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As a new wave of students enter college I think it would be a good idea for new engineers and maybe some further along people, like me, to really understand what all this work is for. For you engineers out there (any type, though I would love to see some ME graduates), what was life like after school? What did you major in and what jobs did you end up having? Do you enjoy what you ended up doing or would you have wanted to pick another major? This is not so much a thread for what can you do with a major, but one for what people have done. (If this is too close to the College&academic Advice MEGATHREAD I apologize and will take this thread down, but I think that's more what people potentially can do with their major instead of just examples)
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Oct 1, 2009 23:12
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Thank you everyone for posting this, its really a nice encouragement for all the work. One thing I was wondering was if there was possibly anyone involved with prosthetics? If you are, do you know any fellow engineer in the field who are ME?
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Oct 4, 2009 06:13
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So I was wondering about when someone should go back for their masters. I am a ME with still about 2 years more to go if not three. I am at a decent? school (WSU) with a 3.2 GPA though I really don't know how the department is viewed. When I get out of here I partially worry that I will have trouble getting into a good grad school, in particular UW, (because I have heard that the place you got your bachelors doesn't matter nearly as much) due to my lower quality school for my bachelors. Would it be possible for me to get into something like UW with a degree from somewhere like WSU? And even if I could, would it be a better idea for me to get some job experience under my belt before I come back from the masters?
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May 21, 2010 01:40
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I just wanted to thank everyone that has posted information and advice in this thread, it has really helped me change the way I view the engineering college experience. I have started to get more focused on getting to know all of my professors and working hard on trying to get some internships. It also does help me worrying allot when I hear about the lower significance of what college you went to for your bachelors. One question though, would it still be okay to turn down going to the University of Washington to finish my degree at Washington State University? For those that don't know those colleges, UW is considered a great engineering school, but i don't know if its worth uprooting myself like that.
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Aug 12, 2010 21:42
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Zo posted:That's ok, seems like there are a lot of, uh, loser engineers I guess? in this thread, not worth networking with While I am sure you are right about how much more important connections are to GPA, you are still being a complete rear end in a top hat. Thanks for the advice though.
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Oct 29, 2010 20:56
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SO if I was to do poorly on a class that is important for my major, in particular ME and thermo would it be better for me to retake the class or to get a C and move on? I am afraid that by just taking a C or two will hurt my GPA and make it worse off than if I just took a bit longer to graduate.
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Nov 15, 2010 03:37
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Ugh, I am really torn here. I am rounding down my third year in ME and I have started to look longingly over at Cpt S, due to the high quality of the jobs software engineers have. The problem I have is I don't know if I would be happy as a programmer, OR a ME. After this long I would think I would have learned, but having never been into cars and hands on work I haven't experienced much things mechanical, and I have done little to no programming. In fact the classes I can say I really enjoyed was more mathematical analysis like dynamics/dynamic systems. Would it be worth it to switch over a little blind; or if I stuck with the ME major and worked on a Cpt S minor and got a good background in programming? I am assuming a ME that can program would probably be more useful than a Software Engineer that knows how to deal with energy and mechanical systems.
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Mar 30, 2011 07:15
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I have started to look at programming and was wondering, is there any really worth in getting a minor in something like EE for a ME?
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Mar 31, 2011 07:08
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huhu posted:I'm not sure exactly how I do it but I go out on average 3 nights a week and pulled a 3.3 last semester at a US school with classes like calc 5 and thermo. I'm not super brilliant, the semesters before were the range of 2.0 and 2.6 I guess I've learned when I'm studying to actually study and use my time wisely. Also I work about 10 to 15 hours a week on average. This is a bit more similar to my experience. I do have to spend a good amount of time studying for tests, but i can get by with a 3.2 without a soul-crushing level. Then again that might just say something about my particular school.
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Apr 8, 2011 04:57
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So I have been having a big crisis of focus in school, I am currently done with three years of ME and could finish in one year BUT, I have come to learn that I am horrible when it comes to dealing with manufacturing and am in love with using MATLAB to build programs for my Dynamic Systems class. This has led me to question my place in ME so I have decided to bite the bullet of a year or two extra and go for a ME/EE double major, in the hopes that it will get me closer to dealing with programming of forced response systems and other such fun work. The thing is, will EE help me with that between it and Cpt S and CPE? I chose EE due to the fact that I cant see a ME/Cpt S double major working out too well, and I dont want to work on the hardware of computers so I though CPE was out. I guess what it comes down to is, what is my best bet if I want to work on programming of controls and feedbacks of systems?
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Apr 21, 2011 05:15
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Plinkey posted:Depends. If you want to know the low level and how the hardware software interface works go EE. You'll cover most of that in your core courses. You probably won't write any huge OO programs after your intro programming classes and you'll probably do little to no algorithms beyond the Data Structures class. If you want to go farther with that you'll need to pick it up on your own or take some CE classes if your university allows. You will also pick up a bunch of other useful things like intro to signal processes, control systems, and comm systems (which relates to signal processing). This is what I have been looking to read. I want to get involved with programming, but I wasn't sure if I should go with EE or Cpt S. It sounds like as long as you pick the right courses either can land you a job doing intensive programming?
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Apr 25, 2011 05:04
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I was wondering what would the best method be fore getting into the field of control engineering, I am currently almost done with me ME bachelors and and adding a minor in EE. I guess I just don't understand the best way to get into a more specialized field.
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Aug 23, 2011 18:43
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Apple2o posted:I am now in my junior year of college and still have not really decided what kind of engineering I want to do. I am finishing up some of the last engineering 'gen-eds' like dynamics and DFQ this semester so come spring I have to choose. My biggest recommendation as a senior in ME is to look at your schools clubs that involve allot of different types of engineering. Through this I have come to learnt hat I love programming and want to start driving my career in the path of control systems. Largely being able to work on the different aspects of a project and see which one most excites you will definitely help you understand what route you should take.
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Oct 4, 2011 17:01
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Placebo Orgasm posted:I'm interested in control systems. Can you tell about what you've found out about pursuing that? Not as much as I need to. I am currently trying to personally learn as much as I can about different control system, but in terms of job pursuing I have focused more on getting my foot in with a company, even if the offer is outside of control systems. Have you already taken your control system classes?
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Oct 7, 2011 16:34
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Murgos posted:I'm confused, you said you specifically don't hire A students and instead hire mostly B students. That would, by your own definition, make your company run by a bunch of B engineers. Sure, it's a dumb joke but I don't get what you're all butt hurt about. The idea is that a B student isn't necessarily a B engineer as grades are a poor way of telling someones ability as a engineer.
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May 14, 2012 17:56
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huhu posted:homework stuff One recommendation I have is looking over in the SAL subforum of Ask/Tell, they tend to be very helpful with homework issues.
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Oct 10, 2012 22:07
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One question I have for all control engineers in the field currently. I have been currently taking a mechatronics class which has involved a good amount of PLC programming. This has been hands down one of the most enjoyable subjects for me out of everything I have learned so far. Do you typically spend your time working on block/ladder coding, or is much more of your time devoted to PID's and laplase transformations? Really what it comes down to is that I am a ME graduating in a month that has a strong love of programming and wants to figure out what field lends best to that. Are ME's typically the ones working on PLC's and are they still very common?
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Nov 6, 2012 19:22
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I have noticed Six Sigma showing up in a number of the job opening for a Mechanical Engineer. This made me wonder if it would be worth paying out of my pocket for a sigma six yellow belt training to be able to put it on my resume. Would this be worth the time and effort for getting a job?
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Jan 7, 2013 19:37
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As a recently mechanical engineer graduate currently looking for a job, what is the best ways I can fill my time to help the job hunt? Outside of applying for jobs and trying to network I have been trying to gain some skills through classes and volunteer work. The free online classes I am taking are one on calculus to refresh my memory, a programming languages course, and two data structures courses. I know that programming isn't mandatory for a mechanical engineer but it is something I both enjoy and would assume would be impressive to discuss at a interview. For volunteer work I have started helping Habitat for Humanity to get some hands on experience working on houses. I don't expect to get a job with home design, but exposure to hard labor and construction is something I have never really done before.
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Jan 16, 2013 21:43
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NomNomNom posted:Let's begin with why you haven't been able to find a job. Location and GPA? Tacoma, Washington and 3.33 GPA. My largest issue is that I didn't have a internship during school, which gives me little hands on experience. I worked on making up for it through my involvement with Solar Splash (was even president for a semester) but that is nothing compared to a paid internship.
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Jan 17, 2013 07:14
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After having spent I good amount of time on the job hunt, I have become a bit curious about the sales engineer/applications engineer position. I seem to be getting the best feedback from these kinds of openings, but I am worried that it will make it difficult to move into a greater design focus engineering position in the future. For anyone here that has done hiring for engineering positions, do these kinds of jobs have a negative impact on a persons chances to obtain a more typical engineer job?
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Feb 6, 2013 21:25
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Prefect Six posted:From what I've seen the career move is usually the other way around. Most sales guys who are Engineers started out doing design or in other Engineering related positions in the industry, realized they could make (more) bank selling the stuff they specify and started/joined a sales outfit. I can definitely understand that. The reason that I ask about the transfer the opposite way is that I personally have a large passion for direct design and am afraid that accepting one of these jobs would make it difficult to pursue that passion further down the line. If this was the case, I would likely not accept the job offer and wait for something that is more on the design side.
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Feb 7, 2013 20:35
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After a long period of nothing I have finally been lucky to get two job offers, but I am having a extremely difficult time deciding between them. As my first engineer job will obviously effect much of my career I was wondering if I could get some advice on what you guys think is the best route. The first position has more benefits for future growth: +Working for a high security facility +Will be working on something that could be considered of high prestige +Will obtain high security clearance +Training and mentor ship program +High pay: $60k -Will be dealing with countless regulations and bureaucracy -Job will be largely writing reports on issues and changes to be made -No hands on work -Will need to commute 1 hour each way The second would be more in line with what I would want to do in my long term career(design): +Working for a small company (>200) +Working with tools I enjoy using (Inventor and Visual Basic programming) +Will be involved in designing the latest products and exposing myself heavily to full process of manufacturing +Friendly and lay back environment -Not nearly as prestigious of a focus (furniture design) -Lower pay: $50k -Would be remaining in my hometown Any advice that you can give me for this kind of choice would be extremely helpful.
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Mar 27, 2013 17:18
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On the topic of the commute seeing as it comes up allot, there is a shuttle that can goes to and from the facility.
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Mar 27, 2013 19:02
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That you all for the input, it really helped. I ended up calling the second job and got them to raise the income to $55k making it my final choice. I was surprised the amount of focus on the commute, though I have never had experience with anything like it.
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Mar 28, 2013 02:02
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Frankston posted:On that note, how viable is it for a mechanical engineer to work in the energy industry? I'm really interested in mech but I'd also love to do something with nuclear or renewable energies. Both of these do have extensive mechanical systems, nuclear in particular. I think you need to look more at scope, what part of nuclear or renewable energies do you want to be involved in? As in, what do you want to do on a day to day basis? These are massive massive systems that have a ton of different people and jobs working on them. Hell you can technically "do something" with renewable energies with a marketing degree.
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Apr 19, 2013 02:50
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Frankston posted:What are the prospects like for going abroad with nuclear/renewables? Moving abroad is my main ambition in life (I really don't like the UK) so it's an important consideration for me. My understanding is France has a ton of nuclear, while Germany has a ton of renewable energies (solar). The question really becomes how easy is it to get a job in another part of the UN when compared to local?
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Apr 30, 2013 03:43
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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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I have recently started to look for a new job after spending 2-3 years as a Design Engineer. I have found some aspects of the job to be very interesting: working with Industrial designers, designing plastic and metal parts, etc. but have been saddened by how little I ever get to put numbers to paper. My saving grace has been that we develop parameter models so I get to play with backend code. Coming from a ME degree, are there any common engineering positions that tend to lean a bit more heavily on code and mathmatics or should I look at going down the ME->CS master's route to scratch that itch?
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Dec 3, 2015 02:56
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