Doctor vs Engineer

[rfari]

Aye shakes. Wha I realising is tht the retailers making the morney. Farmers getting a raw deal jed. Dais for another ched tho

[shake d livin wake d dead]

true to an extent yes^..but lately I seeing more and more farmers doing the wholesaling and retailing themselves,so they coming out good in a way..but yes,it's for another thread.

[Corn Bird]

Hmmmm, i see where you'll coming from. Ok well then can anyone tell me what being an engineer is like in Trinidad? I love physics and always envisioned engineers being people who made inventions and did a lot of scientific stuff lol. But someone told me its kinda boring. You basically just manage this and that and don't really get to feel that rush of using science to make new things etc.

there's a fair amount of math to go with the engineering (well the math is needed during the BSc program and is needed more in some fields than others (chemical vs geomatics)); for example see

http://www.mainlib.uwi.tt//exams/Papers/pdfpapers/c_99/chng3001_1_05.pdf

on a related note, this seems to be a deciding factor for some people in their choice between medicine and engineering. i know of two med students (scholarship winners) who left med to do a math related subject (chemical engineering and actuarial science); they did very well in their new fields.

if you really like physics then one option is doing the engineering undergrad in uwi and then doing a postgrad engineering degree abroad to really get a feel for high-end research. this way you always have an undergrad engineering degree to fall back on.

the riskier alternative is to do a physics degree and then plan to do postgrad. unfortunately an undergrad physics degree may not be sufficient to fall back on in trinidad.

[Trini Hookah]

And Corn Bird on the other side of that I also know a Chem Eng student that left the faculty to pursue the MBBS programme at Mt. Hope.

[Corn Bird]

^ i know that students move (or want to move) from fsa to med. well, to tell the truth, i didn't know about movement from eng to med

[S_2NR]

going from engineering to medicine is like jumping from the frying pan into the fire

[RBphoto]

I thought this thread was about my marriage...

Both are sucky jobs, wish I could quit and take up photography for a living. Doctor's work s never done. Engineering work goes in phases of plenty of design work in the office working for small money to ketching yuh tail in the field during construction management where you make some decent overtime cash.

[crazychinee]

So.....with all distinctions one could only assume you did Biology Chemistry Physics; if you have this option of either or?

Getting through medical school is by no way hard, it' easy. Past papers, cramming, kissing ass, being on time. The problem is being a good doctor.Out of the hundreds of medical practitioners I know I probabl would trust less than 5.
Medicine is a field fast becoming saturated like everything else, the remuneration is "OK"., $20-$30,000 per month , more if you start specizling.

Dont compare hours and stress. Every job can be stressful it's what you make of it. Being a doctor isn't for everyone, and it's why so many people fail/dropout. They learn the hardway that walking around with a stethoscope around your neck isn't all it's cracked up to be. You may find yourself unhappy very quickly.

[crazychinee]

its about the same my gf and i used to make pretty much identical salaries.

....is either alya is real bigshots..or real pothounds den

[Skanky]

Something to consider as well is that in my experience I've found that engineers and doctors are completely different beings.
Whereas on a normal off day my friends and I prefer to do something like go to the beach,go hiking,sweat some football or just generally outdoorsy,practical,hands on stuff, the doctors I know idea of a good time is to get dressed up as nice as they can and go out to a nice place for dinner or to lime and usually get high/drunk.
Now I'm not saying doctors are drunks since both sides tend to drink a lot,or I don't enjoy the dress up/dinner outing but what I've found is that...well....doctors are nice and all but they tend to be really boring and one dimensional....at least to me.No offence docs

[brams112]

Op you seem like someone who does not know what you really want to do for your life,earning money at doing something you want to do for the rest or your life beats doing something just because you like money will make you someone who will end up either get bored or regret your choice.
Do something you want to do because you like the field,wanted to be in that field ever since,because being a doctor is peoples lives you will be playing with.

[aspsounds]

...But i studying how doctors never have time for family or themselves, so engineering seems more promising if i'm looking to enjoy life.

Probably only chemical engineering.

Not really, the job market is saturated with chem eng ... Best bet is electrical

[firstchoicett]

Doctors make more then Engineers in T&T.

[Trini Hookah]

Do doctors have room for growth as much as Engineers?

I mean I know they can specialize, some even go on to lecture in University (that's where the real $ is) but is that it?

[4g63]

a lot with which job turns out better for you is how smart you are, how much common sense you have more so and how well you can market yourself. this is key. You have to quickly learn the best road and find a medium to get you there.

that being said, as a skillful engineer, you will make more money to start and will make that higher amount earlier than a doctor.
a specialized surgeon would probably make more than the average high end engineer, but he will take a lot longer to surpass the salary of that engineer.

to make real money with medicine, you'll need 5 years of school (you mentioned uwi so i am using that), plue say another 3 or 4 years of studying/working to get to a point to make some real money... to quantify that, let's say above 60 K a month.
with engineering, say 3 years, plus 2 or 3 years in a skillful role and you could be making that. this is not the average engineering post that is. this is if you are a very good engineer and land a well paying job. average engineers and doctors may start at around the same but a doctor will increase faster i believe. however, the engineer will have a 2 year head start on making money than the doc.

i think there are more opportunities for high risk, high value and as such high paying engineering jobs than medical ones. but a say a ObGyn who charges say 15K for a c-section, doing 4 of them a week makes 60K a week, plus if he/she sees 40 patients a week for visits at 300 per visit, that's a further 12K per week. of course they have fees to pay and overheads, certain insurance type fees may be like 180,000 a year to practice at a private nursing home, but someone in this field may make some good cash. an anaethesist (sp) can make say 1600 - 3000 per surgery, depending on the type of surgery, maybe more... so say he administers twice per day...that's say about 85,000 + per month.
to get to this point in medicine though will take a while.
i know some engineers making 130,000 + at 35 yrs. I know some exceptional super hero cases where they make 120,000 + per month at 26 yrs old.

i am not going to comment too much on quality of life since that really is subjective and varies a lot depending on the actual job. you can probably find a regular 8-4 job easier as an engineer than a doctor... how much you'd make would be a different story.

right out of school, engineers make now on average about 7000 - 12000 and doctors interning i think may be about 4,500, after graduating i think upwards of 8000. the guys here might know these figures better than me, i have been out of touch with the opening values for a while.

anyway, just thought i'd give you some actual values.... i hated when i was in your shoes and everyone would tell me that this job makes REAL money and that one doesn't and no one could give me actual values. i hope it lends some help.

[geodude]

dentist for the win,
i have friends with less than one year out of dental school and making 30k per month and thats with an average or 3-4 patients per day plus if you work in a private practice you get almost normal office work hrs,
less demanding and less stressful than working in a hospital
dentist are very much in demand constantly.

[yvan300]

Hmm, well after considering the information given I would say that with both you'll be able to live a comfortable life as long as you work hard or are good at your profession. And after thinking about it more and googleing, i don't think I'm doctor material. So I'll push for engineering from now on

[16 cycles]

there's a fair amount of math to go with the engineering (well the math is needed during the BSc program and is needed more in some fields than others (chemical vs geomatics)); for example see

http://www.mainlib.uwi.tt//exams/Papers/pdfpapers/c_99/chng3001_1_05.pdf

http://www.mainlib.uwi.tt/exams/Papers/pdfpapers/s_99/sv20a_2_05.pdf

geomatics ain't no walk in park wrt to maths.....

[crazybalhead]

Sell doubles. Seriously.

[Conrad]

The last thing this Trinidad needs is another smart person whose job adds to their unhappiness.

Once you love your career you'd gladly go the extra mile without even considering financial compensation, you'd focus more on your legacy and satisfying customers.

[RBphoto]

...But i studying how doctors never have time for family or themselves, so engineering seems more promising if i'm looking to enjoy life.

Probably only chemical engineering.

Not really, the job market is saturated with chem eng ... Best bet is electrical

Electrical is a dead end, but in my oppinion (as E&I myself) the easiest to start your own consultancy in because of commercial electrical projects. E&I engineers have very specialized knoledge, and are least visible to management. E&I materials have little budget in a project compared to the civil works and the mechanical completion, so we don't get that much respect until it is time to actually start the bloddy plant. Then, when everything is working fine, we are not needed anymore. This is why we never make it into middle management.

Mechanical has the most scope for development. These guys actually do physical stuff in the field and get stuff done. Most rewarding field IMO.

Process (chem) engineers are always promoted through the ranks to plant manager... but the market is a little saturated with them... they are very important and cary the most stroke with any industral project. All diciplines rely on them.


Civil/ structural guys actually build stuff. I have no idea how they manage to do so many calculations for a small piece of steel modification. It is boring to me, but rdeonarine should shed light on what they actually do.

HSSE seems to be the big buzz nowdays though.

[trinihub]

...But i studying how doctors never have time for family or themselves, so engineering seems more promising if i'm looking to enjoy life.

Probably only chemical engineering.

Not really, the job market is saturated with chem eng ... Best bet is electrical

Electrical is a dead end, but in my oppinion (as E&I myself) the easiest to start your own consultancy in because of commercial electrical projects. E&I engineers have very specialized knoledge, and are least visible to management. E&I materials have little budget in a project compared to the civil works and the mechanical completion, so we don't get that much respect until it is time to actually start the bloddy plant. Then, when everything is working fine, we are not needed anymore. This is why we never make it into middle management.

Mechanical has the most scope for development. These guys actually do physical stuff in the field and get stuff done. Most rewarding field IMO.

Process (chem) engineers are always promoted through the ranks to plant manager... but the market is a little saturated with them... they are very important and cary the most stroke with any industral project. All diciplines rely on them.


Civil/ structural guys actually build stuff. I have no idea how they manage to do so many calculations for a small piece of steel modification. It is boring to me, but rdeonarine should shed light on what they actually do.

HSSE seems to be the big buzz nowdays though.

agreed!

[firstchoicett]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=

Just funny lolz

[Skanky]

There's a pretty simple way to come to a decision regarding this matter OP.
Do you have.....The Knack??

[yvan300]

There's a pretty simple way to come to a decision regarding this matter OP.
Do you have.....The Knack??

^^ since when being an engineer isn't considered a normal life

But as a youth i sure we all mash up something in the house outta curiosity
If not, you didn't have a childhood

[firstchoicett]

I was know as the destroyer lol.

[Corn Bird]

there's a fair amount of math to go with the engineering (well the math is needed during the BSc program and is needed more in some fields than others (chemical vs geomatics)); for example see

http://www.mainlib.uwi.tt//exams/Papers/pdfpapers/c_99/chng3001_1_05.pdf

http://www.mainlib.uwi.tt/exams/Papers/pdfpapers/s_99/sv20a_2_05.pdf

geomatics ain't no walk in park wrt to maths.....

16 cycles -- what other courses in geomatics use math?

[pyung99]

both noble professions, both rewarding in different ways. both better than faqin up other ppl lives by merderin and teefin.

[007_1]

has a page on fb with this name(doctor vs engineer)has some amazing facts

[Mudboy]

...But i studying how doctors never have time for family or themselves, so engineering seems more promising if i'm looking to enjoy life.

Probably only chemical engineering.

Not really, the job market is saturated with chem eng ... Best bet is electrical

Electrical is a dead end, but in my oppinion (as E&I myself) the easiest to start your own consultancy in because of commercial electrical projects. E&I engineers have very specialized knoledge, and are least visible to management. E&I materials have little budget in a project compared to the civil works and the mechanical completion, so we don't get that much respect until it is time to actually start the bloddy plant. Then, when everything is working fine, we are not needed anymore. This is why we never make it into middle management.

Mechanical has the most scope for development. These guys actually do physical stuff in the field and get stuff done. Most rewarding field IMO.

Process (chem) engineers are always promoted through the ranks to plant manager... but the market is a little saturated with them... they are very important and cary the most stroke with any industral project. All diciplines rely on them.


Civil/ structural guys actually build stuff. I have no idea how they manage to do so many calculations for a small piece of steel modification. It is boring to me, but rdeonarine should shed light on what they actually do.

HSSE seems to be the big buzz nowdays though.

What about Reservoir Engineers ? How much do they make?