Engineering career/general life advice...

[yorkie_chris]

OMO!

So, I'm sat here, 25 years old, in a cracking little (rented) bungalow/flat type thing with an awesome girlfriend and a family I get along well with... overall, it ain't half bad.

However, work wise, I feel like I'm doing it wrong as I don't feel like I'm getting any further forward in life, no real chance to save up much money.

Qualifications wise, I've got a 2-2 BEng hons in Mechanical Engineering from Leeds uni.


I'm currently working 4 days a week for a small firm (6 people, about 1.2m annual turnover). They set me on agreeing to the 4 days so I could keep my side business with the bikes etc.
I quite like the work, I've designed some pretty interesting stuff for them (Solidworks, solid edge and autocad) including a couple of really interesting ground-up projects that I've had pretty much free reign with.

However, the money's pretty poor I think, about £8/hr after tax.
I was earning significantly more as a fitter building can making machines... £10/hr plus loads of 1.5x overtime.
And also, it's salaried, so no plus point for those days when I'm still in Stoke or Jarrow at 5pm...
(though they are reasonable with expenses on longer trips)

I've been there 18 months.
FWIW I'm an associate of IMechE, got to be getting towards enough experience to try for IEng status. Should I?

As for the firm, well it's healthy, decent turnover, reasonable sales. The problem is the staff... the MD and his wife are pushing 70. Their Son (new MD soon) is 50 or so and is an effective salesman and a reasonable designer, but I don't think takes enough interest in the nitty-gritty, the HMRC stuff and the rest. There's another guy responsible for technical sales, brings in a big chunk of the turnover, he retires in 6 years. And then there's me! (there's also a van driver/gofer and a younger lady who helps with accounts)




So to sum up this slightly tedious and rambling diatribe...

Short term am I getting screwed doing a professional engineers job for apprentice salesman's wages.
Long term what are the thoughts about the "changing of the guard" from old to new.

[DarrenSV650S]

I earn more than you and all I did was go from school to an apprenticeship. I thought a uni degree would get you further

Speak to a careers adviser.

[timwilky]

The problem is Chris, Engineers are a much maligned species in this country. The title is generic for the guy who repairs your washing machine. FFS we even have computer engineers who are nothing more than software installers etc.

I have said it before to you Chris. I am afraid you need to be prepared to be mobile to get those plum jobs. We employ some very clever guys specialising in blade design etc. A huge number of these specialist engineers stuggle to speak English.

I am almost in exactly the same boat.

2:2 in Electrical engineering, time served apprentice on 33k a year on a salary with company van. Stuck in a massive hole.

Got turned down by Nissan for a job which would of paid more for less and can't become a "graduate" because i lose at least 10k so i am trying to get a good job on the tools where I can become chartered on the tools.

My personal advice is try Nissan for a fitters job and see if they will take you across if you can move to sunderland. A fitters job on the tools for 4 on 4 off shifts is 38-45k if you want cash with overtime on top. I would say there's no length in staying where you are and nissan will fund mileage and hotel for you. I am trying to get out of a cushy number to actually get on.

Being 25 with a degree atm in engineering isn't a good thing. Sadly

[yorkie_chris]

I'm not time served or any practical qualifications for that, but seriously 38-45k as a fitter?

[garynortheast]

The money does sound poor for your level of qualification and ability, but you seem to be doing work you find interesting and enjoyable. It may be that you need to decide what your priorities are - higher income or job satisfaction. It can be quite hard to find work which gives you both. A higher income can help to alleviate the drudgery of a crap job, but personally I'd rather be doing something I find fulfilling even if it's not going to give me a large financial reward.

http://careersatnissan.co.uk/nmuk-su...-benefits.html

add 40% shift allowance to the fitters wage. And to make it worse they are jumping straight to the oil rigs for more again.

[maviczap]

What about working for Bentley? Not that far from Stoke, Quiff works there & one of my colleagues brothers.

They could find out if there's any jobs going

Down here, the port has a big engineering section, so how about something similar

[yorkie_chris]

(stoke was just an example of where I end up btw)


Well yeah that's the thing, it's relatively interesting and relatively enjoyable... And it's not exactly hard most of the time, I get enough time to look at stuff on the side for example.

And actually at the end of the day I like the people there, I don't want to walk and leave them in the sh*t to be honest!


Do people see any value at all in the fact that if I stayed for 5 years or so I'd be one of only two people who actually know what they're doing in a 1.2m a year company? Or is that more likely a millstone than an asset.

[Bibio]

is there a future for you in the company you are with at the moment?

what would you prefer to do and what are you qualified to do. basically mechanical engineer is pretty vague. it would be better if you could 'specialise' your title.

at the moment your getting less than a shelf stacker at Aldi.

like a lot of graduates it's pretty hard to find a job that you are actually qualified for and most end up doing jobs that are completely different, a university degree to an employer only shows that you are 'dedicated' more so that the average Joe. at one time it meant something but now with so many graduates leaving uni the employers have their pick so don't have to pay the wages they once used to. not all graduates are capable of doing the job they have been trained for and a lot of the ones i was at uni with were complete useless wastes of space when it came to actually putting their learning into practise but a fair old few went on to get very good jobs which says a lot about the current climate of so called qualified individuals in the UK.

do what feels right as it usually is.

BTW i'm not the person that should be giving advice as i have stuffed a fair few 'chances' in my life that would have seen me on a very very good income.