Friday, February 5, 2010

Today's the Day...

Today snuck up on me when I was least expecting it... it's the deadline for accepting or rejecting my job offer from the fall. While on the one hand I've known what my answer would be as soon as I started reading through the informational packet, I still have to wonder whether or not I'm making the right choice in turning down a pretty awesome internship. I think I'm at that point though where I have to start deciding what I want to do, not what I should do, or what I'm expected to do but what I want to do. That's the hardest part for me. This school is a pretty demanding one, and while I love it, I think sometimes that getting caught up in managing coursework with work with activities definitely detracts from figuring out what on earth you actually want to DO with your diploma. The projects prepare you for the real world, but I don't think anything compares to the experience of having an internship and making those connections in the working world.

Anyway I think I've gone on and on about that job enough... and now it's time for me to start focusing on the upcoming Career Fair!!! There are over 100 companies who will be attending the fair, which means that there will be a ton of interesting opportunities!! I haven't done a lot of noteworthy things since I last had my resume critiqued, which means I just need to make small alterations and then I'll be good to go!

Reality Check: The Internship Fair is under 2 weeks away!

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Last time I wrote I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life.... it might comes as a huge surprise that nothing has changed on that front.

On the other hand I do in fact have an MQP!!!!! The professor is hands down one of the best to work with and I'll be working for a prominent company in my field. The slight downside is that I'll be doing manufacturing-type work and I won't be innovating things as much as I had hoped, but I still think that it will work out great! The networking opportunities alone are extremely exciting as even though I feel like I interview decently, this will give me a chance to prove myself to a potential employer. It kind of feels like everything is pointing me in a certain direction... and it's REALLY tempting to just go into the manufacturing world, and see what happens, but I'm not sure. I've still got some time to think about it... but the more I think... the less time I have.


Also... does anyone else feel like apartment searches are far too much like job hunting?

Friday, January 22, 2010

What on earth do I want to do with my life??

So I came to WPI wanting to be a Mechanical Engineer, but I had no idea what I wanted to do within that field. It's pretty broad which is what attracted me to it in the first place!! I've got a little bit of experience in the manufacture of medical devices, and I was pretty convinced that that wasn't what I want to do. Then I found a internship posting near my house in a very similar field. Annnnd I'm really really interested in the position. More so than I expected to be. I wanted to use this summer to learn more about different fields so I could choose my field based off of experience, rather than my initial interest in certain fields. Like on the surface I am really interested in the concept of alternative energy. Sounds great right? Reality check, I hate materials, chemistry, and ECE - the three basics of most forms of alternative energy. I think that I just like the idea of it much more than the actual work required in those types of positions. This leaves me wondering what on earth I want to do! I would really prefer not to work for the government, which is just a personal preference but still a fairly important factor in my search. I find the manufacturing part of the design process fairly boring, and I don't want to have a job where I sit in a cubicle crunching numbers.


Ok enough of my ranting and back to the reason I started this post, and the main dilemma for the day. Should I spend my last real summer break doing what I know, or in search of something that I'd love to do? I think I'll apply to the position anyways and see what happens... postpone the decision for a little longer and try to keep as open a mind as possible for now.... I've still got a year and a half before I need to decide right??

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Annd we're back!

So break is now over and things are quickly picking up here at WPI. Personally I'm already bombarded with email assignments and meetings and all of the craziness that surrounds being a student here.

As for my job search? Let's just say I didn't have a chance to stick to my goal. I ended up being far busier than I expected with family things over break and didn't quite get the chance to accomplish everything that I wanted to.

On the other end, I heard back from the company I had a phone interview with and I didn't get the job. Not that it was really a surprise, as I am fairly certain I spent a good portion of the interview giggling... I don't think I'd hire me either after that! Although the position sounded really interesting, the location was once again far enough away that it probably wouldn't work well for me so I guess it all worked out in the end anyways.

As much as it sucks to get the email saying you didn't get it, I am treating the entire experience as a chance to learn from my mistakes and hopefully be a better candidate when a job I am super interested in comes along.

At the moment, everything job related is going to have to take a back seat for a week or two, as my classes come first and I'm pretty sure I'm already behind... and sick. What is it with those two thing?

New Year's Resolution: Don't get behind, don't get sick and get better about sorting and prioritizing my email. And when I say New Year's I mean starting as soon as I feel better!

Hope things are going well for you guys, and that you're having good luck in your searches!