Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

As a job seeker, I often run into inexplicable confusion between these two job titles.

I am a systems engineer. I do systems engineering. I am not a systems administrator. I do not do systems administration. A quick read of the two Wikipedia articles linked above shows that the two professions are not even close.

At some place at some time in our recent history, someone confused the two professions. Someone decided that it was okay to call system administrators “systems engineers.” I am not sure what no-doubt-well-meaning person decided this, but they did the world of engineering and science and technology a great disservice.

I wish someone in authority would correct his mistake.