What do all the useless engineering graduates do for work? 6

[wdr36]

Apart from digging ditches, qa testing what else can one do with limited skill set?

 

[SWComposites]

Go into management.

 

[wdr36]

No. Never. Going into management is as lowly as going into qa and digging ditches.

 

[wdr36]

Go into management.

I don't appreciate the insult. But maybe this is something you should do and are interested in. Just a thought. Allow me to return the insult.

 

[geotechguy1]

In geotech, you can start out doing nuclear densometer testing, concrete testing, scalas, shear vanes, hand augers, etc. Then after a year or two of that, you can stand behind a drill rig logging core for a year or two. Then you can spend a year doing engineering QA on a construction site. Then finally in your mid to late 20s when the testosterone has started to die down and the overconfidence and arrogance of being the smartest person at every level of education (which forms the core identity of ~80% of engineering grads) we might let you sit at an office and do some calcs or write a report. That's the Canadian geotech way anyway. In civil preferable you spend the same time alternating between running about a construction site as a surveyor trying to layout the things you half ass designed over the winter and getting yelled at by a contractor until you learn how to design things properly .

 

[Sparweb]

wdr36,
What are you actually good at?
I assume your question is self-referential in some way. It's an odd way to ask for help, though.

 

[tygerdawg]

wdr36: I'm semi-retired from Industry and University teaching. I'll tell you what I've told many students.

The primary purpose of suffering through four years of academia and obtaining a BS degree in Engineering is to transform the student from a blob of unfocused talent and potential into a trained problem solver. Trained, but generally low- or unskilled and inexperienced. And that's OK: those gaps can be corrected over time with good job opportunities, effective mentorship, dedication, and luck. And the right attitude. The foundation of success is the ability to take the assignment and walk into the dark fog-filled room with the growling monster noises and figure out a way to tame the monster. While also satisfying your Boss' requirements for meeting budget and deadline.

What you are not discerning is the exceedingly broad range opportunities that exist in the spectrum of Engineering work. Industry is neck-deep with problems, from the mundane-but-essential all the way up to thrilling bleeding edge stuff. And thank goodness, because companies will pay a lot of money to hire people who can solve those problems. Some effective research will give you better insight into all the things that require Engineering skills at all levels. As a start, I recommend deep surfing the job sites to grasp understanding of who is hiring for what.

 

[dik]

They learn...

 

[CWB1]

Define "useless."

I've seen stats claiming that ~70% of engineering grads stateside dont work in engineering, but dont recall seeing it broken down further. Canada has similar stats and I know members up north have studied this more than I, so maybe they can provide some detail.

Regardless, many never go into industry. Many only last a few months then leave to become accountants, doctors, attorneys, etc. Many spend a few years in engineering then go into customer support, project management, marketing, sales, or other semi-technical roles. Many stay in a tiny niche. Many become generalists after a few years. Many work for others. Many work themselves; typically not in design but as an independent quality auditor, technical sales agent, or regulatory consultant.

Given the "student" title its also worth noting that (depending on who you ask), college provides ~10-30% of the necessary knowledge and skill to become a competent engineer. The rest is formal professional training post-grad and experience. Consequently, your first few years in engineering should seriously challenge you far more than college did. Aspiring students should remain humble bc even seemingly "easy" tasks have aspects that need to be taught properly - anybody can create a CAD model or print, but there are certainly right and wrong ways to do both. Poorly laid out CAD models are nightmares to update/iterate if the model has much complexity, and poorly laid out prints can become confusing. Professionals do many things in very specific ways for good reason, and the academics teaching at Universities often have limited experience in the professional world. Minimum graduation requirements also dont provide much relevant knowledge or skill and regardless of what your school requires, industry expects you to have completed a few years' internship by graduation.

Personally, I find the worst engineers arent useless but rather a combination of incompetent, lazy, or sloppy - they finish a ton of lousy work. I can train a junior without much relevant knowledge or skill who is detail-oriented and willing to learn but not a senior who has been doing crap work for 20 years.

 

[ALK2415]

Life has its ups and downs, like a never-ending cycle. The key is to keep fighting and never give up. You can always make a living through parallel jobs like teaching or other honest work. Remember, most people won't care about your struggles, so be strong and stop complaining. Keep pushing forward and make your own way.

Stay resilient.

 

[BEMPE16524]

They learn...

that's the best way to survive in a cruel world nowadays.
learn as much as you can and as fast as you can.

whatever you do, be humble.

 

[wdr36]

Life has its ups and downs, like a never-ending cycle. The key is to keep fighting and never give up. You can always make a living through parallel jobs like teaching or other honest work. Remember, most people won't care about your struggles, so be strong and stop complaining. Keep pushing forward and make your own way.

Stay resilient.

That won't help build any real experience in engineering though. If you go down that path, with each upcoming year your chances of getting any engineering position become exactly 0%. The degree would essentially be for waste at that point rendering the education practically worthless. "Stop complaining and be happy" have nothing to do with this. You can't be "happy" working menial jobs i.e. "honest work". "Honest work" or worse "making a living through parallel jobs like teaching or other honest work" as you put it, won't get you anywhere. And simply asking for assistance on how to get into engineering isn't as you put it "complaining".

What's the point of an education if you can't do what you want to do with it? Despite having worked on various side projects, and gaining new skills outside of the classroom, none of that seems to mean anything in terms of getting decent jobs. I'm asking, how does one get these decent jobs if none of the above work.

 

[MintJulep]

There are always government jobs.

 

[Joyaloorg]

If you need a job that doesn't require training, you can always try working in the service sector.

 

[IRstuff]

That won't help build any real experience in engineering though. If you go down that path, with each upcoming year your chances of getting any engineering position become exactly 0%. The degree would essentially be for waste at that point rendering the education practically worthless. "Stop complaining and be happy" have nothing to do with this. You can't be "happy" working menial jobs i.e. "honest work". "Honest work" or worse "making a living through parallel jobs like teaching or other honest work" as you put it, won't get you anywhere. And simply asking for assistance on how to get into engineering isn't as you put it "complaining".

What's the point of an education if you can't do what you want to do with it? Despite having worked on various side projects, and gaining new skills outside of the classroom, none of that seems to mean anything in terms of getting decent jobs. I'm asking, how does one get these decent jobs if none of the above work.

I think you need to fully address the elephant in the room; are you fully capable of doing the engineering? If so, do you have relevant job experience? These days, internships are the gateway drug to decent jobs, and working at McD's for 3 summers in college is definitely not going to hack it. Additionally, your resume is comparable to your college application; does it say clearly "Pick me" and why they should pick "me." A resume is a selling document, where you are selling "you" as a product, and that product must obviously fill a need that the potential employer has, and the better you are able to present "you" as the solution to the problem they have, or didn't even know they have, is key.

 

[SuperSalad]

If I'm understanding your point correctly, I think I can relate to what your asking about. I graduated right in the great recession at a point when I really wasn't sure what I was going to do. The company I had interned with, and expected to get a job at, went belly up just about 1 year before I graduated. I truly did not have any idea what I wanted to do. I didn't want to move and I quickly realized my are had very few opportunities for ChemEs outside of pharma, which I wanted nothing to do with (that was the sector my internship was in).

All I can say is that patience worked for me. After graduating, I moved back in with my parents. I did landscaping, furniture delivery, etc. while I was hunting jobs. After maybe 2 or 3 months, I came across an opportunity I had never really expected or saw coming. They were looking for new grads with technical ability and I fit the bill.

The point of all this is that as cliché as it sounds, don't give up just because you don't see any prospects right in front of you. Keep your head up, do what you need to do to get along. That may mean something different to everyone. Don't let cynicism shape you at your age. It just won't do you any good.

 

[LittleInch]

WDR36,

You haven't really made it clear in this post exactly what your situation is and what the issue is you're trying to get some input from others on.

So are you still a student? Or have graduated already? When? What Major / subject? What grades? whare do you want to work ( physical area and industry type?

What have you done so far? Do you consider yourself a "useless" graduate or are you asking how come "useless" graduates can get jobs.

Normally your university or institution has ways to assist you getting a job as it's in their interest to show people move into work after leaving.

Getting the first role is the hardest step and it can seem daunting, but as said, the internship thing is basically an extended, poorly paid interview, but one which is more common. Joining trade organisations / journals etc as a student member gets you into a different route and makes you seem more attractive if you can show a direct interest in the industry you're targeting and sometimes job offers come up there. Also have you considered a recruiter? Again they might give you some tips on what to do or take you on and its in their interest to present you as well as you can be.

 

[TigerGuy]

A graduating engineer with zero experience is going to start at the bottom and work their way through the foundational portions of the industry. Some of these tasks can seem mundane, unpleasant, and just plain miserable. Without some of these experiences, you won't turn into a good engineer.

I've never been on a project where the iron workers didn't ask why structural engineers weren't required to spend a couple years on the construction side of things before they were allowed to design projects. By the same token, you can't become a world famous neurosurgeon without learning the very basics of the medical field.

 

[CWB1]

1. Contrary to the media and politicos' lies, the economy is pretty horrendous atm. Many industries have been laying off en-masse with little hiring for almost four years now, so there's a ton of competition for engineering slots. Hopefully that turns around next year.
2. If your resume is getting rejected almost instantaneously, AI (previously known as an Applicant Tracking System / ATS) is not seeing enough similarities between the job ad and your resume, and rejecting you before it reaches a human. Try adding a few keywords/jargon from the job ad to your resume and resubmitting.
3. If your resume is getting rejected after a few days/weeks without an interview, your resume didnt show a human in HR that you are a top candidate so improve your resume. This could be bc of simple resume errors/omissions or you could be less qualified than the top few applicants.
4. If you get interviews but not a job offer then you're obviously close, your resume is good, and you will likely get an offer soon so no need to worry or make big changes.
5. Apply around the country and be willing to move. Job markets are very regional and the cost of living usually varies far more than pay. Job hopping around the country/world is also a great source of professional and personal experience.
6. IR is correct, life is a competition and your resume needs to show that you're a top candidate. Focus on the goal, avoid pity-parties.

IME younger folks make two common resume mistakes - irrelevant fluff and overuse of big words and jargon. AI, then HR, then engineering reviews your resume. If you dont quickly and clearly show that you meet EVERY requirement in the job ad then your resume is binned. If the HR employee with a general business degree cant quickly and clearly envision what your resume is describing, your resume is likewise binned. Minimal use of common engineering jargon is fine, but most of your resume should be plain everyday English; not constant "managed," "customer," and other bs. QuaLity > QuaNtity.

 

[Compositepro]

As an employer l would not hire you. Your attitude is extremely negative and l'm sure is immediately evident to everyone you meet for the first time. People like you poison the work environment. You will not do better until you experience some crisis and become grateful for what you have, rather than resentful over what you don't have. The title that you chose for this thread shows this.

Throughout the history of civilization there has been a pool of jobs that need doing, and a pool of people who need work. Simple statistics says that you will get a job, in time. There is no perfect job, particularly in the mind resentful people.