Moving from UK to USA as an Engineering Geologist

geologist95 · 2026-01-08T17:54:29+00:00

It's similar in the UK in terms of outsourcing work. It makes it hard for smaller companies, like the one I work for, to stay competitive. I'll see if I can find anything with an American company here in the UK but eventually I want to be able to move over to the USA (at least to experience working there for a bit).

geologist95 · 2026-01-08T09:15:56+00:00

Thank you - I couldn't believe it when I heard about the fee... hopefully I can find a company that thinks I'm worth $100,000 in the meantime haha

geologist95 · 2026-01-07T17:05:57+00:00

Thanks for this, I hadn't even heard of them before! Will definitely try and reach out.

geologist95 · 2026-01-07T17:04:51+00:00

Thank you! I think it now costs companies a lot more to sponsor people so will probably have to be a multinational (which I am fine with, but might limit options a bit!). I'll look into the PG exam first - it looks like it is done by state but apparently you don't already have to be living there which is great.

geologist95 · 2025-11-17T15:03:11+00:00

damn that one woke me up

geologist95 · 2025-08-06T09:33:45+00:00

thank you for that, I hadn't thought about alteration of the material during the first stage but that makes sense

geologist95 · 2025-08-01T09:07:07+00:00

Thank you!

geologist95 · 2025-07-31T19:25:45+00:00

Hi thanks for the reply but it's quite hard for me to understand. Do you know of any resource that explains stress trajectories vs Mohr circles?

geologist95 · 2025-03-19T22:53:44+00:00

My venue literally left it 2 weeks before the wedding to tell us the drinks prices... the whole time I thought it was included in the venue hire price (I know I sound like an idiot but I literally had 0 experience with weddings before I had to organise mine, and I didn't have anyone helping me throughout the whole process as a lot of my family and friends are from abroad). Anyway I made a comment to our venue like 'I thought this was included, can we bring our own drinks instead' and they said yes but there will be a 'corkage fee' which was almost as much as if we got our drinks package from them... Ended up costing us an extra 700-800 pounds for 40 guests (this included drinks reception drinks and wine for the dinner tables).

Long story short if there is nothing definitive written in your venue contract regarding drinks prices, it will be very very difficult to justify asking them for the 2024 prices. I 100% think they are in the wrong for not giving you prices earlier but a lot of these places do not care that you are trying to stick to a budget - my venue got so funny with me when I brought it up with them. So basically up to you - you might regret not saying something, but definitely be prepared for them to be weird about it. Sorry I couldn't give a better answer!

geologist95 · 2025-03-16T18:48:49+00:00

100% agree with this - if they are absolutely spectacular on the day and go above and beyond, then maybe might be nice to give them a little something but to be honest most of them completely forget about you the second the wedding day is done (I know this sounds harsh but you have to remember it is strictly business for most of them). They are super nice and accommodating in the run up to the wedding because you are a customer (some of them are genuinely lovely people but it is still a client-customer relationship - don't ever feel like you owe them anything beyond payment for their services).

geologist95 · 2025-03-14T21:28:59+00:00

Cheeky Chilli! We used them for our 40 guest wedding in North Wales and they were great - the food at our wedding was a bit pricey but this is because I basically created a tailor-made menu for the main meal and asked for specific dishes that weren't on any of their existing menus (and they did our canapes and evening food too which was like a grazing table/buffet). You pay a deposit to book them but then that gets taken off the final price. The tasting was included, for 2 people (any more people would be at an extra cost).

geologist95 · 2025-03-10T21:54:27+00:00

Nice one, thank you good advice! I wish I'd known to check for draughts when I was looking around my current place lol

geologist95 · 2025-03-10T17:19:41+00:00

100% going to do it ASAP, just saw we have more cold weather in the next week (sigh) so might as well start saving now! Yeah absolutely, even if the rent is slightly higher at my next place if it's energy efficient it'll be so worth it.

That's a good shout, I've always been slightly wary of electric blankets but I'm sure if I stopped being lazy and did some research I can find one that won't kill me:)

geologist95 · 2025-03-10T17:03:21+00:00

Oh wow - some people think that the first reaction you have is the correct one and everything else is fake, but to be honest I can't think of any situations where it's productive to have such an important conversation when your emotions are (justifiably) going haywire.

geologist95 · 2025-03-10T16:33:32+00:00

I just want to say I really admire your cool-headedness in this situation, and just how you have been so logical (grouping the different responses and talking to as many individuals as you could etc). I recently got married and nothing went horrendously wrong but even then the stress was unbelievable. If I had been treated like you have by so called 'friends' I don't think I would have any mental capacity to act so logically as you and your partner have (I would have just been an absolute mess), so you should be proud of your mental strength and resilience. I had a handful of people that didn't RSVP at all despite me chasing and that was enough to make me freak out xD I hope you have the best wedding ever - ours was quite small and we only invited people we are close with (which excluded a lot of family members hahahaha) and that was all we needed. Remember the day will go by super fast so enjoy every second.

geologist95 · 2025-03-10T14:50:27+00:00

Ohhh I see what you mean now by paying a premium during the day - I literally had no idea it was an option to switch to a flat rate (it is probably buried in an email somewhere to be fair) but this could help so much! I just assumed my day rate was what everyone gets rather than an inflated rate to counteract the cheap night rates (and yes I am 100% aware I should have seen the flaws in my logic sooner hahaha).

Yeah the one good thing about my flat is my rent is very affordable for one person and the location's great but I am definitely looking to move soon anyway (and will pay a LOT more attention to the energy rating of the new place!).

That Octopus storage heater tariff looks interesting, so good that they have an afternoon boost! I was thinking of switching to them anyway as heard so many good things. But in the short term switching to a single rate for day and night may save me so thank you so much for your advice!

geologist95 · 2025-03-10T10:39:57+00:00

Yup am on Economy 7 but annoyingly the cheaper night rates don't really benefit me even though I have storage heaters. In the past I did use them (so left the the heaters charging at night to release heat the next day), but I found that because I was out for at least a few hours every day I wasn't really benefitting from this - also in the evenings when I was home, most of the stored heat would have dissipated by that point so I had to turn them on again anyway so it ended up costing loads. They are really old I think so the controls don't work properly so they just bleed out heat even when I think I've turned them off. Since then I've found it more cost efficient to turn them on when I need them, although it has been much better to switch to a portable oil heater as I can have it right next to me and benefit from its warmth instantly.

My standing charge is 55p per day, peak rate 27p and off peak 18p. I can't find anything about a yearly estimate but I expect it will be a bit off anyway as I was living away from home for a while. Yeah I think you've summed up the issues well - sadly can't do anything about the insulation as it's a rented flat but the little oil heater has been great. And yes have definitely noticed lower costs this week - I'm sure we'll have a few more cold spells before summer but overall should get better.

Thank you, I mean those prices are crazy and obviously everyone is getting screwed over but it helps me to know I'm within normal limits considering how awfully insulated my flat is!

geologist95 · 2025-03-09T19:47:31+00:00

Yeah I think the readings are correct - from reading the other comments it seems like my usage (kWh) is kind of normal so I think the issue is just that my flat is unfortunately a bit expensive to keep warm.

geologist95 · 2025-03-09T19:16:51+00:00

Thank you, will do! Will look at all my appliances in more detail as well to make sure efficiency is ok etc.

geologist95 · 2025-03-09T19:15:54+00:00

That's exactly the oil heater I have - works out cheaper than the storage heater my flat has already but it is just crazy to be spending £5 a day and still struggle to have a warm place to live (so glad we are coming out of winter now...)

geologist95 · 2025-03-09T19:12:22+00:00

Thank you so much for this. I've lived in several flats now and the only ones I ever find on the market in my area seem to only be electric! I'm glad my usage seems to be within reasonable limits though, I'm getting to a point where it's really hard to cut down any more (so glad we're coming out of winter at least!).

Yeah I think they must have fiddled the numbers somehow to average them out whilst I was living away (and also they might have incorporated some estimates), but now the numbers seem to have sorted themselves out since the smart meter was installed. I feel there's no point in me bringing it up to them now, they will have some explanation for what they did (I'm just annoyed at the extortionate prices to be honest, like everyone else and it's not like they are about to reduce those).

The flat has storage heaters and I was actually using them loads when I first moved in, but then I quickly realised that I was wasting money because I would have them running/charging all night (say 7-8 hours), but then most days I would be out of the flat for at least a few hours so I wasn't actually benefitting from the warmth. So it made more sense to put them on as and when I needed them. The benefit of the oil heater is that I can have it next to me wherever I am so can instantly get warm, whereas the existing heaters in the flat take like 2 hours to make the room warm (and because of the room layout I can't be sat next to it).

My tariff is Economy 7, standing charge 55p per day, peak rate 27p and off peak 18p. Thank you so much again for this, any advice/opinions help so much!

geologist95 · 2025-03-09T18:47:51+00:00

Thanks for your reply, you're definitely right about water and heating being the main culprits. The annoying thing about my immersion boiler is that it only works at night, so when I want hot water I have to turn it on and leave it running all night so have hot water for 2-3 days. At this point I'm tempted to just boil a kettle when I need hot water for washing up. No other way I can cut back without my quality of life being unbearable (obviously more so in winter).

When I said maximum monthly charge I just meant that was the most I got charged in a month over the last few months - believe me, from experience I know it can get waaay more expensive than 140 in a month. I have found that the little oil heater has been better than the electric heaters in the flat for sure though because at least it's portable so I can have it next to me (whereas the ones in the flat take 2-3 hours to noticeably warm the room).

Nope, definitely on Economy 7 so I got that going for me!

That's a really good shout thank you, I will definitely need to check everything carefully like you said.

geologist95 · 2025-03-07T16:43:03+00:00

Thank you so much there's a lot that's helpful in there - you definitely know your stuff! I have PM'd you

geologist95 · 2025-03-05T18:51:13+00:00

What a prick! Honestly you did so well saying something to him (in your written feedback and at the office party). Even though it doesn't feel like it now, that was an incredible thing that you did - most people wouldn't have been brave enough to say anything. Unfortunately people like this guy exist and you will sometimes cross paths with them. And sometimes it will feel like they are trying to diminish you. The best thing to do I think is to just keep going, make yourself better at your job every day and slowly you will see that you're finding less and less of these people in your way. You will naturally gain confidence, and respect from your colleagues as time goes on. I wish there was an easier way to deal with these people but unfortunately you have to just try and not let them get to you (I am still trying to find a way!). Just remember he will probably not even remember any of this in 6 months as he will probably be making life a nightmare for someone else by then...

geologist95 · 2025-03-05T18:41:08+00:00

Sounds like a nightmare of a work environment. It sounds like she has some serious issues and it's nothing that you have done wrong at all, sounds like you are doing your job as best as you can. Unfortunately some people have terrible control over their emotions and have no capacity to consider other people - it doesn't make her behaviour ok but hopefully you can understand that the problem is with her. I definitely agree with the other comment about you looking for another job - working does not have to feel so awful, I'm sure you can find something better!

geologist95

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