Field vs. Office for Engineers

[suranga]

I’ll keep this short, I know that there are a few working engineers here on Beyond. I am curious about your opinions on the type of work which provides the most challenge, personal growth and global opportunities especially for a soon to be graduate.

[Jlude]

What field of engineering are you in?

[Euro_Trash]

It's all a personal preference. I went into engineering thinking I would end up in Calgary and love it. Now that I have had a chance to experience both Calgary and the field, I know where I want to be (at least for the next few years) and it is not downtown Calgary. By working both sides of the fence I learned a lot about myself and where I want my future to be. Again, all personal preference.
Field: more hands on, a lot more "short-term" projects, good oppurtunities for international work (especially with service companies), casual environment
Office: lots of long term projects, lots of politics, get treated better (at least in my company), less casual, some people just like to say they work downtown Calgary instead of a small town which is considered a shit hole
As for personal growth, that is all going to depend on your experiences, and is going to be based more on just your career.

[Euro_Trash]

One more thing, a lot of people (including me) find engineers that go directly from school to the office aren't very useful in that they need to be trained from the bottom up (I am talking oilfield here BTW). With field experience you learn everything: how jobs are done, who does them, how to write succesful programs, how hard a job will actually be instead of just writing it on paper.
You also will make a lot of contacts who will make your life easier in the long run

[MackDawg]

dan i dont see you cutting it on the rigs/ or a service company hahaha

ive work both office is boring very boring but if you dont wanna freeze ur ass off in -40 weather in the winter and +30 weather in the summer, the office is you place.

[seer_claw]

I personally like a good combination of both. Some design/project management from the office as well as some onsite inspections. That way I'm in the office during shitty weather and outside when its nice out.

I really think that choosing between the field or office is really more a decision that you have to make for yourself. Try finding a job when you are able to do both or a company that makes you do both and then decide after that. I know that Kiewet does this, when you start with them they will put you in 3 different positions for between 6 months and a year. This is to expose people to different positions and allows them to see what they like best. You might look at trying to work for them for a while to see what you like.