How to find entry level biological science jobs, that's what I want to know.

1/10/2007 1:39:32 PM

Quote :

"conditions for hiring weren't exactly prime"

Engineering companies will hire anytime if the person is right...I was hired at my current company in mid march...they pretty much have told me that I was hired b/c they felt I was going to be a good employee not b/c they had an opening. They actually didn't have a open position but they found a place for me after they gave me an offer.

I don't think it works that way for entry level as much but all I'm saying is there are not defined hiring classes or windows like in Business degrees.

1/10/2007 1:57:19 PM

Quote :

"Have u tried getting a referral ? If you know someone in a company that has jobs, ask them to fwd your resume to the HR. You will land an interview 90% of the time (unless u really suck). "

He's right - if a Berbee employee refers you, you are GUARANTEED at least an introductory phone interview, no matter what.

1/10/2007 10:00:58 PM

However, make sure you tell the person who's sending your resume to HR if your GPA is 2.8. I, for one, would not be willing to lose face by recommending that person.

1/10/2007 10:24:20 PM

^what the hell does GPA mean...and no don't tell them that. If they ask, be honest, but don't walk around telling clients and possible co-workers your GPA just FYI

that is the dumbest thing I've ever heard...If someone asks for a recommendation, you give it based on your relationship with that person not their GPA...

why don't you give your SAT scores too...and your High School GPA and if you were good at coloring inside the lines in Kindergarden...I wouldn't want to give a recomendation for you if you had trouble coloring.

1/11/2007 8:08:19 AM

Have you ever worked for a respected engineering company?

If you recommend someone be interviewed, you're personally vouching for them, not just as a person, but also to their work ethic and capabilities. I sure as hell wouldn't want to get embarrassed by recommending someone only to find out later they never made it past screening because their GPA was atrocious.

Quote :

"what the hell does GPA mean"

A low one usually means someone wasn't willing to put forth the required effort, full well knowing what the consequences would be. That says enough to employers for them to consider it.

1/11/2007 9:56:58 AM

GPA may or may not matter. Some companies look at GPA in conjunction with other aspects, while others filter solely on GPA before any interviews.

It's debatable as to how much of an indicator GPA really is of job performance (I don't buy it), but having a good GPA will never close doors, while having a poor GPA will close some doors.

I personally didn't have a very good GPA, but it was not a problem for me.

1/11/2007 10:01:56 AM

^Well not EVERYONE can run CPOC for 3 years before they apply!

1/11/2007 10:10:42 AM

Yeah, I was lucky to have a co-op that opened up a lot of doors for me. But had I graduated a year earlier, I would have been SOL (hiring freeze), and my shitty GPA would have hindered me further.

1/11/2007 10:22:52 AM

wait, cpoc, where at ?

1/11/2007 10:45:30 AM

Quote :

"what the hell does GPA mean"

GPA is just icing on the cake, but I'm still not sure how the hell some people manage to get such low gpas unless they aren't putting any effort at all into their classes. Even if you are really bad in one specific field, your major gpa should at least be decent.

1/11/2007 10:55:31 AM

once you have exp GPA's dont mean anything

However a poor GPA in college, usually equates to a shitty work ethic as a rule but there are quite a few exceptions... that being said

if you are referring someone then you should know them well enough if said person was the rule to a low GPA or the exception... if you cannot discern between the 2 then you dont know said person well enough to refer them, IMO

[Edited on January 11, 2007 at 11:36 AM. Reason : ]

1/11/2007 11:35:46 AM

Quote :

"while others filter solely on GPA before any interviews."

Kimley Horn.

But to their credit they are rated very high on lists that rate "best places to work"
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/bestcompanies/2007/states/NorthCarolina.html

[Edited on January 11, 2007 at 11:37 AM. Reason : .]

1/11/2007 11:37:00 AM

define "low gpa"

I know that I slacked off a bit during the beginning of college, but switching from CSC to ME I worked my butt off in some of those classes and got out of there with around a 2.9 overall. Sure it's not awesome, but I don't think that number represents my work ethic, cause I sure as hell worked my butt off

1/11/2007 12:33:32 PM

^same. I had always cruised by with straight As in HS and did fine my first two years. My junior year here was rough the first year in engineering. I did a lot of work, just wasting pulling the grades i wanted. I am a good worker with a good work ethic *but not a good test taker*. And unfortunately in engineering theres plenty of classes where you have two tests with 2-3 problems that are 50% of your grade. Just totally raped me that year. This was really all due to not knowing how to study for tests in this department.

Granted Ive been able to get through everything in four years and I am happy I didnt give up my junior year. But I'm around a 2.985 and I really feel that it hasnt reflected the time ive put into engineering, and making sure i graduated in four years. Im just hoping one of my leads comes through, especially one in particular.

One extremely important thing ive told myself is since my GPA is not where i think my work ethic is, as soon as I get that break and get a job, I have to prove my work ethic there. If your GPA is low and your first job gets rid of you for a low work ethic, gg finding a second one

1/11/2007 12:43:38 PM

The people who think GPA is important would say 2.9 is low...I on the other hand put very little wieght on it.

I know the company I mentioned before (KH) will not even interview you without a 3.5.

I just think GPA is an unfair way to solely judge someone...It doesn't factor in many varibles that affected the final GPA (switching majors, working while in school, issues with family or money, etc.)

If GPA is so important tell me who out of the following sounds like they will be a better employee:

1. 3.9 GPA, 3.6 in major, 1 summer internship, minor in business

2. 2.8 GPA, 2.9 in major, worked for DOT 2 years, unrealated work for 2 years

without an interview there isn't a real way to tell...if you don't give an interview just based on the first GPA # you are missing that Student #1 had mom and dad pay their way thru school while student #2 worked there way thru school and couldn't devote as much time to classwork so they could pay the rent.

Within Engineering companies there are places for both types...there will always be a need for the people who excel techinally (book smart, 4.0 GPA types) and there will always be a need for the hand working (grinder types) that may excel in tight deadlines, under pressure, etc.

The company I work for now realizes that and trys to keep a good balance of all types of people. We have some engineers that can knock your socks off with how smart they are and have great attention to detail but they cannot represent the company well infront of clients. On the other hand we have people who can win us jobs left and right with their ability to sell the company and be technically smart enough but when in a bind know who to turn to and find the right answer.

Quote :

"If your GPA is low and your first job gets rid of you for a low work ethic, gg finding a second one "

I agree 100%. Some aren't good at tests, some aren't good at classwork, etc...but once you land a job you have to find your spot and b/c valuable to the company and always make yourself more marketable whether you plan on staying with that company forever or you make it a stepping stone to the next position.

As I said my GPA was terrible (I'm a good test taker though...FE was no problem) and I got a job in Hampton Roads and stayed at 1 company for a year then move to one that I learned was very good while working at the 1st...The connections I made at the first work all over the place in the engineering comunity and I have great relationships with many of our clients and competitors which makes me more valuable to my company.

[Edited on January 11, 2007 at 1:04 PM. Reason : .]

1/11/2007 12:57:53 PM

agreed.

i think the problem is that the original poster has neither quality.

1/11/2007 1:02:47 PM

He better learn how to interview well then...I struggled to find a lot of interviews when I graduated but every interview I got lead to an offer or a lead to another position. I interviewed for a position that I wasn't quite qualified for with Michael Baker in G'boro and they refered me to the Virginia Beach office after the interview and I got an offer over the phone from the VB office.

1/11/2007 1:07:18 PM

To those who have graduated, about how long would you say it took to get a job? How many of you were offered one before graduating? I'll be graduating in May with ~3.6 GPA and a year of co-op experience and I am really trying to get a job before I graduate.

1/11/2007 6:24:02 PM

I was a May graduate, with a 2.9, had an offer the november before (place I interned over a summer), had 2 offers in february, and an interview that probably could have led to another offer around March or so. I accepted one of the Feb. ones and started June 1st.

1/11/2007 6:48:01 PM

I had 4 job offers when I graduated. 2 were in NC (one in Raleigh, the other in Greenville), 1 was in SC, and 1 was in GA. I accepted one, and have already switched to another one. My advice is to send resumes out to everyone (and I do mean everyone). The job I have right now was listed as a senior level engineering position so I thought I would have no chance. But I still sent the resume. I am now a senior level engineer, or atleast my title says so.

1/11/2007 7:04:23 PM

fuck, even most entry-level engineering jobs i find want 2 years prior experience

do they not fucking realize what entry-level means?

1/12/2007 8:23:47 PM

When you see an entry-level job asking for 2 years of experience, have you been turned down because of a lack of experience? Most companies will seriously consider all good applicants, and they will also consider research or graduate work as "experience."

1/12/2007 8:39:25 PM

I graduated in December 05 with a 2.9. I had 3 job offers by November 05 and more after I accepted my current job, mainly because of my work experience, as I had worked at DOT for 2 years. I don't think a high GPA really matters much unless you've got some work experience and references to go along with it.

[Edited on January 12, 2007 at 8:41 PM. Reason : CE]

[Edited on January 12, 2007 at 8:42 PM. Reason : .]

1/12/2007 8:40:58 PM

without work experience, you're proper fucked on trying to find a job

which is funny in a shitty way

[Edited on January 12, 2007 at 9:48 PM. Reason : i really wish i had applied to places before i graduated but didn't know i was supposed to ]

1/12/2007 9:30:07 PM

Quote :

"I know the company I mentioned before (KH) will not even interview you without a 3.5."

maybe your resume sucked? maybe you don't represent yourself well? KHA will most certainly interview & hire people with a much lower GPA straight out of school.

on another note, i've yet to meet someone who claimed to be a 'poor test taker' who wasn't a total dumbass

[Edited on January 12, 2007 at 10:11 PM. Reason : *]

1/12/2007 10:10:40 PM

^^I'm beginning to feel this way.

I guess I haven't looked hard enough or perhaps there's something to be said for "all job listings are not on monster.com," because I graduated this past May and I can't even get people to interview me (for those who are interested, my BS is in materials engineering). Now I did try sending my resume to some company websites directly (IBM, Intel (especially that new plant they opened in Winston Salem), etc), but I still haven't heard anything from them. Even the temp agency I found myself being a part of couldn't find me anything. Admittedly I haven't looked very hard outside of NC because I honestly don't want to leave the area, but I have had at least one interview each in SC and VA, neither of which turned up anything (at least the people in SC told me no, those bastards at VA couldn't even be bothered to give me any sort of response despite me calling them back several times )

One thing that I have noticed is that the amount of experience that companies ask you to have decreases as your level of education increases. With a BS, most materials-related places want me to have anywhere from 5-10 years of prior experience, and that's just for an "entry-level" position. With a masters it typically goes down to about 1-3 years experience, and for a lot of places having a PhD requires 0 years. But I haven't liked my major nearly enough to even want to go for a masters, so it's not happening for me anytime soon.

One thing that I have decided, though, is that my GPA (~3.3, can't even remember what my major GPA was but I'm pretty sure it was ever so slightly below 3.0) simply isn't enough. Admittedly I didn't take the search for internships and co-ops very seriously, at first I just thought it was a nice way to pad your resume or something or other. Now I realize that a lot of companies are just outright expecting you to have some work experience when you graduate. So now I'm back in school (doing CSC this time around), and instead of trying to get the degree in 4 years the name of the game this time around is to get co-ops and stuff. I've also decided that there simply aren't any materials-science jobs in NC unless you've already been in the industry for at least a decade.

[Edited on January 12, 2007 at 10:25 PM. Reason : goddamn crazy code]

1/12/2007 10:24:31 PM

I graduated with a GPA above a 3.0, but not too much more than that. I've always made up for a lack of "hard skills" with more "soft skills" during interviews. Be prepared to sell yourself and don't be picky about where or what your first job is.

If you haven't looked in Fairfax, VA, I would strongly suggest starting there. The unemployment rate is only 2% in that location ... they can't seem to fill jobs fast enough.

1/12/2007 11:47:59 PM

From what I have heard, your geographical limitations are a big limiting factor. I for one am willing to relocate anywhere in the USA, so I'm hoping that will help me out a lot too.

1/13/2007 1:49:16 AM

yeah, while RTP is great, think of how many jobs you potentially lose by not looking EVERYWHERE else. theres also a lot of competition from others who dont want to leave.

the best post thus far, for me, was umbrellaman's. i graduated with a 3.3 in CSC with no real exp and had a helluva time getting interviews. i did job fairs, searched online, sent some resumes to big companies, etc. nothing really turned up. one problem was my exp/resume/etc the other was my selective nature when it came to jobs. beggers cant be choosers.

like a lot of people, i went back to grad school. after doing a 1 year program i got an interview from nearly every company i talked with (again, i was selective, but this time it wasnt an issue). not all turned into offers, but i had a well paying entry level position offer in september.



AND FOR ALL YOU VIDEO GAME HATERS. this man played rome: total war much more often than halo when i was around.

1/13/2007 10:58:12 AM

That's kind of scary if ME graduates aren't even finding work.

Quote :

"How to find entry level biological science jobs, that's what I want to know."

I know general science people can have trouble, my girlfriend is going through that at the moment, and when I was looking for that type of position I got a lot of interviews, but all the jobs were comparatively low paying and most had no upward mobility like a research tech at a college lab.

Quote :

"To those who have graduated, about how long would you say it took to get a job? How many of you were offered one before graduating? I'll be graduating in May with ~3.6 GPA and a year of co-op experience and I am really trying to get a job before I graduate."

I applied for about 15 jobs in computer science while I was working in my last job and had 5 interviews and was hired within a week of starting my search, however this was after not finding a real job for two and half years and getting a 3rd degree while working. In other words it can be a arduous process.



[Edited on January 13, 2007 at 11:12 AM. Reason : m]

1/13/2007 11:09:34 AM

I graduated with a high GPA and no work experience. I didn't have a problem getting a job.

1/13/2007 11:15:07 AM

I had a high gpa and a coop, but I still couldn't get a job. I ended up getting a summer intership for some more experience and to pay the bills. That place ended up hiring me on full time and then the place I did my coop at gave me an offer several months after that.

1/13/2007 11:31:35 AM

Quote :

"This guy is just another one of thousands of college kids who think they can coast through college with passing grades and have a job handed to them when they get that diploma. While you were spending hours playing halo, the people you're competing with were keeping their grades up, gaining relevant experience, and otherwise gaining an edge. If you're an engineering major, and you don't at least have a high GPA or Co-op, then you'll be lucky to get any engineering job when you graduate. A high GPA can make up for lack of experience, and experience can make up for a lack of a high GPA, the point is you gotta have something that shows that you can perform at a high level to employers. And, sorry, but Halo doesn't give you that.]"

ouch.....but true.

i decided to co-op a year right before i graduated. it was probably for the best but i was never in a bad GPA situation (EE may be different, but its all pretty common sense).

1/13/2007 11:42:31 AM

Quote :

"Admittedly I didn't take the search for internships and co-ops very seriously, at first I just thought it was a nice way to pad your resume or something or other. Now I realize that a lot of companies are just outright expecting you to have some work experience when you graduate."

yeah i did the same thing

if i had known how important it was, i'd have skipped over the summer session i ended up doing in place of the co-ops i was planning

1/13/2007 12:29:23 PM