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Brian Fellows posted:Sort of an obnoxious question, but what is the best way to find a specific job? Have you considered the obvious approach of finding out which companies are hiring for jobs you would like to do in the locations where you would like to work and applying directly to them? Pretty much everyone has a website and they pretty much all have their job openings listed in a nice searchable database. Cover letters and resumes that directly address the job requirements (in the SAME words they are specified in) also help you get through HR. Seriously, repeat back the bulleted items from the ad in bold in your cover letter and then state how you meet that particular item.
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May 4, 2011 12:22
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Thoguh fucked around with this message at 14:55 on Aug 10, 2023 |
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May 4, 2011 15:08
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That's what I've been doing. Basically what I'm getting at is that the majority of these companies are either hiring from within or using specific services to look for people. Chrysler for instance has several jobs listed on Careerbuilder that don't show up on their own careers site. One of the companies I'm about to interview with is Bosch, and they've contracted their external AND internal recruiting to a specific outside company. A couple of different Caterpillar sites are are similar. So in general I'm just asking if anyone knows of any nooks and crannies I can look into that will increase my odds of being spotted or spotting a job within the automotive industry/midwest.
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May 4, 2011 16:35
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Hey there, just looking for some general advice. I'm a senior in high school going into EE at a pretty big school (UIllinois, if anyone cares), and I figured now would be an ideal time to get a laptop as opposed to dragging my desktop to halfway across the country. I know this is extremely vague, but I really have no idea what technical demands will be necessary, so if anyone has any advice, it'd be much appreciated. If there's any other small technical things I should be aware of/getting, (basic circuits kit or something?), I'd love info on that. fake edit: My dad works for IBM, and we get a pretty insane deal (30 to 40 percent off!) on Lenovo products, so I've been gravitating towards that area for certain. Any ideas?
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May 4, 2011 19:54
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It shouldn't really matter what laptop you get. A Lenovo should be fine. I wouldn't worry about getting a circuits kit unless you plan on doing that stuff for fun in your free time. Any classes that require these things will tell you so in the syllabus.
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May 4, 2011 20:26
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DahtBard posted:Hey there, just looking for some general advice. I'm a senior in high school going into EE at a pretty big school (UIllinois, if anyone cares), and I figured now would be an ideal time to get a laptop as opposed to dragging my desktop to halfway across the country. I know this is extremely vague, but I really have no idea what technical demands will be necessary, so if anyone has any advice, it'd be much appreciated. If there's any other small technical things I should be aware of/getting, (basic circuits kit or something?), I'd love info on that. Get whatever you want in terms of a computer. Anything that requires specialized equipment will be available through the University, and at this point you're better off saving your money and using it when you know you'll need something. Right now computer technology has advanced to the point where it's more a question of personal preference than actual need. If you get insane discounts for Lenovo products it might be worth getting a thinkpad so you can write down notes in class. At least when I was in college people hated the guys who typed notes, but writing them down might be a good idea. Makes it a lot easier to stay organized.
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May 4, 2011 20:30
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Usually your school will recommend something but it's just minimum guidelines. Illinois' basic school one is pretty  . Since you're going into EE and get deals on Stinkpads just aim for something beefy now with a warranty to last you 3-4 years (depending on cost/benefit). If I may suggest, consider getting a midsize that's able to dock and use a full-size keyboard, mouse, and screen. That way you can still take it with you and plug it in for long-haul large assignments where you'll need screen real estate. Some people get along just fine doing everything on their 13" screens, though.
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May 4, 2011 20:41
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Hed posted:If I may suggest, consider getting a midsize that's able to dock and use a full-size keyboard, mouse, and screen. That way you can still take it with you and plug it in for long-haul large assignments where you'll need screen real estate. Some people get along just fine doing everything on their 13" screens, though. Do this. When you have classes writing/running matlab scripts, coding assignments and writing papers more screen real estate will make everything better. I'd say a single 22-24" LCD at the min. So factor that into your computer budget. Also if you live in a dorm get notebook locks for everything.
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May 4, 2011 21:18
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Recommending a legitimate screen sooooo much. I bought a 22" my freshman year and it help immensely. In my later years (senior/supersenior) I dual screen 2 22" monitors and it helped SO much with reports where I needed notes, excel, graphs, the paper, etc etc. At a minimum, you'll want one nice screen.
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May 4, 2011 21:49
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Murgos posted:Or, you could be like my co-worker who maintained the embedded code for the Space Shuttle Main Engine Controllers for 5 consecutive flights and then went on to a senior system engineering position for a new CPU and it's support ASIC. That sounds awesome, I wish my embedded days were as interesting and cool as that 
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May 4, 2011 22:16
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I had a 12" powerbook in school and it was great once I got a monitor/keyboard/mouse setup. We could remote into engineering machines with MATLAB and other engineering software so having the mac wasn't a problem. I'd recommend a small Thinkpad with good specs. It's so nice having something small you can throw into your bag easily.
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May 4, 2011 23:44
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Dual monitors loving rule. I can sit at my desk and have the Pason remote screen or my geosteering feed open on one while I work on the other. So I can watch my rig and work on future wells at the same time. Modern technology 
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May 5, 2011 02:51
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Be careful with the multi-monitor setups. You could end up like this other engineer I know:  (it's worse now)
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May 5, 2011 04:57
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gFOhPOjeg2sqmb5jHQbW V1rruhQ5VDP7WeWHHdCM o9Ztcrb7Lo0Yz54O2UcH fG6lp0yswjV0yzZbY9Uu u9GrBFPGNIEwMOPaccxv 9wfm9qh6LqS2UBLy7X0V uk6rSpy7TqZ09vSAKVAS cGtJYiG0eRE4y2swrObP 8Fxc8oi7LqFUN9Yk5q9d HbnJXnRS4xbRnJMfDTxI Plasmafountain fucked around with this message at 23:19 on Feb 27, 2023 |
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May 5, 2011 09:22
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Hed posted:Be careful with the multi-monitor setups. You could end up like this other engineer I know: Fox news on the lower left, lol oh god.
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May 5, 2011 12:39
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Zero Gravitas posted:Is he an.... Architect of some description? Structural engineer. My father.  I snapped this about 12 months ago when I was home, I think he has actually added more computer screens now.2banks1swap.avi posted:Fox news on the lower left, lol oh god. 
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May 5, 2011 15:17
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ch3cooh posted:Dual monitors loving rule. I can sit at my desk and have the Pason remote screen or my geosteering feed open on one while I work on the other. So I can watch my rig and work on future wells at the same time. That is actually...fairly attractive for a specific industrial app. Usually you end up with poo poo that looks it was (and might be) built from VB6, complete with MS Shell Dlg as the font
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May 5, 2011 15:34
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Thoguh fucked around with this message at 14:55 on Aug 10, 2023 |
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May 5, 2011 15:35
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I'm hoping software engineering at RTP or somewhere in the pacific northwest will have people a bit farther to the left. Probably not, knowing my luck I'd work for a goldbug randite in Seattle, lol. It still never ceases to amaze me how engineers can be so pitifully misinformed about statistics and economics, though.
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May 5, 2011 20:00
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2banks1swap.avi posted:I'm hoping software engineering at RTP or somewhere in the pacific northwest will have people a bit farther to the left. Economics, maybe, but statistics? It seems like most engineers I know have a far above average understanding of statistics. I think the economics thing is because engineers are used to systems with variables that can be controlled and modeled effectively so they (we, honestly) put too much faith in bullshit models that economics uses. Laffer curve equivalents in engineering don't last long.
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May 5, 2011 20:05
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movax posted:That is actually...fairly attractive for a specific industrial app. Usually you end up with poo poo that looks it was (and might be) built from VB6, complete with MS Shell Dlg as the font To be fair that's the new Pason display that launched just a couple weeks ago. This is the familiar Pason screen that hadn't changed in nearly a decade. 
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May 6, 2011 01:49
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ch3cooh posted:To be fair that's the new Pason display that launched just a couple weeks ago. This is the familiar Pason screen that hadn't changed in nearly a decade. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. 
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May 6, 2011 02:35
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Does anybody have any advice for going through staffing agencies to find an entry-level position? I don't have much of a network that can help me find work so I'm hoping a staffing agency can help me. Is there anything nasty I should be on the lookout for? I'd like to avoid a situation where I work as a contractor long-term, I need a stable employment situation. I've already got one agency interested in me, but I'm halfway around the world and can't do anything about it yet 
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May 6, 2011 14:11
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Thoguh fucked around with this message at 14:54 on Aug 10, 2023 |
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May 6, 2011 15:36
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Thoguh posted:Even if you don't have a network, have you tried spamming the "careers" page of every company in the industry? I know I probably applied to a couple hundred jobs prior to graduation, got 3-4 interviews and offers out of the deal. But that still put my success rate at less than 1%. And that was in 2007, when the economy was doing better. Apply everywhere and keep checking for new postings. I'm not too picky on the industry, except that defense wouldn't work (not sure if I could get clearance with a future Chinese wife plus living abroad in Russia and China anyway). Renewable energy would be great and I'd love to work at a wind power company most of all.
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May 6, 2011 16:27
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I'm getting sick of applying directly for positions posted on company websites, since that hasn't really panned out for me in... ever. Has anyone here had success in finding a job through recruiters? Do you have any suggestions for recruiting firms that don't suck at placing engineers (the only real negative feedback I've heard so far is that these people aren't engineers and thus can't place you in an actual matching position to save their lives, but it was always in reference to general recruiting firms and not specialty ones). And, if you have had any success with this route, do you have any tips for anyone who tries it?
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May 6, 2011 23:21
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ApathyGifted posted:I'm getting sick of applying directly for positions posted on company websites, since that hasn't really panned out for me in... ever. My current job was found through a recruiter who found me on LinkedIn. Put your resume up there and see what happens. You'll get a lot of people who will only look at keywords and say, "Hey, I'm looking for a senior engineer with 30 years of experience. Do you or someone you know qualify?" While that may not be you, network with them and it could lead to something.
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May 6, 2011 23:36
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SeaBass posted:My current job was found through a recruiter who found me on LinkedIn. Put your resume up there and see what happens. Yeah, two-thirds of my interviews were landed through recruiters finding me. I was more curious about reaching out and contacting a recruiter directly.
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May 7, 2011 01:40
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aO70Y0namCGCLGfon0km bFb5IB89RrmpPlv9njvz iAtEwxnOmtzXQfDNyWVS IfMclsbwcUssB25NbWmY AQap7sTpytz7qHujVyxc PTyer2nXdBEh9zR56tZa bvoUS8fb14OS3xpj50cg CRDAMsjSyOEhBKZ1KmBR 3EcDzh4FCVzHVNagqBQ9 gj5rXtWYy98MnlxPKCEd Plasmafountain fucked around with this message at 23:19 on Feb 27, 2023 |
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May 7, 2011 11:33
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Thoguh posted:Even if you don't have a network, have you tried spamming the "careers" page of every company in the industry? I know I probably applied to a couple hundred jobs prior to graduation, got 3-4 interviews and offers out of the deal. But that still put my success rate at less than 1%. And that was in 2007, when the economy was doing better. Apply everywhere and keep checking for new postings.
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May 7, 2011 12:59
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gninjagnome posted:Applying through the website is tough. We have one open validation engineer position at my company. We got 90 resumes submissions. We're interviewing anyone that has a personal reference from someone at the company first. I imagine this is pretty typical. Not saying don't do it, but networking is really important to landing a job. Great, this is surely a way to bring in outside fresh minds into a company and not at all a nepotistic way of ensuring a good old boy's system of companies full of people who went to the same frat and university.
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May 7, 2011 15:38
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timtastic posted:Great, this is surely a way to bring in outside fresh minds into a company and not at all a nepotistic way of ensuring a good old boy's system of companies full of people who went to the same frat and university. Or it's a decent way to cut through the chaff and make sure that you're only talking to people that at least someone thinks is good enough to mention. Networking is critical to any career, but is particularly important in engineering.
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May 7, 2011 15:49
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Thoguh fucked around with this message at 14:54 on Aug 10, 2023 |
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May 7, 2011 16:04
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Beer4TheBeerGod posted:Or it's a decent way to cut through the chaff and make sure that you're only talking to people that at least someone thinks is good enough to mention. Networking is critical to any career, but is particularly important in engineering. It's interesting - with some of the biggest companies almost the only way to get an interview now is by going through their website/hr meatgrinder. A while back I found out I had a contact at a certain Gulf of Mexico-trashing oil company only to learn shortly thereafter that he couldn't really even pass along my resume, and that I would have to apply through their careers website. This is in contrast to how the person I knew there got his job ten years - ago by getting an interview through a friend of his...
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May 7, 2011 17:46
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ch3cooh posted:To be fair that's the new Pason display that launched just a couple weeks ago. This is the familiar Pason screen that hadn't changed in nearly a decade. Ahh, that's more of what I was expecting. It works in Firefox though, holy poo poo, was expecting only IE6 support. Also, I've got a headhunter on my...uh, head I guess. Any MI-area (or willing to relocate) people for the following: quote:All three of these positions are for up and coming engineers. (1-5 years of experience) Hopefully he doesn't decide to Google his own descriptions. Also decided to apply to Facebook on a lark, let's see how that goes...
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May 7, 2011 19:33
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I know there was some calculator talk a few pages back, but I was hoping to catch some people that had just taken/studied for the FE. I have one year left and I want to get an approved calculator now and start using it at work to get familiarized with it. Almost everyone I know has used one of the Casio models, so that's what I was tending towards. Does anyone have any strong opinions on this or are they all pretty much the same? I know I want to avoid solar, because those have annoyed me in the past. Are there any other considerations that aren't obvious from reading the packaging (i.e., drawn out series of steps to perform basic operations) or just something you liked/disliked about the model you used?
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May 7, 2011 19:48
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What degree field are you in? At the risk of starting a holy war, take a serious look at the HP-33s. Take a few days to master RPN and you will be unstoppable during arithmetic number crunching, and I believe this would serve you well on the FE. Trust me as someone who still has his trusty TI-85 within arms reach at this very moment. In high school I won a state competition in calculator speed with the 85 and its standard infix notation + enter key, but years later when I got to my college semiconductor physics classes (with their half-pages of equation plug-and-chug to get parameters to put into other equations) I hung it up and switched over to the 33. Being able to start anywhere in a math problem proved invaluable. It's also battery-powered. The only downside I can see is if the approved Casio models you're looking at have built-in TVM modules. I didn't think TVM problems on the FE were bad with my 33 so this may be a non-issue. As an aside, some moron brought a banned calculator to the FE exam and had to beg for someone's extra to use during the exam. I hope he is not stamping drawings these days
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May 7, 2011 20:57
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FE: HP35s (yes I am fully aware it is nearly 50% of the cost of a full featured graphing calculator) Normal use: TI-89 (can't deal with RPN?) or HP50G (pro) Conversation over (seriously either the Casio or the HP will be fine for the FE. IMHO there's enough time on the test given to you that you could use a calculator you've never seen before and do just fine.) e: Also if your calculators are RPN, no one ever asks to borrow them movax fucked around with this message at 21:22 on May 7, 2011 |
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May 7, 2011 21:19
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I personally went with the TI with multiview. You really don't need the functions of the higher tiered calculators, as the calculus you can do on it would be more quickly solved by hand. I liked the multiview's ability to show more than two lines at any given time, as that's what helps save ME time, and I was extremely happy with it. However, I would NOT recommend any other of the TIs. They are either gimped or too slow to react to input and lag numbers/don't input them correctly. The multiview didn't have that problem.
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May 7, 2011 22:56
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RogueLemming posted:I know there was some calculator talk a few pages back, but I was hoping to catch some people that had just taken/studied for the FE. FE approved calculators http://ppi2pass.com/ppi/PPIInfo_pg_myppi-faqs-calc.html I personally used the Casio FX-115 (with 2 line "natural textbook display") for the FE, got it and learned it a month or two before the exam. It's a solid calculator for ~$15! For me the FX-115 is a nice backup, though I typically use a TI-89, the pretty print is so sexy! SB35 fucked around with this message at 02:01 on May 8, 2011 |
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May 8, 2011 01:57
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