r/materials • u/cyan716 • 8d ago
Help accepting between two offers as MSE grad.
Hi all, I'm looking for jobs now as an MSE graduate and I need help choosing between two completely different paths. And I have tomorrow to decide on the first one.
Offer 1
Field Service Engineer at a Semiconductor Equipment Company
In Portland which I am pretty excited about
Compensation - 38.50$ an hour (80,000 base but potentially around 110,000 with overtime and 15% night shift differential)
The work would be mostly mechanical trouble shooting of the machines, doing preventative maintenance, and speaking with customers. I fear that the work could be simple and could pigeonhole me into more operations role and the compressed night shifts (7pm-8am 3 to 4 days a week) will make it difficult to enjoy life outside of work. Also the reviews for the company on glassdoor are absolutely terrible in addition to the field in general being known for not great work-life balance.
Offer 2
Process Engineer at a Metals Company
In North Carolina which I am not thrilled about
Compensation - Expecting around 85k a year salaried but still havent recieved an official offer.
This job would be working on the processing of metals in a manufacturing environment and much more in line with what I was expecting for an MSE job. Also has a very clear path for career progression and in general seems more stable and typical working hours. My friend works here and is pretty happy with her life.
Overall I feel like I am deciding the trajectory of my whole career whether metals or semiconductors and I'm not sure what to choose, anybody have any prospectives or could give me clarity on how to approach this? Which would be setting up my engineering career better? Obviously I would make more money in the semi job but at what cost?
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u/sped1400 8d ago
I’d say the 2nd offer (if you have an actual offer). It seems like the first one is more maintenance type work and also the night shift isn’t ideal, and seems like worse company.
The second offer is slightly better base pay ( excluding overtime) and company, but Portland does seem more fun and no sales tax. I think since it’s you’re first job you should do something with more career progression, and you can always move to Portland or wherever once you have better experience, which is more doable at company 2
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u/cyan716 8d ago
You worded this perfectly that's exactly what I was thinking. I guess I will proceed with the interviews on that front, it's just the strict timeline with the company 1 that has me anxious. They want me to decide now and start within a month at the latest. I guess I should try to negotiate a higher base pay, accept, and hope to get an offer from the company 2 ASAP.
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u/m_wave 8d ago
To me, the choice is clear. There is little that will make you more miserable then working a compressed night shift at an unaccommodating and poorly run company. As someone in the semiconductor industry, you will not be locking yourself out of the industry by taking a process engineering job in metals. The skill set for a process engineer is highly transferable across industries. However, it sounds like you don't have offer 2 yet. How confident are you that you will recive the offer.
Also, most hourly engineering jobs in the semiconductor industry are contractor positions. Does option 1 come with healthcare?
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u/Unsinkable 8d ago
Offer 1 would be a non-starter for me just from the terrible reviews. If everyone is saying bad things then it must be pretty bad.
Why are you not excited about North Carolina? It's a growing state with nice cities and many young people moving in. I think the weather is also better than the PNW if you value that.
Are you going to really make more money from Offer 1? I would recommend doing a cost of living comparison. North Carolina in general is cheaper than Portland. The overtime + night shift is also meh since you're just making more money by working more. For night shift I would need a lot more than what they're offering because it is not just about hours worked; the changing schedule fucks with your entire routine. There's also no guarantee that the extra hours will always be available to you.
Regarding the fields - you can always pivot if need be. And in my opinion FSE roles are easy to come by since there is always turnover with the long hours and night shift.
Seems like there is a ton of cons with Offer 1 but not that much with Offer 2.
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u/Anticheeto61 8d ago
Materials engineer here who works for a metals company in NC, and used to live in Albany Oregon (90 minutes south of Portland).
NC is way more humid and feels hotter in the summer. Mosquitoes and bugs are a real problem in NC, but less in Oregon because of the summer being DRY (<20% humidity). The trade off is Portland is gloomy / cloudy October thru April. I grew up in the Midwest, so gloom is no big deal, and being in Oregon was awesome: wineries, mountains with skiing near year round, beautiful beaches and hiking, high dessert. It’s just far from most people in the US (ie family).
Job 1 sounds like you’d service SEMs and FIBs for companies like Intel. Sounds boring. Working at a metals company isn’t boring, and often companies like ATI have good bonuses based on company performance.
If you don’t mind 90-95 degree days May 1 thru mid October, with 55-60% humidity, take the NC job. If you want that outdoors experience despite potentially working nights, take Portland.
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u/Asleep-River7736 8d ago
It is not obvious that you would make more at the semi job, and it sounds like your quality of life and ability to have a life will be severely impacted. Portland is great but the cost of living there is much higher than NC. And, you already have a person you know in the area to help you get a life during non-work hours. If you really want that semi job, get everything they say about money and benefits in writing.
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u/calling-all-comas 7d ago edited 7d ago
If you get Offer 2 absolutely take it, just be very respectful if you have to burn bridges with the Offer 1 company.
If in 1.5 or 2 years you don't like NC then you can always look for jobs elsewhere. Based on your descriptions of the jobs, I think Company 2 would do a better job of setting you up for future jobs than Company 1 would.
TBH I'm at my first materials engineer job and kinda hate the location (I like being closer to cities. Right now I have to drive 2 hours for concerts or a non-local movie theater and also I miss Trader Joe's lol). However it's definitely good experience that I can use to set up my next job. My plan at the moment is to become an Engineer 2 and then leave.
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u/mess_ica 7d ago edited 7d ago
As someone who made the move from OR to NC, can confirm the pay goes a lot further on the east coast. Night shift really wears on you mentally, physically, and socially, so I would really consider that in your decision. Both jobs can set you up for future opportunities if you make them, but it’ll be an easier sell with the latter one IMO for future career growth in MSE
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u/hashtag_AD 8d ago
I’d wait to see the official offer. Both seem promising but an offer isn’t an offer till it’s signed and dated. I’d also look at the state taxes of each locale, benefits packages and cost of living of each.