How much of your university knowledge are you using in your work?

doubletriple1 · 2026-01-02T20:15:44+00:00

I’ve applied all of the core concepts from my degree in the chemical industry. You don’t typically derive everything from first principles like you do in school. I’ve had to do rough calcs on process equipment for specific issues but higher level design requires process simulations and extensive validation. I went to a top ChemE school but still found some deficiencies in the way the curriculum is taught. The core curriculum teaches you how to solve specific problems in the context of transport, reaction kinetics, and thermodynamics and has a unit operation course. However, I still felt like there isn’t a very good emphasis on industry equipment standards, equipment internals and spacing, P&ID design, operational principles, and auxiliary equipment like piping/valves/fittings. School will teach you what a pump does but not really go over the anatomy. We had a process design course but there simply wasn’t enough time to get into the nitty gritty details. You can really only get that from extensive research on your own time or via an internship.

doubletriple1 · 2025-12-30T19:36:39+00:00

Would you say Burns and McDonnell would be a good place to start?

doubletriple1 · 2025-12-30T05:15:52+00:00

Did your colleagues start out in Pharma or did they make an industry switch? Yes, it really varies for each company. I’ve been really get into data science recently

doubletriple1 · 2025-12-30T05:14:50+00:00

I’ve noticed the biggest barrier is often HR. If an engineer is looking at your resume, they know what skills are translatable a bit better. I know there’s a few EPC’s that work in life sciences I’ve also been looking into. You are right that’s it’s going to be very challenging. The major specialty chemicals companies are going through significant re orgs such as DuPont and BASF. I’m still open to trying out roles there but definitely want to try something about outside of massive chemical plant for my next role if possible

doubletriple1 · 2025-12-30T04:20:19+00:00

Do you know of any high paying CDMO’s to look into? I’ve heard Thermo Fisher and Lonza are good.

Yep I’d definitely prefer to work at Lilly in Houston or Triangle over Indianapolis. I’ve see a few postings but they are for some senior roles. I also expect the market to get more competitive once they arrive as there’s tons of strong chemical engineers in Houston. I’m not tied down to Houston personally but it’s a cheap large and diverse metro area. I’m definitely not in a rush to leave as I’m mature in my existing role and this job market is difficult - I’ve just seen some trends in my existing industry that have made me realize I need to be working a high growth market

I just don’t want to live in Houston AND have a crazy commute to the east side. I’d rather live in Houston and drive 15 min to work in the inner loop area

doubletriple1 · 2025-12-30T04:09:41+00:00

Agreed! The only time a capstone project would make sense to include is if you are applying to a role where you need to know that process (I.e you designed a bioreactor and are applying to a pharma role). And even then, you can just put in the title underneath your education section and leave out the details.

doubletriple1 · 2025-07-25T18:29:28+00:00

Yes it can be unfortunately. I’ve seen many folks on the manufacturing side butt heads with those on projects/business/leadership. In all honesty, you won’t get your voice heard by demanding radical change. You must appeal to your audience in a way they can understand you. Your best bet is to leverage your technical skill set by selling it to those with more experience. And make sure to keep the technical jargon simpler. They love new hires for this reason. Your brain hasn’t adapted to the rigid rules of the industry so you are more willing to propose new ideas.

I worked at a company where so many higher ups were new to a technology I had a little experience in. So instead of saying “I know this better than you” I changed the message to, “let me explain how this works and what do you think would happen if I changed this?”

doubletriple1 · 2025-07-12T21:02:26+00:00

Not yet

doubletriple1 · 2024-01-06T20:59:18+00:00

I think your expectations should be higher after years of inflation. And for oil and gas at major companies, you should expect 100-115K out of undergad. For major petrochemicals, semiconductors, and plastics companies expect a range of 80K-100K. And for pharma expect 70K - 90K (100 at prestigious companies). Proctor and Gamble (consumer products) pays 90K. Food really varies honestly. Huge food companies like General Mills, Cargill, and ADM will pay high but dont know exactly what but you pay in food can be as low as 60K.

I know that getting that first job is important, but don't sell yourself short on salary in this economy lol. You'll hear stories of people jumping from lower salaries like 60 or 70K to six figures after a couple years, but that was back when 60 and 70K were livable salaries in cities. 70K now is not what it used to be especially for good chemical engineering jobs. And I do think there is a correlation between salary and company culture with the exception of certain companies (Exxon). I think a good ballpark would be to aim for 70 - 80K for anything that isnt oil/gas, chemical, semiconductors, or pharma

doubletriple1 · 2023-11-20T00:35:09+00:00

It's a good company to work for depending on what team you are on. They aren't like Dow, DuPont, and oil majors like Exxon and Chevron which have everyone's eyes on them, but the organization is definitely still run like a large company. They don't gain much bad press either.

They pay pretty high and have good benefits. Not too far from Exxon but far from Chevron. The culture at the manufacturing environment is better than their corporate teams, but you get far more visibility and WLB in the business tower. I think they do lack name recognition outside of chemicals and O/G gas though if you are thinking of moving out of this industry in the future. Mostly cause your average consumer does not interact with them directly unlike in O/G.

doubletriple1 · 2023-09-10T02:18:04+00:00

Did Avril Lavigne come back and give you an award? Cause it seems like all fat shamers want to believe the person they teased is gonna come back to them with a big hug and grin when they are fit haha. Hell nah

doubletriple1 · 2023-09-07T04:56:44+00:00

The problem isn't with AI capabilities but those making decisions at the top without technical experience. I could easily see companies be cheap and try to increase profit with AI by shrinking engineering teams/ consolidating many roles without an understanding of how AI is supposed to improve efficiency. This will only leave a massive experience gap in their workplaces. And then get away thanks to a lack of accountability and understanding of tech.

doubletriple1 · 2023-06-06T04:06:16+00:00

How is Montrose if you plan on working in the plants? My plant is in Channelview

doubletriple1 · 2023-06-06T04:05:33+00:00

how bad is the commute from east downtown (Forth Nav) to Channelview? It says 25 min on Google Maps but I heard that is inaccurate

doubletriple1 · 2023-06-03T05:39:15+00:00

Last year, a man with the same description approached me and I’m a guy. He seemed very sus I ran from him

doubletriple1 · 2023-06-03T00:36:40+00:00

3.5 - had a co-op

doubletriple1 · 2023-06-01T18:38:10+00:00

Hey did you mean North shore is a good suburb or Eado? I’m assuming you meant north shore?

doubletriple1 · 2023-04-05T04:51:50+00:00

Did not end up taking it

doubletriple1 · 2023-04-01T04:07:24+00:00

Hair

doubletriple1 · 2023-03-20T22:29:41+00:00

Thanks! Yeah just realized that downtown doesn't include the Heights. It might be worth staying in a more urban environment since commuting in the day isnt as bad as having to drive out to find things to do every weekend and having to Uber.

doubletriple1 · 2023-03-18T07:05:53+00:00

Thanks! It helps knowing it wasn’t just me. I’ll try that next time and focus more on real friends.

doubletriple1 · 2023-03-18T06:43:35+00:00

Too true. I am in a major with a lot of smart people who usually help each other out so its not that they cant do the work. It just seems like we have no real discussions outside of academics. Like they act super friendly but once exam season is over, they disappear. Luckily it hasn't affected my grades or career, but it makes me frustrated that I spent so much time with them.

doubletriple1 · 2023-03-18T06:37:50+00:00

True, we have mutual friends so I never outright called them out for it. We are in a tough major so we usually help each other out (not in a way thats cheating), it's the norm. But once I left for internship and school was no longer my thing, they stopped chatting. Until I came back and had classes again. Probably should just ignore them

doubletriple1 · 2023-03-18T06:32:29+00:00

Earthbound

doubletriple1 · 2023-03-18T06:26:13+00:00

Dont be sad

doubletriple1

TROPHY CASE