What to look for in your first engineering job

By Dr. Alex "Sandy" Antunes

Your first job as a recent graduate is crucial -- but not necessarily in the way you think.  

Students are often concerned about landing the right job. For engineers, though, the fact that you are working is more important than what the work actually is. As a "fresh out," getting a first engineering job -- any engineering job -- is step one towards that perfect job in the future.

Think of it statistically.  There are many jobs out there and they can be broken into three categories: (a) stuff you like to do, (b) stuff you will do, and finally (c) stuff you either can't or won't do.  The ideal job is that first one, because getting paid to do stuff you really want to do is awesome.  But you should keep that middle "stuff you will do, even if it's not your top choice" in mind, because it represents about a third of the job prospects.

Getting that first job involves preparedness but also chance. The chance factor has to do with what jobs were being offered during the narrow window during which you were looking. Jobs arise stochastically -- they flicker into existence then get filled like fireflies blinking in the night. Generally, you’ll be trying to find a job during the interval between "just about to graduate" and "sitting around too long without a job." To a considerable degree, the opportunities that arise during this interval are a matter of chance.

However, once you have a job and you've put in your first 18-24 months (to establish your track record and credibility), it's easier to find another job in part because you're not in a rush.  You now have a much longer window to look around, during which you're also already working.  As a bonus, that hypothetical better job may be at the same company you work at, and moving between positions within a company is much easier than trying to crack into a company from the outside.

Most companies prefer to fill new positions using employees already working for them. If you’re already working for them, you're a proven thing and low risk, and thus ideal.  Plus then they don't have to go through the time-consuming aspects of posting the job and interviewing (because companies don't want to spend more time on job-hunting any more than you do), and you're already trained up on their way of working.

Is there a perfect job you should look for?  I recommend assessing a job based on (1) work environment (is it a good place to work; are there good people to work with?), (2) compensation (money and other perks), and (3) meaningful work (is the purpose and type of the work personally satisfying?).  The "perfect job" has all three and, frankly, probably doesn't exist (even being Batman gets only two out of three).  So, pick which two matter most to you (and bear in mind "compensation" for engineers is usually pretty solid even when it's not the main factor!)  Oh, and if you are in a job that has only 1 of those 3?  You're job-hunting, even if you didn't know it.

So grab that first decent job, move laterally or hop outside after two years to more fulfilling work, and always keep your eyes open to the future!

Dr. Alex "Sandy" Antunes is professor of astronautical engineering at Capitol Technology University.