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The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. -Martin Luther King, Jr.
3 comments:
hey.. came across your blog by accident. Seems pretty interesting as i myself am a civil engineer, soon to be.. Haha.. I am currently in my third year..
I have a question for you if you don't mind. I am currently deciding what field should i pursue upon graduating; geotechnical, structural or construction. One thing i am curious about for a construction engineer is: how often do you have to be onsite during a project. and would you be relocated very often ? Say you're currently based in KL but there's a project in Penang that lasts 5 years, do you have to move there in that whole 5 years ?
hi, thanks for dropping by.
please also include your name so i know who am i addressing to.
geotech and structural, well frankly this is your decision to make. both have their unique challenges which might either interest you or appall you. so you NEED to know where your interest lies. you're in 3rd year already, so i guess you pretty much have what your likes and dislikes are.
i can speak for geotech, since i have been in this field for years. you'd always have to be on your toes, in terms of adapting your designs and also methods of construction, for the ground is full of surprises. and geotech is akin a blind man with a walking stick. for you can never have a visual of what is happening underground, the only data you get is from readouts, gauges, and some other high tech instruments.
structures can be pretty straightforward. and what you see is pretty much what you get. high-rise can bring engineers great satisfaction the higher it progresses. but, construction-wise, once a highrise reaches it's 'typical floors', things can be quite dull.
there's always 2 options for every engineer's job. either design office, or site office aka construction. meaning to say you either join consultancy or the contractor. consultancy....you just design your elements in the office. and maybe attend meetings at the site level periodically. whereas if you are as a site staff, you need to get down and dirty to get things built the way its supposed to be built. site work isnt as glamorous. but it is rewarding.
where you will be based is all dependent to your management lar. even if you are a design engineer from the consultant, they might need you to be on site to handle certain tasks. contractor might require you to be in the office to run programs and planning.
if you want to go far in construction, you much be as flexible in everything you do...and even compromise on your comfort levels.
hope i cleared some of your doubts.
I see.. Thanks for being so detailed in your explanation. It's well appreciated.
I reckon i wouldn't be that interested in Geotech cause i enjoy some stuff like the calculation parts, but not studying all the soil and remembering their attributes and stuff.. So i think i will be doing either structural or construction. But i still cant really decide just yet.
Sighh.. first stress on what to study, after selecting civil still must stress on what to pursue WITHIN civil.
But i guess i shouldn't be doing construction because i don't want to be constantly away from home. Like i don't mind going onsite a couple of days, but not moving to a different place for like 5 years.
How did you start off your career ? Few years as a geotechnical and then on to construction engineer?
Btw it's kin here..
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