According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, mechanical engineering, which includes fields such as robotics, is ranked fifth on its list of most in-demand bachelor's degrees for its "Job Outlook 2013" survey, right after finance, computer and information science, accounting and business administration/management.

"Since mechanical engineering is one of the broadest and most versatile of the engineering professions, mechanical engineering graduates are expected to have the shortest post-graduation job searches, particularly in Houston and Texas, where the economy is burgeoning at a much higher speed than the national average," said Dong Liu, associate professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Houston.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, mechanical engineers should experience faster than average growth due to their remaining involved in various manufacturing industries - specifically transportation equipment and machinery manufacturing.

A key factor in this development is the growing demand for the machines these engineers design, as well as the emergence of new technologies.


Robotics, a branch of mechanical engineering, also is gaining momentum as a growing number of small companies develop commercial robots and even larger companies explore robotic technology.
"[This is] resulting in increasing opportunities for employment, not just in research labs and oil and gas, but in other manufacturing markets - and more companies are expanding in the robotics realm," said Marcia O'Malley, associate professor of mechanical engineering and materials science at Rice University.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics also notes that career opportunities will be best for those mechanical and robotics engineers with training in the latest software tools, particularly for computational design and simulation.

Colleges are meeting this industry need for more highly qualified technical engineers by providing curriculums that provide students with the opportunity to learn how to think creatively and logically, and how to use newfound knowledge to address complex problems.

"The core courses a typical mechanical engineering student will take include courses in natural sciences (physics and chemistry), mathematics, computer technology, engineering analysis, experimental methods, machine design, control, materials and mechanics and thermal sciences (thermodynamics, fluid mechanics and heat transfer)," said J.R. Rao, associate professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Houston.

Rao added that, through these courses, students will acquire capabilities to apply the techniques, skills and modern engineering tools to solve real-world engineering problems; to communicate and function effectively; and to engage in life-long learning and, eventually, the ability to secure, to maintain and to change professional employment or gain placement in post-graduate education, if and when desired.

While an advanced degree in mechanical or robotic engineering is certainly indispensible, employers also look for those who are skilled and proven problem solvers.

"Mechanical and robotic engineering students learn how to approach a problem, generate solutions, evaluate solutions and support their decisions with engineering fundamentals," O'Malley said. "Robotics students gain additional training in systems integration - making the computer control work with the sensors and electronics, and the mechanical system, all coordinated together. This level of integration requires interdisciplinary knowledge, which is a strength of those trained in robotics - or more broadly, in mechatronics."

Liu added that mechanical engineering students are trained to have comprehensive skill sets, which prove useful in professional settings ranging from conventional areas in aerospace, oil and gas, automotive, manufacturing, and wind energy, to cutting-edge research in medicine and nanotechnology.

"The ... versatility of their engineering education has prepared the mechanical engineering students well to be a globally competitive workforce and citizens, which also makes them attractive to the employers," Rao said.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Texas has the third-highest employment of mechanical engineers, as well as the state with the fourth-highest pay, with an annual mean wage of $92,470.

"Recognized worldwide for its energy industry as well as for biomedical research and aeronautics, Houston offers enormous opportunities for mechanical engineers that cannot be easily found in other places," Liu said.

"Our information shows that offers to mechanical engineering students in Houston are about $15,000 higher than national salaries reported by the NACE," said Vita Como, senior director of professional development at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering Career Center.For robotics in particular, there are many career opportunities in Houston.

"There are great opportunities for robotics engineers with oil and gas (remote underwater vehicles); with NASA Johnson Space Center, as they have a Dexterous Robotics Lab and work with the space station robotic arms, training astronauts to use the arms; and even opportunities in medical robotics and rehabilitation robotics," O'Malley said.