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Message
2
Posted on 3/31/15 at 8:59 pm to THRILLHO
I work for a large consulting engineering firm as an EE and we are slow/dropping a few engineers/designers at the moment. The consulting engineering world is a rollercoaster though: every few years we have a down turn and people go on part time, go out of town or go home for a few months. It's not looking terrible in the extended timeframe, but not great either. But it'll come back up sooner or later. Always does.
The plants are going to hire long term positions when the positions get vacated by promotion and/or someone retires, but like you said you have more competition at the moment for the job openings.
If you're looking to get into petrochemical (which is a solid direction to go in SELA), if you can't find an engineering position I would look for a designer position, CM position, and construction job in that order. I can definitely tell you that field experience is a huge bonus on your resume so don't feel like you're wasting your time if you have to work construction for a spell. And if nothing else, just be employed. Work at subway if you can't find anything else. It looks good on a resume and you can at least pay the rent. When the engineering work in the area does come back up (it will) you want to be in a good position to take advantage of it.
The plants are going to hire long term positions when the positions get vacated by promotion and/or someone retires, but like you said you have more competition at the moment for the job openings.
If you're looking to get into petrochemical (which is a solid direction to go in SELA), if you can't find an engineering position I would look for a designer position, CM position, and construction job in that order. I can definitely tell you that field experience is a huge bonus on your resume so don't feel like you're wasting your time if you have to work construction for a spell. And if nothing else, just be employed. Work at subway if you can't find anything else. It looks good on a resume and you can at least pay the rent. When the engineering work in the area does come back up (it will) you want to be in a good position to take advantage of it.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:00 pm to THRILLHO
Busy as hell, you should move somewhere exotic for work - like Cameron, LA.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:02 pm to DownshiftAndFloorIt
Just remembered that we went on a tour of the Laitram/Intralox plant over here last semester. I guess I impressed the guy by asking proper questions, because he told me they were looking for an intern and I would be a perfect candidate.
Then he asked me how I was doing in school. I told him it didn't matter, and he asked what my GPA was. I told him, and he said don't bother applying.
Then he asked me how I was doing in school. I told him it didn't matter, and he asked what my GPA was. I told him, and he said don't bother applying.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:03 pm to Spankum
quote:
doesn't matter...just point out why the internship makes you an ideal candidate for whatever job you are applying for at the time...that is the game, so play it...
Missed this response. My HVAC estimating wasn't an internship, it was a full time job for a year until I was laid off. They hired me out of Delgado, which brings up another weird situation: I'll have my BSEE in a month, but I'm one high school level class away from having an associates degree in "electrical engineering technology." Is it worth paying the ~$500 to take that class online and finishing it over the summer (assuming I don't get a job by then)? Should I mention the community college experience at all?
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:03 pm to DownshiftAndFloorIt
Was trying to pick up some BS side jobs, landscaping, doing fences or whatever but haven't had much luck. Tried vto go back offshore with the company I worked for during summer and winter breaks but with budget cuts it was a no go.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:05 pm to Hammertime
It happens. I got all the way to the point of waiting on the official offer package to come in before the question came up. Got axed. Also got axed in a 2nd interview on the GPA. Id love to know how much more diverse my options would have been if I would have just been over 3.0
Nothing you can do except move on to the next one.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:07 pm to THRILLHO
Yes and yes.
Find the money, get the degree, and mention it. EVERYTHING helps. Do everything you can to show you're going to be the best long term value to the company.
Find the money, get the degree, and mention it. EVERYTHING helps. Do everything you can to show you're going to be the best long term value to the company.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:09 pm to Hammertime
I experienced this a lot, just have to keep trucking. I went to a info session even though they were only looking for certain degrees and ppl who were graduating. Talked to the guy, impressed him, got an interview and smoked it. He ended up putting an intern position together for me that they didn't even offer. 3 weeks before summer one of their platforms blew up and they canceled all internships and new hires. Maybe I was the lucky one.
This post was edited on 3/31/15 at 9:10 pm
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:13 pm to TigerHam85
quote:
Not an engineer, but I just recently relocated to Houston. Best decision I've ever made. Hope to get to Denver for a few years before settling down for good.
I'm not criticizing Houston at all. I live in Midtown and have college friends that live right across the street. We have a great time. I'm also in IT
Still, I do want to live in NYC and maybe London at some point. I'm getting older (still just 26) which makes it less likely with both my wife and I having good jobs.
This post was edited on 3/31/15 at 9:14 pm
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:14 pm to DownshiftAndFloorIt
Eh, I'd rather work for someone who values experience over gpa. Not the type of person who expects seniority because I have a fancy piece of paper. I'm also not the person they'd want sitting behind a computer all day anyway. I quit a good job after two months because of that. Was on the verge of going postal.
Right now I've got to get a decent internship instead of fricking with crap at my house. I just pulled out a damn 4 wheeler engine that needs a rebuild yesterday and it is sitting on my porch
Right now I've got to get a decent internship instead of fricking with crap at my house. I just pulled out a damn 4 wheeler engine that needs a rebuild yesterday and it is sitting on my porch
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:14 pm to gorillacoco
quote:
and construction job...Work at subway if you can't find anything else.
I'm going to do what I have to to survive, but I can honestly say that if I have to go from a $40k/yr job before school to being $30k in debt and shoveling shite or serving sandwiches for $15k/yr, it's going to frick my world up. And that's coming from someone who has survived some awful things. My family isn't wealthy or anything, but I think that they have enough money to take care of me for a few months if need be. I think I would call up one of the legit firms and offer to work for free for a few months before I took a job at a Subway. And I don't want to sound like an a-hole that looks down on those sorts of jobs or thinks that I'm above anything. I'm worth what companies are willing to offer me, which is jack shite right now. But my next job absolutely has to be engineering related, whether it pays $0/yr or $80k/yr.
Thanks for the post, though. Seriously, even if it's not the direction that I would like to go, it was helpful to simply read some options.
This post was edited on 3/31/15 at 9:16 pm
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:16 pm to Hammertime
Just be ready to have friends who you KNOW cannot do their job as well as you could do it making twice as much money as you.
Crutch of having a shitty GPA. You don't have much leverage at all unless somebody throws you a highball offer.
Crutch of having a shitty GPA. You don't have much leverage at all unless somebody throws you a highball offer.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:19 pm to Hammertime
quote:
Then he asked me how I was doing in school. I told him it didn't matter, and he asked what my GPA was. I told him, and he said don't bother applying.
You should have called him a count.
If it makes you feel any better, Laitram tried to buy my family's warehouse for years and we kept telling them to piss off. Eventually we went out of business and had to sell, but it wasn't to them.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:19 pm to GREENHEAD22
The current climate looks much better than it did in 2008, worse case is you start later or move for a different job.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:20 pm to THRILLHO
Pulling wire or mounting servers is relevant. You can find a labor job that's going to help you professionally when times get good and you'll be making more than $40k a year. You'll also probably learn how much work can suck, but that's a very good professional tool to have.
It means a whole lot when you as an engineer can show up on a job and show the guys doing the back work how to do something.
It means a whole lot when you as an engineer can show up on a job and show the guys doing the back work how to do something.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:23 pm to DownshiftAndFloorIt
Funny you say that because I turned down a job last week for $27.50/hr and asked to be considered for the job making $16/hr at the same company. My reasoning....I told the guy I didn't think I was qualified enough to do the job once I got the scope in the second interview.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:25 pm to Hammertime
Eta: I had Chevron pull that same move on me.
This post was edited on 3/31/15 at 9:32 pm
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:26 pm to DownshiftAndFloorIt
quote:
Yes and yes.
Find the money, get the degree, and mention it. EVERYTHING helps. Do everything you can to show you're going to be the best long term value to the company.
I'm worried about bringing up my Delgado situation to a company, though. I made straight A's while working a 9-5, needed one class to finish but got a good job, got laid off and ended up going on to finish my bachelors. I'm worried that the company I interview with could think that I'm "not willing to finish what I started." It's a complicated situation. I wish I played a varsity sport at Jesuit as it would solve everything.
Posted on 3/31/15 at 9:28 pm to DownshiftAndFloorIt
quote:
You'll also probably learn how much work can suck, but that's a very good professional tool to have.
Been there, done that. I'm 32 and have ~8 years warehouse work experience. I don't need to spend any post BSEE time doing blue collar work to know what it's like.
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