Retraining Engineers for New Skills and Getting Jobs in a Modern World

The profession as an electrical engineer has undergone many changes in the last 20 years. Many of the design jobs have been outsourced, downsized or eliminated. While there is an oversupply of one type of engineer, there is a significant shortage of another type of engineer. Jobs in New York area represent the pulses of the engineering profession. Defense contractors have moved out of the area but microwave engineers are still in demand. Programmers in Java and C# .NET are especially in acute shortages. In the banking, construction, finance and healthcare industry, project manager is the hottest job title. For the displaced electrical engineers, several options remain. First one is to continue sending resume to the design manufacturing firm and trying to get work. Second one is to start his/her own design engineering firm. Then the problem is marketing. Most engineers dreaded marketing. This new design company is normally shortlived. The third choice is to take courses to get new skills that the modern society needs. To take a course in Java, C# or project management, the cost is $1,200 at a two-year college or $2,500 at a professional training organization. Since 1993, IEEE North Jersey Section provided 16 low-cost courses (specifically on C Programming, C++ Programming, Java Programming, Advanced Java Programming, Project Management, Marketing Research, and C# .NET Programming), training a total 214 engineers/professionals by this author. The collaboration between academia, industry and private firms make it possible to achieve the retraining goals. It generated an inventory of the effective activities, developed the action plan and delivered the end results. The bottom line: successfully retrained engineers to work as Java Programmer, C# programmer, project manager or related title. Some of them obtained jobs as Math teachers in high schools or teaching programming courses in colleges/universities. IEEE North Jersey Section, a volunteer organization, also benefited from the financial gains $50,000 running these courses. The money was used to cover many IEEE North Jersey Section activities. The same program may apply to German engineers, since many of the German firms are also outsourcing and downsizing their engineering workforce. Therefore this paper provides a roadmap for international professional societies to retrain their engineers to fit the needs of the modern world.