Career By Design

I'm working part-time for a smaller engineering firm as an intern while I finish school and I'm beginning to question my life choices.  I'm either doing just busy work or staring into space.  I'm beginning to realize they might not have the resources to train me (time, experience, structure, etc).

My question, is it worth staying at a company like this, or am I reading into this too much?  Should I finish school first before I begin to worry about this, where afterword I'll have more freedom to explore? 

I'm in my early thirties, as I started my education a little late in life, and having an internship, particularly one that doesn't feel like its going anywhere, feels like its going to hurt my career in the long run.

------------------------------
Jon
------------------------------

The tasks you are doing don't mean much.  Do you like the person you are working for?  Are they teaching you anything about the profession?  Do you trust them?  If the answers are no, then look for opportunities elsewhere.  An internship offers training in lieu of compensation, if there is no training... even if it is a short conversation or demonstration... the employer is not keeping up their end of the bargain.  When you are staring into space, is there a chance to job shadow your supervisor?  Opportunities before graduation can be engineering related or even something else, just be sure not to have any unexplained holes in your resume.

------------------------------
Chad Morrison P.E.,M.ASCE
Professional Engineer
Greenville RI
(401)231-4870 EXT 2207
------------------------------

Hi Jon, 

I'm a structural engineer and you do get "some" guidance when you first start out as a new engineer. Yes, you'll be lucky if you get a manager that makes time (hours) to personally train you, but for the most part, they will refer you to the resources you should read/research to find the solution to your problem.  You must learn to backcheck/double check you own work, but they should also be guiding you and provide at least some type of training/guidance, you should never feel that you're being set up to fail. 

Here's a video I made where I talk about my expectations of getting training/people checking my work, and how they actually did it when I entered the industry: Civil Structural Engineering - Reality vs Expectations

YouTube		remove preview
Civil Structural Engineering - Reality vs Expectations Reality vs expectations for a career in the civil structural engineering industry. Mostly relevant to those looking to get into the building structural engineering design industry in the U.S. View this on YouTube >

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqP07ot0OgU&t=190s


------------------------------
Mathew Picardal, PE
Structural Engineer & Content Creator
DCI Engineers
Structural Engineering Life Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/MatPicardal
------------------------------

Jon,

I am in a similar situation with my current internship as well as age and coming into the game a little later.  I feel your pain and suggest to find employment elsewhere. I have had two other internships where they took the time to show me how to operate with the system they have set up and teach me valuable things I have carried on with me. However, my current internship has a much more "figure it out" approach while not really showing me much. I have said something to the manager and asked for exposure to more and have been given that opportunity, but it is still lacking. I am not sure if I will ever get the same valuable experience that I did with the first company I did my first two internships with but I know that this company is not the one for me. Keep putting your resume out there and get the guidance you deserve! No one comes into any profession just knowing. I think that everyone is taught and then can later use those skills to build on. Good luck!


------------------------------
Joseph Greenwood S.M.ASCE
Corvallis OR
------------------------------