# Two Job offers! Can't decide, help please?



## deezcornuts (Jul 16, 2017)

Job 1:  High tech company, makes big money and possibility of an IPO soon. Pay is 100k.  Work is not really engineering, but more of technical troubleshooting, interfacing software and basically being all around smartie pants with no real design required.   

Job 2: Reputable engineering firm in power industry, will lead to  a PE license. Real engineering.  Pay is 81k.  

Job 1 is obviously attractive for $$ reasons, but I'm afraid of losing engineering skills. Job 2 is stable and obviously good too, but less pay. 

I just got my EIT so I was kinda looking to work towards a PE, but this other high tech thing could be great too and maybe I could weasel my way over to the real engineers side (not using my EIT but more on embedded systems). What would you choose?  Help me pick by next week!


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## ruggercsc (Jul 16, 2017)

deezcornuts said:


> Job 1:  High tech company, makes big money and possibility of an IPO soon. Pay is 100k.  Work is not really engineering, but more of technical troubleshooting, interfacing software and basically being all around smartie pants with no real design required.
> 
> Job 2: Reputable engineering firm in power industry, will lead to  a PE license. Real engineering.  Pay is 81k.
> 
> ...


My $0.02

A. If you take Job 1 and it does not work out, can you find a Job 2 pretty easily? 

B.  If you take Job 2 and it does not work out, can you find a Job 1 pretty easily?

C.  You don't forget your engineering skills easily.  If may take a little effort to get them back but they are not lost.  

D.  Take a job that you will be happy and learn from others.  A good paying but crappy job makes your life miserable. 

If it was me, I would probably go with Job 1 and if it is not something I am happy with a year later, do something else.  I am hiring manager and interview people and would not hold it against someone if they take a job early in their career and left because it was not something they wanted to do (Our company has a 50% retention rate after a year with new hires starting out in their careers.)

What would bother more is if later in their career there is a pattern and someone job hops every year or two.


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## Supe (Jul 17, 2017)

Will job 1 let you call yourself an engineer?


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## kevo_55 (Jul 17, 2017)

Take them both!


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## youngmotivatedengineer (Jul 17, 2017)

The choice really depends on what you are looking for right now. Are you looking for a job to build up saving or looking to build your career.  If main concern is quick cash, #1 is probably best. If you are career oriented, you need to decide where you want to take your career and the type of work you want to focus on long-term. Does company #1 have a PE on staff to gain you experience to qualify for PE exam?   

If you really want to go the PE route, find out if company #1 has a rotation program when you could start in troubleshooting and then work up to engineering. Let them know that you would like to be in the design phase but think that troubleshooting experience is necessary to help understanding the product from the user end and common problems. This would help you to design a better end product. 

With job #2, how much are they willing to pay with PE? You may get 81k now, but in 4 years when you get PE that could jump to over 100k, while job #1 may stay at 100k without much room for advancement.


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## matt267 PE (Jul 17, 2017)

Money isn't everything. If your goal is to get your PE, you should take the job that helps you achieve that goal. Once you're a PE, you can get another job making the fatty money.


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## deezcornuts (Jul 17, 2017)

Thanks y'all, I'm leaning towards the 100k. The technology is way ahead of anything I've ever seen, and I could see potentially taking an engineering position there in the future. Although these engineers most likely have masters.  I've only a BS so I'd need to spend some time also leveling up my degree.


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## deezcornuts (Jul 17, 2017)

matt267 PE said:


> Money isn't everything. If your goal is to get your PE, you should take the job that helps you achieve that goal. Once you're a PE, you can get another job making the fatty money.


Wise advice, after I just posted that I'm leaning toward the fatty money.  Maybe I need to think some more.


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## deezcornuts (Aug 12, 2017)

I've decided to accept the job with the big salary.  Really, the EIT position fell through and they couldn't hire me, so this is where I land. I'm going to just continue to read about power and someday I'll find a job working in it. Meanwhile, Im gonna be making enough to get a brand new Dodge 2500!


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## matt267 PE (Aug 16, 2017)

@deezcornuts, congrats on the new job.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Aug 20, 2017)

One thing to remember is that your PE application doesn't care what your job title is. They care about the experience you've gained and how you apply it.

One of our young engineers was hired as a CAD tech because it was the first job he could find. He was worried that his experience wouldn't be worth anything because of the title. I told him to use the position as a gateway to gaining the experience. Ask the engineers questions as to why things are drawn a certain way, learn the details of what you're drawing, don't just mindlessly draw the lines you're told to.

At the end of the day, he will be gaining valuable knowledge that can be used as a solid engineering foundation, regardless of the future career path. He will learn what he likes and doesn't like and will be able to make better career decisions.


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## Pranit0503 (Aug 31, 2017)

Well Choosing a job between two offers includes many factors like salary, work culture, company status etc. Mostly many candidates look for only salary but sometimes money isn't everything. The experience what will get form the org is important too look for that, the name , work culture , employee experience. I have read related to this here How To Choose A Job Wisely Between Two Opportunities .


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