[techjuice]

This depends on what type of engineer you want to become. Network, Systems, Civil, Nanotech, Computer, Financial, Nuclear, Chemical, Neural, Combat, War/Military, Weather, Weapons, Building, Aerospace, Telecom, Embedded, Logistics, Data Science, Artificial Intelligence, Federal Emergency, etc. As all of them involve programming now, which was not the case 20 to 30 years ago. Some are harder than others and some are not obtainable without certain long term commitments being conducted (some military and civilian engineering fields).

There are a few paths to gaining the required expertise to be seen as an engineer by other engineers in the field. Self-taught which is normally the hardest path as it is not as guided as others, but normally gives you the most time to dive deep into the books. Though, for some you really have to have hands on experience to become the best of the best which is normally what the academic mixed with real work offers (co-ops, internships, etc.). You can also look into an apprenticeship if it exists within your field or work with a highly respected engineer with 20+ years of experience to be your mentor. You can also do the 100% academic route, but that may get expensive and you may not get the bleeding edge real-life work experience unless you can get into a good co-op/internship at a private/public company working in the field of your interest.