sam74
Civil/Environmental
- Dec 3, 2004
- 310
Well I have been laid off since early Feb. I managed to get a job about three weeks ago outside of my field. Just got through working a 4:30 am to 4:30 pm shift. Sorry this is going to be long winded but please comment as I could use some advice.
My background is 12 years general civil/site with some survey and construction insepection experience. I do no structural. Generally just get new developments or expansions up to code for municipalities, utilities, or state departments by developing the drawings, calculations, and reports they require.
But on to the real issues. The week I start this job a begin getting some hits. First a contractor is doing a major demolishing job at a government facility and requests a phone interview.
I speak with three different guys over conference call. They are looking for a mid-level civil engineer and an engineering coordinator II. They phrase it as a jack of all trades type position. We speak for about 15 or 20 minutes over the phone about my experience in the consulting world. Phone call seems to go well but they have some other candidates to contact.
The next week I receive a call at work from them during the day which I cannot answer on my current job. They leave no voice mail. I don't bother returning the call.
The next week (this week) I'm contacted by their HR while I am at work and she leaves a voice mail requesting a return call. I call her and she has a job offer in hand with a 30+% increase over my last previous engineering job. The company is world wide and this contract will last until mid 2012 with the possibility if the client is happy 10 years worth of work in this area.
No face to face interview seems weird. I call the local contact I'll be working for and the job is four 10 hour days and most everyone wears a lot of hats I'm told.
At about the same time I have a phone interview with a local consulting company looking for a mid-level civil engineer to do design work like I am used to doing. Apparently they are growing in these hard times when hardly anything is being built in East Tennessee.
Phone interview goes well so I get a face to face interview sometime later this week.
I explained to the contractor that prior to his offer I was contacted by a local consulting firm and had scheduled an interview for this week prior to his offer. He had no problems with that.
What is your advice on this situation? Embrace a large pay raise and learn some new skills for at least 1.5 years maybe more if I excel? Or (if I get offered the consulting job) stick with what I know and probably have a secure job for alot longer? Should I bring this up in my consulting interview and ask for his input? Pursue both full throtle just to get a job in my field and potentially irk someone it they get jilted?
Any advice is welcome. Similar situations and what happened appreciated. I figure I've got till Friday afternoon maybe Monday to make some major decsions.
My background is 12 years general civil/site with some survey and construction insepection experience. I do no structural. Generally just get new developments or expansions up to code for municipalities, utilities, or state departments by developing the drawings, calculations, and reports they require.
But on to the real issues. The week I start this job a begin getting some hits. First a contractor is doing a major demolishing job at a government facility and requests a phone interview.
I speak with three different guys over conference call. They are looking for a mid-level civil engineer and an engineering coordinator II. They phrase it as a jack of all trades type position. We speak for about 15 or 20 minutes over the phone about my experience in the consulting world. Phone call seems to go well but they have some other candidates to contact.
The next week I receive a call at work from them during the day which I cannot answer on my current job. They leave no voice mail. I don't bother returning the call.
The next week (this week) I'm contacted by their HR while I am at work and she leaves a voice mail requesting a return call. I call her and she has a job offer in hand with a 30+% increase over my last previous engineering job. The company is world wide and this contract will last until mid 2012 with the possibility if the client is happy 10 years worth of work in this area.
No face to face interview seems weird. I call the local contact I'll be working for and the job is four 10 hour days and most everyone wears a lot of hats I'm told.
At about the same time I have a phone interview with a local consulting company looking for a mid-level civil engineer to do design work like I am used to doing. Apparently they are growing in these hard times when hardly anything is being built in East Tennessee.
Phone interview goes well so I get a face to face interview sometime later this week.
I explained to the contractor that prior to his offer I was contacted by a local consulting firm and had scheduled an interview for this week prior to his offer. He had no problems with that.
What is your advice on this situation? Embrace a large pay raise and learn some new skills for at least 1.5 years maybe more if I excel? Or (if I get offered the consulting job) stick with what I know and probably have a secure job for alot longer? Should I bring this up in my consulting interview and ask for his input? Pursue both full throtle just to get a job in my field and potentially irk someone it they get jilted?
Any advice is welcome. Similar situations and what happened appreciated. I figure I've got till Friday afternoon maybe Monday to make some major decsions.