Job Advice for a Young Engineer 1

[BAMFengr]

Good morning to you all, this is my first post on this forum and I have a career/employment question.

Background: I graduated in May of 2006 with decent grades from a Top 10 university in their applied mechanics program. I was going through a rough patch in my personal life, so my grades took a hit (graduated with a ~2.8). Did an internship abroad, but really didn't distinguish myself in any real way.

I got hired a few months after graduating (July 06) by a small consulting firm where I learned a lot, did some cool stuff, and got my personal demons sorted out. Lost about 40 pounds, got my self-confidence back.
Job 1: Worked there from July 06 through Nov 07.

Wanting a change in scenery, I left this firm to work in a mechanical engineering role in a different part of the state, for a company that actually built stuff. I was a little underprepared in terms of hands-on experience, but I was coming up to speed pretty quickly (I think). Little did I know the company was pretty badly off financially and didn't receive the two big government contracts they anticipated that I would be working on. So I got laid off after 4 months.
Job 2: I worked there from Nov 07 to March 08.

I got hired a week later (no kidding) by another company 5 minutes off the same street for another mechanical engineering job. The work was exciting, and I was working on some pretty cool stuff, but the company itself was poorly run. Once again, they didn't get the government contracts that I was supposed to work on, so I got laid off after a month and a half. No kidding.
Job 3: I worked there from March 08 to April 08.

After a few botched interviews and traveling abroad, I got hired as a quality engineer for a company which produces specialty parts for the consumer electronics industry. I didn't really like it at first but I learned a lot about how a company works, and learned a bit about the quality field in general. Unfortunately, the firm suffered about a 50% drop in business the first quarter of this year, and I was laid off after six months.
Job 4: I worked there from July 08 to February 09.

Question: Having been out of school for not even 3 years, and already going on my fifth jobs (!!!!), what if anything can I do to make myself not look like a total sketchball on my resume? I've never been discharged for cause, I've only had the bad luck to work at small companies which don't have a lot of cash saved to weather downturns. I've been submitting resumes right and left and I can't get a single call back; for two reasons (I think)

1. The economic situation has created a lot more engineers looking for employment than there are openings. It's definetly a buyers market at this point.
2. My employment history doesn't look good at first glance.

So, my fellow engineers: what if anything can I do to make myself more appealing on my resume? I have a degree, some relevant experience, and I consider myself to be adaptable.

I am considering grad school, but at this point with no job and the prospect of getting a scholarship/tuition assistance dim I might end up leaving school with an MS and tons of debt that I might not be able to pay off quickly.

Your thoughts?

 

[Ron]

Sending blind CV's with your employment history won't get you anywhere, as you can see.

I would suggest two approaches:

1. Networking...go to Chapter meetings of local engineering societies or technical societies
2. Look closely at going back to school. In and of itself, that will give you a chance to "start over" with an almost clean slate. Further, the placement office of the University will help you along with prospective employers, and by the time you graduate, the economy is likely to have rebounding, put you in greater demand.

 

[monkeydog]

If you have not taken & passed the EIT exam. Do it. It will at least show the prospective employers you were not sleeping during class.

 

[MechEng2005]

You could try a non-standard resume. If you are concerned about the look of all the different companies, don't list them. Make a resume listing what you do want them to see. Maybe that just has your name, contact information, your education background, a list of skills pertinent to the applied for position, and a list of things you have worked on.

Maybe the hiring company will be confused why you didn't list your employers by name, but maybe them being unsure is better than just getting your resume tossed aside...

Just try to think outside the box. Decide what YOU want to tell the hiring company, and then tailor that to what you think they will accept. Don't start get mixed up with the "rules" for a standard resume. Be creative, it will make your resume standout.

Best of luck!
-- MechEng2005

 

[HamishMcTavish]

star for MechEng2005, although when i saw the phrase "think outside the box" i paused!

to reiterate - a CV is YOUR document and all it can do is get a foot in the door, once you're there i've no doubt that the detail will come out so you also need to be thinking about how to respond to some potentially difficult interview questions.

Good luck, HM

No more things should be presumed to exist than are absolutely necessary - William of Occam

 

[FreddyNurk]

As much as it probably goes against the grain to state this, I'd also be using experiences gained to assess potential employers in terms of likely financial stability.

Obviously this is difficult in the current climate, as well as the consideration that its never easy to be selective about where you want to work. What you should also have gained, is a contact list of some description. This may prove invaluable to find your next opportunity.

Richard Bolles' book, 'What Color is Your Parachute' outlines some of the issues in terms of assessing potential employment, as well as ways to get around the current employment market.

Granted, in your position I'd still be taking whatever I can get myself, having had a similar experience once.

 

[whisperingpines]

BAMFeng

Another angle. Do some research and locate a strong company that you feel has good history of weathering economic slumps, and is paired with products/applications you are interested in. Apply for field/shop operations. Explain in your resume that you prefer to start at a level that will give you a solid foundation and understanding of the overall process prior to performing in a ME role.

This may seem remedial (and low budget) but has the potential for a plethora of return, and should emphasize to your perspective employer that you are willing to pay some dues.

Good luck, and remember to just take it one day at a time.

 

[MechEng2005]

To add to what whisperingpines suggested, by taking a "lower" position and expressing your desire to learn and grow, you show interest in long-term commitment. This may help alleviate some concerns about lack of long-term employment at one company.

Hamish - What's wrong with the phrase "think outside the box"? I didn't think anything of it, but now that I think more about it, it is a funny phrase. Encouraging people to be creative using a cliche. Cliche's are basically the opposite of creative I suppose...

-- MechEng2005

 

[HamishMcTavish]

Hi MechEng,

Nothing "wrong" with it, just overused where i work! There was a thread in the engineering language forum

http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=230446&page=1

which you might find amusing.

Cheers, HM

No more things should be presumed to exist than are absolutely necessary - William of Occam