Autonomous Vehicle development opportunities at F.

BoxheadTim wrote:

alfadriver wrote: In reply to BoxheadTim: For people like you- the option of having school paid for via Ford is still happening. So, in theory, you could get a job that does fit your background, and then go get that full bachelor's degree. Or Masters, or even PhD. And it would be paid for. Whether it's worth doing at 48 while working full time is up to you.

That is interesting, I didn't realise that there were still companies out there that did that. I've worked on economics studies at the Open University in the UK (which is an official state university, but it's all remote/online) while working full-time for an investment bank so I know what that's like. So how would one go and find those opportunities because everything that does fit my background tends to require a degree in the first place? Oh, and I don't need visa sponsorship .

Not sure. Right now, I know of a few openings in my department that should not require a degree. Although, I'm not sure what kind of education is needed for the tech positions. But I also don't have a link to those jobs- just the engineering ones in my section.

It's quite possible that half of our problem is that our website sucks for people trying to find a job that fits them.

alfadriver wrote: Other than the cold (which I think is over rated, especially since we recently moved from Zone 4 to Zone 6 at the USDA), what's so bad about Michigan? Heck, for the heat, I'd hate living much farther south. We have much less heat issues than most places in the country (thank you very much Canada).

Just as you'd "melt" in Florida, others would "freeze" in Michigan. Its not a minor issue to many. I know I sure as hell appreciate it being an average of 17 degrees warmer here in the Winter, yet only 4 degrees warmer in the Summer.

Economic issues? Massive unemployment within the last decade. Automotive companies have a history of financial problems (whether real or just perceived).
Those in dual income families - is there availability of a comparable job/pay for their spouse?
Crappy roads.
Its flat.
Salt.
There are probably hundreds of reasons. To you they may be positives, to someone else they are negatives.

In reply to ProDarwin:

Fwiw I made a spreadsheet last year of climate/weather data for several specific cities, and other general regions, we were interested in moving to. Comparing IL to the MS Gulf Coast - the max summer temps were within a couple degrees of each other, as was the humidity. I don't remember the other specifics offhand, but the takeaway was that MS had a milder climate than IL without it being noticably hotter or more humid. From the past year I'll say the data doesn't lie.

I think I also tracked Denver, Las Vegas, Austin, someplace in FL...might have been a few other places too. If anyone can use the data I's be glad to dig up the spreadsheet & share it?

^Up until recently you could just type in any cities you want into weatherspark.com and overlay anything... forecast, humidity, rainfall, averages, etc. But they killed the "dashboard" view :(

ProDarwin wrote: Economic issues? Massive unemployment within the last decade. Automotive companies have a history of financial problems (whether real or just perceived). Those in dual income families - is there availability of a comparable job/pay for their spouse?

Just like everywhere else, opportunity is about skill.

My spouse makes considerably more than I do.

Ironic that you bring up economic problems, all the while I'm trying to get people to come work and fill the hundreds of engineering jobs in just my company.

If you have the skills, the jobs are great.

alfadriver wrote:

ProDarwin wrote: Economic issues? Massive unemployment within the last decade. Automotive companies have a history of financial problems (whether real or just perceived). Those in dual income families - is there availability of a comparable job/pay for their spouse?

Just like everywhere else, opportunity is about skill. My spouse makes considerably more than I do. Ironic that you bring up economic problems, all the while I'm trying to get people to come work and fill the hundreds of engineering jobs in just my company. If you have the skills, the jobs are great.

Not all job opportunity is about skill. Some areas don't contain certain kinds of jobs, or contain a much lower amount of them. Many places in the country specialize in certain industries Silicon Valley, Wall Street, etc. If your spouse has a job in one of those industries, opportunities may be much greater in an area better suited to them. The one big reason I moved away from DC - very little mechanical engineering, and what was there was almost all defense related.

I'm only bringing up economy because its what many people remember. There have been massive layoffs in the past in Michigan (actually, a shocking number of my co-workers are refugees from the auto industry up there). During the economic downturn several large automakers had to be bailed out and Michigan had rather high unemployment. It may not be the case now, but it could still be on potential applicant's minds, and they worry about it happening again.

In reply to ProDarwin:

I guess, then, I speak of this area. There is a wide range of industries here- you like to focus on automotive, but there are also tech companies as well, as well as a number of smaller manufacturing.

Virtually any kind of engineer can find a job here.

I don't discount the layoffs, but we are sensitive to the general economy just like everyone else is. None the less, at the moment, there are hundreds of opportunities just at Ford. GM just announced record profits, too.

Given what is coming in the auto industry in the next 10 years that is required, lots of investment is happening. Then there is the general trends that everyone is trying to keep up with. Which is more than just about cars. People like to focus on what Google and Tesla is doing- but they are tiny players, and tiny investors on a relative basis. Everyone is here, except for Honda in Ohio.

Seems like most everyone here wants to work in the auto industry, yet nobody wants to... weird. Then again, working for big companies is also discounted- which I personally think is stupid, given my stage in life and how my family is aging. It may not be for everyone, but it's better than I think most people think, given the alternative.

Discount it all you want. But at the moment, I will always counter that with the job openings we currently have. I've lived through a few downturns- so it's possible to NOT be a refugee.

I saw a few jobs that interested me and I may be qualified for. If my wife's health was better and I didn't owe so much on my mortgage I would have applied for them. I'm about due for a change of scenery.

Alfa,

I've probably asked you this before, but would you make any suggestions for those of us who are mid-career and looking at gaining more education (and career ops) in technical stuff?

I have the ability to have work pay for my education, but it needs to relate the utility industry. That means mechanical or electrical engineering is definitely a possibility, but would be an extremely long road (part time schooling is slow). Not to mention I'm horrible at math.

Similarly, I could see getting some skills in machining or fabrication, wedling, that type of stuff.

ProDarwin wrote:

alfadriver wrote:

ProDarwin wrote:

Just like everywhere else, opportunity is about skill.

The one big reason I moved away from DC - very little mechanical engineering, and what was there was almost all defense related. I'm only bringing up economy because its what many people remember. There have been massive layoffs in the past in Michigan (actually, a shocking number of my co-workers are refugees from the auto industry up there). During the economic downturn several large automakers had to be bailed out and Michigan had rather high unemployment. It may not be the case now, but it could still be on potential applicant's minds, and they worry about it happening again.

Interesting, I'm a mechanical engineer and I moved to the Baltimore area for non-defense-related work. I did a co-op for a defense company in college, no thanks.

I tried a couple of automotive-related employers, but the cyclical nature of the business, the crappy locations, and (especially) the general attitude towards employees turned me off.

Interestingly, the field I work in presently (rail transit) has similar problems with attracting skilled technical people. And most of the jobs are right where folks say they want to be- near major urban areas. I chalk it up to a lack of widespread knowledge about the field and a bit of a "Trains? That's boring!" mentality.

In reply to PHeller:

While I'm sure there are non engineering degree jobs that do machining, most of them I know of are more general technician.

So supporting dyno development, vehicle development, etc. Most of those bias mechanical knowledge with a little electrical, and a few are backwards of that.

But it would be engine and vehicle build and support.

What sucks right now is that there are more contract workers doing that vs direct hires. None the less, there is that kind of need right now as our tech retired a few months ago.

As for getting a degree from that, my friend did get a EE degree as a tech. He moved on once he got that degree.

Maybe Adrian or Tom can fill in other details.

No wildfires, no landslides, no earthquakes, no hurricanes, almost no tornadoes, and surrounded by the largest fresh water reservoirs on the planet. So berkeley winter, I moved to MI 23 years ago and I'm staying.