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What can I do with a mechanical engineering degree?
"what exactly can I do with a mechanical engineering degree?" - I know what a mechanical engineer is, but as I go through my studies, it is increasingly more difficult to see what sorts of jobs I would actually be doing once I graduate. #fall25
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Fahad Elahi Khan
Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate
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Fahad Elahi’s Answer
A mechanical engineering degree offers many exciting opportunities to solve real-world problems. You could become a design engineer, creating parts for cars or machines, or work in manufacturing to improve production lines. Other options include becoming an HVAC technician to install climate systems, a CAD technician to draft blueprints, or a maintenance engineer to fix factory equipment. Looking ahead to 2025, you might explore renewable energy by designing wind turbines or carbon capture technology, or dive into digital roles in automation and robotics. Aerospace is also a growing field, with jobs in aerodynamics or structural engineering for airplanes. Many people start in entry-level positions and advance to project management or specialized areas like controls engineering. Checking job boards or talking to alumni can give you a better idea of the daily tasks involved, which might help you as you study.
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Stephen’s Answer
Great question, since mechanical engineering is so broad, it can be hard to determine what specific roles you could be a good fit for. I am a mechanical engineer with around 12 years experience so I can tell you about the jobs I have had, and also the jobs some of my colleagues and class mates do. I'll start with the chronological history of my career roles and then summarize some of the other roles MEs can hold.
I started my career working as a Project Engineer at a small aerospace company that made aftermarket airplane parts. That role was mainly working on reverse engineering some simple aircraft parts to create a design as close to the original as possible, to sell as an aftermarket part. I did dimensional, and material analysis to start and then did a more in depth analysis to determine what manufacturing methods were used to create the part. For example, a bolt with a machined head will perform much differently than a bolt with a forged head, so you need to know which method was used to make the part you are replicating. Then we would create our own drawing and send it to manufacturing.
My second role was also working as a Project Engineer in aerospace. This time designing bushings and bearing for aircraft. A lot of similarities to my first role but this role included working out on the manufacturing floor. I worked on quality initiatives to improve part quality, first pass yield and scrap reduction. It had a lot of aspects of a Manufacturing Engineer position which is another common role for a Mechanical Engineer.
My third role was working as a Technical Sales Specialist in the automotive industry. This is not technically an engineering role but it's a common one for engineers to have, especially if they like sales or want to be customer facing. The role was working with customers to solve their problems using the products our company produced. A simplified example would be a customer is designing a new vehicle and needs some coolant lines on the hot side of the engine. I would look at the pressure and temperature of the application to see if we had a material that would work. Then look at the mating components to see which connectors we should use and then looks at the physical routing of the coolant lines to make sure we could produce them with our manufacturing process. The role also included putting quotes and business cases together for new applications. Lots of travel and not a lot of super technical/engineering type work but definitely need to be detailed oriented and have a solid technical background to be effective.
My current role is in New Product Introduction, which some companies may call Manufacturing Engineering. In this role we work closely with New Product Development (NPD) and with the production team. NPD will design a new product and it's our job to design the process for how we will manufacture and test that product. We design the assembly line, design fixturing and safety equipment and create the layout and floorplan for the line. We also design automation equipment and testers for new and existing products.
Below is a list of other roles my classmates or coworkers have held with Mechanical Engineering degrees
- Regulatory Specialist (make sure new products meet industry and government regulations through testing)
- Continuous Improvement Engineer (analyze manufacturing processes to improve quality, increase throughput or reduce cost)
- Test Engineer (worked at a university helping students and professors set up tests and experiments)
There are many many more but hopefully that helped you see some real work examples of potential options and maybe some that would fit what you want to do.
Good luck!
I started my career working as a Project Engineer at a small aerospace company that made aftermarket airplane parts. That role was mainly working on reverse engineering some simple aircraft parts to create a design as close to the original as possible, to sell as an aftermarket part. I did dimensional, and material analysis to start and then did a more in depth analysis to determine what manufacturing methods were used to create the part. For example, a bolt with a machined head will perform much differently than a bolt with a forged head, so you need to know which method was used to make the part you are replicating. Then we would create our own drawing and send it to manufacturing.
My second role was also working as a Project Engineer in aerospace. This time designing bushings and bearing for aircraft. A lot of similarities to my first role but this role included working out on the manufacturing floor. I worked on quality initiatives to improve part quality, first pass yield and scrap reduction. It had a lot of aspects of a Manufacturing Engineer position which is another common role for a Mechanical Engineer.
My third role was working as a Technical Sales Specialist in the automotive industry. This is not technically an engineering role but it's a common one for engineers to have, especially if they like sales or want to be customer facing. The role was working with customers to solve their problems using the products our company produced. A simplified example would be a customer is designing a new vehicle and needs some coolant lines on the hot side of the engine. I would look at the pressure and temperature of the application to see if we had a material that would work. Then look at the mating components to see which connectors we should use and then looks at the physical routing of the coolant lines to make sure we could produce them with our manufacturing process. The role also included putting quotes and business cases together for new applications. Lots of travel and not a lot of super technical/engineering type work but definitely need to be detailed oriented and have a solid technical background to be effective.
My current role is in New Product Introduction, which some companies may call Manufacturing Engineering. In this role we work closely with New Product Development (NPD) and with the production team. NPD will design a new product and it's our job to design the process for how we will manufacture and test that product. We design the assembly line, design fixturing and safety equipment and create the layout and floorplan for the line. We also design automation equipment and testers for new and existing products.
Below is a list of other roles my classmates or coworkers have held with Mechanical Engineering degrees
- Regulatory Specialist (make sure new products meet industry and government regulations through testing)
- Continuous Improvement Engineer (analyze manufacturing processes to improve quality, increase throughput or reduce cost)
- Test Engineer (worked at a university helping students and professors set up tests and experiments)
There are many many more but hopefully that helped you see some real work examples of potential options and maybe some that would fit what you want to do.
Good luck!
Thanks so much! This is extremely helpful.
William
Updated
William’s Answer
Hi William,
Thanks for your query.
Mechanical engineering provides a wide range of opportunities for building a career. Mechanical engineers are involved in the design, construction, operation and maintenance of machines. As such, they are employed as design engineers, production engineers, maintenance engineers, sales engineers (for technical products such as earthmoving equipment, generator sets, compressors) in the entire manufacturing sectors. They also occupy roles in utilities in industry, medical facilities & hospitality industry as well as in consultancies as consultants. Mechanical engineering students in colleges & universities are largely taught by mechanical engineers. Opportunities also exist in research institutions.
Mechanical engineering is as well a gateway to other areas of specialization such as aerospace, automotive and biomedical engineering in addition to robotics. Your initial qualification, therefore, provides pathways to endless opportunities for crafting a decent profession for yourself. Technical excellence is essential but not adequate for a successful career. Social soft skills are critical for success at the level of practice: ability to work in teams, willingnesss to get the job done with distinction (diligence, passion, perseverance, positive attitude, attention to detail) etc.
Additionally, competence in leadership and management allows you to occupy roles at all levels of the organization you work for.
Thanks for your query.
Mechanical engineering provides a wide range of opportunities for building a career. Mechanical engineers are involved in the design, construction, operation and maintenance of machines. As such, they are employed as design engineers, production engineers, maintenance engineers, sales engineers (for technical products such as earthmoving equipment, generator sets, compressors) in the entire manufacturing sectors. They also occupy roles in utilities in industry, medical facilities & hospitality industry as well as in consultancies as consultants. Mechanical engineering students in colleges & universities are largely taught by mechanical engineers. Opportunities also exist in research institutions.
Mechanical engineering is as well a gateway to other areas of specialization such as aerospace, automotive and biomedical engineering in addition to robotics. Your initial qualification, therefore, provides pathways to endless opportunities for crafting a decent profession for yourself. Technical excellence is essential but not adequate for a successful career. Social soft skills are critical for success at the level of practice: ability to work in teams, willingnesss to get the job done with distinction (diligence, passion, perseverance, positive attitude, attention to detail) etc.
Additionally, competence in leadership and management allows you to occupy roles at all levels of the organization you work for.
I'm excited to put your great advice to good use!
William