So I am currently enrolled at UNF as an EE major and in my junior year but I have been thinking about what career path I will be taking once i graduate as well as what internship to go for.
Now let me start by saying I am not sure what my GPA will be by that time but i currently have a 2.98. Now I did college for 2 years and then joined the navy and did absolutely terrible and h ad a 1.65GPA when i quit. Since I came back to school I was able to bring that 1.65 to a 2.98 and I’m not sure how much that will have an impact on me once I graduate and I am looking for a job.
Do major companies consider factors like mine where if I do not count my terrible years I would have a much nicer GPA? The military changes people and makes them work harder most of the time but I know HR just see’s a number on a resume and that is it.
As far as internships I am going for Northrup Grumman or JEA which is the jacksonville power company.
I do not have any connections at JEA but I have friends as well as family that are high up in the Grumman in St. Augustine that said I will be able to intern there.
It appeared to me that Grumman would be the more logical choice since it is a very large company and I already have a security clearance. I also worked on aviation electronics in the Navy so i do have experience with the processes that they use.
I am just worried that once I finish finding a job will be much tougher than I am anticipating due to my pre-military years.
Thanks 10s4life, did not even catch my eye that i misspelled that. I was hoping my prior achievements and clearances helped me get in to a defense contractor so we shall see.
I calculated my GPA since I got out of the Navy and I have a 3.35 not counting my bad grades before. Also my 3.35 is almost all Calculus, Physics, computer programing and other math classes so its not like I made it with a bunch of easy classes which I hope helps my case when the time comes.
Did you go back to the same college that you were in prior to the Navy? Sounds like you did, so your overall GPA would be as you state it. Otherwise, you may be warranted to just state your post Navy GPA as that would be the number listed on your transcript. You may also want to calculate your STEM only GPA. When I was hiring college grads, I was looking at that STEM GPA and not worrying so much what you got for grades in your music classes. But it will all come out when you provide your complete college transcript.
I hired two engineers that I recall that basically flunked out of college on their first try. For what ever reason, they weren’t just ready for college. Both then worked for a while doing non-engineering jobs. They went back to engineering school (both then attended different colleges than their first) and did real well. Both of them were very good engineers and I never regretted hiring them. That was some time ago, however.
Today it seems a lot harder to get that first job. Everyone wants to hire a person with 3 to 5 years of experience because, I’m guessing, they don’t want to invest in that initial training of a young, fresh out engineer. With your Navy experience, you may have a leg up in that respect. My son and daughter are both young engineers and it took both of them a while to find that first job.
Thanks for the insight. Yes I did go back to a community college that I first attended but I just transferred to a university once I completed my AA. I’m still in my first semester at the university so I will know those grades in a week or two once finals are done.
Hopefully my connections will pay off along with the Navy experience since I have been told that I will get an internship at Grumman for next summer. But nothing is for sure until it actually happens so I will have to wait and see if that pans out.
Have you looked into working directly for the federal government? Take a look at usajobs.gov - there are programs that offer internships with the possibility of converting to full time (pathways) and also new grad hiring. With your existing clearance and Navy experience, you might qualify for preferential hiring for some of the positions. (I’ve been a federal contractor for about 15 years now).
I actually have looked into that and its also an option as well. I have not been on USA jobs in a few months but I will be looking there when the time comes. I am planning on moving down to the Melbourne area if I end up working with Grumman but NASA and Lockeed Martin are also down there which is why it is one of the places I would like to move to. I know NASA post’s all there jobs and internships through USA jobs since they are a government agency.
What used to be common - and I don’t know if it is still - was to hire in as a contractor with one of the big houses. Often you’d work extensively with one customer and if things went well would go on to be a direct hire employee of that company.
This reduced risk for the “big name” company, and effectively amounted to a 12-24 month courtship.
The other thing I’d recommend considering is that engineering work is where you find it. There are jobs in Peoria, but maybe not so many in Urbana Illinois, for example.
Here’s a funny thing - some people pass on good, challenging, rewarding work because they have a preconceived idea about an area - Detroit, Albuquerque, Huntsville, Vicksburg, wherever. Not saying employers in those locations lower standards, but it can be easier to stand out. We visited HSV last week, and caught a local news story saying that 6400 job openings had been posted in May - most of them engineering, and many wanting a clearance.
It’s called hunting, not catching, but it looks decent out there right now.
Yes 10s4life, that is why I want to go down there. My uncle works on the e2-d here in st Augustine and has a few contacts at the Melbourne facility that I will be connecting with to hopefully get my foot in the door.
@10s4life I might see you out there as well. My wife is from San Diego and we considered moving back out there as well but we will see. I love fishing so Florida is a little better for that!