Expectations of a new engineer 8

[isnata]

Hello,
I am a new EIT and was wondering if I can get advice on how to adapt to work and relate to other engineers. I work for an electrical firm. I always focus on every tasks that I am given but new things always pop up at the end of the day and the work gets carried over to the next day. For most of you that are experienced, how was your experience as a young engineer? Sometimes, I feel I'm not professional enough and don't have enough confident. I know professionalism comes with experience, but how much is expected from a young engineer? Is it only me, or is it a normer phenomenon with young engineers? How fast should you finish a task and is it okay to ask other engineers for help in explaining some concepts. Certain things need more than google's help.

 

[oldestguy]

As to societies: an electrical engineer would first belong to the society under that name. In USA it is the IEEE or Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. Each of these have places for students and EIT.

Also, in the States there is the national Society of Professional Engineers, covering many types of engineers. Most states have branches of that society. Locally you may even have a Technical Club. Check back at your college for information on your specialty.

Do a little looking on the Internet.

 

[SP777]

I'm still a junior, however there are some tasks I've done enough that my boss will just let me handle it all myself (ex. do the work and let the client know then invoice). But then there are still many many tasks which I am still unsure about and require guidance. What has worked best for me is to listen to the scope of work carefully - there's often details which can govern design that if you aren't writing down will render your design useless. I like to get as much information as I can and then my boss will say do you have any questions - usually I do however what I've learned is there are always questions you didn't realize you need to ask.

What I say "yes, however I'd like to review my notes for a few minutes, can I send you a list of questions through email?" Unless of course its something simple or what not. Then I'll go through the notes and and prepare a way to tackle the work - ex. reference this resource (ex. concrete code Annex D). Then I'll say I haven't read about this section yet - I'll spend an hour reading and run some numbers - WHEN I find I need more information or confirm assumptions I'll send an email. Couple of days later perhaps I get a response and I can continue on and I'll be prepared to have a final deliverable that my boss won't say "WTF!".

It sounds like a long process - but really spending 15-20 minutes to get correct direction can save countless hours. My rule of thumb is if I'm unsure or need to make a big assumption I stop what I'm doing and ask about it - if it takes an hour or 2 days to get an answer thats more time you can focus on a different aspect of the job or a different job and essentially come up with the same process. Sometimes you can include a few of these questions in an email.

 

[GregLocock]

Star for you matey, listening, taking notes and having a think are all great habits,for EITs and everyone else.

Cheers

Greg Locock


New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376

http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm?