Defining a "Linux Engineer"

[Tom Burke]

Here's the deal.  For me to *legally* call myself an engineer, I have two
options.

1st option, go to an ABET accredited 4 yr university.  Pass the FE exam.
Work in industry for a minimum of 4 years.  Get several "real" engineers to
write letters of recommendation, so I can apply to take the PE exam.  Then
I must pass the PE exam.  Then, I have to pay for licensure on an annual
basis, and I am required to take a minimum number of continuing education
classes every year, as well.

2nd option is pass a 2yr engineering-related degree, and be able to show
work that is of equivalent "stature"

The engineer title is not given by some hoity-toity agency, but is issued
by state governments, and implies that the bearer has some certain minimum
level of credentials, and is then liable for any work he or she might
perform.  It also gives that person "sign-off" authority (and all attendant
obligations) in designs/projects that require some level of oversight.

Most states have reciprocity, so it's not so bad to go from one to the
other, but I don't know that this is universally true.  This is also the
same between countries.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Now, what you're doing may well be systems engineering in the classical
sense.  If you are architecting large systems, doingthe math behingd them,
load calculations, traffic handling, storage requirements, etc, and then
documenting, testing, and writing the reports to sell off - then, indeed,
you are doing systems engineering.

*HOWEVER*

I ran into this problem while looking for a new job relatively recently -
the term "systems engineer" has come to mean "network administrator" to
most businesses, it seems.  I would go in for an interview and shock them
with my salary requirements, and then when I explain what I do, they look
at me like I have a third eye.

The problem is that there has been a ...  i dunno, dilution? of the job
description, making it a lot harder to find work for everyone involved in
the process, and a lot of time wasted because of it.  I don't deny that you
are doing "engineering"  I do it, too, even though I'm not a licensed
"engineer"

However, *legally* speaking, it has been drilled in to me that I am not
allowed to call myself an "engineer" by title, as it is also a breach of
ethics through misrepresentation.

whatever.



On Fri, Oct 26, 2012 at 7:27 AM, Matty Sarro <msarro at gmail.com> wrote:

> You realize that a lot of us "network" and "computer" folk have put in just
> as much time and effort as a practicing engineer to learn our craft, right?
> And your dismissive tone makes it pretty clear you've never worked on large
> systems - things supporting 30 - 40 million customers (the things I build).
> Sorry that doesn't make me cool enough to be part of your elite club. I'll
> worry about getting certified when I'm not actually engineering things.
>
> No, I'm not a licensed engineer. But I have corrected IETF and IEEE EE's
> with phds and patents who have several published rfc's between when it
> comes to system engineering. I have every right to my title.
> On Sep 28, 2012 8:45 PM, "Tom Burke" <tomburkeii at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Gads, but the word "engineer" is horribly overused.
> >
> > Fun facts:  Calling yourself an engineer while not being a licensed
> > professional engineer is potentially illegal, as well as can get you in
> > deep kim che for misrepresentation.
> >
> > I'm sure there are civil engineers that work primarily at waste water
> > treatment facilities who really get riled up over the term "sanitary
> > engineer" when it is applied to janitors.
> >
> > As for myself, I am officially an EIT (although I've been practicing
> > engineering for 15 years), and One of my fields is "Systems Engineering."
> > On a relatively rcent job hunt, tons of companies wanted me to install
> and
> > maintain computers and networks.
> >
> > Not to dis network & computer folks (I used to do that, too), but
> > seriously?  Thank you Microsoft for clouding up all the issues.
> >
> > </rant>
> >
> > On Fri, Sep 28, 2012 at 8:15 PM, Marco Shaw <marco.shaw at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >
> > > Perhaps my search engine foo is weak...
> > >
> > > Anyone care to share what their "vision" is of what a "Linux Engineer"
> > > does?   Is it really any different than a "Linux Architect"?  How
> > > about a "Linux Analyst"?
> > >
> > > Marco
> > >
> > > --
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