For example, you wanna work in a power plant as a professional engineer or a professional researcher at the university?
Which one you like more? and Why?
Really depends on the time, place, and situation at hand. Some people have a definite proclivity toward research while others prefer to find their meaning only in real and viable practical scenarios and would thus be more likely to prefer professional practice. However, for the most of us, I think this preference is largely dependent on the given context at a given time in relation to the dynamic environment in universities and workplaces. Sometimes, it also depends on one's financial situation.
I myself prefer the 1st one. I mean, I like to be a professional engineer more than being a researcher because I think in somewhere like power plant we can use our gained knowledge. But in the university we just learn and learn and there is not sufficient practical and professional works related to our field.
I prefer to be teacher and researcher (which I am) in the University. Teaching gives a feeling of freshness and being young and healthy as every day morning the teacher faces young, fresh, charming and joyful students. Researches give one a chance to serve the society, and to earn name and fame.
Subhash,
We teachers only know of our real age if we get sick. And it is a good source of pleasure seeing young people full of dreams, defending their positions.
Thank you for your answers dear prof...I have experienced both teaching and working in my own field.For me, working has very pleasure anf fun but I also like teaching. I can finally say, working in my own field as an engineer is the 1st priority and teaching is 2nd. How about you dear friends?
Perhaps, some people says its better to work in own field and have research about it. This can be very good but a little difficult , also.
Please share your idea.
Thankyou
Dear Hatef Farshi,
It is your choice and it should be. Take pleasure out of your profession. It comes only if you work excellently, contribute to the organization, drive satisfaction, etc. out of your profession. Actually every individual makes his/her profession joyful, otherwise one can't work.
We, teachers, value so much your decision (Prof. Hatef) that we devote our lives to give you the knowledge needed to be successfull in the field and we also are engaged in researches to have new ways to launch to the field.
Dear Hatef Farshi, i see this more as a discussion on academic research against practical functional organisational profile. i personally had the opportunity to experience both and i feel it is as Prof. Kundu has said. depends on individual.
My view on the topic is that it should not be a discussion about the compartments of academics study and applied business environment. That is situational. It should be about the competencies and preferences an individual has.
I'd like to work for both projects, not at the same time fo my life!
I enjoy working in integrating both fronts, as professional practice in my field of development confirms my theoretical ideas and I find what works and what not.
I was chosen as a volunteer to take up the Research work at my University, and I like this work very much. I am an active Scientist and I have published a good number of journal papers over the past five years. Also, my research collaborators - Christos, Thanh and Ahmad - keep me busy!
There is no perfect match between an individual and one's profession. The truth is that one chooses his/her profession by matching one's talent to a large extent and the market situation. After the choice, when some money and recognition come, they feel that they are the best fit. It is just like fitting a ready made shirt which is obviously an average fit.
Life throws many challenges. We adjust and balance ourselves like a boat in the sea. Enjoy the rowing.
For me, nearing the age of retirement, it is not a matter of what I like or do not like since I have been in my university since 1984. However, had I the chance to re-formulate my history then I would have preferred to work in industrial chemical plant because I was qualified as industrial applied chemist in production of organic polymers & polymer technology but there were/are no real industrial plants in our country so I selected my university career since it was just available.
Nurses are professionals of care. No question you surely have been an excellent teacher, Brenda..
Dear @Hatef, I have used to work in Fossil Power Plant, I have worked at Academia, but, in order to bridge the gap between Academia and Industry, professors/researchers must do both. What I mean is to built yourself/academia in the plant and bring plant to a students! I will attach a photo of mine when I was young engineer in FPP 2x350 MW!
Links between Institute/Academia and Industry are MUST! Of course, in my 60's I do not visit plants so often as I used to do when I was young.
@Ljubomir probably you were as old as Hatef on that picture. He has had some teaching experiences even with English. It is important you do what pleases you as it was already said here.
There are many friends at RG I like to meet - it is a very long list. However, we are from different countries, and it will be difficult to arrange a common place where we can meet like some Research Gate Conference.
Dear Sundarapandian,
A place should not be a problem. The costs would the main issue.
Dear Vilemar Magalhaes - You are absolutely correct!
I hope to meet Indian friends at least in some Conference..
Teaching is a very charming profession. I enjoy teaching and feel fresh and young being with young, smiling, joyful students. I also relish research and consultancy. I do also university governance and heading my institution to give direction to the students and teachers.
Though, I am at the verge of retirement but since my childhood I wanted to be a scientific researcher. Now I am a grumpy old man, may be it was call of the time during Nehruvian era.
I think the best of both worlds is the best option. It's too bad that the system (at least in the USA) tends to separate the scientists and engineers into different programs...
Like Fairouz says, if you don't have both you can't really do anything.
Really depends on the time, place, and situation at hand. Some people have a definite proclivity toward research while others prefer to find their meaning only in real and viable practical scenarios and would thus be more likely to prefer professional practice. However, for the most of us, I think this preference is largely dependent on the given context at a given time in relation to the dynamic environment in universities and workplaces. Sometimes, it also depends on one's financial situation.
Dear Hatef,
I think that after having some years in a profession that makes one a better researcher in the field.
Regards
Carmen Camilleri
Taking part in Conferences is very useful to get to know researchers working in the field. Good to engage collaboration plans with new friends, and it will help us.
Dear Hatef Farshi,
You are professional engineer, enjoy it. After some time, you may change to become a scientific researcher or a teacher in University/Institute provided you upgrade qualifications from engineering graduate to PG to Ph.D. Such up gradation of qualifications enrich your engineering profession. So, you can enjoy, rather relish both.
Dear Hatef, an engineer is a scientist who works on practical problems; resolves, designs, builds, manages etc.. the solutions to the questions addressed. The engineer as a teacher performs lectures on his specialty with the added knowledge from his experience and expertise obtained in industry or factory or enterprise. The engineer as a researcher focuses on the technical, technological or fundamental question from the scientific purpose of knowledge, optimizes the solution, and addresses new questions not solved yet from research interest. The engineer in research area, publishes papers of his researchers, reviews papers, makes talks, and/or organizes conferences...
That is it Subhash. Even if @Hatef is very young, he seems to be a very good professional and he has life spread out ahead of him to experiment anything.
Dear @Hatef and friends, our dear @Fairouz has an excellent thread on engineering and science. I do recommend to visit it!
https://www.researchgate.net/post/What_does_science_means_and_what_does_engineering_stands_for2
Thank you so much my dear Ljubomir for your support, as usual you are a good reference.
Hatef I am surprised with engineering in Tehran and how big the city is.
Sometimes the system decides instead of us. For example, now I am PhD student. In the period between 1st degree and my MSc studies I performed few not very successful attempts to find the engineer work, almost the same situation happened between my MSc studies and PhD studies.
From the other hand no one is promising work in academy after PhD or after post doc. From the other hand I really like the academy and I wanted to do MSc and PhD (and also want to do post) studies so I not upset that I did not find work of the engineer.
As Subhash said, it one is usually forced to work in a Profession when the money is important to us. But once we have reasonably settled family matters, and still believe that there is something that you want to do research upon, then you can swith to it. As Carmen said, they may be better because they will be aware of many things that a beginner wouldn't even think of.
In my case, I worked as a Clinical and Radiation Oncologist for more than thirty years, and then turned to Linguistics. I found that I can do many things that a Linguist or a Biologist cannot, and I am trying to contribute to Biolinguistics, in a way that is quite different from others (Some of the work available in Researchgate)
Of course, I am earning 1/100th of what I would have earned as an Oncologist. But I am getting quite a good work satisfaction; there are too many Oncologists around where as no other biologist-Linguist :)
Narayanan
Dear Hatef
I think both have their own benefits and contribution to the society. A good professional engineer should be always a good scientific researcher.
Better achieve excellence in one profession, what ever it may be. One can't achieve excellence in both or any more. If one want to have experience in another profession, it should be taken as secondary/subsidiary.
Otherwise, excellence no where!
I am reminded of a quote by Bernard Shaw in Man and Superman: “The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” An extremely good Researcher would be highly UNReasonable where as an extremely good Professional would be very Reasonable. Most of us are somewhere in between.
Narayanan
Hamlet: "Suit action to the words, and words to action."
Likewise, we may adapt according to needs of our organization..
I would like to be a habitat engineer who has capacities to re define human habitat considering the eco system services and finding ways and means to improve the eco system resilience. Hence more inclined to scientific researcher.
Dear Atef
Your question is difficult relkativement over my life vocational. Certainly prior to that my choice of engineers to study to do this job. But other considerations both internal and external pushed me to do post-graduate studies to meet the need of my country which at that time had a large deficit researcher teacher can supervise generations increasingly important because at that time my country was one of the countries that had a very young population. I do not regret having used this youth because I have at no time forget the lives sacrificed by our revolutionary seniors independence of my country.
Bests regards
It is very possible to be successful engineer and good researcher at the same time, especially when we do speak about applied research projects! @Fadel, I do like your story!
In my second contribution (upon the invitation of dear Hatef), I like to say that a professional engineer will be smart enough to carry out scientific research in a concerted manner if research is supported by materials & equipment. Without support, it is very difficult to carry out a "meaningful" research.
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering