Seeking Advice…Possible Career Change

[bsowa1088]

Hey everyone.

If you want to skip to the meat and potatoes, my questions are at the bottom.

Also, I’m not currently an engineer nor am I in engineering school, but I’m not sure where to seek advice. I’m hoping this is an OK place to ask my questions rather than a specific forum on this site.

Sorry if this post goes against any forum rules, please delete if it does.

I just want to say thank you in advance for any and all advice. I’m not sure I will reply to every comment but just want to say thank you to anyone willing to give their time and reply to this post.

I’m 35 years old and will be 36 very soon. I’ve been doing HVAC work for approximately the last 10 years. Mostly service/diagnostic with some install work mixed in the last few years.

The part about my job I like most is the diagnosis and problem solving. I really enjoy coming across a new piece of equipment that I have to pull apart to make a repair on or when I have to fabricate any sort of extra bracing or support or anything extra that needs to be added to the system in order to make it work better or even just correctly again.

Math has always come easy to me, at least everything up to college level calculus, and it was always the subject in school I enjoyed the most. I don’t know how important math is in engineering, I sort of assume it is quite important.

Pretty much since I met my wife a little over 5 years ago she has been telling me I should have gone into engineering because of all the little things I do with, what seem to me, are simple projects around the house.

I have always brushed her comments off because I really liked what I was doing for work and I didn’t want to go back to school - mostly because of the cost and time involved, not because I don’t like school. I love learning new things and especially learning how things work - everything from diesel engines to French drains and everything in between. Recently, however, within the last couple months I’ve been thinking more and more whether or not I should pursue a new career in the field of engineering. My work hasn’t been as stimulating to me as it used to be.

I haven’t thought too much about exactly what type of engineer and even less about the path to get there, if I choose to do so. So I am coming to all of you for advice.

My main questions right now are:
1A) Will it be more difficult for me at nearly 36 to get into the field than it would have been if I went straight into it out of high school?
1B) Am I too old at this point for the career change to make sense?
2) Is there any possible “short track” to getting a foot in the door? I’m thinking a certificate type program that shows I’m committed and then I can continue my education while I’m also getting on the job training.
3) Do any companies ever provide reimbursement for tuition based on grades?
4)Generally, what does an average day of an engineer look like? Given the broad range of the industry I assume this question will be hard to answer “generally.” So maybe what type of engineer are you and what does your average day look like?


Again, I sincerely appreciate any advice!

 

[BulbTheBuilder]

Also, I’m not currently an engineer nor am I in engineering school, but I’m not sure where to seek advice.

There's a personal strategies and self-improvement forum. I think you will get more feedback if you post these concerns there

https://www.eng-tips.com/threadminder.cfm?pid=731

Double posting is discouraged on this platform so you might have to delete this post and paste the same thing in the "How to improve myself" forum"

I don’t know how important math is in engineering, I sort of assume it is quite important

Math is extremely important but other factors like critical thinking and others come to play in engineering.

1A) Will it be more difficult for me at nearly 36 to get into the field than it would have been if I went straight into it out of high school?

No, I believe it will be how much easier for you based on your post. If you can easily grasp the concept, then the math itself is already done. A lot of things might be new to you especially strength of material (mechanics of solids), but the beauty of life is we live to learn.

1B) Am I too old at this point for the career change to make sense?

Mate, you are 35, still a young adult. One of friends did bachelors, masters, PhD in engineering and now doing cinematography. I have friend stop practicing engineering to start med school. HVAC works aligns with engineering. This career change shouldn't be a tough one. I see it as improvement and growth.

You can try apprenticeship programs, some give certificates, and I guess that might be a steppingstone to progress and explore other fields. With your skill set you wouldn't have a problem

3) Do any companies ever provide reimbursement for tuition based on grades?

A lot of companies do provide tuition reimbursement, I think you have to maintain a GPA of +3.5 or 3.0 (varies from companies to companies)

4)Generally, what does an average day of an engineer look like? Given the broad range of the industry I assume this question will be hard to answer “generally.” So maybe what type of engineer are you and what does your average day look like?

Depends on the industry, location, and certification others... if you are doing something that requires certificates then I might put you in a $75K bracket (assuming you're using your HVAC skills). Something entirely different then maybe $65-$70k before you your EIT certificate (engineer-in-training). However, mechanical and chemical engineers typically earn slightly more than civil engineers.

 

[LittleInch]

Hmmm,

Not sure where to start here tbh.

The key is finding the area which excites you, but also looking to see whether someone will pay you to do it without starting on the bottom rung.

So lets start with the bleeding obvious = HVAC and your current job / role / company.

You said " The part about my job I like most is the diagnosis and problem solving. " That's a good start. And "I really liked what I was doing for work and I didn’t want to go back to school" again a good starting point.

however then we get to real issue I think which is "My work hasn’t been as stimulating to me as it used to be."

Now that needs a bit more of a deeper dive as they say. Why? Has it become repetitive? Are you doing more management stuff? Any other info?

So staying in the HVAC industry, which is where your valuable experience is that companies will pay for, what are the areas you could go into? work for a manufacturer? A designer? A consultant? Start your own business? Designers are generally very appreciative of people with real life experience to feed back into designs etc, but you would prob nee dot have some sort of further qualification if not a degree and that's super hard to do if you're still trying to keep working. Not many stay the course.

Then what opportunities are there to gain additional qualifications to do this or get you out of the doing physical stuff in the industry?

So my responses are:

1A) Will it be more difficult for me at nearly 36 to get into the field than it would have been if I went straight into it out of high school?
What "field". Ultimately yes, because employers will see you as needing to be paid more for the same level of experience in a new field like say structural engineering.

1B) Am I too old at this point for the career change to make sense?
No, but you need to have a really really good look at your life, relationships, money, status, location of the school and recognise that at the end there is no guarantee that you will quickly regain your current income. People with small children now or int he near future also need to figure that in as well (you don't say).

2) Is there any possible “short track” to getting a foot in the door? I’m thinking a certificate type program that shows I’m committed and then I can continue my education while I’m also getting on the job training.
I'm not in the HVAC game so can't say, but if you're not in ana industry association, join one or two and see what they have to offer in terms of certificates, training etc. Look at this lot?

https://www.podium.com/article/hvac-associations/

3) Do any companies ever provide reimbursement for tuition based on grades?
Dunno

4)Generally, what does an average day of an engineer look like? Given the broad range of the industry I assume this question will be hard to answer “generally.” So maybe what type of engineer are you and what does your average day look like?
Impossible to say until you get a lot tighter in terms of engineering area and type of engineering - consult, design, manufacture, install, commission and maintenance.

Let us know what you think and then it can be narrowed down a bit...


Remember - More details = better answers
Also: If you get a response it's polite to respond to it.

 

[bsowa1088]

@BulbTheBuilder @LittleInch

Thank you both for the replies.
I will try to address everything both of you mentioned here in this one post.

Based on my current career and the aspects of it that I enjoy I think I would probably gravitate towards mechanical design.

The reason I’m strongly considering leaving HVAC is because it has become mundane. A lot of it is repetitive. I know that every job will have its repetitive parts, but I feel that with engineering I will have to use critical thinking and problem solving skills far more frequently than I do now. There are parts of my job I still do enjoy like making a customer happy or running into a scenario I haven’t seen before, the later is becoming fewer and farther between though.

I do realize that the slice of the industry I have been working in is only a small part of the overall HAVC industry, I’m just not sure HVAC is where my heart is anymore. More and more, and not just over the last few months, I find I’m enjoying having to “make things” to solve problems. That’s not just with my work, that’s also with problems and projects at home. I think I probably never realized that that’s what I was really enjoying until the last month or so where I was really questioning my career. I’ve been able to look back at the last few years and come to that realization.

I do have a 2 year old so my spare time is much less than it used to be. Also, child care and other child related expenses are making finances a little tough right now. It’s literally equal to a second mortgage payment. I REALLY do not want to take out loans for the necessary education. I would prefer to do it at the “speed of cash.” If that means I need to wait a couple years until we are out of the day care era then I am ok with that. Also, my wife is finishing her masters - less than a year to go. So I don’t think it would be feasible for me to even start the transition until she’s finished with her schooling. Waiting at least a year will also give me time to think and do more research to figure out if this is really what I want to do or if I’m just going through a phase.

As far as income, luckily my wife makes good money so when we no longer have daycare costs we will be perfectly fine even if I have to take a 10-15% pay cut to get started for the first couple of years. I’m not making a huge amount of money right now anyways so I think the entry level salaries of a mechanical engineer, based on what you’ve mentioned in your replies, won’t be much different than what I’m currently making.

Another part of my job that has me somewhat burnt out is the schedule (I’m not sure that’s the right word but I can’t think of the word I want to use in its place.) In terms of hours, my work week isn’t overbearing. Typically I work anywhere from 40-44 hours. I’m not opposed to working more than that. From 2008 to about 2020 I was working at least 50 hours a week and it wasn’t uncommon to work 60-70 hours a week in the summer early on in that window. I even had one week where I worked 81 hours. But with the nature of the HVAC industry there is “on call” work. At the company I work for now, that isn’t a major issue. I’m on call 1 week at a time every 6 weeks. The volume of calls we get on call in a given week is very minimal, 3 extra calls in a week is probably on the high end of average. I would just prefer to not be on call. I also never know exactly when my day ends. Typically it’s anywhere from 3:30pm to 5pm. If an engineering work week is a little more structured then that would be great. If it isn’t, that is nowhere near a deal breaker for me since I’m used to the not knowing, so to speak.

I’m thinking I should reach out to companies in my area to pick peoples brains there. Do you all think that would be a good/ok thing to do? I don’t want to be an annoyance or waste anyone’s time. Or would it be more beneficial to speak the head of an engineering department at a local school? Or should I do both?

**One thing I forgot to mention earlier is that I have a bachelors degree (2011) in Safety Studies (think OSHA) and I got an associates (2016) when I went to school for HVAC.**

 

[LittleInch]

The idea to speak to the head of engineering at an educational establishment is going to be much easier than talking to potential employers.

I think your assessment of 10-15% drop in salary is optimistic.

However if you're seeing only 20+ years of doin g the same thing time and time again stretching in front of you and clearly feel you could do more then you do need to look at the options. Just doing it with a young family is a significant challenge but one where the long term advantage son not being on call or working long hours come to play.

You are though going to need to refine your desire and "gravitate towards mechanical design" is still very broad and vague. IMHO. but you've got the time by the sound of it and examining what options are available locally or by remote learning and where they lead you to in terms of a specific industry. But don't write off HVAC mech design. At the very least you have experience to offer people and bring to the learning experience and at the end of the day you need someone to employ you to use your new skills and they will look fat your experience, not what you would like to get involved in.

Let us now how you get on in your thought process, even if its in 6 months time. Be aware of the time frame for applying for courses as they all work to an annual cycle and you don't want to miss one by a month or two and then need to wait another 10.

Remember - More details = better answers
Also: If you get a response it's polite to respond to it.