I'm currently employed as a R&D chemical/materials engineer with almost two years of experience. I plan to quit my job soon and take 6-9 months to self-teach myself advanced engineering concepts and to develop certain skills I’ll need to succeed in my career. I have a well thought out plan on how to accomplish this and have concluded that the benefits of doing this far out way the risks. However, I want to minimize the risk of not being able to find a job in 6-9 months considering the stereotype that HR/hiring managers have of unemployed applicants. What are some inexpensive/free online engineering certificates/programs, ideally related to materials/chemical engineering, that I could take to supplement the job gap on my resume? Taking classes through a university is not currently an option. I have a BS in chemical engineering and a passion for the development of advanced materials, especially catalysts.
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Online Certificates/Programs to Supplement Resume while Unemployed 2
- Thread starter jio87
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Good luck. However, what will prospective employers think about this when you approach them for work? I'd probably think, this guy doesn't want to work and is likely to not be productive for me. He probably will forever be switching jobs and will say when looking for work "I'm between jobs" a darn lame excuse for not being a good employee.. The question also will come up that last time maybe they gave him such a bad review and treatment that he quit as a way to get rid of a bad apple. Quitters don't get far. Why can't all this "education" be done on your own time, evenings and weekends? That will be much better in your basket of goodies to offer when applying for the next job. That 6/9 month "vacation" very likely will run into several years and then you won't be happy with what you finally found. I hope that dad will be willing to keep you around the house.
Why not just keep your job and get an advanced degree? Your present company might even pay for all or part of it.
Your plan looks pretty flimsy to me. As a degreed engineer, your proposed certificate approach is as lame as it gets.
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! faq731-376 forum1529
Your plan looks pretty flimsy to me. As a degreed engineer, your proposed certificate approach is as lame as it gets.
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! faq731-376 forum1529
GregLocock
Automotive
Having actually done an 'accredited' MOOC, I would say the standards of invigilation are so lax that they are meaningless as qualifications. Anybody who has done one can probably identify a method to score 100% in the coursework sections, and I dare say the exams are pretty easy to game as well.
Cheers
Greg Locock
New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376
Cheers
Greg Locock
New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376
MacGyverS2000
Electrical
I look at certifications as "general knowledge gathering" exercises only. Having taken a number myself over the years, I agree with Greg's assessment of them. The knowledge gained can be mildly useful, but they are in now way a good replacement for quality learning. As such, If certs are how people fill time they should be on the job learning via real experience (or in the classroom), I will pass them over.
Dan - Owner
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Dan - Owner
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- #6
Panther140
Civil/Environmental
"I have a BS in chemical engineering and a passion for the development of advanced materials, especially catalysts."
"I'm currently employed as a R&D chemical/materials engineer with almost two years of experience. I plan to quit my job soon and take 6-9 months to self-teach myself advanced engineering concepts and to develop certain skills I’ll need to succeed in my career."
That’s probably not a good idea.
My analysis: You’re new to the company. You have big dreams of what you want to be doing in your job. The company isn’t giving you the cool projects because they (or some of them) still view you as the new kid. You might even be a stud when it comes to engineering, but the guys with seniority over you could mainly view that as a threat to their stardom and then that could manifest into a hostile work environment (geared against YOU at any opportunity that this select few has to do so).
We’re also heading into the next recession, which means the budget at your company is tighter than it was when you started there. You aren’t used to what this does to work environment yet, and you think the job market for guys our age is going to be the same as it was 2 years ago when we got hired.
You’re using education as an excuse to avoid the real world. This is very common with people our age. We have been indoctrinated into thinking “education before all else forever”. It’s a cop out that I see people using to avoid growing up. False. Self-sufficiency before all else. If you want to quit your job you better have already secured something tangible for your 10 year plan. I’m taking 5 credits per semester while working 40+ hours per week. The best part is that I even get to “self teach myself” because it is an online calculus class. You don't need to quit work in order to learn. In fact, you need to learn how to work.
"Formal education is a weapon, whose effect depends on who holds it in his hands and at whom it is aimed." ~ Joseph Stalin
"I'm currently employed as a R&D chemical/materials engineer with almost two years of experience. I plan to quit my job soon and take 6-9 months to self-teach myself advanced engineering concepts and to develop certain skills I’ll need to succeed in my career."
That’s probably not a good idea.
My analysis: You’re new to the company. You have big dreams of what you want to be doing in your job. The company isn’t giving you the cool projects because they (or some of them) still view you as the new kid. You might even be a stud when it comes to engineering, but the guys with seniority over you could mainly view that as a threat to their stardom and then that could manifest into a hostile work environment (geared against YOU at any opportunity that this select few has to do so).
We’re also heading into the next recession, which means the budget at your company is tighter than it was when you started there. You aren’t used to what this does to work environment yet, and you think the job market for guys our age is going to be the same as it was 2 years ago when we got hired.
You’re using education as an excuse to avoid the real world. This is very common with people our age. We have been indoctrinated into thinking “education before all else forever”. It’s a cop out that I see people using to avoid growing up. False. Self-sufficiency before all else. If you want to quit your job you better have already secured something tangible for your 10 year plan. I’m taking 5 credits per semester while working 40+ hours per week. The best part is that I even get to “self teach myself” because it is an online calculus class. You don't need to quit work in order to learn. In fact, you need to learn how to work.
"Formal education is a weapon, whose effect depends on who holds it in his hands and at whom it is aimed." ~ Joseph Stalin
- Thread starter
- #7
Thanks for the replies. I agree with all of your advice, however my situation is unique for many reasons that I won't go into but suffice to say I’ve reached a point in my life where focusing on my personal development is far more important than my present career. I know what my intellectual potential is and I refuse to place more importance on avoiding an employment gap than wholeheartedly trying to reach it. Finding a less stressful and time consuming job where I don’t work 60+ hours a week would absolutely help, but I cannot expect to achieve the type of rapid growth I demand through efforts in my off-time, as I've been doing.
That being said, I was only interested in taking online programs/certificates in the hopes that they would support my argument that I voluntarily quit to focus on my intellectual development, and clearly they won't be of much help in that area.
That being said, I was only interested in taking online programs/certificates in the hopes that they would support my argument that I voluntarily quit to focus on my intellectual development, and clearly they won't be of much help in that area.
Regardless, your description of your planned activity suggests that you are going to do this sans ABET accreditation, so at the end of all of this, you will likewise have no objective measurement of your advancement or assessment of your skills. Seems highly dubious to me, and I would hazard a guess that the typical HR department will see nothing more than an extended vacation, which would be particularly suspicious given that you've only worked for 2 years.
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! faq731-376 forum1529
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! faq731-376 forum1529
MacGyverS2000
Electrical
If you're taking time off to show your dedication to improving your skillset, then you should be looking at REAL training, not certs. As several of us have said here (and many more in other threads), certs are not a strong indicator you know what you're doing.
Dan - Owner
Dan - Owner
Panther140
Civil/Environmental
Have you considered a masters degree? We all know that you can teach yourself a lot of amazing things, especially with today's learning tools. But your situation will be benefitted greatly by having some deliverable results when you want to come back to the work force.
If I were you, I would make sure that you get something deliverable to show for whatever you do in your hiatus. Build something utterly jaw-dropping or get a masters or so some consulting work or find mentorship from somebody who has PHD in front of their name.
"Formal education is a weapon, whose effect depends on who holds it in his hands and at whom it is aimed." ~ Joseph Stalin
If I were you, I would make sure that you get something deliverable to show for whatever you do in your hiatus. Build something utterly jaw-dropping or get a masters or so some consulting work or find mentorship from somebody who has PHD in front of their name.
"Formal education is a weapon, whose effect depends on who holds it in his hands and at whom it is aimed." ~ Joseph Stalin
To return to the original question, the best way to minimise the risk of not being able to get back into work after studying is probably to negotiate your return before you start.
This is probably only something you can try with your existing employer - they might not buy it, in which case you're no worse off than you were under plan A or you may have to offer to be a bit more flexible about timings - but why not approach them and see how they'd feel about your taking a few months' unpaid study leave?
A.
This is probably only something you can try with your existing employer - they might not buy it, in which case you're no worse off than you were under plan A or you may have to offer to be a bit more flexible about timings - but why not approach them and see how they'd feel about your taking a few months' unpaid study leave?
A.
Which advanced engineering concepts do you plan on teaching yourself relating to catalysis, and what do you want to do afterwards? If you['re quitting to learn something in particular, perhaps we can suggest how to show evidence of that rather than a certificate that you're taking to show that you've done something. Alternatively, perhaps looking for work in that area (Albemarle, Johnson Matthey, BASF, Evonik...)
Matt
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