What Brought You Here

You probably didn’t Google “mechanical engineering dream job.” You typed something closer to:

• “Why do mechanical engineers get paid less than other engineers?”
  
  
• “Mechanical engineer doing paperwork all day.”
  
  
• “Is an ME degree still worth it?”
  
  
• “Can I switch from mechanical to project management?”
  
  
• “Why is there no remote work for mechanical engineers?”
  
  
• “Why do technicians advance faster than MEs?”
  
  
• “Mechanical engineering oversupply.”
  
  
• “Entry level ME job needs 3–5 years experience.”
  
  
• “Why does my ME job feel like babysitting vendors?”
  
  
• “Regret choosing mechanical engineering.”

If any of that sounds like you, you’re in the right place. This blog exists for the students staring at a Thermo problem set wondering if a fifth year is normal, for the new grads stuck in supplier portals and ECO gates, and for the mid-career MEs who can quote torque specs from memory but can’t get promoted out of “support.”

The pattern is simple, and it’s specific to ME. The field is oversupplied, the work gets measured in checklists, and the visible credit flows somewhere else. The day-to-day skews toward coordination and compliance, while the hands-on fixes belong to technicians and the strategic calls belong to management. When budgets get tight, the jobs that require a badge and a plant badge beat the ones that could be done from a laptop. It adds up.

You don’t have to take it on faith. Start with these:

Reason #1: The Field Is Oversaturated - where the math dries out the optimism.

Reason #2: The Four-Year Degree That Takes Five (or Six) - why the prereq chains stall you before ME even starts.

Reason #9: You Will Spend More Time in PowerPoint Than in Design - what your calendar looks like once you’re hired.

Reason #10: The Technician Learns What You Actually Need - who solves the problem while you write the report.

Reason #13: No Guild, No Protection - the accreditation stamp that doesn’t protect your career.

Reason #20: The Plant Picks Your Zip Code - why “remote optional” rarely includes you.

Reason #32: You Live in the Gap and Reason #33: The Report Is the Product - the part of the job no brochure mentions.

What you’ll find here is not outrage bait. It’s the plain, workaday reality of ME. Oversupply makes hiring stingy. Entry-level demands experience that internships rarely provide. Broad curricula sell “versatility,” then employers insist on a narrow niche you don’t have. On the job, you chase risk down paperwork: DFMEA churn, DV/PV queues, supplier certs that expire on Fridays. The people who touch the fix get the story; the people who steer the roadmap get the promotion. You are told this is flexibility. It feels like being stretched.

If you’re a student, read this before you add another semester and another loan. If you’re already in the chair, use it to name what’s happening. If you left, your comments help the next person see the pattern sooner.

Share your story, push back, disagree. Just be honest. That’s the only way this field gets described as it actually is, not as it appears in the brochure.

If you’ve ever wondered whether the problem is you, it isn’t. It’s the pipeline, the market, and the way ME work is carved up. Better to know now than five years from now. It's dangerous to go alone: take this.