I got laid off in March and recently got a new job that has much better benefits and a 6% raise. while i'm still under paid at 70k (EE +6yrs) this new place gives raises that are 2 - 3% more a year, has more 401 contributions and actual room to grow. so long term i can be better off.

6/27/2010 1:18:11 AM

Quote :

"Computer Science $61,205 is this skewed by northern salaries (i.e cost of living up there, etc). I am CSC and only making 40k. Good job security though."

Try again. Almost all my friends in CSC in RTP started around this amount.

[Edited on June 27, 2010 at 1:28 PM. Reason : ]

6/27/2010 1:28:00 PM

Should be moving (finally) to a six figure job in the next few weeks.

6/27/2010 1:44:32 PM

i was making a little under $50k before i returned to school working in the service industry. that was with no undergrad degree by working up from the bottom.

most of the people who worked under me full time were probably in the upper 20's to low 30's

[Edited on June 27, 2010 at 2:12 PM. Reason : ,]

6/27/2010 2:10:32 PM

^^^ Damn, son. I hope whoever that quote belongs to is getting a shit ton of vacation and a kickass retirement contribution.

6/27/2010 2:12:04 PM

Novicane last page

6/27/2010 2:36:58 PM

Quote :

"Try again. Almost all my friends in CSC in RTP started around this amount."

Can i be your friends friend and hook me up.

6/28/2010 2:01:04 AM

I wish my group was hiring. All of our backfills are going to the Dublin group.

[Edited on June 28, 2010 at 10:14 AM. Reason : ]

6/28/2010 10:14:28 AM

Quote :

""Computer Science $61,205 is this skewed by northern salaries (i.e cost of living up there, etc). I am CSC and only making 40k. Good job security though.""

Honestly, when moving back from NJ/VA, that's exactly what I was thinking. recruiters kept trying to lowball me saying that I'd be lucky to get $30k in RTP with the recession.

luckily, I didn't listen to their bullshit

[Edited on June 28, 2010 at 6:45 PM. Reason : wot]

6/28/2010 6:44:44 PM

Quote :

"wdprice3 may have a job 24310 Posts user info edit post Heard from an ex-coworker that young PEs (CE) have been looking for jobs at $35k. fack. I'm going to hate any offers, if I get them. USACE or Civil Service here I come!"

Gee that almost makes me feel like I'm kicking ass at life. Meanwhile in the real world I'm still underpaid & over worked.

Either thats an extreme exaggeration or there is some other information missing because I would be working in a restaurant or doing any number of things before I put my seal on anything for $35k/year.

6/28/2010 8:05:09 PM

My salary was frozen this year so I didn't get the raise I earned and it looks like it will be frozen for another year- and who knows how much longer. ugh.

6/29/2010 10:39:09 AM

10% raise on my pay stub today

6/30/2010 9:36:40 AM

I was in a meeting last week where they discussed upcoming salary adjustments. Since I came in right after the review period, I won't be getting one.

Like teasing a Nigerian with water.

6/30/2010 9:49:31 AM

just reading through this thread i think we need to stop and realize how fortunate we are to still have jobs....there are tons of other qualified professionals who now have to work minimum wage or are still without a job trying to get by

and yet in this thread i see people complaining they are not getting raises or they feel underpaid at $70K...give me a break

6/30/2010 10:57:38 AM

I, for one, am thankful. I actually work two jobs to support my family. So there's that.

6/30/2010 10:59:20 AM

70k for a PE, MD, JD, MBA, and various other professionals IS underpaid. I don't know if that's the case for whoever was making the claim, but it's not reasonable to "just be thankful you have a job" for anyone making 70k a year.

The reality is that a lot of cash rich companies are taking advantage of the economic climate to deny employees fair compensation relative to the value-add the employee provides, while the execs get to collect massive bonuses, raises, and stock options.

For a lot of people, it's definitely true, though.

[Edited on June 30, 2010 at 11:06 AM. Reason : .]

6/30/2010 11:04:32 AM

Two of my friends who just graduated State in Computer Engineering are making 68 and 72 in RTP. I'm not having much luck in MAE.

6/30/2010 11:11:28 AM

i understand and i'm not challenging any statements about being underpaid
i agree it is a "companies" market now, not "employees" market

i'm sure many of us are fortunate to have jobs......would you rather be bitching on the sideline without a job?

yes the executives are evil...that will never change.....axe them and you can free up salary to hire many more real people who do real work

[Edited on June 30, 2010 at 11:13 AM. Reason : k]

6/30/2010 11:12:11 AM

I agree, I am thankful.

I still like keeping my options open as I get more experience. Is there anywhere I can post my experience/resume to ? I guess linked in is the best option.

6/30/2010 12:10:04 PM

yeesh, the amount of entitlement around here.

you're too good to take a low paying 65k job because the evil companies are out to make money off of your labor? it sucks, but you have to either put up with it or start your own company. gotta pay those bills.

6/30/2010 1:20:52 PM

It's not about being "too good" to take the job. Just annoying to be paid under industry average.

6/30/2010 2:25:34 PM

65k? 70k? I'll never make that much money in my career. I'm thankful for my job and love what I do, but I find it absurd that, while the state can't afford to pay my measly annual raise for experience, we can spend so much money on other things or pay some positions with ungodly high salaries.

7/1/2010 10:10:17 AM

yeah, but they deserve those salaries because the market told them so. and when the markets says they're worth less than before, something's wrong

7/1/2010 10:19:49 AM

65k or 70k isn't that much depending on what you do. Sallary's are relative. If you're only making 70k with a PHD in something like engineering you're getting underpaid. If you're under the industry average it makes sense to complain.

Lets say you worked at star bucks and everyone made $10/hour average, but you were only making $8. Wouldn't that be a reason to complain? Someone from McDonalds might come along who makes $6 and complain that your ungodly sallery of $8 was excessive but you're like, "no everyone else is making the industry average of $10". Everything has to be put into perspective.

I graduated school and am looking for a job in Engineering. I've found some shitty paying jobs and i'm tired of people telling me, "be glad you're making that much!". I'm glad i'm making some money but i'm not glad i'm getting paid so much less than what engineers typically get paid.

7/1/2010 10:25:00 AM

I find it amazing that you can be relative to other engineers but at the same time can't be relative to other people in society. does being an engineer let you opt out of being compared to other people? because you studied engineering in college? this is what it means to be entitled.


[Edited on July 1, 2010 at 10:32 AM. Reason : .]

7/1/2010 10:28:18 AM

Um.

Society determines, overall, what people should be paid. Industries that want Engineers have determined they should make X money as reward for their knowledge/schooling/etc. Governments that want Teachers have determined they should make X money as reward for their knowledge/schooling/etc.

Just because you think his salary is ungodly, doesn't mean that his expectations are wrong.

7/1/2010 10:36:10 AM

^^you said it yourself. i do compare myself to all of society, but I don't believe we should all be paid some "average salary" (that's communism). do I think I should be paid at an engineering job more than the high school kid working at McDonalds? absolutely.

like neo said its all relative, and its all compensation for the level of responsibility you show, risk you're willing to take on, talent you bring to the company.

[Edited on July 1, 2010 at 10:36 AM. Reason : .]

[Edited on July 1, 2010 at 10:39 AM. Reason : a]

7/1/2010 10:36:44 AM

it's all relative when you make more because you deserve it, but when suddenly the market decides that you should get paid less it's because companies dare to

Quote :

"deny employees fair compensation "

isn't fair compensation whatever the hell employers are willing to pay you?

"rawr rawr rawr, I'm an engineer. I should be compensated $140k for my services. anything less than that is unfair."

[Edited on July 1, 2010 at 10:42 AM. Reason : .]

7/1/2010 10:39:40 AM

Yeah, but given the average starting salaries posted last page, it's obv some companies are low balling employees hoping to get some cheap labor.

7/1/2010 10:43:00 AM

well, that sucks. but it's not just engineering companies. it's a valid, non-specific complaint. the fact that you are still able to take a shitty job that can do a lot more than pay the bills should make you at least respect your relative situation.

7/1/2010 10:44:12 AM

Well yeah, I can respect the relative situation however, you can't really compare engineers making 50K to high school teachers making 50k and expect the same level of satisfaction.

7/1/2010 10:54:27 AM

Quote :

"I find it amazing that you can be relative to other engineers but at the same time can't be relative to other people in society. does being an engineer let you opt out of being compared to other people? because you studied engineering in college? this is what it means to be entitled. "

That doesn't make any sense. Everyone is not equal in society. We're not communist here. Of course people are entitled to higher pay based upon thier experience/risk/ability to work.

I never said I wasn't being compared to other people in society. On the contrary I was saying I AM comparing myself to other people in society. I went to school and got a degree that pays a certain amount on average. I want to make that certain amount. Of course I should be getting paid more than someone who went to school for English or Elementary Ed. I'm not down playing other professions i'm simply saying society places a value on jobs and people get paid accordingly.

I would hope you would want engineers building your cars/bridges/buildings etc getting paid more than "just enough to get by."

Quote :

"well, that sucks. but it's not just engineering companies. it's a valid, non-specific complaint. the fact that you are still able to take a shitty job that can do a lot more than pay the bills should make you at least respect your relative situation."

That's the thing though. It would be easier to pay the bills with that shitty job if i had not gotten the degree. My friends without degrees have shitty jobs and are able to pay bills. Most of my friends who went out of state or got a $$$ degree need that sallery to pay off thier student loans. You ever talked to someone with med school loans? If they didn't get that high paying job they wouldn't be able to pay thier bills.

But yes I have a job where I can pay my bills and get by. I'm not happy with it, but i'll live.

7/1/2010 11:01:07 AM

Quote :

"I went to school and got a degree that pays a certain amount on average. I want to believe I deserve to make that certain amount."

Entitlement. It's an average amount because people get paid around that amount. Some get more, some get less. You aren't entitled to the industry average, your worth is determined by how much work you put in to being the best candidate for the better paying jobs. You don't like what you get paid, go find a new job.

7/1/2010 11:30:16 AM

Well that's obvious with every job. There's always going to be outliers or people who don't make it in the field. I'm not disagreeing with that. I was speaking more along the lines of people who think people should be "happy with what they get". If everyone was happy with what they got no one would advance. I'm simply saying it's alright not to be happy with your sallery and want more. Now if you're just grossly overpaid then that's a different story.

7/1/2010 11:39:18 AM

why is that a different story? the 30k teacher thinks the $100k engineer is grossly overpaid. the $100k engineer thinks the $500k neurosurgeon is overpaid. the $500k neurosurgeon thinks the $2m CEO is overpaid. the $2m CEO thinks the $10b CEO is overpaid, etc etc. it's never "wrong" to aspire for more

[Edited on July 1, 2010 at 11:48 AM. Reason : if you want more, go get it. if you're happy just having a job, that's fine too]

7/1/2010 11:47:48 AM

Quote :

"sallery "

You can't call that a typo, because of the two "L"s and the "E" that follows

which means you really thought this was the correct spelling

7/1/2010 11:49:40 AM

haha i was waiting for someone to catch that.

7/1/2010 11:53:24 AM

Quote :

"it's never "wrong" to aspire for more"

This is true, but you need to be careful what you wish for. In an ideal world, I would play paintball professionally. Pro players are not signed to a salary; they may make a signing bonus, but that is a one time deal...the next year they are with the team for nothing. A distinction must be made between salary and signing bonus; a salary is the money a player can expect to be paid regardless of the teams results each season, a signing bonus a one time sum given to the player when they join the team. Most pros hold outside jobs (some are actually quite successful) and others work inside the industry, usually with their sponsors. Of course, there are exceptions, in the case of Russian Legion and Oliver Lang, whose salary is something close to a hundred thousand a year. But in short, virtually none of us can base our career plans solely around being a professional paintball player, because that one time bonus of twenty thousand won't really keep the food on the table. So while quitting my current job to pursue a career in paintball sounds like a good idea, the end result would probably wouldn't be quite as rosy.

7/1/2010 12:03:51 PM

yeah, it's never wrong to aspire for more. unless it's a bigger housing bubble.

7/1/2010 12:31:17 PM

I don't know what that means

7/1/2010 1:53:57 PM

Bubbles are great if you know when to get out of them.

7/2/2010 1:38:23 AM

How much should a recent graduate with a BS in Industrial Engineering and a BS in Business Administration (Operations/Supply Chain focus) and a minor in Spanish be making? My friends who graduated with just an IE degree are making between 53k-60k. I know with the additional BS degree and my Spanish minor that I should be making more, I'm just not sure how much more. Any ideas?

7/30/2010 8:21:22 AM

unless you're actively using the spanish degree in your position, it's worth nothing more. if you're speaking spanish every day, maybe an extra 5-10k?

7/30/2010 8:57:18 AM

^And that's assuming fluency. If you're not fluent, then it's worthless.

^^ if you're a college hire, additional degrees might one up you over another candidate in terms of actually getting hired if all other things are equal, but generally it's not going to get you additional salary.

7/30/2010 9:51:41 AM

I'm not fluent in Spanish, but I was candid during the interview about my abilities and what I can do to help Spanish speaking customers. I didn't try to get a salary raise out of it, but I wouldn't dare to call it "worthless". Exactly 0 other people here could complete an entire sentence in Spanish.

7/30/2010 10:06:37 AM

^^ definitely agreed. Minors and the like might help you get an interview or get the job (IF they are directly applicable to the job you are applying for) but rarely are they worth more money to a company, especially in this economy and especially with a new college grad. And with something like a foreign language, the minor helps but you'd have to be pretty fluent like ^^ said in order for it to mean much (and once again assuming it directly applies to the job you are looking for)

[Edited on July 30, 2010 at 10:12 AM. Reason : ]

7/30/2010 10:11:34 AM

^^what kind of job do you have though? i think in the context of a professional doing supply chain stuff, and perhaps doing business with overseas companies on a regular basis, if you're not fluent in the language, it's just not going to help that much, and might end up hurting

if you work at a department store or something, even though they will have some customers who speak other languages, they might not have the luxury of hiring somebody specifically who is fluent, so the somewhat-fluency is good enough

[Edited on July 30, 2010 at 10:19 AM. Reason : .]

7/30/2010 10:18:47 AM

^^^

Sorry, i didn't mean to imply it was worthless in and of itself, but in terms of leveraging a major or minor in a foreign language for a salary increase.

Another anecdotal example. I just wrapped up an interview process to fill a position on my team, and the final two candidates were pretty much equal. The guy i decided on speaks English, Spanish, and Portuguese fluently, and while he's not getting any more salary out of it, that was the distinguishing factor.



V - YES, these fucks won't leave me alone. One of them even sent me a resume of a guy with a degree from Bob Jones University. HELL NO. I'd rather hire a UNC grad

[Edited on July 30, 2010 at 10:28 AM. Reason : .]

7/30/2010 10:24:15 AM

i fucking hate recruiters and their constant spamming

7/30/2010 10:27:49 AM

Quote :

"^^what kind of job do you have though? i think in the context of a professional doing supply chain stuff, and perhaps doing business with overseas companies on a regular basis, if you're not fluent in the language, it's just not going to help that much, and might end up hurting if you work at a department store or something, even though they will have some customers who speak other languages, they might not have the luxury of hiring somebody specifically who is fluent, so the somewhat-fluency is good enough "

Yeah, it's definitely not a core part of my job. I help a Spanish speaking customer maybe 2x a month.
Since I'm in a technical field, most of them speak English anyway.

7/30/2010 10:31:00 AM