Engineering Management

What You'll Do in an Engineering Management Career

Engineering Management is a career that brings together the technological problem-solving savvy of engineering and the organizational, administrative, and planning abilities of management in order to oversee complex enterprises from conception to completion. Engineering managers possess the practical experience as engineers that enables them to apply technical expertise to a project, but it's equally critical that they have the skills to organize and direct projects, as well as manage a variety of personnel, such as scientists, other engineers and support staff.
Engineering managers plan, coordinate, and supervise research, development, and production in a variety of engineering fields. Engineering management job duties may include:

• overseeing the design of machinery, equipment, products or systems
• directing production, quality assurance or maintenance
• designing and assessing the feasibility of new products or processes
• coordinating with other units, such as management, financial or marketing

 

Engineering Management Job Opportunities

In order to take advantage of the job opportunities available in engineering management, an engineer needs to have excellent communication and business management skills in addition to technical expertise in their specific field of engineering. A large percentage of jobs—36 percent—are in manufacturing industries, while 33 percent are in scientific, professional and technical services, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Many job opportunities are also available in government agencies. In your employment search, keep an eye out for job titles like engineering manager, project manager, director of engineering, and principal engineer.

 

The Future of Engineering Management

The rapidly growing fields of biomedical and environmental engineering present the most promising job prospects for future engineering managers. Environmental engineering managers focus on applying engineering skills to solving environmental problems in areas such as pollution control, waste management, recycling, or vehicle emissions. Engineering management in the biomedical field involves supervising research and development to address medical and health-related problems, whether it's designing new devices and imaging systems or assessing procedures such as care delivery and medical information systems.

 

Engineering Management Degree Programs

Engineering management degrees are currently available for the following degree types:

• Associate's Degree in Engineering Management: One early step on the road to an engineering management career is an associate's degree in an engineering-related discipline. An associate's degree usually prepares you for a job as a technician, but it can also lead to further education such as a bachelor's or master's degree.
   
• Bachelor's Degree in Engineering Management: There are a couple of options for undergraduates interested in becoming engineering managers: bachelor of science or bachelor of engineering degrees in a specific field such as mechanical engineering, or bachelor of science degrees specializing in management science or engineering management. In either case, prospective engineering managers will need to follow up their bachelor's degree with on-the-job experience in both engineering and management.
   
• Master's and Doctoral Degrees in Engineering Management: Bachelor's degree holders may also opt to continue their education and pursue a master's degree in engineering management (MEM), a master of business administration (MBA), or a master's degree in a related field such as operations research. Some doctoral degrees are also available in these areas.
   
• Online Engineering Management Degrees: Although options are currently limited for those wishing to pursue an undergraduate engineering management degree online, several institutions offer online master's degrees in engineering management (MEM), and online MBA degrees are widespread.

 

Engineering Manager Salary

As of 2008, the median annual salary for engineering managers reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics was $115,270. Salaries for the middle 50 percent of people employed in engineering management ranged from $91,870 to $141,730. The highest wages were earned by those in the spectator sports industry; those working for business, professional, or political organizations; and those employed in the information services industry.