to know.
Chris Matyszczyk is an award-winning creative director who advises major corporations on content creation and marketing. He brings an irreverent, sarcastic, and sometimes ironic voice to the tech world. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CNET. 
Doing the Toyota Jump!
Woo hoo!!! That's right baby!!!! It is us who keeps all the servers and systems maintained!!! We're the ones who are 24/7 standby after business hours/days.
FORTUNATELY, I LOVE MY JOB. Being a geek hardcore, it makes the job very enjoyable.
My advice to all those who are job hunting, don't go for IT jobs because of the pay, don't get into a job you will hate later. Go into a job that you love what you do in life, spare time, and hobby. It makes your career a lot easier.
"Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering that focuses on how complex engineering projects should be designed and managed. Issues such as logistics, the coordination of different teams, and automatic control of machinery become more difficult when dealing with large, complex projects."
It starts with a four year engineering degree, which covers portions of Electrical and Mechnical Engineering, and provides a strong focus on integration of components and project management.
Quick test: if you didn't take thermodynamics, strength of materials, heat transfer courses as part of your education, then you are not a "Systems Engineer", regardless of what your boss likes to call you.
But, it's clear that you have to be very careful when surveying anything involving job titles, to make sure that what the person does is accurately reflected in what they say their role is.
I hate you burst YOUR bubble, but in the context of this Focus.com survey, Systems Engineering precisely means IT systems engineering.
Just click on the link provided in the article, duplicated here: http://www.focus.com/images/view/7362/
It clearly denotes: Systems Engineer Information Technology (88,000) $87,100 | $130,000
Guess I should be jumping for joy, etc...
One thing I wonder if Forbes caught though - most of the systems engineering/admin positions out there are usually either contract or contract-to-hire (mostly to weed out the idiots, etc). Not exactly as easy to slide into as most professions.
A true Systems Engineer doesn't often "administer" servers, etc., in production. Rather he/she primarily _designs_ how different components are put together as a coherent solution to meet business needs.
Basically, Systems Engineering is PROJECT focused, while System Administration is OPERATIONS focused.
Closely related to Systems Engineering is Systems Architecture (which in IT often has its own convoluted divisions, such as Solution, Software, Technical, Infrastructure, Network, Telecom, Security, etc.). Traditionally, a Systems Architect is a Systems Engineer responsible for high-level designs.
The reason systems engineering is such a hot job right now is because it is a relatively new field. Any project that is remotely complicated will have many different types of engineers working on it (electrical, mechanical, computer, etc) and there exists a need for someone to coordinate and put all of these together, which a systems engineer does. It today's context, this makes sense. Think about what gets put into a modern car compared to what was put into a car in 1950. Cars these days aren't purely mechanical and have computer systems as well, necessitating the need for mechanical engineers, electrical/computer engineers, and, of course, systems engineers to put it all together.
Hope this is helpful.
Systems Engineering is NOT at all new. It has existed since the 1940s (70 years ago!) and has been a key engineering discipline since the Apollo program back in the 1960s.
However due to its history, Systems Engineering had been primarily focused on the aerospace / aeronautics / military / defense industries. Not to say the same concepts weren't used elsewhere, but they just weren't called Systems Engineering.
This all has changed over the past few decades. Related fields such -- Software Engineering in particular -- have had a great impacts on Systems Engineering. For example, popular notations used in Systems Engineering are based on UML, which grew out of Software Engineering.. And much of the process methodology used in modern Systems Engineering also came out of Software Engineering (i.e., from Software Development Life Cycle, etc.)
As a result Systems Engineering today are no longer limited to traditional "engineering" roles, and Systems Engineering practitioners might have an MBA instead of an MSc.
And Information Technology has become a primary driver for the discipline due to the high need for automation and information management within ANY industry. Even in the CNN article you mentioned, the job used as an example (Chief Systems Engineer for the NYC Transit) is an IT-centric job.
Who gives a f*** about "systems engineer" IT / engineering, for that matter who give a f*** about the survey. If you like your job, great... jump for toyota joy. If you don't like your job... that sucks. I'm sure there are quite a few sysadmins, system engineers, computer systems architects, developers, other types of engineers, and on and on...
I know systems engineers who are extremely technical and keep large IT operations running.
I also know systems engineers who are barely technical, and mostly do paperwork.
Did this survey include any kind of job descriptions?
Another example of the grass is always greener...
I work as a test engineer, and I am the one who has the job of holding the system engineer to account. I am the one who ensures they did their job properly. Also, I am good at breaking things, and sometimes that is just way too easy.
I have a BS in electrical engineering, a MS in software engineering, including classes in thermodynamics, heat transfer, material science, physics, mechanics, optics, and 40 years experience. I have broken everything thrown at me. I like my job, sleep well, and know my wife and kids. I weathered the GO TO and eunucs (that is UNIX properly named) software wars, 25 programming languages and variants, main fraims, minis, micros, desktop, laptop, embedded architectures, punch cards, punch tape, mag tape, no tape, vacuum tubes, germanium, silicon, core, ROM, RAM, bubble, SRAM, DRAM, SSI, LSI, FPGA, ASIC, DC, AC, LF, HF, UHF, microwave, low voltage, high voltage, low current, high current, underground, ground, air, water, underwater, space, etc. After awhile the individual technologies do not matter, it is all just stuff.
My job is also rather simple: What does your "system" claim to do? Prove it to me and let me find the condition, event, path, decision, etc. that you missed. Because Toyota was short of test engineers, they will bee needing lawyers instead.
I like my job.
You sound like a great guy. Funny, intelligent, and wise.
Just wanted to let you know that.
Bye,
Happy wife of a software engineer who is also a genius
And for those of us who report to a marketing director who is clueless to the technology needs of the organization and refuses to add headcount, the grass is pretty brown, muddy, and dying.
#1? Uh, no. Nice, try though. Wait, maybe a "systems engineer" hacked their system and put themselves at the top of the list.
On second thought, this smells like propaganda to make the job sound "cool" by being top-ranked so kids will go get CS degrees...
As for IT being a part of Systems engineering......that is a no brainer......its in everyone's job description these days.
Back in real life, the is no such mandatory relationship between a degree and a job title. I'd hazard to say that majority of Systems Engineers out there do not have a degree in Systems Engineering, but come from a related discipline.
I've known many excellent SEs from non-engineering backgrounds. Some of the best SEs I've worked with came from sciences rather than engineering (Physics and Astronomy geeks are somehow over-represented), but I've even worked with a great SE who's degree was surprisingly in Philosophy.
But I go with some have said, find what you like and do that, if it makes great money, than even better, but doing something just to make a paycheck is not a good way to excel in what ever a person decides to get a career in.
Last thing you want is to do something you hate getting up in the morning for.
http://www.focus.com/images/view/7362/
Where it lists "Systems Engineer" as the "Information Systems" embodiment of the job title.
"What they do: They're the "big think" managers on large, complex projects, from major transportation networks to military defense programs. They figure out the technical specifications required and coordinate the efforts of lower-level engineers working on specific aspects of the project."
So SAs, go put your ego away and realize your job sucks and you're not all that special after all.
SEs aren't usually on the call. SAs are the ones on call.
SEs are the ones working around the clock to meet ridiculous project deadlines with equally ridiculous budgets to meet unreasonable business expectations. So they don't have to be "on call" because the rarely go home to begin with. ;-)
The number of advertised jobs are way way way down. Don't know, I find it hard to believe in this survey. Now I also work for a top 50 company, and I have to say its amazing the lengths they go to, to make sure they rank up there in the survey. And I mean the survey, not actually the work place. To say they fudge there numbers is well very accurate. Focus groups with prizes for good reviews, managers walking around making sure surveys are completed (the way they would like)...etc..etc....
and science of balancing organizational and technical in-
teractions in complex systems. However, since the entire
team is involved in the systems engineering approach,
in some ways everyone is a systems engineer. Systems
engineering is about tradeoffs and compromises, about
generalists rather than specialists. Systems engineering is
about looking at the ?big picture? and not only ensuring
that they get the design right (meet requirements) but
that they get the right design."
"Systems engineering is a methodical, disciplined ap-
proach for the design, realization, technical manage-
ment, operations, and retirement of a system. A ?system?
is a construct or collection of different elements that to-
gether produce results not obtainable by the elements
alone. The elements, or parts, can include people, hard-
ware, software, facilities, policies, and documents; that is,
all things required to produce system-level results. "
Reference NASA Systems Engineering Handbook
NASA/SP-2007-6105
So now I guess we all need to understand what the definition of "Engineering" really means.
Don't forget the Janitor is now known as a "Sanitation Engineer" right?
And we've got web developers (script jockeys) who call themselves "Software Developers" or "Software Engineers". The names are all so loosely used nowadays it's very difficult to tell without a job description and responsibilities who's "engineering" vs. those in more of a support role.
When I hear the term "Engineer" or "Engineering", these words come to mind: Innovation, analysis, design and creation.
Description
We often take for granted the sanitary facilities and conditions that exist in the developed world, such as water and sewage treatment plants, which provide people with clean drinking water and help prevent serious illness and disease. We have sanitation engineers to thank for this. Sanitation engineers are involved in the branch of engineering concerned with the design, construction, and maintenance of environmental facilities conducive to public health, such as water supply and waste disposal. They design, assess and implement sanitation facilities in order to keep people healthy and clean.
---
When I worked as a design drafter in the pre-cast concrete and water treatment industry, these guy were Civil Engineers. I guess over the years they've branched out a but.
So I suppose the Janitor = Sanitation Engineer is another loosely and often misused job title.
I gotta say this is by far the most satisfying job i've had since graduation back in 1980. I can deal with stuff from the office or my family room couch. On a nice day or when the natives get restless in the office, it's time to go out in the "field". Always someplace to go or something to do. Gotta love it.
But, the one part of my job that I look forward to handing off is the IT part. So many local users (lusers) to deal with.
yep, the future is here. - the huns will be at the portal doors soon.
What makes us so happy? It is partly the age we live in where there are so many systems to be engineered and we have thew tools to do it. Imagine a hundred years ago the coolest thing was to be a railroad engineer. Though I bet the guys who engineered the British Navy enjoyed their work immensely.
Today it just takes deep understanding and fluid thinking. Hardly any capital and certainly no institutional help. Institutions and bureaucracies kill SE type thinking.
Being raised and studying systematic theology your whole life makes it that much easier as well.
- by Intrawebs March 14, 2010 11:02 PM PDT
- Wow, how about answer the questions for once vs. a debate "Please tell us how you got so lucky. Please tell us how it feels. The rest of us would really like to know."
- Like this Reply to this comment
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Showing 1 of 3 pages (80 Comments)It was 1999 and I had being done much of it on my own as a hobby and it grew into a business. The business became more than I could handle so I signed on with firm making more than what the posted salaries were my uni for graduates in the field. Then, boom and bust. During the lull I was a contractor, and now at a Uni (8 years).
It feels great, work from home 4 days a week, 9-5, hang with the family, have my own life and keep work separate from personal/home life. The pay and benefits are great. I am a Systems Engineer in the context of what the research article defined it to be.