Can you be rich as an engineer?

[Anonymous]

You'll likely never get rich doing the technical stuff, but the sky's the limit if you move into management. An incredibly high percent of F500 CEOs have engineering degrees/tech backgrounds...an engineering undergrad the way to go if that's your goal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 isn't high?

What you're not getting is that it's not going to increase from there.

And no. Doctors, lawyers and financiers make A LOT more.

My IT husband makes more than my doctor sibling.

When you say “IT” what exactly does that mean? Help desk management? iT technical degree?

That is different than a computer scientist or mech engineering or EE. And of course industrial E or enviro E went to consulting or Gov’t.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 is great, but they're likely going to be making only slightly higher 10 years later. Most of the senior-level developers I know make $175-200k.

Lawyers and doctors do a lot better later in their careers.

agreed...but an engineer only needs a 4-year degree....a big bang for the buck if you ask me...

That’s actually a BIG part of it. Lawyers and doctors go into MAJOR debt for their career; generally they come from well off families, so they know if they hit any bumps they won’t be destitute and in debt for hundreds of thousands.

Engineers tend to come from LMC backgrounds, and the thought of taking in that much debt is stupefying (the loans for MBA/Law/Med school DWARF the value and mortgage of the houses they grew up in). It’s a hellscape nightmare level of debt, and a risk they can’t stomach with no backup plan.

Cite?

This is documented in many papers.

https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/07/college-major-rich-families-liberal-arts/397439/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 is great, but they're likely going to be making only slightly higher 10 years later. Most of the senior-level developers I know make $175-200k.

Lawyers and doctors do a lot better later in their careers.

agreed...but an engineer only needs a 4-year degree....a big bang for the buck if you ask me...

That’s actually a BIG part of it. Lawyers and doctors go into MAJOR debt for their career; generally they come from well off families, so they know if they hit any bumps they won’t be destitute and in debt for hundreds of thousands.

Engineers tend to come from LMC backgrounds, and the thought of taking in that much debt is stupefying (the loans for MBA/Law/Med school DWARF the value and mortgage of the houses they grew up in). It’s a hellscape nightmare level of debt, and a risk they can’t stomach with no backup plan.

Cite?

This is documented in many papers.

https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/07/college-major-rich-families-liberal-arts/397439/

Law is by far the worst

http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/study_finds_lopsided_concentration_of_socioeconomic_elites_at_law_schools

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 isn't high?

What you're not getting is that it's not going to increase from there.

And no. Doctors, lawyers and financiers make A LOT more.

My IT husband makes more than my doctor sibling.

When you say “IT” what exactly does that mean? Help desk management? iT technical degree?

That is different than a computer scientist or mech engineering or EE. And of course industrial E or enviro E went to consulting or Gov’t.

Does it really matter? Yes, he has an IT degree. Yes, he is technical. Yes, he technically does help desk (not exactly but one could call it that).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 is great, but they're likely going to be making only slightly higher 10 years later. Most of the senior-level developers I know make $175-200k.

Lawyers and doctors do a lot better later in their careers.

agreed...but an engineer only needs a 4-year degree....a big bang for the buck if you ask me...

That’s actually a BIG part of it. Lawyers and doctors go into MAJOR debt for their career; generally they come from well off families, so they know if they hit any bumps they won’t be destitute and in debt for hundreds of thousands.

Engineers tend to come from LMC backgrounds, and the thought of taking in that much debt is stupefying (the loans for MBA/Law/Med school DWARF the value and mortgage of the houses they grew up in). It’s a hellscape nightmare level of debt, and a risk they can’t stomach with no backup plan.

Cite?

This is documented in many papers.

https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/07/college-major-rich-families-liberal-arts/397439/

It's lower than English, but in no way is that figure LMC.

LMC kids typically do not get four year degrees.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 is great, but they're likely going to be making only slightly higher 10 years later. Most of the senior-level developers I know make $175-200k.

Lawyers and doctors do a lot better later in their careers.

agreed...but an engineer only needs a 4-year degree....a big bang for the buck if you ask me...

That’s actually a BIG part of it. Lawyers and doctors go into MAJOR debt for their career; generally they come from well off families, so they know if they hit any bumps they won’t be destitute and in debt for hundreds of thousands.

Engineers tend to come from LMC backgrounds, and the thought of taking in that much debt is stupefying (the loans for MBA/Law/Med school DWARF the value and mortgage of the houses they grew up in). It’s a hellscape nightmare level of debt, and a risk they can’t stomach with no backup plan.

Cite?

This is documented in many papers.

https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/07/college-major-rich-families-liberal-arts/397439/

It's lower than English, but in no way is that figure LMC.

LMC kids typically do not get four year degrees.

I am defining the lower middle-class here as folks who would have to move back in with their parents or go on public assistance if things went bad, and moving back in with your parents means moving into a depressed job market with little opportunity.

Basically anyone who is a student that would exceed the value of their parents house. That’s pretty much representative

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 isn't high?

My DH was making that at 27 in finance. Now he makes around 750k in a super family friendly job (I.e. not Wall St. hours)

disgusting

your husband adds nothing of value to the world, but manages to leech 750k out of it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 isn't high?

My DH was making that at 27 in finance. Now he makes around 750k in a super family friendly job (I.e. not Wall St. hours)

disgusting

your husband adds nothing of value to the world, but manages to leech 750k out of it

Who knows, maybe he prices options and keeps another 2008 crisis at bay...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 isn't high?

My DH was making that at 27 in finance. Now he makes around 750k in a super family friendly job (I.e. not Wall St. hours)

disgusting

your husband adds nothing of value to the world, but manages to leech 750k out of it

Who knows, maybe he prices options and keeps another 2008 crisis at bay...

wall st people are the ones who caused the 2008 crisis

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:150k at 27 isn't high?

My DH was making that at 27 in finance. Now he makes around 750k in a super family friendly job (I.e. not Wall St. hours)

disgusting

your husband adds nothing of value to the world, but manages to leech 750k out of it

Who knows, maybe he prices options and keeps another 2008 crisis at bay...

wall st people are the ones who caused the 2008 crisis

Yup. Greedy scumbags.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PAs, Pharmacists, Engineers are some of the highest earners at 30. By 50 they are earning peanuts next to their business major friends

Pretty much unless the engineer goes to management and then it's a lot more stress.
I manage an engineering team. Many at 30+ are at $140k with 40 hrs a week tops and only technical work to worry about. And they've been making over 100 with just a bs or ms (a little more) for a while. So those that saved early are in a good spot. Not rich but comfortable.

This is what I aim for. The execs at my company work insane hours, and I don't want that. I work 40-50 hours a week and my life is comfortable. I have free time to pursue other hobbies, pretty much heaven upgrade from my parents' hellish low paying retail jobs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PAs, Pharmacists, Engineers are some of the highest earners at 30. By 50 they are earning peanuts next to their business major friends

Pretty much unless the engineer goes to management and then it's a lot more stress.
I manage an engineering team. Many at 30+ are at $140k with 40 hrs a week tops and only technical work to worry about. And they've been making over 100 with just a bs or ms (a little more) for a while. So those that saved early are in a good spot. Not rich but comfortable.

This is what I aim for. The execs at my company work insane hours, and I don't want that. I work 40-50 hours a week and my life is comfortable. I have free time to pursue other hobbies, pretty much heaven upgrade from my parents' hellish low paying retail jobs.

+100

DCUM doesn't understand the concept of being ok with making 150k and working 40 hours a week and actually looking forward to stuff besides work but I wouldn't trade it for the world

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PAs, Pharmacists, Engineers are some of the highest earners at 30. By 50 they are earning peanuts next to their business major friends

Pretty much unless the engineer goes to management and then it's a lot more stress.
I manage an engineering team. Many at 30+ are at $140k with 40 hrs a week tops and only technical work to worry about. And they've been making over 100 with just a bs or ms (a little more) for a while. So those that saved early are in a good spot. Not rich but comfortable.

This is what I aim for. The execs at my company work insane hours, and I don't want that. I work 40-50 hours a week and my life is comfortable. I have free time to pursue other hobbies, pretty much heaven upgrade from my parents' hellish low paying retail jobs.

See another working class striver. Almost all staff engineers are like this; elite family progeny went on to MBA, patent law, or Med school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PAs, Pharmacists, Engineers are some of the highest earners at 30. By 50 they are earning peanuts next to their business major friends

Pretty much unless the engineer goes to management and then it's a lot more stress.
I manage an engineering team. Many at 30+ are at $140k with 40 hrs a week tops and only technical work to worry about. And they've been making over 100 with just a bs or ms (a little more) for a while. So those that saved early are in a good spot. Not rich but comfortable.

This is what I aim for. The execs at my company work insane hours, and I don't want that. I work 40-50 hours a week and my life is comfortable. I have free time to pursue other hobbies, pretty much heaven upgrade from my parents' hellish low paying retail jobs.

See another working class striver. Almost all staff engineers are like this; elite family progeny went on to MBA, patent law, or Med school.

Or startups/FAANG