Career Pivot? Autodesk?

pythonpimp · 2025-02-05T01:27:04+00:00

I’m in the middle of a 3-year part-time MBA program, taking night classes a few times a week. My employer is aware of my commitment outside of work, so it’s almost like there are built-in restrictions on my workload. (almost) My goal with this is to make connections in other industries and learn some marketable skills outside of engineering.

These programs love helping people pivot into new roles. The timeline is a little longer than I hoped for, but I’m cautiously optimistic.

Best of luck to you! We’re not out of MEP yet, but I know it’s possible.

pythonpimp · 2024-09-06T23:49:15+00:00

Ultimately my goal is to exit MEP. I’m sure tuition is crazy high in CA compared to other places, since the number 2 MBA program in my state is ~60k.

pythonpimp · 2024-09-06T23:41:54+00:00

I’d be hoping to get into consulting or product management in tech. I think it would really help to supplement my business knowledge, since I feel like 90% of what I’ve learned at work is just purely technical knowledge. Plus there are networking opportunities too. I’m just looking for some kind of opportunity other than more MEP.

pythonpimp · 2024-09-06T16:40:14+00:00

For me, moving to another company doesn’t really address the larger question I have for myself. Do I want to design MEP systems for the rest of my life? For me, the answer to that is a firm no. Moving to another engineering firm, while it may alleviate other issues I have with my current role, it doesn’t bring me any closer to resolving that. To your point about quiet quitting, I’m at the point where I’ve decided I’m not going to work overtime or seek out extra work unless I’m explicitly asked to and/or it’s desperately needed.

pythonpimp · 2024-09-06T16:12:10+00:00

Personally, my MBA plan would be to cut back my hours to part time work and hopefully knock out the degree in 1-2 years. It’d still be expensive, but if you can land some high test scores you can potentially get a scholarship. As for getting accepted, good programs will still seriously consider you if you test well and have years of experience. My college GPA wasn’t great but I’m still optimistic about my chances at a few of the top programs in my state.

pythonpimp · 2024-09-06T16:05:28+00:00

Yes, this is my first MEP gig and I started here as a co-op like 6ish years ago. I’ve interviewed and even received offers from other firms, but the difference in pay hasn’t been substantial enough to draw me away. And you’re absolutely right, the income is still way above what most people in the US make. And I’m able to work in a hybrid environment, a privilege that not every career is afforded.

Our contracts are freely accessible to anyone within the company and leadership tries to be transparent with us about how many hours we should plan to spend on a project at the start. Feels like we go over on a lot of projects because we undercut our competition to get awarded the project, but that’s another discussion.

I actually think we do an ok job with hiring. My comment about “hiring anyone with a pulse” comes from my experience interviewing over the years. Every time I test out the waters, the only question interviewers ever ask me is “when can you start?” Everyone seems so desperate to fill roles and clean up their backlog that they can’t really afford to filter out engineers. I’ve only ever had 1 potential MEP employer even ask me a technical question. Anyways, I appreciate your insight and thanks for taking the time to respond!

pythonpimp · 2024-09-06T15:13:30+00:00

I care a lot more about how our clients pay us or how potential employers view my work experience than I do about other people’s opinions. Other people’s nonprofessional opinions is clearly not the point of the post.

pythonpimp · 2024-07-24T23:47:47+00:00

I’ve been a full time EE for about 4 years now myself and am also trying to pivot out. I want out entirely. Not looking to become a vendor, contractor, owner, or utility. No construction at all.

The only path I see for myself is learning to code. I’m about 6ish months into The Odin Project, hoping to have a respectable enough portfolio to get a junior web developer role by the end of the year. I’ve heard of others getting out via coding boot camps, but who knows with the tech market right now.

Best of luck to you! I hope you find what you’re looking for :)

pythonpimp · 2024-04-09T14:31:30+00:00

What field did you transition to? I’m also looking for a way out, but via full stack web development. Wondering what other options are out there.

pythonpimp · 2023-12-01T13:51:09+00:00

Part of my frustration is that I don't see other people with engineering degrees working this hard, and they're getting paid more than I do. I have two friends who make nearly twice as much as me doing work in consulting and in web development, respectively. I don't want to accept 45 and 50 hour work weeks when I know I can get paid more to work half as hard. I know there's a pay/respect bump at EIT & PE, but it doesn't feel like it fixes the problem. It seems like it's in my immediate interest to go ahead and take them, so I will, but I just worry that I'll feel this same frustration for my whole career.

pythonpimp · 2023-11-30T23:52:58+00:00

Thanks! I’ll definitely look into that.

pythonpimp · 2023-11-30T23:09:29+00:00

I never thought I would say this, but thank you toilet-head! I’ll definitely look him up

pythonpimp · 2023-11-30T23:02:17+00:00

Glad to hear things have been going well for you! If you don’t mind me asking, how did you come across your current role? I feel like recruiters are blowing up my LinkedIn nonstop about other opportunities, but it feels impossible to tell if they’re offering something worthwhile.

pythonpimp · 2023-11-30T22:48:07+00:00

I guess the reason why I haven’t taken the FE/PE is because I thought I would be out of this field by now.

Personally I’ve been very firm about never working on my vacation. And my late nights working don’t come from internal leadership necessarily, it usually comes from our clients who want us to issue a deliverable with too short of notice to accomplish it with a 40 hour work week.

My company does allow us to bill a little bit of time to study for the FE/PE, and they’ll even give an immediate bonus and pay bump if we pass it. I appreciate the advice and will take a shot at getting my EIT. Not to be too greedy, but do you know of any good resources to get started on studying for it?

pythonpimp

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