I'm thinking of working towards breaking free of the corporate world and going the freelance / consulting route. I have almost 20 years experience. I have my PE in my state. I don't have a masters degree. I have spent a lot of time doing design and FEA work and I think that is likely where...
It looks like I am going to be given an assignment in the very near future where I will be required to design and run a test on o-rings. I've never been asked to do any testing yet. This is new territory. This project is going to be heavily scrutinized by my boss, his boss, his boss's boss...
Is that so bad? I like being an engineer. I like creating stuff and analyzing stuff and generally working on my own. I understand the need for team leaders but I honestly do not feel that my personality is fit for a leadership role. Quite frankly, I don't like to give direction and my people...
I keep hearing of more and more companies sending their engineering work overseas. My company just recently hopped on the bandwagon and started sending my work (and many others) to India. It's kind of scary to see this happening. I'm worried about the stability of my job with this happening...
Ok, so I had this interview 3 weeks ago. It was going really well and the last thing we talked about was salary requirements. Since the interview was going well, I shot a bit high with my expected salary requirements. I didn't get a good reaction from that. They seemed to be a bit shocked by...
So, I've been unhappy with my job lately and I've been on the prowl for something new for a while now. Unfortunately though, the job market is terrible and I'm realizing that right now isn't the best time to land my dream job. I do need a change though and my job search has kind of helped me...
I am currently working for the R&D division of my company and I do FE analysis on turbine blades. That's been my primary focus for the last 3 years. As you all may remember, I've been a bit unsatisfied with my career for the last year or more because I want more variety in my work. My job...
So, I've been pretty unhappy at my current job for a while. I've been on the prowl for something better and I just got an offer for something new the other day. I'm a mechanical engineer and my main complaint with my current job is that I basically do the same FEA analysis day in and day out...
In a nut shell, I'm looking at my options for my career right now. Here's my basic qualifications.
BSME
PE Certified
7 years experience
Turbo-machinery Industry
High level of ANSYS exposure and experience
High level of Pro/E exposure and experience
Design and analysis experience
I've been...
I have an interview next week with a new company. I am a mechanical engineer that deals with design and stress analysis or machine parts. I create a lot of 3-dimensional drawings and designs using Pro/E and ANSYS. I would like to bring some printouts of my work from my current company to show...
I already searched the forums for this and couldn't find an answer. I'm taking the PE in about 2 weeks. I know that the test typically asks questions regarding ASME code. I know that it is recommended to bring ASME code to the test as a reference. I went to my work place library and found...
I'm wrapping up my PE exam studying here this month. I take the test in a month from today. I'm taking a class to prepare and I think I'm coming along pretty nicely. It's been about 5 months of studying and counting. So I've definitely been working hard towards it. I'm going to be taking the...
My current work place has the habit of specializing their workers. They will pigeon hole you. It's very hard to expand your horizons into new territories when you're stuck doing the same thing all the time.
I work at a large company and I know that this is typical. What is life like in a...
I just started my study plan for the PA Mechanical PE Exam. I'm on day 2 and I'm extremely stressed and overwhelmed. I have a copy of the Lindeburg "Mechanical Engineering Reference Manual for the PE Exam". I put together a study plan based on recommendations from the author in the beginning...
I've been doing the same thing here for a little over a year now.
I have been doing FEA stress analyses on turbine blades. It was interesting at first and I was learning a lot but now it's just become very monotonous and repetitive. It's very routine now and I don't think I've really learned...
It's so hard to know if you are moving at a good pace. I don't have much to use as a measurement as how much I have learned and where I am as an engineer. It brings up a lot of uncertainty in myself. I want to be sure that I am setting myself up for a good future and keeping myself marketable...
Please forgive me if this is way off topic but I was just curious about this.
I'm a mechanical engineer and at college one of my electrical engineering friends said this to me:
"If you play your walkman with the volume up the whole way, you will get more battery life than you would if you have...
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I like to read self-help type books that are related to my career. I'm trying to find a good book that will help motivate me at work. I'm happy at my job but I just feel like I need a good 'pick-me up' because I've gotten kind of lazy and frustrated lately. Any of the career books I've...
I'm having one of those days where I just feel inadequate for my job. I just feel like all of this engineering stuff is too much for my somewhat feeble brain. I'm not contemplating a career move or anything but I just get like this sometimes. I just feel like I've gotten myself in over my...
