Public Policy Engineers Meet a Critical Need for a Complex Future

Of the more than 280,000 mechanical engineers employed in the United States, about 14,000 work in government positions. Engineers working for the federal government currently hold jobs within the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, NASA, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and Small Business Administration, with the most working as civilians with the armed forces. 

And while engineers make up only 0.5 percent of the total U.S. population, currently there are 10 engineers representing 2.3 percent of Congress. According to the latest report of the Congressional Research Service, there are 9 engineers in the House and one in the Senate. Considering emerging issues such as artificial intelligence, nuclear energy, and crumbling infrastructure, having expertise to shape policy makes sense. 

Shaping policy

More engineers are affected by policy than the number of those influencing and shaping it. Whether they are aware of it or not, regulations, laws, codes, and standards have a profound effect on how they design, build, and deliver projects. Although it is true that “engaging with policy to create it or modify it can impart more control and grant engineers the freedom to instill more of their own values into their work,” few engineers make it a career goal to shape laws and regulations. 

It could be because of the hierarchical nature of the work. According to “An Engineer’s Guide to Influencing Public Policy,” people who make public policy that governs most of our lives are of three types. At the top are elected public officials. Below them, public officials appointed to their positions by elected officials. And finally, civil service employees whose careers are controlled by either appointed or elected officials. Public policy work is also complex. Numerous stakeholders are involved and stakes are high concerning solutions for society’s biggest problems. 

Engineers are needed since they can help shape decisions and work to ensure that outcomes support principles of good engineering. Such objectives include challenges like long-term sustainability and women underrepresented in STEM occupations. Because they are natural problem-solvers, engineers can work on thorny issues, such as the low rates of U.S.-trained scientists and engineers. 

The government at the federal and state level is nothing if it is not about solving problems. Engineers' skills include the ability to look objectively at complex issues, identify root causes, and produce practical solutions. They also can communicate big ideas to the public. For example, engineers have the knowhow to communicate the real impact of policies on society. 

From passive to active

Engineering students and new professionals have a wealth of career opportunities. The private sector works for most—promising good-paying, interesting jobs. But there are opportunities in the nonprofit/NGO and public policy/government sectors that engineers should not ignore. 

One example of engineers as policymakers is working with an association of professionals such as ASME. The Society’s Government Relations team represents and advocates for the engineering profession by facilitating and initiating various programs and activities.

ASME members have an opportunity to help “engineer the greater good” by applying their engineering expertise and pragmatic problem-solving approach to the development of sound public policy. Such work includes helping businesses understand and comply with regulations, pursuing government funding for projects, participating in projects at the planning stages, setting standards, creating regulations, and advocating for or against proposed legislation. 

The importance of career satisfaction and helping others was the “most predictive item for students pursuing careers in the nonprofit/NGO sector,” researchers concluded in “Engineering students’ interests in nonprofit and public policy careers: Applying a data-driven approach to identifying contributing factors.”

These students’ interest in such topics as climate change and terrorism and war were the most predictive for those pursuing careers in the public policy/government sector. The study highlighted the important but understudied workforce development for alternative career paths beyond the private sector, which could potentially contribute to broadening participation in engineering.

In 1973, ASME became the first engineering society to establish a Federal Government Fellowship Program. This program enables selected ASME members to devote a year to working in government, providing engineering and technical advice to policy makers in the U.S. Congress, the White House, and federal agencies. 

ASME’s Federal Government Fellowships provide a valuable public service to the nation. They give engineers a unique opportunity to participate directly in the policy-making process and enable them to bring back to their employers an insider’s perspective on government decision-making.

ASME closely monitors the work of Congress and the administration. According to Paul Fakes, director of ASME’s Government Relations education and outreach programs, work includes collaborating with government officials who are shaping engineering policy. This includes shaping policy that covers regulatory reform, energy, and workforce development. Moreover, work includes understanding how these priorities may impact engineering.

“We’re especially watching key agencies that fund the mechanical engineering, education workforce, and research enterprise in the United States,” Fakes said in a 2025 ASME podcast. This includes agencies such as the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

The call for engineers to become part of the solutions is not just happening in the United States. “Engineers must take a more active role in influencing public policy formulation and implementation to ensure that policies and supporting legislation that are enacted are truly in the interest of protecting the public health, safety, and welfare,” wrote Nairobi researchers in “Engineers’ Critical Role in Public Policy Formulation–Time is Now.”

Some argue that engineers have a duty to do what they can to protect the safety and well-being of the public impacted by the technologies they design and maintain. “In an increasingly complex sociotechnical world, engineering educators and professional institutions have a duty to train engineers in these responsibilities,” concluded Erin A. Cech and Cynthia J. Finelli in the 2024 paper, “Learning to prioritize the public good: Does training in classes, workplaces, and professional societies shape engineers’ understanding of their public welfare responsibilities?”

Public policy directs the engineering profession. It forces engineers to make a decision, concluded Rob Goodier, editor for Engineering for Change: “Engineers can comply with the policies that others make and allow outside influences to shape their work, or they can take part in creating policy to match their values, their worldviews and their priorities.”

Cathy Cecere is membership content program manager.