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Volume 3 No.3 Fall 1999 |
ISSN# 1523-9926 |
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Volume 3 No.3 Fall 1999 |
ISSN# 1523-9926 |
Gabriel
D. Alungbe
Department of Engineering Technology
Central Connecticut State University
New Britain, CT
Abstract
A survey of alumni was conducted in the spring of 1997 to determine professional progress of graduates of civil/construction engineering technology program at Central Connecticut State University. This article summarizes the results of the survey which shows that graduates with Bachelor of Science in engineering technology degree have excellent opportunities in their professional careers, and most work as project engineers, project managers and civil engineers. The survey also shows that the current salary of graduates range from $23,000 to over $50,000 per annum.
Introduction
Engineering technology education focuses mainly on the application of engineering, science, and mathematics leading to an award of associate degree in science after two years of study or a Bachelor of Science in engineering technology (BSET). Some universities offer a Master of Science in engineering technology (MSET). Central Connecticut State University (CCSU) currently offers the BSET degree. Plans are afoot to offer the MSET degree in the near future. High quality of engineering technology program is ensured through accreditation by Technology Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (TAC of ABET). The engineering technology disciplines are numerous. The disciplines offered in CCSU are civil, industrial systems, manufacturing, and mechanical. The fifth discipline, composites and polymer materials engineering technology, was added to the curriculum in the fall of 1998. The mechanical discipline was established in 1993. The first three disciplines were among the first established in CCSU. The civil and manufacturing programs have received prior accreditation that ended in spring 1998. Consequently, the department applied for reaccreditation for the civil and manufacturing programs and accreditation for the new mechanical program. In preparation for the visit, a survey was sent out to graduates of the programs in spring 1997 (see Appendix A). This paper summarizes the results of the survey to show job opportunities for engineering technology graduates with BSET degree with emphasis in civil/construction from CCSU.
The
Survey
About 110 students received a BSET degree with
specialization in civil between 1990 and 1996 from Central Connecticut State
University. Survey forms were
sent to the graduates in February 1997 using the contact information provided
by the Alumni Office in CCSU. The
18 (about 16% response rate) that responded were all male, 1 African-American,
1 Hispanic, and 16 Caucasian. Figure
1 shows the number of respondents by race.
Some of the information requested by the survey included (i) year of graduation, (ii) starting and current job title, (iii) starting and current salary, and (iv) current responsibilities. Table 1 summarizes the hiring history by presenting the graduation year, starting and current job title(s), starting and current salaries and assigned responsibilities.
Table 1: Hiring History for Civil Engineering Technology
Program Graduates
|
No |
Year Graduated |
Job Title (Year Started)
|
Salary |
Current Responsibilities(in graduate’s own words) |
||
|
Starting |
Current |
Starting |
Current |
|||
|
1 |
1990 |
Senior Bridge
Inspector (1988) |
Project Engineer (1992) |
$46,000 |
$52,000 |
Heavy/Highway
Construction: Track Quantities,
schedule, cost reports, extra work,
job meetings, purchasing, sub contracting, sub payments, letters,
resolve problems, record delays/claims. |
|
2 |
1990 |
Transportation Project Engineer (1990) |
Transportation Planner
II (1992) |
$32,000 |
$45,000 |
Conduct
transportation corridor studies, preliminary design of highway
components, use CADD for design, supervise two planners. |
|
3 |
1991 |
Resident/ Project Engineer (1991) |
Project Manager (1994) |
$27,000 Plus bonus |
$48,000 Plus bonus |
Developing
contracts with subs, administering work force/work load, scheduling,
estimating, purchasing, etc. |
|
4 |
1991 |
Field
Engineer-- Electrical (1992) |
President (1995) |
Not
provided |
Not
provided |
Design/Engineering
(Architectural & woodworking). Also “running the company”, i.e.
proposals, billing, etc. |
|
5 |
1991 |
Concrete
Inspector (n.a.) |
Not
provided |
$18,000 |
Not
provided |
Compression
testing of concrete and grout samples; rebar inspection. |
|
6 |
1992 |
Construction
Inspector (1989) |
Project
Engineer III (19989) |
$31,000
plus overtime |
$50,000
plus overtime |
Conduct
investigations for department projects similar to EPA phase I and II in
the Department of Environmental Compliance Division. |
|
7 |
1992 |
Project
Scheduler (1992) |
Project
Manager (1994) |
$24,000 |
$45,000
to $50,000 |
Construction
oversight and CM services on $20 million school addition and renovation
project. |
|
8 |
1992 |
Construction
Engineer (1992) |
Building
& Fire Safety Inspector II (1994) |
$24,000 |
$39,781 |
Licensure
and certification inspection of all Nutmeg Homes, hospitals, group
homes, clinics, and healthcare facilities for compliance to building
fire codes. |
|
9 |
1992 |
Plant
Engineer (1993) |
Facilities
Engineer (1995) |
$45,000 |
$35,000 |
Manage
buildings, install phone system, three LAN and WAN for the company in
all four US locations. |
|
10 |
1993 |
Engineering
Technologist (1994) |
Engineering
Technologist (1994) |
$20,000 |
$23,000 |
Head
of CAD Department, surveyor’s assistant, and engineering assistant. |
|
11 |
1993 |
CAD
Coordinator (1994) |
CAD
Coordinator (1994) |
$35,000
plus overtime |
Not
provided |
Maintain
working drawing files and database for design and construction
departments. |
|
12 |
1993 |
Quality
Control Inspector (1993) |
Estimator (1996) |
$25,000 |
$30,000 |
Quantity
take-off, expediting, and drafting. |
|
13 |
1994 |
Engineering
Intern (1994) |
Maintenance
Planner I (1996) |
$33,000 |
$42,000 |
Estimating
and purchasing of goods and services for maintenance projects. |
|
14 |
1994 |
Transportation Engineer (1988) |
Transportation Engineer (1988) |
Not
provided |
$45,000 |
Chief
Inspector; Construction inspection, bridge load analysis, traffic and
highway design. |
|
15 |
1994 |
Assistant Proj. Manager (1994) |
Assistant Proj. Manager (1994) |
Not
provided |
Not
provided |
Procure
materials, address/direct requests for information, coordinate
construction activities and review requests. |
|
16 |
1994 |
Engineer Intern (1994) |
Transportation Engineer I (1995) |
$35,000 |
$45,000 |
Monitor
contractor construction activities to ensure that the work done meets
the requirements of the contract documents. Maintain all project files. |
|
17 |
1995 |
Hydrologist Trainee (1996) |
Civil Engineer (1996) |
$25,000 |
$27,000 |
Design
subdivisions, retail development, septic tank and perform drainage
analysis. |
|
18 |
1995 |
Data/CADD Operator (1994) |
Civil Engineer & Land Surveyor (1996) |
$29,000 |
$33,000 |
Develop
site plans, design drainage, construction layout and conduct land
surveys. |
|
19 |
1995 |
Engineering Assistant (1989) |
Engineering Assistant (1989) |
Not
provided |
$42,000 |
No
description provided. |
According to the survey 9 (50%) of the respondents were working for private consulting civil engineering firms and contractors, 6 (33%) were working for the Connecticut Department of Transportation (ConnDOT), 2 (11%) run their own consulting firms, and 1 (6%) was working for City Government. Figure 2 shows where graduates with BSET degree are employed.
The current responsibilities of civil engineering
technology graduates from CCSU are presented verbatim in the last column of
Table 1. It is obvious from the
responses that the graduates are working as engineers/technologists, project
engineers and managers, estimators, designers, CAD coordinators and
inspectors. Table 2 shows the
employment functions of civil engineering technology graduates.
Table 2: Employment
Functions of Civil ET Graduates
|
Employment Function or Title |
Percent of Responses |
||
|
Start |
Current |
||
|
1 |
President |
0.0 |
5.3 |
|
2 |
Project Engineers |
10.5 |
10.5 |
|
3 |
Project managers |
5.3 |
15.8 |
|
4 |
Engineers/Technologists |
31.6 |
36.8 |
|
5 |
Estimators/Schedulers |
5.3 |
5.3 |
|
6 |
CAD Coordinators/Trainee/Intern |
26.3 |
5.3 |
|
7 |
Inspectors/Planners |
21.0 |
15.8 |
One respondent did not indicate his/her current
employment function.
A paired comparison method was used to compare the
starting and current salary of each respondent. The average (arithmetic mean) starting salary for graduates
is $29,933 versus the current salary of $40,285 which represent an increase of
$10,352 or about 35%. The maximum
and minimum starting salaries were $46,000 and $18,000, respectively.
The maximum and minimum current salaries are $52,000 and $23,000,
respectively. The current maximum
salary represents a $6,000 (13%) increase over the starting maximum salary
while the current minimum salary represents $5,000 (28%) increase over the
starting minimum salary. The
standard deviation of the starting salaries is $18,111 versus $8,775 for
current salaries. Another measure
of central tendency for the salary data was median (middlemost value).
The median starting and current salaries are $29,000 and $42,000,
respectively. The mode (most
frequent) starting and current salaries are $24,000 and $45,000, respectively.
Figure 3 shows a plot of the start and current salary.
Information on the employment
status at graduation, primary source for obtaining employment, duties within
six months after graduation, number of employers had since graduation,
professional registration status and membership in professional organizations
were obtained from the survey and summarized below.
Table
3 shows the employment status of graduates at graduation.
Table
3. Employment Status at
Graduation
|
Employment
Status at Graduation |
Percent Response |
|
|
A |
Had
one or more offers at employment |
12.5 |
|
B |
Accepted
an offer of employment |
37.5 |
|
C |
Had
interviews but no offers of employment |
25.0 |
|
D |
Joined
the military |
0.0 |
|
E |
Had
not yet sought employment |
25.0 |
One
respondent was already employed at graduation.
The responses to the primary source where graduates
obtained employment are summarized in Table 4 below.
Table 4.
Primary Source for Obtaining Employment
|
Primary Source for Obtaining Employment |
Percent Response |
|
|
A |
CCSU
Placement Office |
0.0 |
|
B |
Employment Agency |
11.1 |
|
C |
Job
advertisements |
44.5 |
|
D |
Letters
to employers |
33.3 |
|
E |
Other |
11.1 |
Table 5 presents the summary of what graduates
did within six months after graduating from CCSU.
Table 5.
What did you do within six months after graduating from CCSU?
|
Activity
within six months of graduating from CCSU |
Percent Response |
|
|
A |
Obtained
position in my major field of study |
62.5 |
|
B |
Turned
down job offer in my major field of study |
0.0 |
|
C |
Unable
to obtain employment in my major field of study |
37.5 |
|
D |
Joined
the military |
0.0 |
|
E |
Enrolled
in graduate school full time |
0.0 |
The breakdown of number of professional organizations
that graduates currently hold membership is presented on Table 6 below.
Table 6.
Number of professional organizations you currently hold membership
|
No.
of professional organizations you hold membership |
Percent Response |
|
|
A |
None |
50.0 |
|
B |
One |
37.5 |
|
C |
Two |
12.5 |
