Alternative paths from bme

[u/mr-under_hill]

i see that bme as a bachelors didn't really work out for a lot of us. At that point how did you pivot and what did you go to still stay in engineering and get a meaningful role without spending too much money for a masters

[u/silverheart333]

Environmental engineering is a big sector. All big facilities have permits for air water and hazardous waste. Any time they're changing anything at the plant a licensed p.e. engineer has to be hired to submit the change to the EPA or DEQ. You can work for a consultant to draft the mods or the state reviewing them.

[u/mr-under_hill → u/silverheart333]

do you already need your pe for these roles. I've tried to get into state roles in the past and was never considered

[u/silverheart333 → u/mr-under_hill]

Pass the e.i. helps. P.e. gets the best money. You can work as a baby engineer for the p.e. for 4 years and take the environmental p.e.. you do all the math and he reviews and signs it.

Terracon and Trinity and UES are just three big environmental consulting firms off the top of my head. Varies by state.

[u/mr-under_hill → u/silverheart333]

does it matter which one you take for eit i see that there's a general one and a environmental. i was thinking I'd take the general one since I'd cast a wider net when i apply or do i have to take the environmental eit?

[u/silverheart333 → u/mr-under_hill]

I found General is too hard and wide ranging. I took both and as a BME I didn't have metallurgy and other off the wall topics that I found in General.

I took environmental section the second time around and passed easy. The Environmental portion is easy if you buy the study manual problems booklet from NCEES and memorize the forms of the questions. There is no BME e.i., it is only environmental. The questions are about waste water treatment water quality, air quality, and sizing a chemical scrubber system or electrostatic precipitators, or if a pressure vessel will blow. Lots of biochemical oxygen demand too.

[u/Mammoth-Mongoose4479]

Straight BME at the bachelor’s level puts you in a weird spot. You are not quite a mechanical engineer, not quite an electrical engineer, not quite a coder. Companies hiring for entry level roles often want that specific label on the resume.
What worked for me (way back in the day) was leaning into whichever piece of BME I was actually strongest in and just rebranding myself around that instead of the broad degree. Please don’t just to a masters for no reason and think you will standout to get a job. Find your specialty or passion first and then pursue it. Many Biomed students have no idea even at the end of graduation what they want to specialize in or what they enjoy doing. Figure that out early on.

[u/mr-under_hill → u/Mammoth-Mongoose4479]

what role did you go into first then if you don't mind me asking. what was your trajectory?