Jewtoys Posted January 30, 2015 Report Share Posted January 30, 2015 Basically, everyone here wears tennis shoes or safety shoes. I feel lucky. I can literally wear anything, but I work completely alone dealing with CAD related junk all day... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trouble Maker Posted January 30, 2015 Report Share Posted January 30, 2015 I feel lucky. I can literally wear anything, but I work completely alone dealing with CAD related junk all day... Yeah, you can wear whatever you want here, except for open toe shoes/flip flops, but are supposed to wear safety shoes if you go into the shop areas. Some people wear dress shirts (below the uniform) & dress shoes, most just wear some random t-shirt & tennis shoes, boots or safety shoes. Uniforms w/on site laundry service is pretty amazing, 0 thought or money into my professional clothes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidBaustert Posted January 30, 2015 Report Share Posted January 30, 2015 Yeah, you can wear whatever you want here, except for open toe shoes/flip flops, but are supposed to wear safety shoes if you go into the shop areas. Some people wear dress shirts (below the uniform) & dress shoes, most just wear some random t-shirt & tennis shoes, boots or safety shoes. Uniforms w/on site laundry service is pretty amazing, 0 thought or money into my professional clothes. You work at HonDUH too? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trouble Maker Posted January 31, 2015 Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 You work at HonDUH too? Plant engineer hunh? HTM? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dq driver Posted January 31, 2015 Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 ...Some people wear dress shirts (below the uniform) & dress shoes, most just wear some random t-shirt & tennis shoes, boots or safety shoes. ... Fake it 'til you make it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trouble Maker Posted January 31, 2015 Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 Fake it 'til you make it! So, if I start wearing dress flip flops at work, does that mean you won't hang out with me there anymore? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M0nk3y Posted January 31, 2015 Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 Ever consider some type of Project Management? You see a ton of field time out of the office, hands on type of work. I'm a very new engineer in the career field (graduated in May '13). ME by degree but I work in the energy field for commercial HVAC. I personally love it, but it's a lot of desk time currently, starting to shape my career to more field and design. Becoming an engineer without a degree is very doable. Just gotta work your day up. My dad's a living example. Never went to college, self taught. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cstmg8 Posted January 31, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 I would definitely be interested in project management, these jobs just seem scarce or require the degree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moe7 Posted January 31, 2015 Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 I would definitely be interested in project management, these jobs just seem scarce or require the degree. Nowadays most employers seem to want (but not necessarily require) a PMP cert. for project management. Looks like that also requires a Bachelors degree, or at least a good amount of previous program management experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TTQ B4U Posted January 31, 2015 Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 (edited) I would definitely be interested in project management, these jobs just seem scarce or require the degree. Bach. degrees today are what high school diplomas were years ago. Regardless of what anyone says about their value vs work experience (which I value a lot) when it comes to the pool to select from often times the degree and what is earned and learned along the way to get one does often make a difference when it comes down to selection. That said, if you have time to finish one, I would advise doing so even if it's just part time. You might not need it today but in 10yrs or 15yrs if something happens you'll have it as a baseline. It will likely be even more of a requirement then. My counterpart in the role I'm in graduated from West Point, served 12 yrs and came back to the workforce. Took 5yrs but he completed his MBA with very high rankings. He will go far. In terms of what you can do today, look at your transferable skills. Skills that can be used in other industries. On top of that, the soft skills such as working and leading a team count tremendously. Lots of people can follow and be team members. Those that can have others follow them are worth a lot more. Not managers but leaders. Creativity and a willingness to try things is valuable too. Confidence goes hand in hand with that. Not confidence in terms of being right but confidence that is one being comfortable with making right and wrong decisions. We make them both but how we learn is critical. Lots of talk I know but if you can show potential employers those things; things that others can't get in books, you'll go far. Edited January 31, 2015 by TTQ B4U Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidBaustert Posted January 31, 2015 Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 Plant engineer hunh? HTM? Yessir Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berto Posted January 31, 2015 Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 There has been a few threads on mech engineer specific stuff so i won't bore you on the details but. I feel my job has the good mixture of hands on. A lot of what my job is, is traveling accross the country installing prototype engines in customer vehicles. Integrating them to work (basically engine swaps). Then if issues arise we have to troubleshoot them document issues etc. The nice thing is i don't do the mundane work...oil changes, parts swapping. But when something goes down and need some experience i get into the interesting stuff like troubleshooting etc. That said minimum our area requires would be an MET degree. I joked with my parents about wanting to be a technician. Pretty much do whatever you want, after you have your degree, hah. As you are finding out, really no matter where you go, there will probably be some sort of ceiling if you don't have a degree. No that you said this, but I hate it when people say 'i'm just not built for school'. I feel like it minimizes other people's efforts because they didn't feel like going through with it. School was a challenge for me, and it is for just about everyone. I never got up in the morning and was like SCORE! FINALS! I love this!. IMO degrees are a small percentage of what you learn and will use later and more about your discipline to finish something you started, something that is a challenge. Like Jesse said. If you're making 100k without a degree i'd be hesitant to move. Specially considering most technicians I know, hit their 50's and their body catches up to them. All those hours rolling around on concrete and working upside down in a truck. Then at that point your 100k job probably won't be around and the reason you have it is because of the experience/reputation you had with that employer at that time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cstmg8 Posted February 1, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2015 There has been a few threads on mech engineer specific stuff so i won't bore you on the details but. I feel my job has the good mixture of hands on. A lot of what my job is, is traveling accross the country installing prototype engines in customer vehicles. Integrating them to work (basically engine swaps). Then if issues arise we have to troubleshoot them document issues etc. The nice thing is i don't do the mundane work...oil changes, parts swapping. But when something goes down and need some experience i get into the interesting stuff like troubleshooting etc. That said minimum our area requires would be an MET degree. I joked with my parents about wanting to be a technician. Pretty much do whatever you want, after you have your degree, hah. As you are finding out, really no matter where you go, there will probably be some sort of ceiling if you don't have a degree. No that you said this, but I hate it when people say 'i'm just not built for school'. I feel like it minimizes other people's efforts because they didn't feel like going through with it. School was a challenge for me, and it is for just about everyone. I never got up in the morning and was like SCORE! FINALS! I love this!. IMO degrees are a small percentage of what you learn and will use later and more about your discipline to finish something you started, something that is a challenge. Like Jesse said. If you're making 100k without a degree i'd be hesitant to move. Specially considering most technicians I know, hit their 50's and their body catches up to them. All those hours rolling around on concrete and working upside down in a truck. Then at that point your 100k job probably won't be around and the reason you have it is because of the experience/reputation you had with that employer at that time. I'm below 100k right now, that's what I'm aiming for first, but I hear what you're saying. I'm 32, so I'd like to think I'm far from my top income point. You guys are right, I'm grateful for my job, but there is no where to move up to from here and it doesn't make business sense for them to pay me a large amount more. I already make $10k more than my predecessor. I could stay here for 5 more years and get maybe a dollar a year or so, but then I'm 37 and still not on the path I want. I have turned down many other options that were a dollar or two more because I'd lose the freedom I have now. There are 2080 work hours in a year, so a dollar an hour is just not much in the grand scheme. Hell, a $5/hr raise is $10,400/yr. A lot of money unless its stretched over 5 yrs and you figure inflation and taxes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cstmg8 Posted February 1, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2015 I don't dismiss school, it's a lot of work and a great accomplishment for those who've finished. I simply wasted time on a degree I've never used. I dislike school, but I can handle it if that's what's required. I prefer tests and quizzes to projects and papers, which I know is different than most. I got a 29 on my act test, but hell, that was 14 yrs ago lol. I'm aware this thread may make me sound a little ungrateful, but I want to provide my kids with things I didn't have, and maybe own a few of those toys so many on CR have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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