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Here is a record of an email discussion I have just completed with a fellow about to go to university. I repeat it here in the hopes that it may guide others.
Dear Sir
I have read many of your pieces on engineering, it has opened my eyes greatly but also given me more to think about.
I have just completed my final year of school in South Africa, this year (2013) I will be studying at WITS. I got accepted for a BSc in Mining, Civil and Mechanical Engineering.
In the future I would like to work on mines, I have done a little research and many “Mining Engineering” jobs require a degree in an engineering field other than Mining.
If it isn’t too much trouble could you please recommend which degree I should accept in order to have the best opportunity to work on/with mines in the future.
Yours Faithfully, RS
My reply to him.
RS:
Thanks for the comments re the blog.
As you have no doubt seen from the blog, I studied at Wits—eleven years in all. First a bachelor’s degree in civil and then a masters in geotechnical engineering, and then a law degree (LLB). I lectured in the civil department for five years.
So you are on the right track at great university. Whatever course you choose you will do well—as I have and as all those who studied with me did
I cannot help you choose between civil, mining, and mechanical. That is a very personal choice dependent on your own interests and skills.
See this link for a comparative evaluation of what these types of engineers do in mining. http://technology.infomine.com/reviews/MiningJobs/welcome.asp?view=full
Given the choice again, I would still do civil. It is a challenging profession and applicable to many aspects of society besides mining.
Yet I must admit that those who did mining engineering have done great work and had a good career.
A good old friend did mechanical engineering and is now a happy, retired man.
My point is this: you can be successful and happy regardless of which engineering degree you do – especially if it is at Wits.
Look deep into yourself: if you prefer working with machines, do mechanical. If you like managing people and situations, do mining. If you prefer designing and building things, do civil.
Mining is an easy degree to get. Civil a bit more difficult. Mechanical is very difficult. So look at your intellect and brains. Chose depending on your intellectual skills. The point is that mining is easy but demanding. You have to be pushy and demanding to be a successful mining engineer. As a mechanical engineer you have to be more intellectual and analytical, As a civil engineer, you have to be analytical yet practical to get the big civil works into practice.
So let me know how you decide.
Jack
I like your advice. I’m a mechanical engineer, but I never practiced in that field due to the state of the economy when I graduated. I became a miner and used my degree to assist me in climbing the management ladder. I am now working in a positioin where I think mining engineering would be useful, so I am learning on the fly.
My daughter is 23 and she STILL is struggling to decide if she should study law or engineering. I just tell her to think about what she thinks she would be happy doing for her career and then head in that direction. On the other hand, my son seemed to know pretty much what he wanted to do when he was heading to university. He earned an engineering degree, and then went on to study physics, and now mathematics.
I think there are three general areas for all engineers to flow into. First is engineering, which may sound silly, but we really do need people whose main interest is the engineering side of things. Second is operations, which was where I spent the bulk of my career. Third is projects, which is a specialized area of operations, but which requires people to have stronger organizing and executing skills than in operations. Some people try all three and then decide where they are more comfortable. I would simply say that you need to discover your passion and then pursue it. Easy to say, as how does someone at age 17 or 18 know their passion? How do they know if they are analytical or intuitive or whatever?
There isn’t a whole lot of technical difference between the three disciplines mentioned in the email. All three deal with stress and strain and fluid flow, but in different materials. In my career I think I’ve seen more civil engineers working in indirect areas than the other two. Perhaps that says something about their adaptability. Miners will work in remote locations. Civils and Mechanicals not so much. I agree that mechanical is probably a bit more analytical. If we’re talking mines then mechanicals will deal with equipment maintenance, which for most managers is simply a necessary evil, and a cost to be cut when times are tough.
If you eventually want to move up into mining company management (VP level say) of these three options you’re best one would be mining engineering. However if you prefer to spend your career doing engineering work, then a mechanical engineer will get to focus on mine maintenance issues for 30 years, a civil engineer will focus on mine geotechnical aspects, and the mining engineer can stay in either mine planning or production supervision. Obviously if you plan to get out of mining one day then my recommendations would change but if you plan to stay mining then mining engineer is the way to go.
Don’t forget about metallurgical engineering, that’s an interesting role within the mining industry and is also in high demand today.
Happy New Year to Jack and fellow responders! My son has just finished doing Integrated Engineering at UBC (and Cape Town) and it is an engineer’s engineering degree, loaded with practical project experience. It has been going about 10 years and was partly started by UBC Mining Prof Scott Dunbar – the presenter of Mining 101 on Edumine. I don’t think that any of the grads have had trouble finding work. I think that one needs to decide either to be a specialist or a generalist, to be holistic or analytical. After over three decades in the mining biz I favour the generalist, but it is strictly a personal preference. We need both! Good luck!