<p>I’m in a similar boat, though perhaps a bit more optimistic. I am headed into my last year as a civil engineering student. I started out in the social sciences, then changed my major to engineering. I went into it from the s.sci background which basically taught me that A’s and B’s require no work whatsoever, then when I got to engineering school I bombed all my classes once I hit the calculus/physics/etc. So basically I’ve had to dig myself out of a hole, it’ll have taken me 9 years of tooth and nail fighting to finish my degree, and I might barely squeak out a 3.0 overall – after my GPA is recalculated for all the classes I re-took. </p>
<p>I am optimistic about my future but I realize that I am not going to get an entry-level job at my dream employer. The good thing about engineering is that people need engineers to do things like sieve aggregate at the concrete plant or write reports somewhere. I believe that just about any Engineering graduate can get a decent job and get paid a salary they can live (and repay their student loans) on. It just might not be designing the next skyscraper or jumbo jet. It might be doing something lame or boring, at least for a while. Guys like you and I didn’t pay our dues in college so now we are going to pay them on the job. That’s the struggle we face. It still beats being an unemployed theater major.</p>
<p>And it doesn’t mean working at McDonald’s or in some unrelated field. There are engineering jobs that aren’t at Boeing or NASA. </p>
<p>I wouldn’t suggest that you give up your dream, but look somewhere else to start and use that as an opportunity to get experience and prove yourself. I got an engineering internship with state government. It did not require a high GPA. It is a year-round internship and I benefited from the fact that I was willing to work during the school year and looking for jobs during the winter (most students are looking for summer-only internships). I bought a $150 suit from Penney’s and rocked the interview. I also bolstered my resume with other things. I joined a student engineering club and took on a leadership role, and before I started my internship I worked at a retail store, going in at 4 a.m. to stock the shelves before class (and earning a good reference from my manager). My life sucked but I proved that my GPA didn’t mean I’m unable or unwilling to knuckle down and get stuff done. </p>
<p>I am hoping that my internship here will get me a foot in the door elsewhere in the state for a job as a graduate, and once I’ve gained a few years experience I can apply for non-entry-level jobs where my GPA won’t be as big of a factor. Toward that end, I’m also looking into graduate certificate programs at my local university to help bolster my resume in other ways. </p>
<p>My advice is to do whatever you can now to bolster your resume in other ways, scratch up an internship and an entry level job (when you graduate) wherever you can, and use that time to build up your resume so you can go back to your dream employers later with something else to show. I don’t know if that’s the best way to go about it, because like you I am still a student, but that’s my approach and I hope it works out.</p>
<p>Or maybe you will find that what you think is your “dream job” isn’t for you and something less demanding is. Again, I’m coming from a civil background and know nothing about mechanical so the specifics won’t apply to you, but maybe there are some parallels. But to give an example, I always thought I wanted to design skyscrapers and bridges…until I took Structural Analysis and Concrete Design. I struggled with it, and hated it, and had to fight every day just to get a C. I took that as a hint that I probably did not want to do that stuff every day for the rest of my life. There were people in that class who you could tell just “got it” and my philosophy now is that they can have the glamorous jobs of dreaming up the next high-rise on the NYC skyline. I find I have a better aptitude, and get more enjoyment out of, lower-profile things like geotechnical, traffic, etc. </p>
<p>So, in general, I suggest you use whatever time you have left to bolster your resume, and broaden your horizons in search of a job/internship. Worst case scenario, you have to do your time in a less glamorous job than you imagined. On the other hand, you expose yourself to new opportunities and might find something you like more than Aerospace.</p>