<p>i'm a physics major and wish to pursue CFD in mechanical engineering for a MS or phD. I'm currently doing an internship for a defense contractor that focuses on operations research. I'm doing it for the experience to see what its like in the working world, in particular for a defense contractor, and to improve my resume</p>
<p>i dont know if i made the right choice since this work isnt really engineering work, and, even though we work for the military, this company focuses on operations research and not engineering. will it improve my resume for engineering positions in the future? i feel like i should have spent this summer doing actual research in CFD to see if i'd really like it or not</p>
<p>what are the other benefits to doing an internship?</p>
<p>Any kind of work experience is good no matter what you’re doing. Obviously something like research is more ideal if you want to go to graduate school, but even working at a fast food restaurant would be better than sitting at home not doing anything. So your lack of a more relevant internship is not the end of the world, by any means. What year are you? What is your GPA?</p>
<p>The internship will definitely help. You many not have experience specifically doing CFD, but you do have experience at least working in an engineering-heavy field, and just having that breadth of experience will help you out at least a little.</p>
<p>It will help, certainly. I’m slightly confused on whether for the future you’re more interested in research or an actual engineering position. If it’s a mix of both, take a look at Engineering Physics or a hybrid program if MSU has one. And if you haven’t already, definitely take a Partial Differential Equations class.</p>
<p>Depending on the internship, they can be very helpful. I’m currently working in a webdev job, and even though I’m a EE and not interested that much in doing this kind of work in the future, I’ve learned what it’s like to work in an office environment. I’ve gained experience collaborating and working as a member of a creative dev team. Most importantly, I’ve learned new approaches to the work, I’ve noticed leadership techniques, a I’ve seen how different team members contribute. Basically, it’s work experience and helps you better decide what you do in the future. If anything, you’ll learn what you don’t want to do and who you don’t want to work for.</p>
<p>i have one more semester in college until i graduate, with a 3.85 gpa</p>
<p>the thing is, i may have to leave my internship early due to family personal reasons, so i may end up deciding to work for only 1-2 months instead of the expected 2.5 months, particularly if the only reason to stay is that the benefit of the internship is only for the experience, since i will get enough of that in 1-2 months.</p>
<p>but how much will doing an internship increase my chances of finding a job for another defense contractor?</p>
<p>Those defense contractors will see that you worked in the defense industry, are familiar with the ins and outs of working for a company with government contracts, and that you have experience and interest in that area. It also shows to a prospective company that you were presumably able to work with others in an office environment, which is something that isn’t always obvious based on first impressions. Even interviews fail to filter out all of the bad employees. Working somewhere else, especially in a similar industry, where you can get a recommendation attesting to your ability as an employee is absolutely invaluable.</p>
<p>couldn’t have said it better. do your job well. let everyone see that you’re interested and eager to learn . if you’re a great employee, your recs will show this and future employees will be much more willing to let you into a new field because in the long run, you’re a tested and safe investment.</p>
<p>I believe it is worth it.</p>
<p>internships work in your favor no matter what. I have a co-worker that started interning at Northrop Grumman 3 years before he graduated. After graduation, he hit them up for a job, and they offered him a 58k job. That is outrageously higher than most starting salaries. He does not do anything special either, and they didn’t really care what dept he was in or what he was doing there. It is just how the system works since according to their records, he has x months of employment with them already.</p>
<p>In your situation, it dosn’t seem like salary is of any concern, but the longer your in that company, the more connections you have with them and the better it looks on their records. I think that is benafitial on the long run. Chances are due to your history with them, they will support you in your pursue for your degree.</p>
<p>Hmmmm. Not in your field? leaving early every day? quitting the internship a month early? I don’t see a recommendation or job offer in your future. Just an entry on a list of jobs, with no phone number.</p>
<p>'internships work in your favor no matter what. I have a co-worker that started interning at Northrop Grumman 3 years before he graduated. After graduation, he hit them up for a job, and they offered him a 58k job. That is outrageously higher than most starting salaries. He does not do anything special either, and they didn’t really care what dept he was in or what he was doing there. It is just how the system works since according to their records, he has x months of employment with them already.</p>
<p>In your situation, it dosn’t seem like salary is of any concern, but the longer your in that company, the more connections you have with them and the better it looks on their records.'</p>
<p>well thats for at northgrop grunman, whereas i intern for a company that doesnt quite focus on the stuff i’m interested in.</p>
<p>will working at my curreny place give me better connections to places i’d rather work, like northrop grunman?</p>