Thinking of Changing my major.. need some help..

[Warrioreater400ex]

So im in my junior year of attempting to get my BSME... and my grades are OK, but im beginning to just HATE it...

i originally chose this major because i love ATV's and Trucks, i love working on them and i love fabrication and problem solving And i still do, I didnt really like math, but i wanted to be doing something for the rest of my life that i would enjoy and was passionate about... but the realization has come that the amount of engineers that actually do that are slim... so i could still end up in some office job that i hate.

I know a lot of people on here have a BSME, or are in the process of getting their BSME... but what other degrees do some of you people have that have jobs dealing with machinery..

i was thinking maybe Engineering Technology, or something along the lines of a fabrication or shop foreman...

[jcv400ex]

That's why you get the general credits out of the way the first semester and do some research on jobs and the market, then make a decision on a major.

[Warrioreater400ex]

If i did that i would be extremely behind, Engineering doesnt have many general credits at all... Its not like i wasnt sure so i just picked it, i decided on it and liked it for the first 2.5 years, thats not too bad...

im not even sure im changing it yet, im just looking at my options...

[400exrider707]

Originally posted by Warrioreater400ex
If i did that i would be extremely behind, Engineering doesnt have many general credits at all... Its not like i wasnt sure so i just picked it, i decided on it and liked it for the first 2.5 years, thats not too bad...

im not even sure im changing it yet, im just looking at my options...

I got my Bachelors in Mechanical engineering tech, and I like it. The thing about it is there is really no limit to what you can do... they job opportunities are endless. I just got hired for a company that designs and produces nano electrical pieces with hardly and electrical background... you never know where life will take you. Im ultimately happy with my decision. I was told I would be doing strictly autocad... I've done so many different things since I've been here, I never though I would have done any of it, so at the least its all a learning experience for me.

Word of advice if you do want to change which it sounds like you do, otherwise you wouldn't even be thinking twice about it, do it asap!

[Warrioreater400ex]

yeah, i posted this on Pirate4x4, and i have gotten a lot of responses about Mechanical Engineering Technology,

Money is not a huge issue to me, i just want to be able to provide for my family and not be strapped... if you dont ask me, do you know what base or average for M.E.T degree is?

yeah im trying to figure it out by the time i sign up for classes by next semester...

[Regular_Joe]

Overall school is just preparing you for the real world. It gives you the foundation to (as well as proves to employers that you can) solve difficult engineering problems, stick to a task and follow through (4 yrs for your degree), read and write reasonably well, communicate w/ others, meet deadlines on projects, etc.

I went to school w/ a kid that wanted to work on a Nascar team. First he got an associates in Automotive Technology, another associates in Engineering Technology, and a Masters in Mechanical Engnieering. The auto degree gave him a huge exposure to every part of cars. The Engineering degree was a basics in all engineering, so he got exposure to electrical, mechanical, programming, etc. Then he went on to get his real degree in Mechanical Engineering. I have no doubt he went on to do great things.

Engineering sucks for college. Too much work, never enough time, and professors are never satisfied. Homework over weekends constantly. I was always envious of my girlfriend as a psych major. Read 2 chapters and memorize the bold words. Ok, figure 2 hrs per chapter max and she's done. You can work around that for a schedule. Not in engineering, projects that could take anywhere from 10 to 40 hrs. You never know how it will go.

Nothing will be spoon fed. It's going to be hard. Unrealistically hard at times. If thats what you want to do, then you need to go for it and push hard. Overall if its what you want to do, just do it. I know its tough, and if it wasn't, everyone would do it. In the grand scheme of things its another 1.5 yrs. My suggestion is stick w/ it and just get it over with. I just learned to cope. All business, all day, from Sunday - Thursday and Friday+Saturday days. Then Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights it was game on and party central. Gotta blow off steam and unwind before you go crazy.

I have a BS in Computer Science. I will admit I passed on a lot of partying and hanging out w/ friends. But overall its payed off. I now have a great job and am way better off than any of my freinds. I started at 45k and 7yrs later am at about 75k. I just bought a house, have a nice truck, 2 motorcycles, and 2 quads. Life is better than ever. Its nice having the $$$ to actually do what I want and have fun.

Just hang in there buddy ......

[Warrioreater400ex]

thanks man, im really just trying to evaluate, cuz if im getting out, i need to do it asap, if im not i need to stick it out and go 100 percent..


i just have problems with motivation in the subjects i have NO interest in, fluids, phys II, etc etc..

[400exrider707]

Originally posted by Warrioreater400ex
yeah, i posted this on Pirate4x4, and i have gotten a lot of responses about Mechanical Engineering Technology,

Money is not a huge issue to me, i just want to be able to provide for my family and not be strapped... if you dont ask me, do you know what base or average for M.E.T degree is?

yeah im trying to figure it out by the time i sign up for classes by next semester...

A lot depends on location. When I went to check out the school before I started going they told us if you graduated with a 4.0 you could expect 45,000, but if you only had like a 3.0 it was 30,000 or some crap. Yeah right, most places dont even look at grades anymore. My grades are not on my resume and my company never once asked to see them nor did they care that I didn't even have my degree at the time ( and I wasn't sure I was getting it either, but I did in the end). The area by my school was once a very industrious area, but since has died off, so there weren't many job opportunities in the area. After talking to real world people I was told that it would be nice to turn down a 35K a year job in that area but it wouldn't be wise. Its all in the area. Just make sure you are a well rounded individual, and definitely go to a career center if your school has one. Get your resume looked at and do practice interviews. It helps. Also go to any and all career fairs you may have. Between me and a couple of my buddies we all started jobs almost immediately after school and we all started right around 40K. Pretty good for just starting, and I know me and one other guy get raises after 90 days due to probation periods. Hope this helps in your decision making. Let me know if you have any other questions.

[Regular_Joe]

Great point about the grades.

In the professional world its more about the team dynamics. A well rounded person is easier to work with and generally communicates better. A straight A nerd w/ no social skills sucks. The real world has enormous projects that are done w/ teams of many many people. Communication between team members generally makes or breaks the project. No such thing as a one-man show.

Here when we interview its 25% content and 75% bull****ting to feel out if your someone we can work with day in and day out for years.

[54warrior]

I have an Associates Degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology.

When I graduated college, PSU was of no help at all in assisting me find a job. It was very frustrating. I got a job working as a Transportation Construction Inpsector makeing 12.60/hour with overtime. I did this for about 4 1/2 years. When I quit, I was making 19.??/hour. I only worked between 9 and 10 months a year though, but was required to work loads of OT. I think I made about 37k my best year, including the unemployment for the winter layoffs.

I searched and searched, put my resume on monster. Took a massive pay cut (down to $32k/year) to work for a place in Pittsburgh as an "Engineering Aide". The job started out all right-it was something new. Thought I'd be doing some engineering work finally. That wasn't the case. I spent most of my time doing MS Excel and MS Project bullcrap. I think I did one drawing while I was there using Pro/E. They did send me to a week long course on Pro/E and a bunch of other trainings too though. I developed a love for Pro/E. The training class gave me a "student version" that I still use today at home.

I grew tired of not doing any "engineering work" so back to monster it was. I found a job here in Lancaster, PA as a mechanical designer. I designed/engineered more things in the first 2 weeks than I ever had. We use autocad (which I'm not to fond of-Pro/E much better), but at least I'm learning things and designing things and doing something that I've always wanted to do.

I started out at $40k plus we get a 5% bonus each year. I just found out monday that I got a 2% raise after only being here 5 months!!!! Sure it's only $1000 but a thousand bucks is a thousand bucks. Plus that will make my bonus larger too!!!! So far I've spent probably 90% of my time parked at a computer desk in a cubicle, and the other 10% at our plants crawliing around on equipment.

From what I've seen so far, the guys with the 4 year BSME degrees really don't do much engineering/designing at all. They serve more of a project management/scheduling type of role.

Hope this helps ya out. Good luck.

[54warrior]

Also, when your applying/interviewing, always ask for more money than what you really want.

I should have asked this place for $42k, I think I would have gotten it.

The new place also paid for my relocation and gave me 1/2 month's pay as assistance!!!

[Warrioreater400ex]

Thanks for all the advice guys....

i kinda have an internship type of job right now, it has nothing to to with ME though...

i work for the county government doing autocad drawings of buildings for renovations etc.... i make 14.23 an hour from when school gets out till 5... so its not bad at all... but its kind of boring..

[400exrider707]

Originally posted by Warrioreater400ex
Thanks for all the advice guys....

i kinda have an internship type of job right now, it has nothing to to with ME though...

i work for the county government doing autocad drawings of buildings for renovations etc.... i make 14.23 an hour from when school gets out till 5... so its not bad at all... but its kind of boring..

It's experience though, and it goes a long ways

[parkers30]

I'll finish my BSME in the fall, like everyone said it is a challenge, you feel like you waste yur life away on homework and projects while everyone else is partying. I go to Kettering University, which is a largely technical college, 80%+ of the school is engineering, so I guess it is a little different for me.

So far the job prospects are good, I am 6 months out and already have requests for my resume and I am talking to a couple companies. I will say that our school program is based around altrenating school and work terms for the entire time and that is probably what has kept me interested in engineering along with doing projects and design work with Professors as contractors for companies. Evereyone I know is graduating into 55-75k salaries with some perks and some even get paid overtime.