Continued Education - Engineering

In reply to XLR99 :

I’m glad I went METech. Its a better fit for me and if I finish my bachelors in this field I’ll do it with my METech. It hasn’t hindered me yet, although it could! 

I love my manufacturing job, and I love my split of office to hands on work. It doesn’t happen that way for everyone- I’ve seen full blown METech bachelors in assembly jobs. Once your foot is in the door, it all comes down to the person. 

Morning Russ, 

I was a toolmaker, QC Inspector, then a tech at an Army Research facility.  Most of the engineers I dealt with went for two years to a community college, then transferred to RPI, MIT, etc. for the last two.  The degree says MIT, not MIT/cheaper community college.

Good luck.

Forgot, if you agree to work there for 5 years, they pick up all your student loans.

In reply to russ_mill :

I am a BSME and have been in the work force for 18 years. I started out as a test engineer which had a little bit of everything: hands on wrenching, design, project management, automation, and yes meetings. I had the opportunity to see other people's suboptimal solutions for about 9 years before switching over to project engineering. Yes, I currently spend a lot of time in meetings.

Back to the certifications, I would have to Google them to get a sense of their value. Having worked for several companies over the years and being part of the hiring process on both sides of the table, this tells me they are not valuable in a pretty wide swath of industry in the Southeast U.S.  They may hold weight in other areas or specific industries. The good news is that guys who have knowledge, can think on their feet, and have hand skills are very valuable. 

Some certifications that might be valuable: 

Six Sigma is widely recognized across many industries if you are interested in quality engineering.

Certifications for specific CAD tools, SolidWorks certifications, Pro-E, AutoCad, etc.

Programming certifications are valuable if you are more inclined toward automation. PLC programmers are always in demand. 

Industry specific certifications might work if you know your target. I would hit some of the career sites to get a feel for what is desired in the market. 

Honestly, as several others have said BSME or BSEE does open a lot of doors.

A PE licence is not required in most of industry. Typically, it only comes up on structural civil work, platforms, overhead loads, and specific safety items. 

Does your company offer any tuition reimbursement or educational funding?  If not, that might be something to consider in your next career move.

In reply to tester :

Thank you, that is very helpful to know about the certifications. Sounds like there’s  not that many that are widely know and reputable. I’ve pondered the six sigma, and not sure if I want to go that way. 

Ill look up some of the others you mentioned too  

Thanks again! 

russ_mill said:

Well that’s the thing- I would finish my MeT in 2 years but I’d have 3-4 in my ME. And I am currently 30. 

My career path is as follows: college to get my BBA, worked in finance for ~3 years (hated it!), quit to get my AAS in METech, worked for 2 years at an automotive weld cell design/manufacture company, and started 1.5 years ago at another manufacturing company. 

I know an ME would open doors, but I’m not sure how many I need open for that amount of investment! I’d like to beef up my resume, and in general I just want to know more and be able to offer more to my current or future employers. 

Edit: I guess the best way to put it would be- I got my first job through my AAS internship. I proved to be hardworking and a quick learner so my second job came through someone I met at my first job recommending me. Now if o move across the country, these recommendations mean much less. I’d like to learn more, and have some well regarded certifications to back up what I know in the short term. The long term goal could be to return to college. 

You're still plenty young. 

Go get the 4 year, doesn't have to be A1 $$$$ school, just one with a good rep. 

If you can swing the nickels for it, do that. 

Lots of solid advice here.   

Do what it takes to do what you want. 

wake74 said:

  I always tell our younger engineering grads, that they will eventually need to decide if they want to continue on the design side or eventually move into project management or technical department manager.  Too very distinct career paths.  

Yep.  Engineer.  :-)

A 401 CJ said:

wake74 said:

  I always tell our younger engineering grads, that they will eventually need to decide if they want to continue on the design side or eventually move into project management or technical department manager.  Too very distinct career paths.  

Yep.  Engineer.  :-)

I see what you did their.

Also, if you look at age from birth to retirement at 65 let’s say, 30 is almost halfway, but that’s not the right scale.  Most BS degrees are completed somewhere around age 22-25, so that’s where the scale should start.  So on the scale of 25 to 65, you are still at the front end by a long way.  Finish the BS for sure! Even if the payoff is only $10k / year and you’re 35 when you finish, that’s another $300k pre-tax over the years, but the difference could be significantly more than that.

i only know two people who did the EIT / PE exams.   One was required because he provides expert testimony on the defense side of the courtroom, and the other did it because it was free.

AngryCorvair said:

Also, if you look at age from birth to retirement at 65 let’s say, 30 is almost halfway, but that’s not the right scale.  Most BS degrees are completed somewhere around age 22-25, so that’s where the scale should start.  So on the scale of 25 to 65, you are still at the front end by a long way.  Finish the BS for sure! Even if the payoff is only $10k / year and you’re 35 when you finish, that’s another $300k pre-tax over the years, but the difference could be significantly more than that.

i only know two people who did the EIT / PE exams.   One was required because he provides expert testimony on the defense side of the courtroom, and the other did it because it was free.

Agreed - don't let your age stop you.  You still have most of your career ahead of you.  In my own ezpeexperi, time only gets harder to come by as I get older.  I completed my BSME by 23, took a few years off, then started work on my MSME at night. Going back to school was tough, and thus far I'm not sure the MS has opened any doors that the BS didn't. However, there are many doors that'll open when you get a BS.

I see some generalizations forming, and yes, there are a surprising number of engineers who aren't hands on or even interested in it.  The field is diverse enough that you can find well paid, more hands on, technical opportunities.  I'd suggest looking at test engineering at some of the larger Fortune companies.

AngryCorvair said:

 

i only know two people who did the EIT / PE exams.   One was required because he provides expert testimony on the defense side of the courtroom, and the other did it because it was free.

Weird - here in Ontario almost everyone I know that graduates from University in Engineering writes their P. Eng. exams. It is a self-regulated Profession in Ontario. Legally you aren't even supposed to call yourself an Engineer unless you are registered,

NGTD said:

AngryCorvair said:

 

i only know two people who did the EIT / PE exams.   One was required because he provides expert testimony on the defense side of the courtroom, and the other did it because it was free.

Weird - here in Ontario almost everyone I know that graduates from University in Engineering writes their P. Eng. exams. It is a self-regulated Profession in Ontario. Legally you aren't even supposed to call yourself an Engineer unless you are registered,

Its mostly like that here in the States. But if you're at a manufacturer there really isnt anyone that cares if you call yourself an engineer without a PE. Now in my line of work (HVAC engineer) most states strictly forbid calling yourself an engineer in their state unless you are a registered PE.  I have my PE in about 12 states.

A 401 CJ said:

wake74 said:

  I always tell our younger engineering grads, that they will eventually need to decide if they want to continue on the design side or eventually move into project management or technical department manager.  Too very distinct career paths.  

Yep.  Engineer.  :-)

That's the great thing about working for an engineering company, even when my grammar is bad, who is even going to notice :-)

RossD said:

Its mostly like that here in the States. But if you're at a manufacturer there really isnt anyone that cares if you call yourself an engineer without a PE. Now in my line of work (HVAC engineer) most states strictly forbid calling yourself an engineer in their state unless you are a registered PE.  I have my PE in about 12 state

While there may be some, I'm not aware of any state that "officially" allows you to practice or even propose on engineering services in that state without being a licensed engineer in that state.  I had 11 states at one point, but have since let all but two lapse.  Some states even get into semantics about what you can / can't put in your email signature file, although I can't imagine a state board dinging someone for that.  The engineers at our clients (major manufacturing companies) that I have bumped into who maintained a PE license I could probably count on one hand.  Most major manufacturers have outsourced their big projects (and their capitol project departments) to companies like ours years ago.  Only when you get an AHJ involved (building permits) does it then really come into play.

Well I appreciate all the discussion, but does anyone have anymore comments on certifications in the short term (1-6 month timeframe) like Tester above had? BSME vs BSMETech is all medium term timeframe in any circumstance. 

Industry work is funny.  I have serious experience with ag equipment and the degrees to back up working as an engineer at an ag company.  But when I approached one about an electrical engineering position, they were really negative about what I would be able to do for them.  I took their tone to be "we don't really think you can do more than drafting for 'real engineers' but maybe we could find you an entry level position doing that."  So I went back to my old job, engineering and certifying avionics and cabin entertainment equipment (read: satellite broadband and phone systems) for aircraft that that same company's board of directors flies around in globally.  

Take-away:  I would recommend not getting that "in Tech" degree because this kind of stupid corporate HR limitation is something to be avoided if possible.