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SMEE Industry Pathways Panel

Posted by Matthew Timms (Society of Monash Electrical Engineers) on 17 October 2017

Electrical engineering students host Q&A panel with representatives from commercial and academic industries.

The SMEE Industry Panel focussed on the career pathways that are open to students as they move towards graduation. The presenters shared advice on careers and networking, answering such hard hitting questions as: Is it actually worth having a LinkedIn account? They also explained what helped them most from their university degree in getting to their current position.

There was a variety of individuals on the panel that represented some of the diverse fields that engineering graduates can move into. One of Monash’s own academic staff, James, was on the panel to present his experience in research and teaching roles, and why he chose academia over industry. James also explained what led to him completing his PhD overseas before coming back to Australia to work. 

Another of the panel guests, Damien, a recent Monash graduate, with experience at EESA, NDY and Beca, explained how steep the learning curve is once you start working and how the people you are friends with now will become important connections if you end up wanting to change jobs down the track. 

Jamila from Invetech explained how she blended her passion for biomedical science and engineering to gain a fulfilling career. She also explained how being involved in the SMEE committee during her time at Monash helped her in her later job search. 

The final panel member was Liam, a hardware engineer from Bosch. He told students what prompted him to go back to university to study engineering, as well as what contrasts working with a worldwide company such as Bosch to a smaller local firm.

And of course the night was brought to a close with some delicious food and drink as students networked casually with the panel members.

Find out more about the Society of Monash Electrical Engineers