Engineering is everywhere in our everyday lives. Everything we use daily is thanks to engineering from the houses we live in to computers in offices, they all required some kind of engineering for their design and manufacture.
To vastly oversimplify engineering, it's what happens when you use maths and science to solve problems in the real world by designing, testing, and making things. The modern world couldn't exist without engineers, which is why there's such a high demand for them.
In this article, we'll look at why you should study engineering, where you can study engineering in Brisbane, and the kinds of courses that are available to you.
Reasons to Study Engineering
Aside from the fact engineering is important and we pretty much need it to survive, there are lots of other more personal reasons you might choose to study it.
After all, there's very little point in choosing to study engineering over anything else if you don't have any reason to. Fortunately, there are lots of excellent reasons to choose an engineering career.
Engineering is Interesting
The most obvious reason to study engineering is because you're interested in it. Even if you're not particularly interested in it right now, as you delve deeper into the world of engineering, you'll start to see just how interesting it is.
Engineering takes maths and science and uses them to make our lives better by making cool stuff and solving problems. Though we think maths and science are pretty neat, too, we can understand how students may find them a little dry because they can't see how any of what they're taught is used in their everyday lives.
Engineering doesn't have this problem because it takes what maths and science teach us and applies it to make and improve things in everything from industry to everyday products.
Study Options for All Levels
If you want to learn more about engineering, gain new skills, or start your career in engineering, there's a qualification out there for you.
An engineering certificate or diploma, for example, is usually a shorter course and more specific to a certain industry or skill. They also tend to be cheaper than an undergraduate degree or graduate degree (though scholarships can help with the cost).
A bachelor's or master's degree, however, tends to be more comprehensive, allows for specialisation (more on that in a second), and is more widely accepted both in Australia and internationally.
However, not every student learns in the same way and some may like to learn while in a job rather than spending somewhere between 4 and 6 years studying on a course at university.
Options for Specialisation
Engineering is a fairly broad subject and even if you aren't immediately wowed by engineering, there's likely a specialisation that you'll be interested in.
Engineering covers aeronautics, robots, and seemingly everything in between. Popular engineering specialisations include:
- Mechanical engineering
- Electrical engineering
- Aerospace engineering
- Chemical engineering
- Civil engineering
- Electronics and communication engineering
- Biomedical engineering
- Computer engineering
- Environmental engineering
With most engineering degrees, you'll have the option to choose your specialisation later on (usually in the second year) so even if you're not sure now, you can always decide further down the line what you want to do.
There are also plenty of short courses to help you specialise in particular areas and options for professional development after you graduate or complete your training.
Engineering Teaches STEM
Engineering teaches STEM because it's part of it. After all, STEM standards for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics so when you learn engineering, you're roughly a quarter of the way there.
However, all these areas are related so by studying engineering, you'll learn more about science, technology, and mathematics, too.
These skills are highly valued in the modern world and engineers are arguably the people who have the most balanced skill set across all four of these areas.
Engineering teaches you these skills and also means you always have the option to move into these other areas quite easily if you feel like a change or decide that engineering isn't for you.
Engineering Is Creative
A lot of students feel that maths and science are too rigid and don't give them opportunities to be creative. Engineering rarely has this problem.
Even though you'll have to work within the confines of maths and science (because the universe won't have it any other way), coming up with creative solutions that use these is all part of being an engineer.
If you've always liked maths and science but disliked how little creativity they afford you, engineering is probably an excellent choice.
There Are Lots of Engineering Jobs
There are lots of useful subjects that teach you a lot, are interesting, and allow you to be creative, but it's pretty pointless studying them if you can't find a job after your studies.
Engineering doesn't have this problem. Aside from being historically an excellent career choice because of employability, Australia is currently going through an engineer shortage.
There are more engineering jobs than ever and the growth of engineering jobs is double that of the national average across all jobs and a significant percentage of advertised jobs are in engineering.
The shortage is so severe that the government is looking at ways to make it easier for more foreign engineers to get visas to work in Australia.
Naturally, these jobs will go to Australian citizens first, but there are so many jobs to go around that people from all over the world could consider becoming an engineer and working in Australia.
Engineers Are Well Paid
Finally, we get to the money. We'd all like to do a job that we love, but we also need to be paid for it and paid fairly for it.
Engineers in Australia are actually quite well paid both in comparison to everyone else in the country and relative to their education level.
While the median income is about $65,000 a year, the average engineering salary is around $112,000 a year.
It should be noted that the average graduate salary is closer to $75,000 a year and the low end of the average engineer's salary is $94,000. However, the upper range of engineers' salaries is closer to $155,000.
As with most lines of work, it matters who you're working for, your experience, seniority, and the industry that you're in.
Employees who've been at places for longer or are working in lucrative industries will naturally earn more than junior staff members in entry-level positions.
The Best Places to Study Engineering in Brisbane
By now, you should be certain of whether or not you want to become an engineer so here are some of the best places to study in Brisbane.
We've picked a range of places to get you started, but you should certainly do your research and have a look around before applying to anything.
TAFE Queensland
If you're not familiar, TAFE stands for "Technical and Further Education" and includes courses that are more vocational in nature than academic courses like a bachelor's degree.
At TAFE Queensland, you can study from several courses that include certificates, diplomas, advanced diplomas, and associate degrees.
Some of these courses can also prepare you for university study whereas others can lead you directly into work.
For example, there's the Advanced Diploma of Electrical Engineering which is a 2-week course that covers things like project management, engineering mathematics, report and specification writing, and engineering software applications.
Be sure to browse these well-reputed engineering courses in Melbourne.
InTech Institute of Technology
The InTech Institute of Technology is another vocational and technical education establishment that offers engineering courses and training.
These courses include the advanced diploma in engineering, certificates in engineering, engineering pathways, manufacturing technology, fabrication trade, mechanical trade, etc.
There's also a graduate diploma in engineering available.
University of Southern Queensland
The University of Southern Queensland offers engineering degrees with a range of specialisations including:
- Agricultural and Environmental Engineering
- Civil Engineering
- Computer Systems and Automation Engineering
- Electrical, Electronic and Power Engineering
- Infrastructure Management Engineering
- Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering
- Instrumentation Control & Automation Engineering
- Mining Engineering
Generally, most universities in the country offer engineering courses with these kinds of specialisations or a similar combination of them.
For example, if a student were to enrol on the undergraduate program for engineering, their first year of study will show them the foundations of engineering whilst they get options to specialise or major in other areas and gain the skills and knowledge they'll need for specific engineering jobs and careers.
At the University of Southern Queensland, there are also postgraduate options in most of those specialisations as well as aerospace engineering, structural engineering, and engineering management.
Discover the best engineering courses in Sydney.
Griffith University
Griffith University has six campuses across South East Queensland and offers engineering degrees in a variety of different areas.
There are also double degrees available where you can study engineering alongside things like aviation, business, computer science, data science, environmental science, industrial design, IT, or science.
There are also pathway qualifications for those looking to move on to a bachelor's degree and postgraduate degrees in areas like civil engineering, project management, and professional engineering.
There are also excellent engineering courses online, too.
Queensland University of Technology
The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) offers the same kind of academic degrees in engineering as a lot of other universities and is one of the highest-ranked universities for robotics research.
It also boasts a good average starting salary for engineering graduates which is above graduates in science, maths, nursing, pharmacy, law, and paralegal or law degrees.
There are also lots of great engineering courses in Perth.
University of Queensland
Last but not least, we have the University of Queensland (UQ), where you can study engineering degrees at all levels.
This university is ranked #1 in Queensland for engineering and technology and chemical engineering and is one of the top universities in the country, too.
UQ also offers the same kinds of specialisations you've already seen as well as double degrees where you can study engineering alongside another subject that you're interested in like arts, design, economics, commerce, business management, etc.
No matter how you want to study and what kind of engineering you want to do, students in and around Brisbane have a lot of options in engineering!
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