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I think I'll do that then, just keep pushing for an extra body to "help" take some load off of me. I don't think they would give me the boot and/or that they are even in this position to do so (like I said, they have me and one other guy who only does CAD ie he draws what I tell him with my analyses) but I can't be sure so id rather not risk it.
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Nov 1, 2015 20:59
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oxsnard posted:Where do you plan on working when you graduate? Have you done much research with potential employers? The reason I ask is that jobs where you do what you want to do are few and far between. The Army Corps of Engineers is probably the best place for that. I'd focus less on the PE for the time being and instead try to get your foot in the door with someone who does what you want to be doing. I imagine demand for that sort of job will spike in the future, yet still be a pretty narrow field to get into. That or water and wastewater treatment projects for developing nations (ala water.org*) would be my "dream job". However, I realize those are both fairly limited opportunities. Honestly, I haven't done much research on employers yet because I'll probably only have one non-local internship and it won't be until 2017 (between my junior and senior years); I'll be taking courses over summer 2016 (my final semester at community college), but hope to find a local firm here in KC willing to work around my classes. *Which was founded by an alum from the school I'm transferring to next fall and I just learned has their main office across the street from where I currently work. Thinking I should just drop in and visit them this week and set up an appointment to talk about careers.
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Nov 1, 2015 21:08
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Boris Galerkin posted:I think I'll do that then, just keep pushing for an extra body to "help" take some load off of me. I don't think they would give me the boot and/or that they are even in this position to do so (like I said, they have me and one other guy who only does CAD ie he draws what I tell him with my analyses) but I can't be sure so id rather not risk it. IMO this is what I would do. If they dont take your advice seriously, then its on them when hindsight becomes 20/20 in a few months.
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Nov 1, 2015 21:58
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Hello Sailor posted:I imagine demand for that sort of job will spike in the future, yet still be a pretty narrow field to get into. That or water and wastewater treatment projects for developing nations (ala water.org*) would be my "dream job". However, I realize those are both fairly limited opportunities. Honestly, I haven't done much research on employers yet because I'll probably only have one non-local internship and it won't be until 2017 (between my junior and senior years); I'll be taking courses over summer 2016 (my final semester at community college), but hope to find a local firm here in KC willing to work around my classes. Ya know you could probably have your cake and eat it too. If you want to learn how to do wastewater, there are all sorts of industries that have on site WW plants (paper, chemicals, refining, pharmacy etc). You could learn and apply your knowledge at a non profit in the future. I've got a few contacts in WW and mining remediation; if you're interested you can PM me
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Nov 2, 2015 01:54
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Boris Galerkin posted:So my small team of like 5 people recently had 3 people turnover in the past months leaving me and another guy who does only CAD and no analysis. They've been trying to hire replacements but it's going really slow and it's still just us two. I plan on leaving in January for a new opportunity (already have the contract in hand) and while I don't give a poo poo or have any loyalty for my company, they are a contractor and I know that me leaving their team leaving only a CAD guy is going to very significantly harm their ability to conduct work, especially for the current projects and customer that I'm assigned to. Unless you're totally sure they won't let you go earlier than you want, do not let them know you're leaving. Give them the customary 2 weeks, no more, no less.
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Nov 2, 2015 05:36
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As always it is awesome to see this thread I started as a undergrad still kicking around. For the past 2-3 years I have been working as a Design Engineer for a small company and have been thinking of looking for work elsewhere. My main issue is that a large project that I was deeply involved in ended up getting cancelled. While I learned a hell of allot from the experience, I don't know if it smart to associate my resume with a failed project. If the reason for failure is important then, it came down to the component we were trying to internalize in the company had its price heavily dropped (20%) by our supplier, making the risk of the new component not worth it. While this can sound reasonable, having to explain myself on something I put forth as a highlight of my job experience sounds risky.
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Nov 3, 2015 15:53
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Software guys list cancelled projects because it's still work experience. Unless you were the guy in charge of the go/no go decision it's not personal.
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Nov 3, 2015 16:32
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That falls squarely in the 'if they don't hire you for something like that then you don't want to work under that person anyway' category.
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Nov 3, 2015 22:29
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You can totally sell yourself on projects that don't go ahead. "We did *blah* but didn't go ahead because *blah*" is just fine. That's not a failed project. A project is only a failure if it's done badly. You can have good projects that get cancelled and bad projects that get completely implemented poorly.
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Nov 4, 2015 00:57
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I talk about the turbo mustang I failed to build when I was 15 as a learning experience. Its part of the chronology of becoming a mechanical engineer. I had other successes and I explain how that led to those.
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Nov 4, 2015 02:44
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Why do you even need to mention what happened to the project? Unless you were the lead on it it's really not relevant. Just discuss your accomplishments and how they apply to the position you're applying to.
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Nov 4, 2015 17:44
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I need some advice. I graduated in may with a EE degree. I only got about a 3.48 gpa-- nothing great but I've had two internships with the same company, so they obviously liked me enough the first time around they asked me back a second time. The issue I'm having is that for the past few months I've been dealing with mental health issues that i'm finally reigning in, and as a result I've had to drop grad school and I haven't been working. However, now that I am getting better I need to start thinking about being gainfully employed. How do I spin that gap in employment? I don't really want to just say 'medical issues' if it comes up. Secondly, I've been idly browsing companies and indeed, and since I'm in DFW TI is an obvious company to work for. Right now they have a new graduate (BS) design job posted that I'm extremely interested in, as design is something I really want to go into. The thing is, I have no experience with IC level design, my digital circuit is rusty, and my school was a bit light on analog circuits (the most analog that is required for my degree is basic active amplifier design and analysis, only like two stages max). My internships weren't in design, and the most I did in them was PCB work. How should I approach the lack of experience in my cover letter and resume, potential interviews etc?
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Nov 6, 2015 13:57
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Watermelon Daiquiri posted:How do I spin that gap in employment? I don't really want to just say 'medical issues' if it comes up. That's exactly what you should do, though. Companies are not entitled to details of your medical history, so just tell them you were ill and now you're better. Which is 100% the case; mental illness is still illness.
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Nov 6, 2015 14:10
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A new graduate is going to have a pretty sparse resume, buff it up with school projects, relevant hobbies, anything you can to make yourself stand out. Also, don't fall in love with a job posting! Just keep applying like crazy to anything you can, you can bet there's dozens if not hundreds of qualified candidates competing with you for every job so don't get caught up on one.
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Nov 6, 2015 14:15
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notZaar posted:A new graduate is going to have a pretty sparse resume, buff it up with school projects, relevant hobbies, anything you can to make yourself stand out. Also, don't fall in love with a job posting! Just keep applying like crazy to anything you can, you can bet there's dozens if not hundreds of qualified candidates competing with you for every job so don't get caught up on one. Yeah that is certainly true., but it was an example. I not sure how to extend the experience I do have to fit the jobs. Do I just do the whole "I'm a hard worker fast learner etc etc" schtick?
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Nov 6, 2015 14:22
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A few months doesn't sound huge to me, especially so soon after graduating, but maybe the market for EEs is a bit different. I also wouldn't stress about checking all the boxes on subject level experience - they should expect at least some spin-up period with a fresh graduate. Anything super intense tells me the company isn't really concerned about OJT, which to me is a red flag.
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Nov 6, 2015 14:36
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Ok, thanks guys  Now I just need to figure out how to fit the cover letters to the postings. I don't really have enough experience/projects to be able to customize my resume.
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Nov 6, 2015 14:39
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Watermelon Daiquiri posted:Yeah that is certainly true., but it was an example. I not sure how to extend the experience I do have to fit the jobs. Do I just do the whole "I'm a hard worker fast learner etc etc" schtick? It wouldn't hurt to say that, but really if the post calls on new graduates to apply then they are anticipating they will have to train you anyways. Just do the best you can to tailor it to the posting and move on.
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Nov 6, 2015 14:39
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Watermelon Daiquiri posted:Ok, thanks guys No one expects an engineer1 position new-grad to know anything. If you have the standard EE coursework (we all know what that looks like) and a couple of internships & school projects to talk about and you are personable and earnest about wanting the job that's pretty much as good as anything. Seriously, you learn a lot in school but it's hardly a drop in the bucket. The field (EE) is just to broad.
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Nov 6, 2015 16:01
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I've got nothing that hasn't been covered by other posts, but you've gotten some extremely good advice. 3.5 GPA is great for an EE grad, the only people I know who had 3.8+ were the whiz kids who ended up working in high tech (the googles, microsofts, etc), and even most grads in the 2.5 range ended up with jobs without too much trouble. Taking a few months to yourself after graduating is hardly unusual, so that shouldn't count too hard against you. The most important things are to have an organized resume and to be able to come off as a couple steps above "mongoloid" when interviewing; do that, and you've already beat out the majority of your competition. Expect to use approximately 5% of the knowledge you learned in school on your first job, and expect that 5% to barely be enough to get you started. New graduates are basically training projects to management no matter what you did in undergrad, unless you're literally doing what you did at your internship. When interviewing, if there's a technical portion, be ready to talk through your thought process when tackling the problems they give you; it's far, FAR more important that you come off as being able to work your way through an issue logically than to be able to spit off a formula or properties and produce a solution by rote memory.
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Nov 6, 2015 16:23
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Awesome, thanks a bunch Not a Children. Incidentally, what do people think of listing in-major gpa? Does anyone really care about it?
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Nov 6, 2015 16:41
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I would put it if it makes you look good - a friend put his 4.00 major gpa before his actual gpa. Don't worry about a few months gap - a lot of people do that.
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Nov 6, 2015 16:46
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Watermelon Daiquiri posted:Awesome, thanks a bunch Not a Children. Incidentally, what do people think of listing in-major gpa? Does anyone really care about it? Well when you're fresh out of school you will be expected to report your GPA (and they will find out when they ask for your transcripts anyways) so put whichever is higher on your resume.
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Nov 6, 2015 17:01
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When it came to GPA, I was in the position where I did way better my last 2 years of school than in my first 2. So, I listed my GPA like this: GPA: 3.22 (GPA since 2010: 3.85) So basically, do whatever you have to in order to make yourself look good without making too much of a stretch.
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Nov 6, 2015 17:09
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Not a Children posted:When it came to GPA, I was in the position where I did way better my last 2 years of school than in my first 2. So, I listed my GPA like this: Heh, I should have done that, my numbers would have looked similar. But, really, having been on the other side of the process a number of times now it's kind of the last thing I think about in a potential new hire. To me, grade after matriculation would count for more but not much more. If we could only hire 1 person and there were 2 good candidates it might come in as a tipping point but, otherwise? Eh, not a big deal as long as it's over 3. If it were two really good candidates we'd try and find another group to put the second one in.
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Nov 6, 2015 17:29
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From a hiring manager they are also more interested in things such as previous co-op or intern experience.
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Nov 7, 2015 00:53
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Two internships and just out of school. You should be just fine. Honestly you could just say you took time off to enjoy life before working or whatever. No one will care, if they do it is probably not a place you want to work.
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Nov 7, 2015 01:02
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Question for any PEs out there. Is there any accepted practice for getting PE references to be able to sit for the exam? I graduated as a ChemE, and work now solely in controls and instrumentation, and plan to sit for the CSE exam. As it stands it is goddamn impossible to run across PEs from my experience. I've worked for 2 global companies and come across exactly 1, who will write a reference for me. Only 2 more to go! I'm checking with HR to see if there is anyone else in company to work on. In North Carolina for what it is worth.
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Nov 8, 2015 19:53
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That HR strategy is a good one, in my experience I found that you come across them naturally as an extension of your social network so maybe you've just gotten unlucky. Failing that, you could always try getting involved in a meetup or association (in your case AIChE or something) locally and branching from there. Don't be too worried about being straightforward, it's not that big of a deal and we all remember what it was like looking for references. I'm sure people will be happy to help you out.
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Nov 8, 2015 20:08
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Hey so I'm taking my FE finally as I've put it off for a long time. I originally signed up in January and I rescheduled it for as late as I could (this upcoming January). How long do I need to study for it? Am I screwed?
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Nov 9, 2015 05:50
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oxsnard posted:Hey so I'm taking my FE finally as I've put it off for a long time. Partially depends on how long out of school you are? I took mine my senior year so it was all still pretty fresh for me. Honestly I'd just go to the NCEES website and get the latest edition of the FE Reference Handbook and make sure you know what problems go with what section. After that I focused mainly on the stuff outside my discipline for the morning section. The afternoon sessions should all be really familiar material. I think you're fine with the time frame you have to study especially if you make it a big priority in your time management.
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Nov 9, 2015 12:45
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VanguardFelix posted:Partially depends on how long out of school you are? I took mine my senior year so it was all still pretty fresh for me. Honestly I'd just go to the NCEES website and get the latest edition of the FE Reference Handbook and make sure you know what problems go with what section. After that I focused mainly on the stuff outside my discipline for the morning section. The afternoon sessions should all be really familiar material. I think you're fine with the time frame you have to study especially if you make it a big priority in your time management. This is true if you have a discipline specific afternoon. I fall into the dreaded "other" category so I'm not sure what to expect if I sit for the FE exam. Studying outside your discipline seems like a good idea. I have like zero idea how statics works anymore.
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Nov 9, 2015 16:04
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Good point, I completely forgot about those unfortunate souls for that afternoon session.
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Nov 9, 2015 16:27
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Isn't the FE pass rate influenced by the number of testers, or is that just a rumor floating around? If it's the case then I'd err towards taking mechanical if you have a reasonably close discipline - I studied aerospace and while in the mech I had to teach myself refrigeration and a few other things I passed just fine.
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Nov 9, 2015 17:12
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Kolodny posted:Isn't the FE pass rate influenced by the number of testers, or is that just a rumor floating around? If it's the case then I'd err towards taking mechanical if you have a reasonably close discipline - I studied aerospace and while in the mech I had to teach myself refrigeration and a few other things I passed just fine. Maybe? I'm in nuclear so I'm not really sure that anything is close, unless I can take the FE exam for physics majors. We do have a specific PE exam though. Strangely.
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Nov 9, 2015 23:40
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So I'm a new grad that started working at an aerospace company a little over three months ago. In those three months I've had maybe two days worth of actual work to do, the rest has mostly just been loving around on the Internet because they can't seem to find anything to give me. I've talked to my manager multiple times and he just keeps telling me "Oh there's new stuff right around the corner" but that's been the going line basically since I got here. Is this kind of thing a somewhat common occurrence? I realize there are much worse problems to have but I'm also bored out of my mind here.
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Nov 10, 2015 00:03
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VanguardFelix posted:Partially depends on how long out of school you are? I took mine my senior year so it was all still pretty fresh for me. Honestly I'd just go to the NCEES website and get the latest edition of the FE Reference Handbook and make sure you know what problems go with what section. After that I focused mainly on the stuff outside my discipline for the morning section. The afternoon sessions should all be really familiar material. I think you're fine with the time frame you have to study especially if you make it a big priority in your time management. 10 years past bachelors. Finished my masters in 2012. I don't really have a choice now so I'm just gonna cram and hope for the best
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Nov 10, 2015 01:51
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Well some jobs are like that, but you could always come up with a project proposal for your boss, if that's something that interests you.
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Nov 10, 2015 01:52
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Blackmjolnir posted:So I'm a new grad that started working at an aerospace company a little over three months ago. In those three months I've had maybe two days worth of actual work to do, the rest has mostly just been loving around on the Internet because they can't seem to find anything to give me. I've talked to my manager multiple times and he just keeps telling me "Oh there's new stuff right around the corner" but that's been the going line basically since I got here. Is this kind of thing a somewhat common occurrence? I realize there are much worse problems to have but I'm also bored out of my mind here. Never had any downtime in my career. In slow times we would chase work. Always would find something for people who were working for me to do. Honestly it might not hurt to start shopping around.
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Nov 10, 2015 02:47
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Blackmjolnir posted:So I'm a new grad that started working at an aerospace company a little over three months ago. In those three months I've had maybe two days worth of actual work to do, the rest has mostly just been loving around on the Internet because they can't seem to find anything to give me. I've talked to my manager multiple times and he just keeps telling me "Oh there's new stuff right around the corner" but that's been the going line basically since I got here. Is this kind of thing a somewhat common occurrence? I realize there are much worse problems to have but I'm also bored out of my mind here. Keep asking for work, but if you're truly unsatisfied with being paid to do nothing start sending out resumes. I've been in your position, and it absolutely sucks. Nothing wrong with having a slow week or even month, but when your skills start to stagnate it's time to make a change. Does your company pay for education? If you can get on board with that, you can probably get easy As just sorting out your homework during your downtime. Barring that, maybe take up independent study -- if you can motivate yourself to learn a programming language or two you can open up a lot of avenues for yourself.
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Nov 10, 2015 03:22
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