@op,

you should know that the oil and gas sector seem to be the only truly functioning engineering sector. close to it, is IT and telecom. the power sector has not woken up as it should. We know the government is trying to do something in the power and automotive sectors hopefully things will change.


In career, there must be rewards. I mean financial rewards. remove the financial reward in oil and gas and it'll start crawling. in career people experience burnouts; the finance keeps you going. Money motivates. Our systems looks down on engineering jobs. how many engineers really earn well. In my organization, we have lots of incompetent folks in the office doing nothing, but earn better than the engineers. some are giving official cars yet the engineer who do the core jobs are not well compensated. Again, money is a motivator. Remove the money in politics and see people uninterested.

put money in a sector and tell me if it wouldn't do well with committed individuals. I've seen a Germany trained Nigerian engineer going into buying and supplies. He needs to pay his bills. You can't pay HR officer 120k and pay and engineer 60k in what supposed to be an engineering organization.


guy think am na......

I'd rather go into the oil and gas. That's the sector that values engineers.


You can't be talking of technology advancement when the careers is not rewarding financially.


Put money in palm wine tapping, and that will be the biggest profession in the world, with daily research and innovations in it.

Very inspiring & challenging, thats wat we support to be talking the act of applying scientific principles into practice & not discrepacy between hnd & bsc

Nice piece

Hmmmm Op, I admire your courage, I will tell you something. If you are still in school ; start planning your business and get people to believe in dream. I appreciate your write up.

Besides, I left a Chevron job because I wasnt satisfy with their way of life. Its preditable, risky and monotonous in Nature.

I choose the way of entrepreneurship, I provide power solutions and alternative energy and am satisfied, am happy with your mind set,

May God bless you and inspires you more.

Tombs Up for you.

hollandis, I'm still waiting for the links

Nice thread o.p, but that won't stop my dream of working in an oil&gas firm.

I've learnt Never to measure the height of a mountain until you have reached the top. Then you will see how low it was.

Every height is attainable it all depends on ur attitude towards it.

#teamEngineering

Poverty and lack of diversity are the key reasons. Our creme of the crop engineers who really should be more discriminating are guilty of this. All my chemical and mechanical engineering peers who were top of their class ended up in O and G. The typical 4.4+ CGPA engineeering student wants to end up in oil and gas. People should do things that fascinate them or give them a platform to make a difference in society; money should not be the only factor.

Chrisbenogor:
One of those things that needs to be driven from the top.

Exactly why I made mention of the two Engineering bodies in the write-up. How do we go about it and make them realise they're not living up to what they claim they stand for?

Very very beautiful piece OP.

I'll sum the rush for oil and gas in a caption-"Get money,earn respect".

Itz Nigerian mentality;itz all abt money.
Datz y pple can spend 6yrs in d university studying medicine and jump into politics without practising.
We are to blame for allowing it fester.We accord respect in a ceremony to d person wit the "biggest" cars.Rich pple sit in front in churches and oda gatherings.
Tell me wat would be paramount in the minds of the young ones and the less privileged ones-"I need to make dis money".That is d dream of d average nigerian-even if it means dumping their profession.

You hear things like-no be invention I go chop

Let me reiterate-that was a good write-up @OP

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR SCHOOL LEAVERS, Click on KNOWBASE on my signature below to know more about your preferred course of study. Successful Career are also invited to contribute to the information on Knowbase to help guide our young ones aright.

What is a Career?
The definitions of the words JOB and OCCUPATION will assist in driving home the concept of career. Find their definitions below.

Job
A job is a paid position requiring a group of specific attributes and skills that enable a person to perform certain roles within an organization either on a full time or part time basis for a short or long duration.

Occupation
An occupation is defined as a group of similar jobs found in different industries or organisations.


Career
A career is the sequence and variety of occupations (paid or unpaid) which one undertakes throughout a lifetime.Career guidance has not been given the needed attention in Nigeria. The effects of this are undergraduates who end up as drop outs or graduate with poor grades owing to their inability to cope with their course work.
Ironically, when such students are put in the right field, they tend to perform well. Many factors come to play in choosing a career, as the definition above highlights career as a lifelong process.

What course do you intend to study? find out more about your preferred course - Click on KNOWBASE on my signature below, then Click on CAREER link on KNOWBASE PORTAL.

not bad it's just that you didnt write much about chemical engineers

Feraz:
International Space Station
[img]http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/image/spacecraft/iss.jpg[/img]

Dockwise Blue Marlin




MRI
[img]http://www.cedars-sinai.edu/Patients/Programs-and-Services/Imaging-Center/For-Patients/Exams-by-Procedure/MRI/Images/MRI-scan-room.jpg[/img]

Would you blame them ? when their lecturers are competing to consult for the oil and gas industry too . its a sad situation with our acadmic institutions , where even our Nigerian industries cannot make any of our instituttions a R AND D centre . we need to start getting it right from the top not the bottom this time. I was on a thread where an agric engineer wanted to work in the oil industry , he should catch fishes offshore I guess . .... and then you begin to wonder what motivation he had to study agric engineering if he knew he never wanted a career there. well , I think a solution is crashing down this oil sector and I see that happen soon.I think we would wake up to thefact that development lies in diversity. its not just the engineer thing , its the average Nigerian mentality. tell me one rich nigerian without an investment in oil directly or indirectly and thats why it seems we are not growing. likes of bill , warren , slim and donald are not oil oriented if am right. .... our banks release funds and facilities easily when they hear a project is oil and gas related than when it is a fresh idea from an ambitious folk . MONEY is not only in the OIL industry.

though I hate long Posts but it worth it

WoodcrestMayor:
Very very beautiful piece OP.

I'll sum the rush for oil and gas in a caption-"Get money,earn respect".

Itz Nigerian mentality;itz all abt money.
Datz y pple can spend 6yrs in d university studying medicine and jump into politics without practising.
We are to blame for allowing it fester.We accord respect in a ceremony to d person wit the "biggest" cars.Rich pple sit in front in churches and oda gatherings.
Tell me wat would be paramount in the minds of the young ones and the less privileged ones-"I need to make dis money".That is d dream of d average nigerian-even if it means dumping their profession.

You hear things like-no be invention I go chop

Let me reiterate-that was a good write-up @OP

True talk , everyone looking for the fast way.

Oil na oil.
Gas na gas.

Well said op....
I think it's a case of the end justifies the means ideology among our engineers
its not their fault anyway, the system has been washed down and no longer hold reward for hard work.

if only things were as they should be engineering is a profession that should be envied

#teamengineer

@Op you nailed it!!!!!!!!!

I am proud to be a Civil Engineer

destino24:
once i saw engineering at the beginning of the post, i read it through to the end without realizing it was a long post. nice piece op


#ProudEngineeringStudent

I love this thread..decided to quote u..bc if I jst rply nobody wil notice my comment..*coughs* I also love engineers...I tink dy r smart..not all shaa..

Feraz:
It is a well-known fact that when the average Nigerian undergraduate studying Engineering is asked what path of career to choose from after leaving school, the person echoes “Oil/gas”. When you ask the person the reason for choosing that path, they have various reasons majorly being the pay for entry level is very attractive and other reasons like “the stress in the oil/gas industries is not much compared to other professions. Imagine sitting in the office most times doing nothing and at the end of the month, your phone rings and you see alert of N1.2m. I mean, who wouldn’t want to live the good life? Hahaha!!!” and it gets you wondering what good life? Is it a life where you provide your own water supply, your own security, your own electricity etc.? Is that what one terms a good life?

From the above, one wonders if the only branch of Engineering being studied in Nigeria is Petroleum Engineering. In my varsity, there are various branches which include – Mechanical, Electrical/Electronics, Civil, Chemical, Computer, Petroleum and Production Engineering. The same can be said of other universities in Nigeria as some offer other branches of Engineering in addition to the above. If various branches of Engineering is being offered, then why the oil/gas mentality? We have so focused in the oil/gas industries thereby leaving other branches to go comatose.

According to Wikipedia, Engineering is defined thus “Engineering (from Latin ingenium, meaning "cleverness" and ingeniare, meaning "to contrive, devise" is the application of scientific, economic, social, and practical knowledge in order to invent, design, build, maintain, and improve structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes”. From the above definition, it is seen that Engineering goes beyond the oil/gas industries.

Here is an excerpt from Greatman5’s post and I quote – He also goes ahead to say (Apologies to my friends in the Medical fields. I mean no disrespect to your noble profession).

Looking at Mechanical Engineering for example as that is my field, there are fields to specialize in like Robotics, Aerospace, Aeronautics, Energy, Automobile, Automotive, Marine etc. but you wonder why we do not have so many firms that focus on the above listed. Just recently, India joined the leagues of nations that have sent space probes to Mars and you wonder, where are the Mechanical Engineers in Nigeria? This same country also make various machines and export to nations and it was not long they started doing all these. USA has the likes of NASA, Boeing and other Engineering firms not related to the oil/gas industry. Japan the same with Toyota, Nissan, Kawasaki Heavy Industries etc. What about South Korea? We use their product Hyundai and they also design and build ships for nations. These are just few examples and they all have one thing in common, they are not related to the oil/gas industries. What crime is it if we as Mechanical Engineers come together and create our technology to match our climate while designing also, for other nations?

We may cite Innoson, ANAMCO and other firms the government has allowed to set up industries in Nigeria as examples but is that enough? We are well aware of the power issues we face as a nation. Energy development is still in its infancy stage in the country so why must we kill ourselves looking for a career in the oil/gas industry? Energy is the second most lucrative industry in the world after oil/gas so whatever happened to advancing this sector? This is time for us to come together and develop our power sector instead of relying on others to do so for us. We have the resources to push for constant power supply and other means of using energy but why is it not so? What of the ergonomics aspect of Engineering? Or do we think the way we seat and relax aren’t thought about? The chairs we use in the office, who do we think design them?

How about having firms in Nigeria that can rival that of Lockheed Martins, Rolls-Royce and co? Producing just engines to power automobiles (planes, cars, trains etc.) could employ nothing less than 10, 000. If opportunities abound in these, why do we rush for the oil/gas industries? Is it wrong to have a stake in the International Space Station? We always want to work in the oil/gas industry forgetting that some of the equipment needed there is designed and manufactured by the Mechanical Engineers. Just some days ago, we heard of the Dockwise Blue Marlin and opened our mouths in awe. Was that vessel not built by Engineers who saw a need for improving the transportation of water bodies instead of wanting to work in the oil/gas industry?

We should also not forget the bio-medical field where equipment like Magnetic Resonance Imaging - MRI, CT, Ultrasound machine, X-ray machine, Anesthetic machine etc. are designed to specifications, taking into consideration the materials to be used for the above since it deals with life which are all manufactured by the different branches of Engineering (components like the controls, the nuts, bolts, gears, shafts, the programming aspect of it, the micro-controllers to be embedded etc.)

Coming down to other fields like Elect/Elect, Computer and others, is it a crime if Nigeria is known to produce the best chips, processors and fiber optics cables in the world? When are we going to have our own Silicon Valley? What about having a large conglomerate like Schneider? What about aspiring to be like Dell, HP, Lenovo, ASUS, Acer etc.? We all use their phone – Samsung, even argue about how it is better than Nokia and we are yet to make one. I have a friend, my set mate who is already thinking of setting up her own electronics firm and believe me, with dedication to it, she’s going to be big.

The Civil Engineering in Nigeria is one field I must commend as they have tried as can be seen in the various constructions they are involved in but it still not enough. I believe we can still take this branch of Engineering higher by designing and constructing buildings that will make the world wow at our structures.

There was a topic I created about students’ inventions and check all; none has to do with oil/gas. What they all invented is something the world will come to later appreciate; inventions like 3D nail polish, the odorless toilet, the spidey suit, the gel that stops blood flow, the nail polish that tells if your drink is spiked etc. and they are all undergraduates.

Most times, we tend to insult our brothers across the Niger River but most are self-employed and not roaming the streets with this oil/gas mentality making things that we need. Things ranging from clothes to shoes to spare parts (we say it is substandard but have we ever thought of getting into this business and forming a firm while raising production to international standards instead of castigating them? I am not encouraging substandard products by the way).

And do not get me started with the supposed Engineering bodies – COREN and NSE of which I honestly do not see their functions in Nigeria except to depend on government handout and bribe while forgetting their primary function which is to advance Engineering in Nigeria. I have not seen or heard of any event being sponsored by them to aid students’ interest in the field of Engineering. Check the contents of both websites and tell me what you think. Check the contents of the Energy Dept. of Nigeria. No news on innovation except the never-ending promises of the government.

If we really must advance Engineering in Nigeria, we need to do away with the mentality of working only in the oil/gas industry and focus on other aspects of Engineering that will help us solve the numerous problems we as a nation have; which will put us in the developed nations of the world while according us the respect we deserve and this in turn will make our African brothers pick up and realize their potentials reducing wars and dependency on aids being offered us by nations.

N.B: Apologies for any typos here as this was written under the influence of garri and egusi soup. Also, for anything I am ignorant about in the above write-up, please, do correct me as I am still acquiring knowledge. Then again, I am not generalizing in the above write-up neither am I saying one should not work in the oil/gas sector because every branch of Engineering is needed in the sector. Thank you.

I rep electrical/electronics osheeeee future nasa astronaut

nomabeeee:
I love this thread..decided to quote u..bc if I jst rply nobody wil notice my comment..*coughs* I also love engineers...I tink dy r smart..not all shaa..

Not all engineers are smart ,thats why we still have graduates in engineering with third class and pass which should not be in any case. there is the STEM graduates : science, technology , engineering , mathematics ..... this set of graduates are usually the best set of individuals the reverse is thecase here... its that time we wake up to doing what we enjoy doing not what the other neighbour does because he makes money.

Youngsage:
damn!




Too long



Wait im coming

This is why you could not do well and ended up graduating with "Certificate Of Attendance". Lol.

Engineering? wish i studied one (though i am still aspiring for marine aspect of it). I talk geosciences, i talk earth and it beauty in nature, i talk oceans, seas, earth and marine sediments, i talk shipping etc. That's who i represent.

Welldone Op!!!!
Lovely writeup. As a mechanical engineering graduate and I must confess the oil and gas mentality is also in me. I also have had a deep thought regarding this issue for some time I must say. The main issue at hand has to do with our Research and Development system. All they do is rely and rely and rely on Govt funding and when that comes in gbam!!!! We all know what happens to d fund.
Going to ur topic again, most of we youths in Nigeria especially the Engineers refuse on developing our mental capacity but rather focus on how to make a good life @ d end and when that doesn't go our way, we blame it on the Govt, aside from that some of us don't know how to go about developing our ideas. I for one have had big interest in renewable energy (Biotechnology), like creating a bio-refinery in Nigeria but don't even know how to go about it.

.

I commend the OP for this article, you did brilliantly and speak my mind, sometimes I get sick as an Engineering student seeing how backward we are as the gi....ant of Africa.

Many students are not driven with passion to study Engineering, most are driven with the money in the sector.

Most departments of engineering are filled with repeated Project topics over the years.

Many Civil Engineering students will settle for a project where they will only do Traffic studies than to carry out designs and find solution to problems.

NSE and COREN are not helping matter.

SCIENCE EXPOs are dead

TECHNICAL SCHOOLS no longer exist.

Government find foreign company's more trustworthy than our indigenous ones.

Power sector is half dead.

I think all in all the government have a lot to do in this sector.

#PROUD TECHNOLOGIST.

Feraz, I'm glad you brought this topic up. Its an eye opener and I'm glad about that. I believe this is a wake up call to everyone out there to set sail, achieve something, do something you'll be remembered for. The reason why politicians and job employers still play pranks with graduate and why some of our graduates are looked down upon is because they felt they've studied hard, and now its time to enjoy government money or white collar jobs. This is a worrying trend because I know engineers and other technical based experts are suppose to be on the field coordinating things think deeply and create new things, bring up new innovative stuffs rather than justling for Bank jobs, oil and gas company jobs or other jobs.
I have a friend who is a 1st class engineer still carrying certificates and jumping from one interview to another seeking white collar job. The last time I spoke with him I told him its not where you are employed that matter, what matters is what's your vision, to be a slave or a master, you've got to choose.
Now folks would criticize me for saying out there in the developed world there's no much opportunity to start up something new, grow, expand and become a force to be reckoned with. But trust me, there are much more people in the developed society who are much more experienced than you, have much more at their disposal than you. You are at a greater disadvantage because you're an alien, you're not part of their government's plan. The only advantage you have there is favourable policies.
I recalled back then when I dropped my resignation letter at my parents firm because I wanted to start achieving my dream of going into the building construction industry. They were shocked and offended. But today, I am doing better than they expected.


To you youth corpers, I learnt you guys are now forced to learn Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurial Development (SAED) think well, don't underestimate that scheme use that NYSC/SAED scheme to your benefit. Get to know more people, acquire as much skills as you can, save some cash, start up something when you're done. Be your employer start from somewhere.

To you Engineers, architects, builders, teachers, scientists, etc wake up stop dreaming and wasting time thinking about working in shell, instead think about how to make a name for your self, carve a niche and people would rush come find you. Let Dangote, MRS oil, mittal steel co pvt., microsoft, globacom, etc be an inspiration for you to break sail and don't let anything, anyone kill your dream. If you can dream it, you can be it.

I just had to write this to encourage people to achieve something.

good write up bro,but u he forgotten something here there is no enably system that can make a young engineer fully achieve his potential in this country av u forgotten how our class rooms are dilipitated with audatd books,no funds for research no light,as q chemical engineering I wana do research,develop new technology majorly in nano technology or biomedical engineering, but they will won't kill my dream man go soon run out of the country,cos Nigeria is an insane society if mark,gates,Steve were a Nigerian,we will have a buried talent,on oil and gas what do u expect, they pay more without doing nothing,if u have or way op,jet out of nija,u can always come back and contribute or quota, Nigeria is not changing soon with those clueeeeeeleess leaders we have up there

Proudly an Engine Boy!

dont mind schools like futo which all they do is to give assignments, exams and fail students

Another commonsense post on Nairaland!

If our engineers did what the OP is proposing...Nigeria will beome an industrial superpower.

But Nigerians want their share of the oil candy at eight am every morning, thank you very much.

Oil is a CURSE.

(p.s-1.2million naira a month? Are you kidding me?)