Folks, I need job search advice please?

Career Opportunities & Internships
1

<p>Hello Everyone,</p>

<p>I am currently facing a big dilemma in terms of the job search process and would like the advice from more mature people. Which is why I am here! I am an undergraduate students at a Big 10 school, wrapping up my degree in chemical engineering this semester. This summer, I had the fortune of having an engineering internship with one of the best companies to work for. And I can say that because I have done three prior internships with different companies who didn't nearly treat me as well. I won't mention this company's name, but they are an enormous CPG company - Company A.</p>

<p>Now, my experience with Company A was nothing but positive in terms of how I was treated, the amount of employee development available, the people I worked with, etc. In short, the company's work atmosphere exceeded my expectations. However, in terms of my job? I was somewhat satisfied with it, until recently. I was given a lot of responsibility in terms of the amount of money I was asked to manage for my projects (multimillion dollar projects), and I loved that. My biggest problem though, is that I didn't get to do a lot of engineering - that was reserved exclusively for the contractors I hired. I had to take the initiative to start my own projects that involved putting to use my engineering skills, which is how I got some engineering experience.</p>

<p>Company A offered me a full time job at the end of the summer internship. There were a couple of things that made me sign the offer:</p>

<p>1) I had no other job, and was worried about not finding a job later on.
2) I was only given a couple of days to sign, while other interns were given 3 months. So I felt pressure to sign.</p>

<p>I was unsure if that was the right move for me. Now, in talking to many people from the company I have been told that the position may have the word 'engineer' in the title, but that isn't what I would be doing. I would just be managing things (people, budgets, etc.). The engineering would not be done by me. Instead it would be outsourced to contractors. They also told me that I would have to realize that my chemical engineering background would be lost.</p>

<p>It breaks my heart to be honest with you, because I don't want to lose that knowledge. I came to school to study this because I love it. I about to obtain such a difficult degree, and I want to put it to use! I would hate to wake up one day, only to realize that I don't love my job, that I am not finding my job fulfilling because I am not a chemical engineer as I have always wanted to be.</p>

<p>The problem now is, I have been contacted by numerous companies to interview with them. I am not sure what to do, especially if I were to get an offer from them. I talked to my career advisors here, but they don't give me all that much guidance saying "It's your call, but realize that they may never come back to my school to recruit" (Company A does not even recruit at my school anymore anyways). My other advisors here have told me to do what is best for me and my career goals. Some people who are in the company have also told me the same thing - "Do you want to make the company happy or do you want to be happy doing what you love?"</p>

<p>However, I am worried about the consequences of reneging on this job offer. Some things I have read online about reneging on a job offer always say, "It's a small world", and this is what worries me the most. I am not a person who backs away from promises. But, then again this is my life I am talking about. I want to do what is best for me. I want to position myself in a way that will prepare me to do great things in life, and that will give me a fulfilling life overall. I always had a dream of designing and building plants, starting them up, and watching my work come to life. And with Company A, I will not have that. I will be nothing but a project manager. I know this company has invested so much in me, has treated me really well, and has spent time developing me which makes me feel really guilty for even considering other options.</p>

<p>See, this is keeping me at night. I am lucky enough to get 3 hours of sleep at night. I just don't know what to do! I feel like Company A may try to do something to me to tarnish my reputation and my career. Which leaves me feeling trapped, and very very worried about the consequences. But I feel that by leaving now, they can find another person who will be happy as a project manager and can perform the job competently without being unsatisfied with it. They would avoid me leaving in 2 years after investing a lot of money on me (relocation bonus, sign on bonus, other bonuses, etc.). Which would be a good thing, higher return on investment for them. I just am too scared of the consequences, and this is where I would like more guidance from you folks. The companies speaking with me are in a completely different industry, just thought I should mention that. What would you suggest?</p>

2

<p>Usually it’s bad to renege on a job offer immediately after everything has been signed, but I think there are some mitigating factors:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>You weren’t given very much time to decide (this is actually a very disgusting tactic).</p></li>
<li><p>As a result, you only found out some crucial details about the role after you had already signed the offer.</p></li>
</ul>

<p>I think the company would probably understand if you tell them that after talking to several people at the company, you’re reevaluating because you’re interested in a role that makes use of your engineering skills. Who knows, maybe the company will be willing to modify your responsibilities to accommodate your desires. But otherwise, it doesn’t make sense for them to force you into a position you will be unhappy with.</p>

<p>I’m not sure what the job market for chemical engineering is like right now, but given that several companies have contacted you, it’s probably fairly safe to quit (after talking to your current company about potentially getting you some more engineering work).</p>

3

<p>I agree. I’m usually pretty gung-ho about sticking to your commitments, but if a company is going to force you to make a decision well before it even asks anyone else to make a decision, something fishy is going on. If I were you, I’d go through recruitment and see how things shake out.</p>

<p>Things that you should keep in mind:</p>

<ul>
<li>The possibility that the company will no longer recruit at your school is real, should you renege. That may not be a bad thing, to be honest, but even if they aren’t recruiting now, it is not unlikely that they will pull the plug in the future.</li>
<li>Some schools have strict policies regarding reneging, and you may be barred from using your school’s career services if you renege.</li>
<li>Some other companies have policies regarding interviewing people who already accepted offers. By that, I mean that if they discover you’ve already accepted an offer, they may stop the recruiting process with you, and they may even decide to inform the company you already accepted an offer with, which could be problematic. This is most likely to happen if the two companies are competitors (thus this isn’t that big an issue for you in your unique situation): while they are competing for top people, they know that they wouldn’t want one of their recruits to renege on them, so they consider it a courtesy to inform each other when applicants are less than fully honest.</li>
<li>All that said, if a company gave you an exploding offer, many - if not all - of the above points will likely be mitigated.</li>
<li>If a company gives you an exploding offer to start, that could be a red flag… what are they going to do once you are an employee? Is that their standard tactic? What other less-than-stellar HR policies do they have?</li>
<li>Since you signed up to be an engineer, is there a way to get you into a more engineering-intensive role within the company you already committed to?</li>
<li>You aren’t that interested in being a PM, but could this be a situation in which delaying your gratification (i.e. putting off the real engineering stuff) could be a very good career move? I suggest this because the common track is to “do” and then “tell others to do,” but going the opposite direction may really help you in future roles. Naturally, it is possible that you might get “stuck” in a role, which would be pretty tough for you, but there are two sides to every coin.</li>
</ul>

<p>You should be careful and deliberate with whatever you do. Take a look at Indeed or Glassdoor to see if you can get reviews about the company and general experiences from others.</p>

<p>You are wise to seek advice from others instead of just doing what you think is best, and for that I commend you. Let us know what you decide to do, and we can try to help you through the whole process if you would like.</p>

4

<p>Hello Everyone,</p>

<p>I really appreciate you both taking the time to discuss this situation with me.</p>

<p>I have discussed this very situation with the career office and they have told me that it is up to me to decide what to do next. The fact that they only gave me a week, but others 3 solid months is something that will always remain a mystery to me. It is also a very big red flag. On top of that, another red flag is one of the HR people doesn’t care to understand that my first job is not “just a first job” like she said. It will pave way for my career, and it matters so much to me. However, the career office does have guidelines that employers should give me all semester to decide after an internship. Company A didn’t care since they weren’t set policies, just guidelines. However, because they did not give me ample time, they run the risk of me reneging. That is clearly stated in my school’s career office guidebook for employers. Not that this is an excuse to do it, but that is something they risk me doing with exploding offers like this. </p>

<p>As for other people at the company talking with me about the position, that is what I am basing my decisions off of. My manager is giving me conflicting advice though. They mentioned that I would be doing a lot of engineering and design, which is just not true from what the project engineers who have been there 8+ years have told me. The project engineers there tell me that they have not done calculations ever since they left school. The younger engineers there say they love their position because they didn’t want to be engineers, but rather managers so the position fits them perfectly. I found it funny that the HR lady told me to disregard the advice of the other people around me, but how could I when these field engineers are the ones who were also my mentors for the summer. And they were kind enough to give me their two cents on what the position actually entails. And one of them did say “You will absolutely lose most of what you learned in college when you take on this role”. He should have told me earlier, but at least it was said I guess.</p>

<p>Heck, I even talked to a manager in R&D, and they told me the same thing. That I will not be doing engineering. And to be honest, I will not stand for that. I will not be able to live with myself knowing that I settled for a job that was not what I came to school for. I may as well have become a business major and taken a position like this one then, instead of going through the hell of getting an engineering degree. I didn’t work my tail off to earn a chemical engineering degree only to never put it to use. </p>

<p>The problem with me doing this job for 3 years and then leaving is that I will be 3 years behind my schedule. I have a 10 year plan that I want to work towards. And taking 3 years to do PM work and then starting from scratch (IF I am even lucky to find a company to trust me enough to assume an engineering role after having no engineering experience for 3 years) is just unacceptable to me. Now, I also checked the active requisition for the job I was offered. Although the position title is for project engineer, Company A only wants you to have a business degree or MBA and an engineering degree would be preferable but not necessary. Clearly, you won’t be doing any engineering if you are a business major. </p>

<p>Not to sound conceded or anything, but I will say I do recognize I am a good project manager. I am fortunate to have learned critical soft skills in prior internships that have enabled me to become a good leader. And the future is bright for me in management, but I do not want to go into management right now. I want to be an engineer/manager of myself first. When I am satisfied with my technical competence, I want to seek out licensure. Then I want to begin my transition to earning an MBA. Once I get an MBA, I will have had an additional 2-3 years of professional engineering experience and then I can move into a project management role. But only when I feel I have masted key competencies in my field. I cannot tell you how important that is to me, because a chemical engineer is responsible for PEOPLE’S LIVES. Under no circumstances can I lead people without having a sound technical background - it is not only unethical but it is irresponsible and unprofessional. If I am going to be a practicing engineer it is my professional responsibility to do it right.</p>

5

<p>If you are sure of your decision, and in reading your post you seem VERY sure this isn’t the right fit for you, don’t delay. Just contact them soon and tell them you have changed your mind. Dont’ drag it on. Everyone changes their mind at some time in life and this is your time. Just let them know you changed your mind and ask what you need to do to get out of your agreement. Your reasons are very valid. Doing it early in the semester gives them ample time to gind someone else and you time to find something else. Don’t string them along until you find a better deal. As someone said, it is a small world. It certainly wouldn’t look good for you if you hadn’t told them yet and they heard you were still interviewing with other companies. Sort of like trying out a new girlfriend before you broke off with your current one.</p>