I am an EE, albeit from a home study course. I DID have to derive things and I did learn to find shortcuts and to question my assumptions. Trading is way different. I have spent years trying to corral trading into a quantifiable thing, with some small success I might add. In fact, if I can't quantifiy it to the point of automation I won't be trading it any time soon. The mentality to jump in some pit and start watching the other traders and start throwing my own money around is just not part of my makeup. I watch a lot of the DVD's from Investor Flix and I never see a speaker and say to myself "That guy thinks like I do" so that could lead me to believe that traders aren't engineers. I am however, thinking that with the advent of automation for the little guy that Engineers will be traders more and more, and as the jobs move out of the USA trading is going to be the best career option for lots of folks. I am glad I am ahead of the curve right now.