Monday, October 29, 2012

An Aspiring Engineer Runs Into Progressive Credentialism

I remember being asked similar questions when I interviewed for jobs and internships.

"What extra cirricular activities do you engage in?"

I, truthfully engaged in none.  I was too busy studying all the time and...um...what was that other thing I did...OH, THAT'S RIGHT!  I was WORKING FULL TIME AND GOING TO SCHOOL FULL TIME so I could put FREAKING FOOD on the table and PAY FOR MY FREAKING RENT.

I didn't have time to join the "Yeah for Us Self Esteem Diversity of Leftist CSR Puke Club" or the "Daddy's Paying My Way So I Can Hackey Sack All Day and Night Brigade," let alone the money to join the "Fratboydouche Hat on Backwards as We Pound Down $5 Shots Society."

So, lets see if we here in the Manosphere can help this kid out because lord knows it isn't going to be some HR priss asking him whether he join the right club or did the right thing.

Anybody got a job or a internship that would fit his qualifications?

On a related note, somebody sent this to me.  (warning, it's painful)

Now compare and contrast the post above by the college KID and the 40 year old HR professional.  The kid is talking about building electric cars while the "adult" is talking about binders.  Does a FREAKING YOU TUBE ON BINDERS!!!!

For advice!

TO HR PEOPLE!!!

Binders!!!  THis is the cutting edge  of Industrial Relations????

I'll go into this in much more detail since we have a lot of new readers, but for now kids, the lesson to learn is to avoid HR at all costs.  Find the hiring manager.  Go straight to him.

Also, remember THESE ARE THE PEOPLE screening your resume.  They are the FRONT LINES OF DEFENSE IN OUR LABOR MARKET, ensuring the highest quality of labor gets the job.  So if you DON'T get the job or an interview you are supremely qualified for, don't feel bad.  There's nothing wrong with you, it's HR.

Cripes, freaking binders.

14 comments:

Bullitt315 said...

What's sad is that's probably one of the better HR chicks because she's not morbidly obese. The fat HR chicks really hate white men and always have an ex to grind. Incompetence is a lot easier to deal with than malice.

Cogitans Iuvenis said...

I couldn't get through the video because its too dammed painful.

heresolong said...

Just goes to show how desperate the Obama folks are that they have to jump on this binders thing, and I suspect the American people see it. There isn't a person I know who would have an issue with the idea that you had a bunch of resumes tucked into a binder so that you could review them, yet Romney is an "idiot" for saying it.

BTW, what's with the little head to the side thing when she says "idiot"? Is that supposed to be funny or cute?

Unknown said...

I had to do a lot of stupid, useless, ego boosting (for certain people I knew) clubs in high school like Student Government just because it's the kind of stuff major four year colleges want to see on your resume to see if you're 'well rounded' enough for their school. In reality, it's just another way for the schools to rip you off and join all these expensive clubs that have almost nothing to do with job productivity or developing a specific skill that a company would need.

On an unrelated note, I think affirmative action, which I am highly against, is still alive and well, especially for college admissions. Some of my friends who are minorities and didn't have the same grades as others who thought they wouldn't get into their college of choice were admitted anyway based on their race and the need to add "diversity" to their campus. I also suspect that was part of the reason certain people who made 28s and 29s on their ACTs were turned down by the competitive schools of their choice while other people who didn't score as high on these standardized tests were admitted. The extracurricular activities are a huge factor for being admitted to these places as well.

Anonymous said...

I am honored by the mention, Captain.

To be frank I am not going through anywhere near as difficult conditions as you had in your days, but it is as you say: they really don't care about the skills. When they say "experience" they really mean "connections". This is true even in engineering.

In the entry I talk about the woman with the Jeep engine block deconstruction; this is not something you simply do even if you have a Jeep. All the knowledge on how to detach the block from the frame has to come from somewhere (this is not something learnable akin to taking calculus online), and chances are, she got it from the same man who had the crane arm and tools for her to use, if not the hydraulic lift and an entire shop with helping hands. She wasn't even hired by a car company. It was some company which made and managed the airport catwalk things which connect the port to the plane.

The friend I talk about who commutes four hours a day got called back for an interview. In the information meeting and at the career/internship fair he did well amongst the presenters, who themselves were engineers and graduates from the university. But the interview itself was apparently with someone completely different. It's fairly clear those who knew their stuff recommended this guy and that's why he got the interview. But those guys weren't allowed to complete the process. It was some HR person.

If anyone is indeed interested in offering me an internship or job, it would be humbling. I'm not the best (~3.1GPA), but I can achieve some solid work.

I am a third year Aero/Mech Engineering student, proficient in Autodesk Inventor, Esprit, and metal fabrication. I am currently enrolled in Thermodynamics, Fluid Mechanics, and Dynamics, and will be taking the FE/EIT in April.

My end goal interest is space colonization.

V10 said...

Rezz: There will never be space colonization. At least not by governments. Not as long as there is a welfare queen who needs a handout.

Private space corporations are our only real hope of getting off this rock.

Funny, I used to think that 'The Corporation,' the stock villain in sci-fi books and films, was the result of weak writing and ham-fisted political/economic commentary. Nowadays, Weyland-Yutani doesn't seem so bad.

Eric S. Mueller said...

I heard over the weekend that high schools now require so many hours of "community service" to graduate. That would have royally set me off when I was in high school.

please respond said...

Hey Aaron, is it possible to live a bachelor spartan life on 20k a year? Let me know what you think. About to take a plunge.

William Hughes said...

A young engineer looking for a career should go straight to a construction firm, a sub-contractor, a small mining firm, or an oil and gas exploration firm. Work two years, meet a lot of people, make a good impression. You will then never speak to an HR flake again - those people are for hiring clerks.

Aerospace grad: do the research. Find a small firm that manufactures some aerospace widget. Start there.

Also, the reason engineering technical societies exist is to give engineers a place to relax, get drunk, and visit without a bunch of HR bullshit. That is where you will get your job. Plus it is fun. Enjoy your career.

Captain Capitalism said...

Oh, totally! I get by on way less than that. Key is NOT TO HAVE KIDS.

Phil Galt said...

I just watched the HR binder video and have decided that I can no longer distinguish between reality and satire.

Having said that: Even though I just landed a technical contract, I suspect a better option might be to hire some desperate college kids and make some fur-suit porn to be sold at sci-fi conventions.

Don T Tread said...

I was a civil engineering grad with a 3.9 GPA and I'm convinced that what got me noticed is that I wrote a couple unpublished novels. I got a few scholarships because of this, and every interview I had they seemed to be most interested in the fact that I wrote a couple novels. They had no idea if the novels were good or shit, or even if they even existed (they did), but I suppose they were impressed by the creativity and drive to do something as big as finishing a couple novels and try to get them published. That was 12 years ago, though, and more recently it did not seem that any of my professional experience or accomplishments amounted to anything - the applicant with the "in" was the one who got the job.

If I were you, I'd go work out in North Dakota where the jobs are plentiful and you'll make the contacts you need to potentially move up in the field. I'm sure they need MEs there.

Anonymous said...

My first job with a large defense contractor I got in the door by a personal reference to the manager. During the interview he confided that He was going to hire me no matter how mediocre I was because I can't find anyone with my qualifications and he needs them. He said that his HR department is useless and turns away qualified people just because they don't understand guys like me or what I do. (MSE with security clearance). He told me that he can only hire people that come referred to him from outside because HR never refers anyone to him. i had previously send my resume to this company through their on line careers page, but it was rejected as unqualified.

Tina said...

I had some HR Chickee Poo ask me what my activities did I participate in during Jr. High. First, I never went to Jr. High, we had an elementary and high school (small rural district) and there weren't any activities organized through the school. I was in may 20's at the time and looked at her like she was crazy. And I am a woman who was applying for a chemical engineer position....