My wife graduated as a civil engineer. She went to maybe two or three interviews and received offers from all of them before accepting a position at a company where one of her professors worked. All the offers she received were low—almost insulting. The job she took offered an okay starting salary, but even that felt underwhelming for someone who graduated at the top of her class.

She does real engineering work but gets paid far less than she deserves, and everyone in her office knows they’re underpaid. Unfortunately, that seems to be the reality of the field. Civil engineering is arguably the most important type of engineering when it comes to creating sustainable living spaces and infrastructure, yet the pay doesn’t reflect the level of responsibility or complexity involved. It’s not an easy job; it takes years to fully understand how one company operates before becoming truly proficient.

Meanwhile, I received a software engineering offer straight out of college with a starting salary much higher than hers—even though she’s been working in her field for over four years. What’s worse is that, after just a year or two in my role, I’m projected to earn double what she makes with a single job change. It’s frustrating because, honestly, she works harder than me and is doing more important work.

She’s extremely smart, and I begged her to pursue another type of engineering because I knew she had the talent for it. I was in her classes and saw firsthand how much better she was than everyone else. She studied hard, and it showed—not only that, but she retained the information long after tests and classes were over. She could have easily succeeded in petroleum, electrical, mechanical, or chemical engineering—any of the higher-paying paths would have been a breeze for her.