Any engineers on here? Want to hear your perspectives.

[BrianSD_42]

I have 1 quarter left to go to before I graduate Cal Poly SLO with a BS in ME. I have no job lined up for me yet. SOMEONE HIRE ME PLEASE!!

If you are willing to move you can find a job. There might not be one in SLO or SF but there are jobs for new engineers, even ME. A lot of companies want to hire new graduates because they are much cheaper.

Look for jobs in every state, if you don't get hired within 6 months you will be at a big disadvantage.

* Have you tried Monster.com, Dice.com ect.
* What are the 20 biggest companies in your industry, did you apply to them directly?

If you still can't find a job in 6 months then enlist in the Air Force. You will get picked up for an officer program right away because of your BS but you will need to enlist first.

 

[Atlanta_man]

not just cheaper
but
lots of companies are overrun with old guys about to retire, need young folks that can keep the business going...

 

[terra4r]

BS in Mechanical Engineering, NCEES EIT, dabbled a little in Nuclear grad courses. Currently I work for a company that builds nuclear powered aircraft carriers for the US Navy, and I work with that nuclear voodoo =)

Engineering is a great career choice, like many have said, there will always be a demand for them, especially in the computer sciences and electronics fields, but hey, mechanics interest me more. Each field is very flexible in career paths. Just stay ethical. Way too many people out there do the wrong for personal advances.

In my opinion, I would step into a career for a little while before going back for a masters, and higher secondary education. I thought the nuclear grad courses would play out well, but it was really something to keep my mind busy. I have since considered going for an MBA, something wifey (BS Accounting/HR) can do together.

 

[kai920]

Last June I graduated as with a B.S. in Information Systems Management from University of California Santa Cruz's Baskin School of Engineering.

How is this different from MIS, or is it MIS?

 

[hyperthread]

I am a Software Engineer working for a consulting company. This is my line of work for 11 years now. I tell you that there is a lot of stress on this field but maybe depends on what company you are. They pay is OK and you could say that you are in between middle class and high class.

Off topic - I sometimes think that I should have taken a medical course instead. There is a stress as well but the salary pays it off. There is a lot of job instability and uncertainty with IT field as most of the work are being outsourced now to Asia.

 

[BrianSD_42]

How is this different from MIS, or is it MIS?

I imagine that MIS and ISM are pretty much the same thing. There are many different programs at schools across the country. Depending on which school you attend the program may lead to a BA or BS.

In California there are two public college systems CSU and UC. The CSU system offers a BA in Business Administration with a focus in Information Systems. At University of California Santa Cruz, they have a program called ISM where you earn a BS through the school of engineering.

I am not completely sure of all the differences but one big advantage of being part of the School of Engineering (SOE) is that you can take any engineering classes without getting special permission. So many ISM majors often pursue minors in Computer Engineering or Computer Science.

The math and science requirements are also higher for a BS through SOE vs a BA outside of SOE. One example of this would be the requirement of TRIG based calculus and electives vs. non-TRIG based calculus, also known as business calculus. All engineering schools in the county require a TRIG based calculus math curriculum.

:girl:

 

[BrianSD_42]

There is a lot of job instability and uncertainty with IT field as most of the work are being outsourced now to Asia.

That is true, it is a pretty bad time to be a sys-admin.

 

[PJS]

For an ME, energy engineering is an exploding sub-sector for careers. You can work for a consulting (MEP) firm, AE design firm, design/build contractors, energy services companies (performance contracting), fed/state/local governments, universities, hospitals - you name it. I started out in HVAC controls over twenty years ago after getting my BSME, did that for many years. Did stints for design/consulting firms, government, etc. Last 7 years working for an ESCO (Energy services co - performance contracting) as an energy engineering manager. Lots of work, always looking for young, smart, motivated engineering grads (min. BS from an accredited school)- the sky is the limit if you are willing to put in the work and realize you have much, much, much more to learn. With your new BS, all you really know is how to (hopefully) figure things out. Your body of knowledge as it pertains to the real world (unless you've interned or co-op'd) is zero. 99.9% of what you will actually use in your career you will learn on the job. I've been working engineering jobs more than two decades, and I'm still learning every day. Good luck.