"Software Engineer" is a title. It is not, and never was, a type of engineer. It is exactly the same as "Software Architect" in this regard, which is not a kind

"Software Engineer" is a title. It is not, and never was, a type of engineer. It is exactly the same as "Software Architect" in this regard, which is not a kind of architect. If a developer says "I am an engineer" it is only ever in the context of a tech company, where everybody knows what they mean. No programmer would say to their friends & family "I am an engineer" without any further context. "Software Engineer" does not denote any additional rigor, no matter how much you want it to. It may or may not connote rigor, depending on a dozen contextual factors that will tell you much more about the presence of rigor than the title will. It's a title. It means computer programmer.