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Old 07-27-2014, 10:24 PM   #45
shenmecar
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I'm a recent Electrical Engineering grad and I actually just found a job right out of school. I hope I can give you a little encouragement. You are on the right path! Prior to graduation, I attended as many networking events as I could. In 5 months, I attended about 8 events from being a volunteer, attendee, and poster presenter with IEEE, PES and APEGBC. I didn't get my job from ANY of these events but I think it was still a valuable experience to just talk to people and develop more people-skills. I think that is kinda more important than technical skills because I learned quickly on the job that there is a lot more to learn. I felt school doesn't prepare you for how the industry really works. But these people-skills helped me convince my interviewers that I am the right candidate.

APEGBC also has a mentorship program that you can check out. They pair you up with a mentor and you guys can grab coffee and chat. Who knows where that can lead you! I know you mentioned you hate networking, so hopefully this will help - at one of the events I attended, the guest speaker recommended this book:

http://www.amazon.ca/How-Win-Friends...fluence+people

She said it is a renowned book for helping people develop more people-skills. I personally haven't read it yet so I can't comment on its usefulness.

Networking will be helpful in the end, one way or another. Engineering is cyclical so maybe Mining is a little slow right now. I know Electrical is slow right now at some companies. Just as a comparison, I have a friend that graduated Electrical Eng last year and he still hasn't found a job. So what you are going through isn't uncommon. Overall, I think you are on the right path, just keep at it.
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