Need some practical advice. I’ve always wanted to be a civil engineer and have been admitted to a small, but accredited program. I’ve had a successful career in education, but the yearning still exists. Fortunately, money isn’t an issue. Would it be impossible for a 50 year-old to get an entry level civil engineering job?
“the yearning still exists” 50 is not old at all so no reason to not to go for it if you think you would enjoy it more than what you are currently doing. Many civil engineers work into their 60’s and 70’s. My H is a civil (and has been very happy in his career) and a guy he used to work with is now 75 and still doing consulting work. The OPM , government agencies, USACE, etc. have internship and Pathways type programs and seem to encourage diversity, including age diversity. Perhaps look into those kinds of things and also talk with career services at the school you have been admitted to to see where they have been placing their students. Good luck!
I’m also considering a very radical, mid-career change of occupation. But it’s for a field known for accepting mid-career jumpers.
I’m not so sure about engineering. While engineers can work well into advanced old age, for a 50+ year old job applicant, there’s probably an expectation by employers of years of seasoned experience. Then again, I could be totally wrong about this assumption…
One of our pediatricians started med school in her 40’s when she became an empty nester. But the big difference with medicine is that it has a built in residency requirement to establish experience.
There are age discrimination laws in place these days in terms of hiring. If a 22 year old and 50 year old are competing for an internship or entry level type position, they should ideally be judged on their merits. Whether that happens in the real world might be another story. A bigger issue might be how prepared the average person in their late 40’s might feel in terms of the ability to start a rigorous engineering program, if they have possibly been away from advanced math and science type study for many years. Only the OP knows what they have already studied and how well they feel prepared to take on the study for an engineering degree at this point.
Civil engineers don’t have residency requirements as medicine does but there is an EIT (might be called something else these days) type sequence leading to a P.E. license that many civil engineers go through. And the OP specifically mentioned an interest in civil engineering.
It certainly isn’t impossible to get into civil engineering at 50, HOWEVER;
While age discrimination laws are in place, it is very hard to prove in a hiring circumstance. After all, all applicants have differing backgrounds making a direct comparison between a younger and older person almost impossible.
The younger person will get chosen because they have more potential for a LONG career at whatever company hires them. Just getting your degree doesn’t give you all the skills to do an engineering job. A lot of on-the-job training goes into every new engineer and they want time to recoup that expense of the training.
Yes, I can see that a company might want to hire the younger person, thinking that they will have the potential for a long career at the company or agency. However, many younger people these days are moving around a lot so how long a particular person might stay could be hard to really predict. One of my kids stayed for 5 years in his first job out of college , the other only 2 years. Hope you enjoy your new studies , @sheltieowner , wherever that may lead!
I will simply say that it is certainly possible, but that I absolutely would not recommend it. “Drop everything and switch careers” rarely ends well.
“The yearning” isn’t really enough of a reason to do it. I have seen people do it and have positive results but you really should take some time to think about if such an ephemeral reason is really how you should be choosing a career path.
Thank you all for the advice. I really appreciate it. Merry Christmas!
Sevmom, people do move around much more these days than in the “old” days. Function of both the company’s desire to maintain a lean work force and the employee’s desire to use moving around to get ahead. However, many companies I see use a “pay for performance” type of raise system. In that, the better engineers are given the higher raises trying to encourage them to stay. The ones that don’t get such great raises will be the ones leaving for better pastures. Then, in the next business uptick, you hire more new grads and young engineers, again hoping to weed out the poor ones and retain the good ones. You mix a few experienced top talent engineers in the mix as necessary.
The end result of all this is that there is no desire to hire an older engineer with no experience. Obviously, my experience doesn’t cover all companies and there may be opportunities for the OP but I would imagine it would be very tough for him.
@HPuck35, Yes, every company is different. My older kid was from the day one on his consulting company’s fast track. They tried hard to keep him. Younger son left for a startup that his team leader in his first company started. Again, his initial company tried to get him to stay. They both have great salaries, as well as equity, stock options Money wasn’t even the main issue for either of them, they were just ready to move on and great opportunities presented themselves. They will both make more than my P.E. husband . One already does for sure and the other may be there too but he has stopped asking H to help him with filing his tax returns!
The OP says money isn’t an issue. Sometimes, you just want to move on.
I personally think a 50 year old with life experience and a desire to keep learning and growing could be an asset to many organizations. I’m sure many organizations would probably not agree.
I went to graduate school with a famous actor’s mom. An MSW, not anything technical but there was still a learning curve. I just looked up her obituary online. She would have been 52 when she started this two year program. Her husband was a doctor, I doubt they needed the money. She was delightful, lots of wisdom. Most of us were in our 20’s , early 30’s tops but we very much enjoyed having her around. I have lots of respect for anyone that still examines their options and pursues something they have had an interest in. Even if the OP never becomes a civil engineer, there are courses or self study that could be tied to that interest. I am no civil engineer but have been dragged off course by H (willingly) when on the road to see enough cool bridges or dams or waterways, etc. that I can understand the appeal of studying this. I like looking at the historical aspects of some of the things we encounter . I have actually been known to steer us in an interesting direction on the road if I have done some research and have found we are passing near something interesting.
Merry Christmas @sheltieowner Good luck with any decisions !
Thanks so much sevmom. I will keep the board posted on my progress. Merry Christmas!
Honestly I am not sure I’d have the patience that I did 30 years ago for the intense engineering academics (and the knowledge that often little of it is used in the real world). If you are up to the challenge and finances are not a concern, then it might make sense. Do you have to decide now? Or would it start next summer/fall?
Yea, @colorado_mom That was what I also mentioned earlier in terms of having to get into the rigorous academics after possibly being away from things for awhile. That could be tough for some people but not sure what is involved in this situation?
I went back to junior college and took calculus 1 &2, chemistry, and a year of calculus based physics. I worked hard and earned A’s in all classes. I know it will be tough, but I know I can handle the academics. The tough part for me is I have school age kids and need to make sure they come first.
@sheltieowner, I say go for it. If you got A’s in those classes, you are definitely up for the challenge.
And if money isn’t an issue, it’s a no-brainer.
As far as handling the rigor goes, I would say older students have certain advantages. I think I’ve become a better student as I’ve aged. It’s true that younger students have more energy and free time, but I’ve become much more determined as I’ve aged.
I had classes in college that I didn’t do as well in as I should have because the “teacher wasn’t good” or “the book was terrible”. Now that I’m older, I have a take no prisoners attitude. There are no excuses. If I want to learn something, I’m going to learn it no matter what obstacles I face. I was probably a bit sharper 30 years ago, but I wasn’t nearly as determined as I am today.
I think I’m also better at stepping back and seeing the big picture. I’m better at avoiding getting stuck in the weeds and better at changing course when things aren’t going well.
I understand your worry about devoting enough time to your kids. That’s a big concern, but I’ve noticed that when I take classes, I’m happier and have more energy. Everyone’s different though, and it will be a long haul.
Still, I say go for it and teach some of those lazy, excuse-making kids how to do an Engineering degree 