Hi everyone, new to the forum here but in need of some guidance.
I just graduated from UCI, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Finished with a 3.3 GPA, not too terrible. When I enrolled in Aerospace Engineering, I was doing it because I loved the science behind airplanes and was told to do something I loved. Now that I graduated and am older, I realize that it is sort of a niche field with very few jobs. If I could go back I would change to Civil Engineering. My question is, should I enroll for a masters program in Civil Engineering? Or go more specific and base the masters off of my bachelors and do a systems engineering masters or along that line? I am leaning towards Civil because there are FAR more jobs out there.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts
Go to the career center at UCI and get help with your job hunting. Work for at least a year, preferably more, before you start worrying about grad school. You may find that you want an MBA or an elementary school teaching certificate or something not even remotely related to STEM.
Aerospace is expanding like crazy right now, so I’d suggest that your struggles to find employment are not too related to it being too much of a niche field.
When you say “just graduated”, do you mean just last quarter or last spring. If you literally just graduated, then it is way too soon to be dismayed about finding work, even in a hot field.
If you’ve been looking since spring however, that’s a different story. Where are you looking for jobs? If you’re still in the LA area, then definitely get help from the university. There is a lot down there. Aero may be expanding as @boneh3ad says but the jobs are not as widely distributed as fields like civil engineering or CS. You may have to move to where the jobs are.
Since aerospace jobs tend to be with larger companies, consider accepting a less-than-dream-job at a company that would help pay for your masters.
I graduated last week, but I’ve been applying since December. I feel like all the big companies or even smaller companies want someone with more experience or a masters now, undergrad isn’t cutting it anymore.
Your feeling is not correct, since most companies are still hiring graduates with a bachelor’s only. I know this doesn’t sound helpful, but 3 months really is not that long to be looking for a job as a fresh graduate. Keep applying and try other angles if you haven’t - career center, alumni connections, professional networking groups, etc. Expand your search to different kinds of companies if you need to.