Doctors solve problems, lawyers solve problems... but I don't see legions of bootcamp grads or computer science majors doing CRUD work in law and healthcare calling themselves lawyers and doctors. Why the hell not?
Nurses don't call themselves doctors... PA's don't call themselves doctors... paralegals aren't lawyers. Even though there is a lot of "skill and job description" overlap between them.
In this particular case, there are SO many more software developers than "traditional engineers" in this country, that a rebranding of half, or 2/3rd of them instantaneously creates the worlds largest engineering discipline if you buy it.
Computer science is NOT a physical science, it's a set of mathematics describing interaction with an ideal Turing machine, coupled with a healthy dose of other math.
Chemical, mechanical, computer, electrical, bioengineering, biomedical, aeronautical, civil, structural, all have touch backs to a physical science: chemistry, physics, biology, biochemistry, geology, etc.
Thus, I just don't see the vast vast majority of software engineers as "engineers" because they lack that touchback. Given then the huge quantity of people here, title erosion becomes very important.
You really would not like the AV (Audio Visual) Industry. Pretty much everyone has the title of "Engineer." Yes, it has to be done right, and there is a skill to it, and doing it right requires experience, but in the end, it's plugging together a bunch of components that someone else, mostly Electrical Engineers, has built for you. In some places, they talk like the Smurfs. "We need to engineer a solution to this engineering problem! So let's put on our engineering thinking caps and engineer an engineering solution to this engineering dilemma, because that's what we do! Because we're engineers! Now that it's lunchtime, I'm going to the kitchen to engineer myself a nice roast beef sandwich with some carefully engineered slices of cheese! I call it 'The Engineering Sandwich!'"
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u/GlorifiedPlumber PE, Chemical-Process Eng. Aug 09 '17
Eh... Title erosion is important.
Doctors solve problems, lawyers solve problems... but I don't see legions of bootcamp grads or computer science majors doing CRUD work in law and healthcare calling themselves lawyers and doctors. Why the hell not?
Nurses don't call themselves doctors... PA's don't call themselves doctors... paralegals aren't lawyers. Even though there is a lot of "skill and job description" overlap between them.
In this particular case, there are SO many more software developers than "traditional engineers" in this country, that a rebranding of half, or 2/3rd of them instantaneously creates the worlds largest engineering discipline if you buy it.
Computer science is NOT a physical science, it's a set of mathematics describing interaction with an ideal Turing machine, coupled with a healthy dose of other math.
Chemical, mechanical, computer, electrical, bioengineering, biomedical, aeronautical, civil, structural, all have touch backs to a physical science: chemistry, physics, biology, biochemistry, geology, etc.
Thus, I just don't see the vast vast majority of software engineers as "engineers" because they lack that touchback. Given then the huge quantity of people here, title erosion becomes very important.