MUST HAVE NASTRAN EXPERIENCE (RANT) 2

[joe79]

Rant warning.

I'm applying for jobs, mostly in aerospace structural analysis, and it seems like I can't even get an interview since I don't have experience using NASTRAN, PATRAN or ANSYS, etc. The thing that really burns is that I have experience writing finite element analysis applications FROM SCRATCH, I have experience with other FEA packages, I have a B.S. and an M.S. from top-notch programs in structures and mechanics and for the past year I've been doing FEA without the help of a GUI (mesh generation algorithms, in-house FEA solvers, data visualization software, etc.). All the employers care about is if you've been using certain black boxes for umpteen years...

When I talk to recruiters they go "do you know NASTRAN? No? Hmm..."

The funny thing is is that I was being considered on the development side of certain FEA tools. But that brings me to my second problem...I don't have experience with C++, only C/C+.

Does this mean that I'm likely to be considered only at entry level if considered at all?

I appreciate any help. Thanks for taking the time to read this frustrated engineer's rant.

 

[joe79]

I suppose why I like programming so much is that you have to be a little clever. As opposed to my first job out of school where there's so much planning and organizing over actual problem solving and technical ability. Most of the problems being solved were freaking cake. There were no more fun, tricky problems to solve and then look back and say 'look what I did, I kicked that mid-term's ass and did it so much better than most of the other students in the class'. With my first job it was more like 'we'll give the entry-level guy trivial, time-consuming, degrading busywork and it will be a complete waste of his abilities and level of education.' They recruited me telling me I would be using EVERYTHING I learned in undergrad and grad school. Yeah right, not when you went to major research universities. Do most practicing structural engineers need to know whether a numerical method is conditionally stable vs. unconditionally stable? What about solving integrals? What about probability and functions of multiple random variables?

I think I am the product of an overly competitive job market for Structural Engineers. You are told you have to get an advanced degree, but not because you need the additional knowledge or technical ability, just because it's what employers prefer. So you work really hard in school, get an advanced degree from freaking Berekely or Stanford that you don't really need when you begin working, and if you actually wanted to use the fun stuff you learned, you will be very disappointed.

Ok, there's my additional rant. Sorry.

 

[RossABQ]

I have three sons in college at the moment. Every one of them came home saying that without an advanced degree, they couldn't get a job. I asked who told them that, and they all replied "my professor". Talk about a vested self-interest...

Joe, it is common for some grads to be disappointed in the level of work initially assigned. The lesson here is to always be aware of what skills are valuable in your field, and keep up with them.

 

[joe79]

I'm tired of this crap. I included Nastran and Patran in my resume. I better start getting some interviews now or else I'm going back to school!!

 

[JStephen]

I took some weekend AutoCAD classes a few years back and have since used it quite a bit. One thing I have learned is that there is a big difference between learning the basic commands or actions, and actually being proficient with it. So I think the idea of just lying about it or even learning it on your own and then implying your experienced with could leave you unprepared for what is expected.

I share your frustrations, though. I remember some years back, hearing that industries were complaining to Congress about the lack of qualified workers. Yet, at the same time, they seemed to be unwilling to invest anything in making workers qualified. If each company expects the others to train people for whatever the application is, you've got problems. I remember in Colorado Springs, there were two aerospace companies in town, and neither seemed interested in bringing anyone new into that industry. The result was the only talent pool for each company was the other company- and then they wondered why they couldn't find enough people. It seems to be a penny-wise-pound-foolish situation.