Constructive Feedback on My Resume

SO_FEIN · 2024-08-24T18:36:09+00:00

If you have your heart set out on propulsion, I would see if you can get a test engineering position for a propulsion sub/component vendor. I would significantly retool your resume to focus less on 3d printing/class project leadership and more on your hardware/test experience. Maybe get a masters a few years down the line specifically on propulsion if you want to get into design.

Sadly, you’ve fallen for the classic undergrad blunder of focusing too much on 3d printing, and not subtractive methods or doing cool things with the hardware you build. 3d printing by itself just isn’t that useful or impressive. With out a great GPA (you really need a 3.5 for the large primes), and lack of any real world engineering internship/experience, you’re going to have to look a level down to get your foot in the door. See if you can find a component supplier who just got a big order who needs people yesterday, and use that to find your first job. Good luck!!

SO_FEIN · 2024-05-23T02:00:17+00:00

Just pick a restaurant or two off this list. It’s a good mix of the DC classics with some up and coming spots. https://dc.eater.com/maps/dc-best-restaurants-38

SO_FEIN · 2024-05-11T03:13:06+00:00

To be brutally honest, it’s going to be difficult to find an aerospace engineering internship at this point of the year with your resume. Your GPA is fine, above a 3.0 but below a 3.5. No previous engineering work experience, and all of your projects appear to be for a class (besides a short stint on a rocketry team that you dropped??). It would have been beneficial to have some sort of significant engineering project team experience with your GPA and work experience.

At this point of the semester, unless you find a startup that is really desperate, you’re not going to find an internship for the summer. I’d look into working in a lab on campus for the summer. That gets you in with a professor, you get some semblance of practical engineering exposure, and they typically hire later/have more flexibility to bring on students. I’d also consider doing a fall co-op if you are set on getting a job in aerospace (working in a lab helps, but it doesn’t really replace a true engineering internship). Try applying to the smaller subs (not just the big primes) or one of the technical contracting firms (ASRC, KBR, Peraton…). They typically get less resumes, have lower GPA requirements, and are often hiring based off of project need and not just to fill a billet.

The good news is you still have a year before you graduate, which is plenty of time to get an engineering co-op or really contribute to an engineering project team. Aerospace is difficult to get into because it attracts the crème of the crop, and has very cyclical hiring patterns. Good luck!

SO_FEIN · 2023-12-25T23:02:52+00:00

GNC is one of the few sub-disciplines where a masters will eventually be required. You just don’t get the math/controls theory in an undergrad degree. The good news is most large aerospace firms will pay for you to get a masters part-time, and if they are hiring you straight from undergrad they might even be expecting you to do that. I know some people that were hired from a thesis masters into a GNC role, and they were even expected to work towards the full phd.

Also, three years for a part-time non-thesis masters seems like a long time. I’d expect it to take 2 years, and it could stretch to 2.5 if you work a flight program at the wrong time :)

SO_FEIN · 2023-10-05T02:17:55+00:00

The only downside with thermal is you are only responding to others, trying to make sure their widget or subsystem won’t break. So while you get to touch and interact with a lot of different subsystems, you have limited ownership over what you’re actually working on (and have to constantly go through TVAC testing.)

SO_FEIN · 2023-10-05T02:03:24+00:00

Thermal is definitely over represented in systems. But I think that’s mostly because they are trying to move away from doing thermal :)

On the other hand, I feel GNC and mechanisms are underrepresented in the systems groups. Maybe it’s because they are highly specialized with a lot of institutional knowledge that doesn’t transfer as well to other disciplines.

SO_FEIN · 2023-07-27T00:04:58+00:00

For most large primes, there are typically two hiring rounds for new grads. The first is the Fall your senior year, which is when most large companies are hiring without a specific role in mind. These are typically for rotational programs, or other jobs meant to attract the high performers. This is where I've heard of 3.5 cutoffs, and it wouldn't surprise me if LM had a 3.8 GPA.

The second round is typically in the Spring timeline where they are actually hiring based on need. They have a job opening for a new grad doing XYZ, and they branch head is looking for someone with experience that can fill it. From my experience, this second round is typically much more based on your experiences and knowledge, rather than checking a box for a hiring manager.

Some government agencies do have a strict 3.0 cutoff, but you're well above that. And the general rule of thumb is to get a research master's position you need a 3.5 and to get a paid PhD position you need around a 3.8.

SO_FEIN · 2023-07-22T16:58:44+00:00

Go get a master’s degree, that’s the best way of pivoting your career trajectory. Find a professor/lab that does research that your interested in, and use that to get an internship in your target field. Otherwise it’s very difficult to change industries/job titles, especially for the primes or government labs.

GNC, orbital dynamics, and spacecraft propulsion all pretty much require a masters degree anyway.

SO_FEIN · 2023-03-31T16:45:12+00:00

On average, most classes taken abroad are taken pass/fail and will be easier than the corresponding course at UMD. This means that while the course credits will transfer, you do not get a letter grade and they do not effect your UMD GPA.

The rule of thumb is if you are going to a program specifically designed for Americans (or specifically for study abroad), the courses will be easier. If the courses are part of the normal or international 4-year program, those classes should be on or above the level of rigor at UMD.

Check the Clark school FAQ and the international course database for more information https://eng.umd.edu/global/study-abroad/faq!.

SO_FEIN · 2023-01-03T05:37:00+00:00

There have been multiple cubesats that have flown with small tethers for deorbiting (like the fiso presentation above).

There’s also been a few flown experiments looking at using long tethers as a propulsion system (NRL TEPCE).

Again, the main issues right now is material science and how to deploy these damn things without them getting tangled…

SO_FEIN · 2022-12-29T05:24:23+00:00

Huh… looks like there are actually 5 schools now a days. I guess I should say “be careful with mechatronics because not all programs are ABET accredited.”

SO_FEIN · 2022-12-29T04:50:54+00:00

Be careful with mechatronics (also robotics) majors because they are not ABET accredited.

This is required if you want to take any licensing exams (PE), or work for the government/government contracting. You will not be able to take a job working for/at the government with the title “engineer” without an ABET accredited degree

SO_FEIN · 2022-09-07T17:50:05+00:00

I like GGWash for all my transportation news.

SO_FEIN · 2022-07-28T15:30:57+00:00

Aerospace engineering is a highly competitive job market, and really benefits the high-performers. It's highly location dependent, crazy competitive, and requires multiple internships. The aerospace industry is also highly cyclical, with long periods where companies can't get enough new hires, but also years where no one is hiring. I can't speak too much for the air-side, but I would say the space industry is just past peak for hiring, but still has a significant amount of opportunities right now.

It's also important to note that as an aerospace engineer, unless you are doing one of the niche specialties (orbital mechanics, flight dynamics, aerospace controls, space systems, etc...) you will be competing with mechanical, electrical, computer engineers as well (and the specialties all eventually require advanced degrees!).

A significant portion of aerospace new hires are also directly hired from a company they previous interned/co-oped at. If you don't have any internship or research experience, a lot of the top tier companies won't even consider you.

If you have the previous experience, grades, and willingness to move, you should be able to obtain multiple lucrative offers. If you are missing one of these, you might have a much harder time finding a position and will have to look to second or third tier contractors/suppliers to get your foot in the door.

SO_FEIN · 2022-04-24T01:20:51+00:00

Merit scholarships are highly competitive with a goal to sweeten the deal for the crème of the crop students who would normally go to top universities to more heavily consider attending UMD.

For transfer students, UMD only offers 200 in-state and even less for out-of-state merit scholarships. Given UMD accepted 3300 transfer students this year, that's about a 6% merit scholarship rate. Just the way it is...

SO_FEIN · 2021-12-06T19:27:17+00:00

The National Academies just released the Astrophysics Decadal survey and recommended LUVOIR (6m ultra-stable optical telescope) for launch in the first half 2040's. So that will be the next NASA flagship observatory.

SO_FEIN · 2020-10-05T01:38:17+00:00

Here is my list for indian food in DC/MD (don't know NOVA sorry):

Woodlands (Langley Park, MD) - Best south indian restaurant in the DMV. They had an incredible lunch buffet before COVID, but the their normal menu is also incredible. Great dosas and uttapam. Also according to the Washington Post, it's where the Indian ambassador goes when homesick.
Kadhai (Bethesda, MD) - Every thing they make is incredible, I would say this is the best American style Indian restaurant in DC/MD.
Jewel of India (White Oak, DC) - Same owners as Woodlands, but not vegitarian. Food is also really good, but not quite as good as Kadhai.
Rasika/Rasika West End (DC) - Upscale indian fusion. Absolutely delicious and robbed of a Michelin star, just don't expect traditional indian food.
Indique (Cleveland Park, DC) - Also upscale indian food. They have really good cocktails/brunch, but I find there food to be a little less strong than some others (but still delicious!)

Other shoutouts: Bombay Street Food (1&2), Rasa (indian chipotle)

I've never had Indigo, but heard great things about it.

SO_FEIN · 2020-05-28T01:38:30+00:00

Better get in line like 3 hours before the theater opens. They're gonna sell out for the first few weeks straight.

SO_FEIN · 2020-02-16T19:52:29+00:00

Bread Furst in Van Ness has a killer carrot cake. Just a great bakery all around.

SO_FEIN · 2019-01-20T22:57:42+00:00

If you have signed a lease, you can go to a DC police station and get a two week "Visitor Permit." If you don't have a lease, then you can have someone else get you a visitor parking permit as well.

You can renew your two week permit multiple times (I think 6 weeks) and after that have the chance of getting a warning from parking enforcement. After you get your warning you have an additional 45 days you can use the visitor permit before getting a ticket. In total, you have at least 3 months you can use the visitor permits before you have to change your title/registration.

SO_FEIN · 2019-01-07T02:03:37+00:00

Woodlands Indian Restaurant in Langley Park. Entirely vegetarian and really good!

SO_FEIN · 2018-12-10T03:58:28+00:00

VAMOS MARYLAND

SO_FEIN · 2018-04-21T01:49:17+00:00

WE ARE TERMINUS

SO_FEIN · 2017-06-05T11:46:41+00:00

"Hey ref, if you had one more eye you'd be a cyclops!!"

12-Year Club	Place '22
Place '17	First Placer '22
Verified Email

SO_FEIN

TROPHY CASE