A must read for all current engineering students and soon to be graduates:

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

<p>I know this is going to be long-winded, but I am sure some here have been in the same position (or currently are in the same position!) You picked an Engineering school because you like to tinker around, want to know how things work, and love to take things apart - whether it be building your own PC, working on your Mustang, writing your own computer program, or building a rocket - whatever. You got accepted into a well-respected Engineering school, survived the 1st year weeder courses (Physics I and II, Calc II up to DiffEq, Chem I and II) and made it through the 3rd and 4th years.</p>

<p>You graduate from your Engineering school and start looking for a job. You find that there is nothing out there despite 100's of resume submissions, so you apply to anything and everything under the sun. After waiting for 2, 3, or even 4 years, you start to get desperate and start looking at basic jobs such as Cable TV installer or IT technician. You spend days working on servers or pulling RG6 cable and think, "is this what I went to school for?"</p>

<p>After several years in your tech position you come across others that have gone through the same thing. You find plenty of BSME's, BSEE's, BSCS, CompE's, ChemE's, and MatSci graduates which are in the same boat. You ask them if they ever considered starting a business and they say "yes," but don't have the funds. You pool together 7-8 people and all of a sudden you have enough to develop your own app, start a company, run with your business plan, and life is all great. You think that at some point if you gave up and thought this was not going to end well, you would not be here.</p>

<p>I'm sure there are many out there in the same position and have thought about giving up. I read on forums and see University of Ontario EE graduates going to work as Roger's or Shaw cable TV installers, and MechE's from UB going into the IT field working client support jobs. They think that they are stuck in a dead end and will be doing this forever. DON'T GIVE UP! There is something out there for everyone, it may not happen now, or anytime in the future, but keep sticking to it and you'll eventually get there! Interested in music? Start a band! Then write an app to promote new and local bands in your area! Like building PCs? Come up with a better thermal solution to allow for overclocking to the limits! Interested in chemistry? Find a better way to prevent oil spills, whether it be with piezo sensors, mathematical modeling, or by using ferrofluid to stop leaks, there is something out there for everyone!</p>

<p>Bottom line, DO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO NOT WHAT OTHERS THINK YOU SHOULD DO - It's your life, enjoy it!</p>

2

<p>Applause *</p>

3

<p>Its discouraging reading anecdotes such as this along with the current state of the economy. If there is any consolation, we are entering a much better job market than many of those currently in high school, middle school, or elementary school. When I need inspiration, I read a science book or watch Pursuit of happiness. </p>

4

<p>Good post, I’m also in the same boat. Not specifically an engineering major (Geophysics) but basically took all the same classes (Phy 1, phy2, Diff Eq, Chem 1, chem 2, thermo, statics, solids, etc) and it is frustrating to find a job after all that hard work you put in. I’ve had multiple interviews so far but nothing official as of yet. Just gotta keep plugging away but yeah I fell into the trap of everyone saying “Yeah, people are gonna be begging to hire you before you even graduate!!”</p>

<p>Just try and get an internship and hit up the career fairs as much as you can.</p>

5

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<p>What? Do you even follow the news or the state of the economy? Just in case you don’t, it is steadily improving. What you should be saying is that you are entering a better job market than those who graduated 4 or 5 years ago.</p>

6

<p>Every success is about seeing what others need and want, not just about is out there. Many kids forget that the technology they use was not available when most of them were in pre-school. Great advise. </p>