Entry-level chem. eng. also new in USA 1

[sadochemeng]

hi,
I am new to forum and USA and I really need help. It is one month now still looking for chemical engineering job in chicago area and couldnt find anything...Can anybody advice me where to go whatto do?I am using these internet agents but they r discouraging me but nothing...I joined one of the chemical engineering associations but they r not really so helpful too.I have work permit and everything I cant relocate my wife's job is here. I really need advices and waiting it from u.Thanks to everybody

 

[ivymike]

You could speak to Ondeo-Nalco in Naperville, they may have openings. Then there are various gas suppliers (BOC, or competitors), and I believe there are several chemical processing and/or refining facilities in the area.

 

[sadochemeng]

thanks alot. I am a Turkish guy and my degree is from turkey Yildiz Technical university. Do u think it would be aproblem to have a foreign degree?I made it evaluated and certified by a consultancy organization.should I go there and talk to them or send a resume?I mean sending resumes online really doesnt mean alot I think.

 

[Beggar]

Beware -- this may be discouraging. It is, IMO, also the truth:

1) Your English skills appear somewhat weak. This is a liability. Unless you have a specialized set of skills, you're unlikely to get hired in such a competetive environment.

Be sure you have somebody competent proof all of your written communications.

Take English classes and apply yourself to developing your language. Try to get objective opinions about a possible accent that can make it difficult to understand you.

2)From which country is your degree? In my experience, degrees from countries other than US, Canada, Western Europe, and India are regarding as suspect.

I've seen and worked with several technicians who were in fact holders of engineering degrees from Russia or Romania. Without specialized experience and skills, it's tough to compete with holders of similar degrees from accredited and/or recognized schools.

From interviews I've conducted, I've learned that there are independent accrediting agencies who vet transcripts from foreign schools. I looked at these with some suspicion but it's much better than the alternative.

3) How are your grades/marks? Even native English speakers with mediocre to fair grades from decent accredited US universities are struggling to find meaningful work these days.

4) What is your mother tongue? If it's a language that's in demand, try to play that up. For example, I'd be all over a new grad ChE who spoke functional Mandarin.

5) Also, 1 month is nothing in a job search. I'd expect to spend no less than 6 months, more likely closer to 12 looking for a job. Am I correct that you're not looking for an H1B job? If so, you're likely in a very difficult position.

6) For any candidate, narrowing your search to a certain geographical area will make it tough -- especially for entry level jobs. When I got my first one, I moved from 1 hr North of San Francisco to Los Angeles. From there moved several hours North of SF. Then I moved to the Sacramento area. I've interview in Oregon and Washington. The point is, the smaller the radius in which you're willing to work, the harder it will be to find a job.

Suggestions:

1) Work on your language skills.
2) Consider a graduate degree.
3) Network, network, network.
4) Consider going after a tech job in a field or company that you're interested in. The problem with that is that you may not be hired because you're considered "overqualified" or you may be hired but forever after be considered a technician instead of an engineer.

Be persistent; be creative; be energetic.

Learn, learn, learn.

--------------------
Bring back the HP-15

http://www.hp15c.org

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[sadochemeng]

my english is not bad at all. I have really so little accent. I am not talking like indians so I dont have a worry about that. I am gonna start a grauate program. yea I am also looking for technician jobs but as u said they think I am over qualified. what do u mean with network?can u pls explain it?thanks

 

[Beggar]

Regarding your English, the reason for my comment is the grammar and usage in your original post. Bluntly, they're poor. Remember, their first impression of you will be the written documents that you submit. Be sure that they're impeccable.

My experience is that people don't often speak much better than they write.

Regarding networking: It means to speak with everybody you know (and to meet those that you don't) and find a contact within the engineering group of a company at which you wish to work.

Hunt around a bit on the web (& this site) and you'll find page after page that discusses various strategies toward networking.

With no experience, you're in a difficult position. I strongly suggest that you expand your geographical horizon. You wouldn't be the first guy to take a job that only permits him to be home over the weekends.

--------------------
Bring back the HP-15

http://www.hp15c.org

--------------------

 

[Beggar]

Again, to be blunt: As a new graduate from a university that I've never heard of, I think you're facing an uphill battle.

Without a graduate degree, I think your chances of breaking into the relatively tight job market are pretty slim.

I'm not so sure about now but certainly when I graduated, most new grads obtained employment through on-campus recruiting. My experience has been that few companies publically post entry-level positions and instead rely on recruitment from their preferred universities or hiring summer intern/coop students. A degree from a domestic university would open up that avenue to you.

Even if you're ultimately unwilling to relocate, you should still apply to any posting you can find. If you're lucky, they might be willing to cover transportation and lodging costs of getting to an interview.

Interviewing experience is critical. It took me several *real* interviews to "get my groove" going and to be able to relax enough to come across as genuine.

If you want it badly enough, you can do it. For goodness sake, don't be discouraged after only 1 month.

--------------------
Bring back the HP-15

http://www.hp15c.org

--------------------

 

[epoisses]

Beggar is right. You need to have something special in order to be hired instead of your American competitors, to compensate for your English. Re Indians, sure they have an accent, like Scotsmen and many others, but they write and -I presume- speak better English than you do. So why would a company hire you specifically? Until you've answered that question for yourself, don't be very optimistic about finding a job. The "why" could be someone within the company who knows you, hence "network network network". I found a job in a foreign country myself thanks to the fact someone knew me.

 

[sadochemeng]

Hey,

Thanks alot guys for taking the time to help me. Your advice was not what I wanted to hear but I guess what I needed to hear.

Anybody else out there with a foreign degree who could share some of their experiences?

Have a great day!

P.S While I was writing this I got a call for an interview
wish me luck!!!

 

[casseopeia]

sadochemeng,

I don't have anything to add as far as chemical engineering, but if you are looking for a bit of home, you might like this place. I was recently in Chicago and had the opportunity to go to a Turkish restaurant. It's called A La Turka, located at 3134 North Lincoln Ave. They have belly dancing Thursday through Sunday.

My (bellydance) partner and I were not impressed with the dancing so much, but we loved the music, atmosphere, food and the other patrons, and they liked us after we got on the stage and did some dancing for them.

ps: Good luck on the interview. I hope you manage to stay in Chicago. It's a great place.

"If you are going to walk on thin ice, you might as well dance!"

 

[IRstuff]

My wife has a foreign medical degree and it took about 6 yrs to land a residency position. There were other extenuating factors, though...

TTFN

 

[sadochemeng]

Thanks for the advice about A la Turka restaurant. Actually it is just around the corner from our house and I have been there. Yes the food is great but you should try it in Istanbul if you ever get a chance. I really appreciate all the advice and I am open to any of them. Thanks.

 

[sadochemeng]

Thanks again for your help. So, let me tell you more about my situation. Yes, I graduated from one of the best known Turkish Universities which is accredited by the European Union. To be accepted there I had to take a test in which I scored 9000th in 1.5 million people. After graduation I came here to be with my wife who is an American. I have work experience in Turkey with GCC(Ground calcium carbonate) production and also had an internship at a plastic molding factory. I worked at an international pharmaceutical company for an internship at the Quality control lab. I presented all these experiences in my resume. But there is no response. I think my name may sound "middle eastern" or so foreign and maybe that is part of the problem. I havent been to any job fairs or visit any company in person. I just sent resumes online. Do u have any suggestions or any more advice on what to do?

 

[ivymike]

A foreign-sounding name doesn't seem to have hindered the 40% (or so) of my coworkers who have them.

You might try taking some classes at a local community college (pick something interesting), and see whether their career counseling office has any good connections. They may also have people who could look over your resume for you.

 

[ziggi]

I found that the best way is to do some footwork. Make up a handful of resumes and drive down to your local industrial/business/commercial district and just walk into companies.
Chat up the secretary, ask if they're hiring engineers, technicians, monkeys whatever, hand her your resume, ask for a business card of someone in HR and then ask her about the company.
Usually the secretary won't bin the resume, especially if you ask for a business card; you also might get lucky and actually get an impromptu interview. Even if you don't, about 10 to 20 percent of those HR contacts will give you a quick interview on the phone.
I've gotten nearly all my jobs this way, I have to admit though that the trick is to dress nice, not SUPER nice, with a tie and jacket and all, but business casual, nice pants, shiny shoes, collared shirt, top button unbuttoned etc. And the most IMPORTANT thing to do is to be friendly.
That said, if your personality is similar to a goat's (and yes there are people out there like that), you've got no chance; if you're not too easy on the eyes you might have trouble too.

If all else fails, you could try to do what a friend of mine did (he was 6 months out of univ and had no job). He put on a suit and tie and walked into a fairly large company and told them that he was there for an interview with HR. He tried this at a few places and got interviews at all of them, but no job offers.

Of the hundreds upon hundreds of resumes I've sent out via the net, I've only ever gotten one interview.

 

[waterexpert]

I am a chemical engineering consultant, and I get at least three unsolicted resumes a week from people with degrees from universities I have never heard of in the old eastern bloc, Turkey, India and Pakistan. I politely decline them all, as I also decline anyone with a non-accredited UK degree.

I have no way of assessing what the qualifications mean, and neither the time or the inclination to find out. Make it easy for those assessing your request:

Get a post-graduate qualification in Chemical Engineering in the country you are now in, if you want to have any chance of being taken seriously.

As for the English question, a recognised high-level qualification in spoken and written English would be good.

If you want to cheat at bit, get a native speaker to amend your written communications before you send them. The unsolicited CVs I receive often have mangled English, despite fluent English always being claimed in the CV. Even fluent non-native writers use odd foreign constructions at times.

Best of Luck
Seán

 

[global9000]

There might be groups in your area that help immigrant engineers find work. Talk to your local engineering association. I know they have assocations in Canada that are tailored towards immigrant engineers. These groups would most likely have been started by engineers like yourself that were frustrated by the lack of opportunities for immigrants.

 

[sadochemeng]

Waterexpert
Interesting comments but sounds like you forgot the strength of this country is that everyone was once an immigrant(I suppose you toss Native Americans CVs too). Kidding aside, it is a shame you are probably missing some very qualified and dedicated scientists. My degree has been acceridited by a US agency. But you are right, it might be a good idea to move it to the top of my resume. Thanks a lot.
Global9000
Thanks to you too. I ll search for communities like that. I am getting few calls. I hope something will work out. Thanks.

 

[sadochemeng]

Hi everybody,
I decided to take FE exam. What do you think about it? Would adding it to my resume help?

 

[sadochemeng]

I looked into this FE exam and it is really a big deal that I have to evaluate my degree again from some other place and stuff, stuff. What do u think?should I really do it?
Do u think it will bring any benefits?Did anybody else do this?