On June 12 2011 17:03 Meta wrote:
Good to know other people are in the same situation. Grad school definitely would buy more time. When I started in 2007 my school "promised" 2-7 job offers for my degree... Tough times are tough!

Isn't it illegal for schools to do this?

Kezzer

United States1268 Posts

June 12 2011 18:15 GMT

#22

On June 12 2011 12:38 Empyrean wrote:

Show nested quote +

not punny enough?

atrocity3010

70 Posts

June 12 2011 20:54 GMT

#23

I'm in a similar situation as the OP (except my degree's in CS instead of engineering). If I had known employers only really cared about the work experience, I would have tried to get an internship somewhere.

Trying to get a job gets depressing when no one even wants to give you an interview. Sometimes I feel like I wasted the last 6 years of my life on nothing.

Z3kk

4099 Posts

June 12 2011 21:07 GMT

#24

On June 13 2011 03:15 Kezzer wrote:

Show nested quote +

not punny enough?

Seemed more like a typo maybe?

myopia

United States2928 Posts

June 13 2011 03:29 GMT

#25

My work is hiring mechanical engineers but it's either part time intern work, or 5+ years experience required.

Sorry man, don't think I can help you.

WooChop

United States120 Posts

June 13 2011 06:06 GMT

#26

Don't get too discouraged by not finding a job after only a month after you graduated. I graduated with a degree in EE (3.2 but GPA was a very small issue in the hiring), and it took me a good year to find the job I have now. Even then it's only a contract position, so I will be looking for another job relatively soon. What I am doing now is nowhere near what I really want to do, but it's something to keep me until I can land a job doing what I want.

So, my advice would be to eventually broaden what kinds of jobs you would accept. Check job boards (as was mentioned by someone else earlier). Make sure you have a good resume (if you want someone to look it over, feel free to PM me, and make sure to edit out your personal info). If you can get temp work while you search for a full-time position, do it. It will at the very least show that you have the work ethic.

Meta

United States6225 Posts

June 13 2011 21:03 GMT

#27

On June 13 2011 15:06 WooChop wrote:
Don't get too discouraged by not finding a job after only a month after you graduated. I graduated with a degree in EE (3.2 but GPA was a very small issue in the hiring), and it took me a good year to find the job I have now. Even then it's only a contract position, so I will be looking for another job relatively soon. What I am doing now is nowhere near what I really want to do, but it's something to keep me until I can land a job doing what I want.

So, my advice would be to eventually broaden what kinds of jobs you would accept. Check job boards (as was mentioned by someone else earlier). Make sure you have a good resume (if you want someone to look it over, feel free to PM me, and make sure to edit out your personal info). If you can get temp work while you search for a full-time position, do it. It will at the very least show that you have the work ethic.

That's good advice, but I've already broadened my search as much as I possibly can. I will work ANYWHERE, doing ANYTHING, as long as it's in the field of mechanical engineering, and I'm still having a lot of trouble.

My resume is pretty tight, I've spent the last 8 months revising it and I'm very happy with it right now.

How did you find your job? Did you have previous experience with an internship during school?

Sm3agol

United States2055 Posts

June 13 2011 21:36 GMT

#28

You should apply for a job where i work...Vistakon in Jacksonville, FL(J&J). They've just started hiring people again, and it's great pay for not much work, in general, lol, at least the position I think you might be qualified for.

http://www.simplyhired.com/a/jobs/list/q-vistakon/l-jacksonville, fl/pn-6

The only thing I think you'd be qualified for is a line tech, but w/e. No idea if that's something you've had any experience in though, tbh.

Also, don't be scared of requirements higher than your expertise or experience level. Apply, call, and recall until definitely rejected. You lose nothing by doing this, they certainly won't remember you a week later, and you won't be working for them anyways if they reject you, don't don't worry about being annoying. Just sending resumes to thousands of employers does nothing to make you stand out from the crowd. Call places personally, and keep calling if they do anything short of outright rejecting you.

Oh yeah, and don't give up. There are jobs out there....the problem is just that you are competing with thousands of similarly qualified people. So the more feelers you put out there, the more people you know, the more people you call and talk to, the better your chances.

Chill

Calgary25980 Posts

June 13 2011 22:41 GMT

#29

I wish I could help you but you're in the US and I'm in Canada. I also had difficulty finding a job after univeristy. I'd suggest that, if you can afford it, you take some entry level courses in the industry you're targeting. While looking for a full-time job, get a shitty part-time job (I tutored high school kids) or volunteer (I taught chess to elementary students). It will pay the bills and will score you points when you inevitably get asked "You graduated 7 months ago, what have you been doing?"

Don't be afraid to bother people. I got hired by sending a a monthly email asking my now-boss "Are you hiring yet?" for four months.

kainzero

United States5211 Posts

June 13 2011 23:32 GMT

#30

i got my job with the state government.

i didn't get any interviews for anything until i started working a job, in this case, it was a game testing gig. after that i started getting interview opportunities, though i kept bombing them.

the one thing you want to do is to always be learning. learn something, develop necessary skills, and be able to show that you have developed these skills. join professional organizations, read up on the news in whatever field you're interested in, be able to practice whatever skill you need to develop. take classes if you can; classes are one of the easiest ways to meet people especially if it's something in your field.

as for who's hiring... i think northrop grumman is hiring. i think. i'm not sure which program, my friend has been trying to get me to submit my resume there, but i also read the other week that they had deep cuts in their space program. so i'm not sure where.

Meta

United States6225 Posts

June 14 2011 00:17 GMT

#31

On June 14 2011 07:41 Chill wrote:
I wish I could help you but you're in the US and I'm in Canada. I also had difficulty finding a job after univeristy. I'd suggest that, if you can afford it, you take some entry level courses in the industry you're targeting. While looking for a full-time job, get a shitty part-time job (I tutored high school kids) or volunteer (I taught chess to elementary students). It will pay the bills and will score you points when you inevitably get asked "You graduated 7 months ago, what have you been doing?"

Don't be afraid to bother people. I got hired by sending a a monthly email asking my now-boss "Are you hiring yet?" for four months.

I'm actually going to start tutoring high school kids myself this month. Summer's a crap-shoot of a season for tutoring though

On June 14 2011 08:32 kainzero wrote:
i got my job with the state government.

i didn't get any interviews for anything until i started working a job, in this case, it was a game testing gig. after that i started getting interview opportunities, though i kept bombing them.

the one thing you want to do is to always be learning. learn something, develop necessary skills, and be able to show that you have developed these skills. join professional organizations, read up on the news in whatever field you're interested in, be able to practice whatever skill you need to develop. take classes if you can; classes are one of the easiest ways to meet people especially if it's something in your field.

as for who's hiring... i think northrop grumman is hiring. i think. i'm not sure which program, my friend has been trying to get me to submit my resume there, but i also read the other week that they had deep cuts in their space program. so i'm not sure where.

Good advice, I'm taking two online summer classes at the moment but it's pretty hard to meet people in an online class

Thanks for the suggestion for Northrop Grumman, I had never even heard of them and it looks like they have a few openings for recent college graduates that I'll apply for ^_^