What is Mechanical Engineering in the private sector like?

I can't speak for all mechanical engineers, but my job working in product development is quite diverse. I does include design and simulation work (desk work), working in a shop to assemble products, and product testing. I do all mechanical related work on my company's products so it is multidisciplinary in the sense that I perform designer, drafter, technician, mechanical engineer, and project management roles, but not multidisciplinary in the sense that I don't do electrical engineering or software engineering work. I hope that makes sense.

When you work for a company, you will be asked to sign an agreement saying that any intellectual property you develop becomes the property of the company. If a patent is awarded for your work, your name will be put on the patent as the inventor, but you will not own the patent, the company will. So you have to be OK with this. Otherwise your options for employment will be very limited.

I would say you should stay with a company as long as the company treats you right and you are happy working there. In that type of situation there's really no need to change jobs. I would say you should definitely start your own business if your life situation allows you to. As far as I know, the only disadvantage to starting your own business would be giving up your current job. There is risk associated with starting a business. Honestly, if I had a good job at a company where I enjoyed working, I would probably deem it to be too risky to start my own business and I wouldn't do it, unless it was a business I could run part-time like in the evening or on weekends. I hope this helps.

It depends on the company you work for, and I agree, if a company is treating you well and offering you ways to improve and develop, stick with them. A lot of life is realizing the good in what you have and not being fooled by false ideas about what a (another) company is or does.

If you work for a larger company you will have the opportunity to become an expert in one area.

If you work for a smaller company you will need to be proficient in many areas and will have opportunities to do so.

If you work for yourself or start your own business, you will need a bit of both and having a good business plan and contacts is a must.

In mechanical engineering you have the opportunity to spend as much or as little time at a desk as your role will allow. I have spent weeks at my desk every day some times late into the night trying to finish a design, I have spent time at professional races working in a pit as a mechanic, I have operated test machines and made parts on various shop tools. If you are most interested in a particular role, figure out what skills you need to perform that role and go out and get them, don't be ignorant of the other skills, but if you are great at what you do and are willing to move, you should have no problem finding a job or making your own.

Good Luck!

Sincerely,
Blake Jenssen

Sam gave some great advice. I would like to add to this.

I also have been in product development my entire career. With product development, there is a need to work with your factory and your suppliers. I have had a lot of travel both domestically and internationally to work closely with the factories that assembly my products and the factories that make the components that are used in my products.

The fascinating part of design is that there is always something new. New technologies to make your parts and new applications for existing technology. It is an environment that is always challenging.

Not only do we get to work with other disciplines in design and manufacturing, we also work with industrial design, marketing, accounting, sales, etc. Products we develop are the what the customers interact with and provide the image of the company in style, feature sets, and quality.

I find it never boring and always challenging.

It depends on what company and in what area you find employment. How well you like the work depends on your personality. I had a number of jobs where I did not know what I would be working on during the day. I worked for a shipyard that did repair and maintenance work. Every day was different. The job was fairly high pressure, but I thrived on this type work (work well under pressure). Another job involved inspecting equipment to ensure that it met GE's expectations and specifications - did a lot of travel, and not a lot of desk work.