Various Types of Engineers

I've been looking at pursuing some type of engineering degree, but it's kind of overwhelming how many different types of engineers there are. Can someone give me an overview on some of the various types and what kind of work they do?

Engineering is indeed a highly diverse field with many different disciplines, each with its own focus and career paths. Here’s a brief rundown of some:

1. Mechanical Engineering: This is one of the oldest and most broad fields of engineering. Mechanical engineers design, develop, build, and test mechanical and thermal sensors and devices. This might include tools, engines, and machines.

2. Civil Engineering: Civil engineers plan, design, construct, and maintain public works, including roads, bridges, tunnels, built environment, and water supply systems. It's one of the most visible sorts of engineering.

3. Electrical Engineering: In this field, engineers focus on technology involving electricity. They might work on electrical circuits, transistors, integration of systems, or even telecommunications.

4. Chemical Engineering: As a chemical engineer, you'd apply chemistry, biology, physics, and math to come up with solutions to issues involving the production or use of chemicals. Chemical engineers often work in factories and research labs.

5. Aerospace Engineering: Aerospace engineers design and construct aircraft and spacecraft. The field is split into two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering (for things that fly in Earth's atmosphere) and astronautical engineering (for space).

6. Biomedical Engineering: This is quite a fast-growing field. Biomedical engineers combine their knowledge of biology and medicine with engineering principles and practices. They work to improve healthcare diagnosis, monitoring, and therapy.

7. Industrial Engineering: Industrial engineers aim to improve processes. They work to eliminate wastefulness in production processes and devise ways to efficiently use people, machines, materials, energy, and information to provide a product or service.

8. Computer Engineering: This field blends electrical engineering and computer science and focuses on the design and implementation of hardware and software.

9. Environmental Engineering: Environmental engineers focus on implementing engineering principles to improve and manage the natural environment. They work on issues like pollution mitigation, public health, and waste disposal.

Remember, your choice of engineering discipline should align with your interests and career plans. You should take some time to delve deeper into these fields and possibly others to determine which feels like the best fit for you.