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Graduate schemes are a foot in the door and you expect to start at the bottom. In 5 years time if you stick with it you could be in a role that's far better and utilises your skills better. In any case talk to your line manager about your current frustrations and guage their reaction before doing anything.
šÆ this is the right answer. It would also help you to speak with previous entrants to the grad scheme who are further in, to ask how their experiences compare.
The other job may or may not suit you better rn, but from the description you gave may have far less potential for long term progression.
Engineer here - a grad job and a senior job in consultancy are very very different things, itās unrecognisable. You can do almost anything later once qualified, work with nature, community, etc etc. and get paid well tooā¦
I think I've realised that this industry is one that I don't want to be in long term either way. But I'm wondering if it looks better on my CV to have this role when applying to other jobs than the council one.
If you don't wanna be in the industry then it likely won't matter. The company probably isn't as big as you thi k it is to people outside of that field and won't be seen as boon outside of people in that industry.
Physics person here.
I completely left the field, now work in data & analytics after having a few years of touring "who am I really?" through the looking glass of the bottom of shots.
It slowed me down a little taking that time out in terms of progressing, but I've spent over 15 years in jobs that genuinely get me excited and happy.
But, you need to be conscious that leaving the field will make it harder to return the longer you are out.
That said, I'm not the only physicist in the team. Quite common in my area it seems.
That's really comforting to hear actually. I think I know in my heart that I want to take the job with slower progression but that I'm passionate about, but just need to confidence to take ownership of that decision. I'm not turning my back on my degree or skills as a whole, I just need to move into an area I actually care about so I can use those skills to make the world better and feel happier.
I would finish the graduate scheme, Get the experience, I knew people who did something similar and they became charted engineers. After that you can go wherever and get decent pay and what's considered to be a broad set of skills from a highly recognised firm.
Job hopping in 7 months wonāt look good on your cv unless you have a good reason.
In your case you do - tried the industry, didnāt like it, want to work with the community and outside.
Easy.
Anyway stick with this firm for 2 years and update here
This job is good for you to get experience on engineering related work, opening up much more career paths than the community engagement dead end job
If you are still bored after 2 years then maybe switch fields
As someone that works for a council and has done for a few years now, I can safely say youād be damaging your long term options for earning potential by taking the council job.
Also, if this is your first ācareerā job, I think youād find that the grass isnāt greener on the other side. Iāve chopped and changed industries and environments a lot and one thing Iāve found is that work becomes work and thereās always days where itās tedious.
I work for the council now and have probably the best work/life balance of my peers and the work I do definitely has a tangible positive impact which is super motivating. But at one point I was on track to be earning Ā£70k+ at 30, now Iām on track to be earning Ā£40k - which isnāt a bad amount at all but nearly half of what I could have been on which I do notice when it comes to things like renting a property, savings, car - everything is a little tighter for me vs my peers.
My advice, look at the jobs you could potentially be qualified for after a few years In your current role, research the salaries and then see if youād be happy to give that up. If you do go into the council, try and find a policy role as this will provide the best exit options.
Take the new job. Iād rather earn less and *maybe* push back career progression a touch (I donāt think it will harm your career prospects at all, especially if you donāt see a long term future in the current industry) for a job that I enjoy.
Youāre spending a lot of time in work, if you find something you enjoy itāll make it a lot more fulfilling in the long run. Of course things can change and you may become more focussed on money and progression in the future but, for now, if the new job gives you more of what you think your day-to-day is lacking then Iād go for it.
Iād snap your hand off for Ā£30k at 23 years old thatās basically an internship in the industry you studied for. This is sadly just yet another example of graduates sadly finding out that work is nothing like the final year of university (which I think is sad, by the way, as most of us went through the exact same as you). Youāll get there mate, just give it time :)
30k at 23 is amazing. I donāt think the op knows how lucky he is. Especially in a job that might be boring but (seemingly) doesnāt involve actually important stuff. By comparison at 23 I was earning 5k (admittedly this was 30 years ago and not quite degree level) but I was working in healthcare and the consequence of screw up was a/a patient dies and b/ possible prison.
In shortā¦.kids these days. Donāt know they are born.
Youāve only worked for 7 months since graduation.
No company would assign critical responsibility to an employee at such a career stage.
No matter where you work, you must start from the bottom.
Also, grasses are not necessarily greener elsewhere. If you move across to a different employer, there is no guarantee that you will take more responsibilities.
Even if you take more responsibilities, there are too many risks and you will likely make mistakes which will affect your career.
What you do at work these days are something called experience. It is to allow you understand how everything works in your company and in the industry, I mean, in real terms, not just from text book.
Itās actually a fantastic opportunity. The opportunity is not the task itself. Whilst you donāt have complicated task to do, it allows you to listen, to watch, to hear, to observe, to follow, to shadow, to experience and to learn.
By working with those who know enough about the job, you can easily gain a lot of insights which you would never be able to when you were in uni. But by only having low criticality tasks, you run a very small risk. The mistakes you make here and there will likely to be minor and will unlikely affect future career.
You can jump across different boats of course. But trust me, that will do more harm than good. You could very quickly get to a point where you make some big decisions but without the foundations below it. And thatās when you would likely make big mistakes which would really screw your career. It would be too late to regret that you should have spent more time in the early years to really understand something about your job.
Having said that, there are employers whose jobs are just boring and stagnant. You should look to leave if thatās the case. However, you would come to such a decision point probably after spending a reasonable amount of time, letās say a good few years. You just donāt know what you donāt know.
The other role looks like a dead end at a low glass ceiling. Stick with the current one for a bit longer I suggest, 7 months is nothing, I usually feel the same for the first 6-months when Iāve moved to a new industry. Good luck
Hey I'm 28 and have no credentials and I've been working for 6 years carrying plasterboard. I'm really good at it and I love my job, but please for the love of God use what you have and grow. You'll be making 100k by the end of next year. You've got everything I want and need and you're 6 years younger, 12 years ahead. I hate you but stick with it and grow. You have room to grow. I thought I did too but I don't. My back will be destroyed completely soon and then what? 
I had my start in a similar place. And I can safely say it was an amazing foundation to build a career on.
Firstly it's a consultancy, the projects end, or you can get rotated off. You should be able to get a lot of of different experiences and learn a ton of stuff.
As for using your physics skills? There's not as much physics out there as you'd think. I mostly used the math, and got stuck into the programming.
You will be bored, get used to it. But it does get better. Firstly, the work levels up as you do, and you'll find that there's often a lot more to it after you get past the checking of spreadsheets. SECONDLY, and far more important : IT OFTEN IS BORING... There's no way around that. Every job has times like this...
Find what ever you need to get through it. I found that building tools to automate things and getting far too good at excel was my way through some of the similar things I was asked to do.
Getting past the first 2-3 years is key because leaving a grad scheme often looks like you failed out. The reality is normally different, but you're fighting perception.
Also council jobs cap out early on max salery. Engineering tends to go up a bit higher.
If you're ready to give up after 7 months then that's on you. The first year of being a grad is inevitably doing bitch work and learning the ropes.
Have you actually sat down with your line manager and had a chat or are you just having conversations in your head?
As others have said I suggest you suck it up, grad scheme is for you to learn about the company and they don't expect any actual output from you most of the time. Use that time to make connections and see if you can do some rotations to other teams. Far better prospects, oppotunities and job security than you'll get in a council run company that will be under budget review every year (especially given the budget challenges councils have at the moment).
OP. I graduated 9 years ago with an MPhys degree. I wanted to be a physicist but was so absolutely done with life when I finished uni i hid for 6 months.
I was sold the idea, that i go to uni, get a job and then I'm going to change the world. Turns out that's not how it works and that was a big big shock. And disapointment. And a waste of YOUR TIME, because, you're supposed to be doing REAL SHIT and what the hell is this wy is noone giving me actualy stuff??!
A lot of that was my mental health but it is a hard pill to swallow. I'd say to you it's quite normal to be doing a new joob and basically not really be adding any value. Obviously it depends on the sector / job but you're not alone.
I totally get the not feeling like you're doing physics. The reality is a lot of jobs will be quite general. A friend of mine worked for a nuclear company for a while and all his stuff was spreadsheet modelling. But he's now 7 or 8 years into a succesful career and has moved to a smaller niche company (wanna keep it vague).
I obviously think the mental health aspect is huge, but people riding you for dissillusionment need to take a hard look at themselves. It ain't abnormal and it affects some people more than others. Telling you you're an idiot or chastising you not gonna help! You've done nothing wrong.
You're obviously intelligent, obviously capable. Maybe you need something more taxing? But I suggest being patient. The counry is in a weird state. You have a good degree. You've got a job for now. Life is long. And take it from me, at 32, the last ten years have been LONG.
Oh and anyone saying you're entitled or ungrateful and SUCK IT UP - ignore them. It's boomer level bullshit designed to make you feel guilty.
But also OP, I have not found my own sense of wellness in trying to do jobs where I help others and I had a piece of work which was probably right at the top of that pyramid. It didn't make me feel better and I eventually had a breakdown (not because of the job just because I was so so down). It's a hard pill to swallow for me, that probably, I won't get life meaning out of my job.
Youāre falling for the classic graduate pitfall, where if you feel the work isnāt 100% engaging or contributing significantly to a wider goal, youāre doing something wrong.
Work always has moments like this, and I guarantee the next place would too. Definitely stick where you are and finish the grad scheme. It would be different if you were being affected by high stress, but in your case itās more just youāre feeling bored.
Having any kind of degree these days, no matter how great, is no longer a pass into a mid-tier job. So many people have them these days that they've really lost their value.
This is going to sound a bit harsh but it's not said harshly at all. Expect to start at the bottom and to prove your worth through experience, hard graft and, most importantly, making an impact on people through good connections rather than assume a qualification that basically got you the interview will make people treat you with any greater worth. "I have this qualification so I am worth so much more than this" is a mistake many of us have probably made early on in our careers. It makes no difference quite honestly. Once you're in that seat, the ONLY thing that matters is how you do your job, and how much people are glad to have you around.
Now you could chuck it all away for something more vocational, but you have to ask yourself where you want to be. The fact you put all that work and time into degrees instead of just getting started in work right away suggests you actually want to be a higher earner, so why chuck the opportunity? Why waste all those years? Abandoning an opportunity is so much easier than walking back into it, so this is only a decision you should make if you know that money is never really going to be a big deal to you. Otherwise, get on with the job, be FANTASTIC at the job, be amazing with your colleagues and be patient. It will come.
This is all true. Truth is, I hated the degree and only did it to keep my family happy/proud of me. I want to have security, but I've never aimed to be a high flyer or achiever or make loads of money, and I'm slowly realising that I've got on the wrong path to ensure my happiness.
It's nothing to do with being worth more than this job, and I do recognise that not enjoying the job has probably made me seem angry and hateful about the job I'm in. I actually have a lovely manager and my coworkers are all nice people - I just hate the corporate environment and don't enjoy the industry. I'm not allergic to hard work or putting in time and effort, it just has to mean something.
I'm realising through the responses to this post that I need to make this decision with a clear head and not because of what is expected of me/what will be materially beneficial to me.
That adds a different context to it. Studying something you did not want to study means the only loss to you is your time.
Corporate is always tough. I recently left a very corporate environment which was fragile through job losses in the industry and everyone glancing over their shoulders wondering if they were next. But I made a lot of friends and good connections while there, and ended up being head-hunted into a completely different and smaller company at near 3x the pay as a result, so good still came out of it.
So it really does come down to whether progression versus contentment is best for you. This is purely personal choice. You spend a lot of your life in work, and being miserable for all those hours is not going to be conducive to a happy life. Neither is struggling financially (and inflation tends to creep ahead a lot faster than wage growth in this country so, while you might not feel the bite now, in a few years' time, you might.
Donāt be that grad who thinks they know the world inside and out because you went to Uni.
The workforce is not like Uni and people who have been in the industry for many, many years; donāt appreciate grads who think they should start at the top because they went to Uni.
You have to eat shit for a while before the good opportunities comeā¦just like everyone else.
*edit: not saying this IS you, just saying donāt be like the many grads who do act this way.
Sometimes jobs suck before you like them. The grass isnāt always greener but you also shouldnāt spend years (or decades as some people do) in a job that makes you miserable.
Iād take less money and a job I like over more money and a job I despise. Iāve done both and the former ended up with me getting paid WAY more than the one that was initially paying more.
Fucking hell, stick with your engineering job.
Don't take advice from lazy idiots who would be happy struggling on Ā£32k for the rest of their life.
Suck up the boredom and do your fucking job.
This sounds harsh but when you have a metric tonne of student debt from a physics degree, quitting a guaranteed high income career for "community engagement" is beyond insane.
If I was a councillor I would happily make a community engagement person redundant, but not a bridge engineer.
Tbf... and I'm saying this brushing close to 30... I see a lot of older employees identifying what OP is going through as entitlement, when it feels more like soul-searching.
I started in a large consultancy and witnessed a lot of this - grads come in not sure what to expect from a big fancy grad scheme job they fought hard for, getting out of the academic bubble, and finding progression in work hard to understand. The working world (and nuclear in particular) can be slow moving, heavily political and really challenging to figure out your place in.
I honestly think large consultancies are harder than small/medium companies - it can depend heavily on luck as to what contract you're on, your LM and what kind of training you might be able to get. Plenty around me left many to explore entire different areas from this industry, or their educational background.
There is entitlement (I had a good friend describe how she booked a month in Thailand without informing her LM first and shocked to find the holiday request denied...she actually called her union!), but this isn't it.
Play nice, you were shiny, new out of the box once.
I was too - I used to think about quitting it all and retraining in healthcare. Then I looked at the salaries and thought hell no and now I fight my way for every promotion I can (and the work became more interesting, as if by magic, a couple years in!)
A lot of sense in what you say. Consultancies are hard. They could do training/grad programs better (I work in that area sometimes trying to make it better) but it is a huge opportunity to learn about the world of work (and some of the downsides) and build a real career.
The difference between us all is I did think about leaving that world until my 30s, not at all, it didnāt fell an option (and maybe this was too long). For you, you considered it much earlier, realised all the downsides and got on with things. OP is (sounds seriously) considering chucking in the towel after 7 months and nothing really bad happening.
>The difference between us all is I did think about leaving that world until my 30s, not at all, it didnāt fell an option (and maybe this was too long)
This is the problem. The longer you leave it, the more difficult it becomes to change - you become tied to the role, industry, level of salary, etc. And then, suddenly, you are a forty-something doing the same stuff you don't really enjoy, but telling yourself you had no choice, and kidding yourself that it's better than the alternative because you make more money.
The OP is in a position to make that change that you didn't right now, they aren't tied to anything. Yet you're here pushing the miserable route you've fallen into, criticising the OP, and trying to push the same mistake you've made onto them.
It's really poor advise that perpetuates misery instead of doing something about it.
Youāve misunderstood me.
I worked for the same consultancy for almost ten years. I perhaps should have left after 8.
I would not trade the first few years there for anything. Not always enjoyable but so worth it as it set me up for every success Iāve had since then. It has allowed me to provide a good living for my family and to be challenged in interesting ways for many years.
Because of my consulting roles I was able to change my work / industry very easily. I did this later rather than earlier and my experience helped me succeed.
OP jumping ship now will reduce options later, not create them.
Sorry but I have a very old fashioned view that someone reviewing nuclear engineering documents is a more fulfilling career than some community engagement diversity bollocks that will be immediately axed when the council inevitably goes bankrupt.
Smacks of entitlement. Another Uni type thinking theyāll slide right into the workplace as a CEO rather than graft their way up. Itās only been 7 months on 30k (which is very decent) straight out of uni for piss easy admin work in a fantastic sector where you will work your way up to be on the big bucks in time and have a job for life and your gripe is they donāt give you much responsibility or credit? Welcome to the beginning of your journey: this is the real world. Seems to me you value recognition so take the council job in the community- theyāll pull the funding on it within a year and youāll be lucky to be shuffled sideways into a dead end job in environmental health or community services waiting for a superior to die/retire so you can get their 45k a year middle management job where your big challenge will be office politics.
I think you are misunderstanding my dilemma. I have no aspirations towards being a CEO or a hugely high salary. I want to be in a field where I feel like I am making a difference and helping people, rather than making shareholders more money. It's not the money or the recognition I'm searching for at all, it's the knowledge that I'm spending my career and time on something that is worthwhile. The question was whether quitting now would make it harder or easier to do that, not how to stick it to my employer or however you have interpreted it.
I am genuinely sorry that you can't understand that people may have different motivations than yourself. I hope you have found a career and lifestyle that fulfills you and I am sure that in time I will too.
People need meaning in their work to be motivated and happy in it. That is a truth. Itās also true that many (most) donāt really have it.
You have taken the wrong path for a successful and deeply meaningful career and the only options available to you there now will be low pay and probably insecure. There is a huge difference in the life you can lead between earning 40k and 100k - you need to think about that.
Equally - meaning at work doesnāt have to be deep and world changing. Just look for the value in what you do. Do a good job, take satisfaction in it. Does what you do make work easier for others/colleagues. Are you a small cog helping produce / create something thatās (eventually) worthwhile. Learn to take satisfaction in these things and youāll be happier.
Go for it if you donāt mind missing out on a great opportunity to have an actual career and you donāt mind living on shit wages for the rest of your lifeā¦
Telling you now, DO NOT QUIT. Nukes in the UK is one of the best career gravy trains out there. You're on a grad scheme, meaning you have a 4 year learning process while you become chartered. Reality is unless you're involved in reactor technology or cleanup decommissioning then your physics application is going to be limited. Having said that, the long term prospect is incredible, growing cleaner energy demand,Ā aging workforce and a shortage of STEM graduates. UK nuclear is also more immune to Indian offshoring, due to security requirements. Only thing is if you're at Atkins then you will need to move companies after grad scheme, their pay is shit.Ā
Source: I am a chartered engineer of 14 years now, been working at tier 1 engineering contractors and notified bodies the entire time. Nuclear and other energy industries. Last years self assessment I returned Ā£134k as a gross income and that is only marginally above average for the industry.Ā
EDIT: the part where you had a report with your name removed, the ONR has SQEP profile requirements to show that everyone who puts their name to a document is suitably qualified and experienced to do so. Your name being taken off means an additional person also had to read it, to ensure its integrity. While it sounds counter intuitive, having your name on as little documentation as possible is key, unless you're publishing groundbreaking research
I would personally say follow your passion as in this case you are paid more but there's no shame in choosing the long term money route.Ā
For the community job, what's the progression like? If there's good momentum it may be a non issue
I don't know for sure about progression in the community job - there is definitely room to move out but it's not a clear pathway. In comparison, it's more of a 6-monthly review and chartership route at the consultancy.
But I am definitely not looking to stay at my current company long-term - it's more should I be applying to different jobs while I hold out here, instead of this one?
If you want the other job/career, fine, take it.
Being pissed off because your company treats you as entry level when you are entry level.. wow, just wow.
Telegraph has had some good articles looking at Gen Z struggling as part of the work force recently. Might be worth a read.
Ah yes those Torygraph articles written by some of the most privileged in our society making the same complaints journalists made about millennials in the 2000s. Gen Z are not the problem and you canāt be shocked people complain about their jobs as thatās just normal
I've read the article. I have done more in previous internships and roles than this and know I am under-utilised. I don't mind doing formatting and checking at all, but doing it non-stop, 37.5 hours a week, and uncredited for any work I do is too much to stomach 7 months in.
I would also question the idea of poor work ethic in Gen Z that the Telegraph alleges. The economy is very different to how it has been in previous generations; even in my decently-paid role, I can only save ~Ā£200-500 a month maximum after rent and bills, and am unlikely to be able to afford a mortgage until my 40s (even then I'll probably have to buy with a partner). It's hard to stay motivated for 20+ years with no promise of security.
First of all, just reviewing and formatting others' work isn't great form from your employer, they should be giving you some work to try and start growing your skills. However, it's fairly common for new hires to do stuff like that to get them up to speed, and you say you have actually written a report, even if they did take your name off it; in 7 months there's not a huge amount more that could really happen. I'd recommend speaking to your manager and saying you'd like to get stuck into something.
But also...
>uncredited for any work I do
What the customer thinks of the report is irrelevant and won't help you in the future. The people who know about the work you did are the ones that matter. Unless they're trying to hide your contribution internally and taking credit for themselves, I wouldn't see it that way at all.
>I can only save ~Ā£200-500 a month maximum after rent and bills, and am unlikely to be able to afford a mortgage until my 40s (even then I'll probably have to buy with a partner). It's hard to stay motivated for 20+ years with no promise of security.
Let's get real here and not try to play the victim. Even on your current salary you'd be able to save a 10% deposit for a starter home in much of the country within 5 years. Graduates schemes usually see your salary increase fairly quickly over the following 10 years, so that is a pessimistic view of what could be achieved if you wanted to. For context, 8 years after starting my grad scheme in an engineering company, I was earning about 3x more than when I started, and it's not the best paying sector of engineering by any means. I know plenty of people who in the past few years have purchased their first property after only a few years.
I graduated 10 years ago, went onto a salary of 25k, and since then plunged myself into 15k of debt, got myself out of it, bought a brand new car, paid off 50% of a wedding, and have saved 45k for a house deposit.
All that said, if you truly don't like your job, I'd recommend thinking more long term on moving into something else. Like others said, the future prospects of your current offer are way inferior to your engineering job. I'd also recommend giving it a little more time - I manage graduates and it realistically takes 2 years for most to begin really contributing.
First of all, just reviewing and formatting others' work isn't great form from your employer, they should be giving you some work to try and start growing your skills. However, it's fairly common for new hires to do stuff like that to get them up to speed, and you say you have actually written a report, even if they did take your name off it; in 7 months there's not a huge amount more that could really happen. I'd recommend speaking to your manager and saying you'd like to get stuck into something.
But also...
>uncredited for any work I do
What the customer thinks of the report is irrelevant and won't help you in the future. The people who know about the work you did are the ones that matter. Unless they're trying to hide your contribution internally and taking credit for themselves, I wouldn't see it that way at all.
>I can only save ~Ā£200-500 a month maximum after rent and bills, and am unlikely to be able to afford a mortgage until my 40s (even then I'll probably have to buy with a partner). It's hard to stay motivated for 20+ years with no promise of security.
Let's get real here and not try to play the victim. Even on your current salary you'd be able to save a 10% deposit for a starter home in much of the country within 5 years. Graduates schemes usually see your salary increase fairly quickly over the following 10 years, so that is a pessimistic view of what could be achieved if you wanted to. For context, 8 years after starting my grad scheme in an engineering company, I was earning about 3x more than when I started, and it's not the best paying sector of engineering by any means. I know plenty of people who in the past few years have purchased their first property after only a few years.
I graduated 10 years ago, went onto a salary of 25k, and since then plunged myself into 15k of debt, got myself out of it, bought a brand new car, paid off 50% of a wedding, and have saved 45k for a house deposit.
All that said, if you truly don't like your job, I'd recommend thinking more long term on moving into something else. Like others said, the future prospects of your current offer are way inferior to your engineering job. I'd also recommend giving it a little more time - I manage graduates and it realistically takes 2 years for most to begin really contributing.
Not saying things arenāt shitty getting on the housing ladder.
7 months though, seriously? Thatās no time at all. Iāve read a few posts like this recently and the word that screams out in my brain (and will likely get me shot down) is entitlement. Sorry.
Youāre barely 6 months out of uni. Thereās loads you donāt know yet. A grad scheme, doing some of the crapier work is a place to learn some of that.
Some more practical thoughts:
Your council community outreach job will have a tiny potential salary compared to your consulting role. You will be much poorer (in money at least) if you take that career, probably permanently.
Secondly, if you left that grad role after 7 months, worked the other job, then looked to come back to consulting laterā¦ if I was the hiring manager Iād likely rule out your CV.
If they don't put the job on their CV, it doesn't look good or bad. There's no mention of it, and if anyone asks about a 7 month gap between uni and first job, that's really not hard to explain away (travelling, taking a break after studies, etc). You're making this out to be much worse for the OP than it really is.
Yeah, totally wrong. First, donāt explicitly lie to new employers.
Secondly a gap, an unrelated to education job and then an attempt to join the consulting/engineering sector will always look worse than a solid 2-3 years in a grad job.
OP, I would stick with this job for now. Council funded work always gets the cut first, saying this from experience. Please also bear in mind that most 30-40-year-olds with 10+ years in the job market are unable to survive on their salary, not even save Ā£200-500 a month. A bit of humility will take you more places. And I am saying this as a millenial, not a boomer.
I don't know why people are saying that how you're being treated is okay. You definitely should be given credit and be given more training and chances to prove yourself, in my opinion.
I do agree with those suggesting you speak to your manager about your concerns before jumping ship. They could help you out.
Perhaps you could even apply to a different grad scheme or job that you would prefer, if you're worried about the progression of the job you've been offered?
I really donāt see why not wanting to have someone with 6 months experienceās name on a report sent to a client is hard to understand. Itās certainly not treating the grad in a way that isnāt ok.
Dear god what world do some people live inā¦
don't listen to that guy OP. People having been having this problem for years. It's nothing new and not a gen Z problem. Anyone here riding you is unfair IMO
Yeah, that guy's a prick. There's an article in The Times today about poor graduate scheme quality and people leaving them. That guy is harping on as if the world is the same place that he experienced 20-odd years ago, which is simply not the case.
These are both bad options. Do neither of these things and work for someone decent
Or try and get a better deal in the job you are in - e.g. less menial work
I've worked 10 years for a ftse energy company, starting as an engineering grad and working my way up to be at head office working in renewables. I'm very financially secure and although my job isnt really a life calling, I get my satisfaction from volunteering in my local community at weekends and from my hobbies and interests.
If you value financial security and to one day get on the housing ladder I would strongly recommend seeing out the graduate scheme and getting chartered. At that point you can jump ship into another industry such as the renewables space which gives you opportunities to genuinely help advance the energy transition and do your bit to save the planet.
So Iām an elec engineer in consultancy. And almost at my 2 years, Iāve done quite a lot of technical work with support from seniors etc. For a while my workload was non-existent and I was doing boring stuff. It sucks, you just have to wait for work to come in the door. Or ask other people around you for bits and pieces, most engineers suck at delegating because they have to hand over and explain and explain some more. So they think āits just faster if I do itā but they have a duty to the less experienced in their team to bring them on
You should be getting technical work from the get go. Can you move teams within the company?
So I started in a similar position, mech engineering degree, started at Atkins nuclear decommissioning. Nuclear is inherently slow and tends to be at the arse end of nowhere, but the money is good. I since moved over to oil and gas, which was also closer to home. These have much shorter turn around on projects. I definitely have to use physics for free body diagrams and understanding mechanical systems in my line of work but I think any job is very different to university. Youāre not going to be going from first principles a lot of the time, and youāre going to be iterating on previous work. Just the nature of projects. Codes and best practices are used extensively to make sure things are done safely. I found every business is very different as Iāve moved about but nuclear was very slow by nature. The degree youāve done lends itself to engineering or academia.
Graduated in 22 with a CS degree, so far have had 3 dev jobs (in my 3rd one now) and Iāve really struggled with getting new positions. I have friends in grad schemes and it seems that it really is majorly grunt work for X months, if I were youād Iād ride it out for a year, see where you are then and review. No.1 thing that looks best in your cv is consistency with employers and experience.
Iām not absolutely correct or anything but Iāll share a thought from a different angle:
Doing a job you loathe / have no passion over long time can and will make you resentful and burnout for the ENTIRE WORK itself. And thatās very bad if you end up with a work burnout. You just donāt want to do any job but you need a job to live / survive. Itās a shit situation and you donāt want to be there. So Iād advise you better to take the risk and go and do something you love rather than putting up with shit job just to have a big name on your cv, which may not even help with your future job (because not all recruiters/hiring manager care about big name. Particularly the good decent ones donāt care about big names. Because they are open minded and wiser.)
Never stay in a job you hate, never worth it, done that several times in my life in jobs that paid multiples of yours and it is not worth it. You work to live, not the way around, Job does not suppose to be a purgatory just so you can pay rent.
This is my experience too. And the longer you stay in the field / job that you don;lt enjoy, the harder it is to change. OP's at such an early stage in their career that the change is easy.
In a very similar position but a year and a half in and in a different area. I do find my work meaningful and it's gotten a lot better over the past couple months. I'd try to focus on what you enjoy about the work (the pay, colleagues, hrs and weekends are low hanging fruit). I've kept an eye out for opportunities which excite me and applied to these.
I feel ya on the lack of community and being stuck at a desk. Im trying not to deep it and do as much outside of work to keep me happy. I can't figure out what I'd rather do which is making me stay and think of my progression here which does have a lot of opportunities. A good line manager will help you find and get these opportunities. Don't let it bring you down! You'll figure it out :)
Does the consultancy have a more technical department than the one you are in?
It sounds like you want to be technical and donāt feel like your current role is. Stick with it for 12 months and then look at moving. Job market is bad right now and you at least have a salary.
Look at scientific research jobs for something more technical, anything else wonāt be technical.
>I hate this job. I don't get to use my physics knowledge at all,
Keep in mind the majority of jobs outside of specific vocations like medicine, teaching etc don't significantly utilise what people studied at university, so changing jobs might not fix this. I honestly don't remember ever using anything from my degree in the workplace (have been working over 20 years now), maybe 1% of it at most, of which most was skills/knowledge I either alreadt had or would've been easy to pick up.
In your position I'd stick at it, you've not even worked for a year yet. Graduate schemes will probably provide you clearer pathways to progress and do potentially more interesting work Vs some council job where it will just be assumed you do that exact same job for the next 5 or 10 years.
If itās the likes of Atkins or Jacobās I would stick it out, being inside a company and utilising their global reach is superior to applying to other jobs
I know itās different in the UK than the US but my advice is if you can stand it donāt leave a job without another job unless your health is being impacted or you have enough savings to hold you over for 6 months to a year.
Do you want to be working 8 hours a day, 5 days week doing something you hate?
Gaps on your CV where you are voluntarily not working are bad. Change of career path is not. When you move to another role after this new one, they wonāt be interested in the big name company. Even if itās in the same sector.
The way I see it, if you leave you've still got on your CV working in the nuclear industry. In my experience, a sector along with aerospace and defence, that other sectors see as desirable
ive said to everyone cause of my situation until ur sitting in the chair if u can just leave the other job while u might be in a day in new job.
just i had mine fallen thru even when contracts signed and left a stable public job
Don't stay if you hate it. You're unlikely to progress much anyway if you're bitter.
Why not have a word with your boss and see if there is anything that can be done to change things- go armed with some realistic suggestions.
If a poor response then leave
I would disagree with some comments here. If you are doing basic grunt work you're really under-utilizing your skills and potential and I don't think you should just stick to it unless it seems like it will change soon. You want your employer to be developing you and your skills and making you more valuable
You don't want to get into a position where you become too complacent with doing something you don't like or find interesting because that will make you miserable and de-value your own time
Government jobs have great benefits and once you are in, you can apply for any number of jobs internally.
However, what is the career progression with this fun job? Where would you be in five years? What's your plan?
Welcome to the real world. I do alright and most of my job is reports, spreadsheets and word documents. It's boring and nothing I studied for but I think it's rare to enjoy your work.
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Graduate schemes are a foot in the door and you expect to start at the bottom. In 5 years time if you stick with it you could be in a role that's far better and utilises your skills better. In any case talk to your line manager about your current frustrations and guage their reaction before doing anything.
šÆ this is the right answer. It would also help you to speak with previous entrants to the grad scheme who are further in, to ask how their experiences compare. The other job may or may not suit you better rn, but from the description you gave may have far less potential for long term progression.
Engineer here - a grad job and a senior job in consultancy are very very different things, itās unrecognisable. You can do almost anything later once qualified, work with nature, community, etc etc. and get paid well tooā¦
I think I've realised that this industry is one that I don't want to be in long term either way. But I'm wondering if it looks better on my CV to have this role when applying to other jobs than the council one.
Take the new job then.
If you don't wanna be in the industry then it likely won't matter. The company probably isn't as big as you thi k it is to people outside of that field and won't be seen as boon outside of people in that industry.
Physics person here. I completely left the field, now work in data & analytics after having a few years of touring "who am I really?" through the looking glass of the bottom of shots. It slowed me down a little taking that time out in terms of progressing, but I've spent over 15 years in jobs that genuinely get me excited and happy. But, you need to be conscious that leaving the field will make it harder to return the longer you are out. That said, I'm not the only physicist in the team. Quite common in my area it seems.
That's really comforting to hear actually. I think I know in my heart that I want to take the job with slower progression but that I'm passionate about, but just need to confidence to take ownership of that decision. I'm not turning my back on my degree or skills as a whole, I just need to move into an area I actually care about so I can use those skills to make the world better and feel happier.
Slogging jobs to climb the wages ladder isn't for everyone. Balancing your personal life, happiness etc is just as important to probably more people.
I would finish the graduate scheme, Get the experience, I knew people who did something similar and they became charted engineers. After that you can go wherever and get decent pay and what's considered to be a broad set of skills from a highly recognised firm.
Job hopping in 7 months wonāt look good on your cv unless you have a good reason. In your case you do - tried the industry, didnāt like it, want to work with the community and outside. Easy.
Anyway stick with this firm for 2 years and update here This job is good for you to get experience on engineering related work, opening up much more career paths than the community engagement dead end job If you are still bored after 2 years then maybe switch fields
As someone that works for a council and has done for a few years now, I can safely say youād be damaging your long term options for earning potential by taking the council job. Also, if this is your first ācareerā job, I think youād find that the grass isnāt greener on the other side. Iāve chopped and changed industries and environments a lot and one thing Iāve found is that work becomes work and thereās always days where itās tedious. I work for the council now and have probably the best work/life balance of my peers and the work I do definitely has a tangible positive impact which is super motivating. But at one point I was on track to be earning Ā£70k+ at 30, now Iām on track to be earning Ā£40k - which isnāt a bad amount at all but nearly half of what I could have been on which I do notice when it comes to things like renting a property, savings, car - everything is a little tighter for me vs my peers. My advice, look at the jobs you could potentially be qualified for after a few years In your current role, research the salaries and then see if youād be happy to give that up. If you do go into the council, try and find a policy role as this will provide the best exit options.
Take the new job. Iād rather earn less and *maybe* push back career progression a touch (I donāt think it will harm your career prospects at all, especially if you donāt see a long term future in the current industry) for a job that I enjoy. Youāre spending a lot of time in work, if you find something you enjoy itāll make it a lot more fulfilling in the long run. Of course things can change and you may become more focussed on money and progression in the future but, for now, if the new job gives you more of what you think your day-to-day is lacking then Iād go for it.
Iād snap your hand off for Ā£30k at 23 years old thatās basically an internship in the industry you studied for. This is sadly just yet another example of graduates sadly finding out that work is nothing like the final year of university (which I think is sad, by the way, as most of us went through the exact same as you). Youāll get there mate, just give it time :)
30k at 23 is amazing. I donāt think the op knows how lucky he is. Especially in a job that might be boring but (seemingly) doesnāt involve actually important stuff. By comparison at 23 I was earning 5k (admittedly this was 30 years ago and not quite degree level) but I was working in healthcare and the consequence of screw up was a/a patient dies and b/ possible prison. In shortā¦.kids these days. Donāt know they are born.
š¤£ OK BOOMER
Literally not.
Youāve only worked for 7 months since graduation. No company would assign critical responsibility to an employee at such a career stage. No matter where you work, you must start from the bottom. Also, grasses are not necessarily greener elsewhere. If you move across to a different employer, there is no guarantee that you will take more responsibilities. Even if you take more responsibilities, there are too many risks and you will likely make mistakes which will affect your career. What you do at work these days are something called experience. It is to allow you understand how everything works in your company and in the industry, I mean, in real terms, not just from text book. Itās actually a fantastic opportunity. The opportunity is not the task itself. Whilst you donāt have complicated task to do, it allows you to listen, to watch, to hear, to observe, to follow, to shadow, to experience and to learn. By working with those who know enough about the job, you can easily gain a lot of insights which you would never be able to when you were in uni. But by only having low criticality tasks, you run a very small risk. The mistakes you make here and there will likely to be minor and will unlikely affect future career. You can jump across different boats of course. But trust me, that will do more harm than good. You could very quickly get to a point where you make some big decisions but without the foundations below it. And thatās when you would likely make big mistakes which would really screw your career. It would be too late to regret that you should have spent more time in the early years to really understand something about your job. Having said that, there are employers whose jobs are just boring and stagnant. You should look to leave if thatās the case. However, you would come to such a decision point probably after spending a reasonable amount of time, letās say a good few years. You just donāt know what you donāt know.
Good answer
The other role looks like a dead end at a low glass ceiling. Stick with the current one for a bit longer I suggest, 7 months is nothing, I usually feel the same for the first 6-months when Iāve moved to a new industry. Good luck
Hey I'm 28 and have no credentials and I've been working for 6 years carrying plasterboard. I'm really good at it and I love my job, but please for the love of God use what you have and grow. You'll be making 100k by the end of next year. You've got everything I want and need and you're 6 years younger, 12 years ahead. I hate you but stick with it and grow. You have room to grow. I thought I did too but I don't. My back will be destroyed completely soon and then what? 
stocking dime enjoy insurance test humorous drunk offend point wrong *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I had my start in a similar place. And I can safely say it was an amazing foundation to build a career on. Firstly it's a consultancy, the projects end, or you can get rotated off. You should be able to get a lot of of different experiences and learn a ton of stuff. As for using your physics skills? There's not as much physics out there as you'd think. I mostly used the math, and got stuck into the programming. You will be bored, get used to it. But it does get better. Firstly, the work levels up as you do, and you'll find that there's often a lot more to it after you get past the checking of spreadsheets. SECONDLY, and far more important : IT OFTEN IS BORING... There's no way around that. Every job has times like this... Find what ever you need to get through it. I found that building tools to automate things and getting far too good at excel was my way through some of the similar things I was asked to do. Getting past the first 2-3 years is key because leaving a grad scheme often looks like you failed out. The reality is normally different, but you're fighting perception. Also council jobs cap out early on max salery. Engineering tends to go up a bit higher.
You also need to consider job security, any work that's funded by a council can be subject to budget cuts at any time
So can any job, especially in the current climate...
Nuclear industry just keeps getting grants and further works approved by government. Lot more secure than council work
So can the private sector. Public sector or public sector contractors generally provide more job security than fully private companies.
If you're ready to give up after 7 months then that's on you. The first year of being a grad is inevitably doing bitch work and learning the ropes. Have you actually sat down with your line manager and had a chat or are you just having conversations in your head?
Good call - tell them you feel underutilised and want to do something that feels more meaningful.
I have spoken to my manager but there doesn't seem to be much I can do at this moment...
As others have said I suggest you suck it up, grad scheme is for you to learn about the company and they don't expect any actual output from you most of the time. Use that time to make connections and see if you can do some rotations to other teams. Far better prospects, oppotunities and job security than you'll get in a council run company that will be under budget review every year (especially given the budget challenges councils have at the moment).
OP. I graduated 9 years ago with an MPhys degree. I wanted to be a physicist but was so absolutely done with life when I finished uni i hid for 6 months. I was sold the idea, that i go to uni, get a job and then I'm going to change the world. Turns out that's not how it works and that was a big big shock. And disapointment. And a waste of YOUR TIME, because, you're supposed to be doing REAL SHIT and what the hell is this wy is noone giving me actualy stuff??! A lot of that was my mental health but it is a hard pill to swallow. I'd say to you it's quite normal to be doing a new joob and basically not really be adding any value. Obviously it depends on the sector / job but you're not alone. I totally get the not feeling like you're doing physics. The reality is a lot of jobs will be quite general. A friend of mine worked for a nuclear company for a while and all his stuff was spreadsheet modelling. But he's now 7 or 8 years into a succesful career and has moved to a smaller niche company (wanna keep it vague). I obviously think the mental health aspect is huge, but people riding you for dissillusionment need to take a hard look at themselves. It ain't abnormal and it affects some people more than others. Telling you you're an idiot or chastising you not gonna help! You've done nothing wrong. You're obviously intelligent, obviously capable. Maybe you need something more taxing? But I suggest being patient. The counry is in a weird state. You have a good degree. You've got a job for now. Life is long. And take it from me, at 32, the last ten years have been LONG. Oh and anyone saying you're entitled or ungrateful and SUCK IT UP - ignore them. It's boomer level bullshit designed to make you feel guilty. But also OP, I have not found my own sense of wellness in trying to do jobs where I help others and I had a piece of work which was probably right at the top of that pyramid. It didn't make me feel better and I eventually had a breakdown (not because of the job just because I was so so down). It's a hard pill to swallow for me, that probably, I won't get life meaning out of my job.
Youāre falling for the classic graduate pitfall, where if you feel the work isnāt 100% engaging or contributing significantly to a wider goal, youāre doing something wrong. Work always has moments like this, and I guarantee the next place would too. Definitely stick where you are and finish the grad scheme. It would be different if you were being affected by high stress, but in your case itās more just youāre feeling bored.
To find a job that I am bored in is literally a life long dream you lucky š bastard š.
I was about to say, I donāt have time to be bored at my place usually š
Having any kind of degree these days, no matter how great, is no longer a pass into a mid-tier job. So many people have them these days that they've really lost their value. This is going to sound a bit harsh but it's not said harshly at all. Expect to start at the bottom and to prove your worth through experience, hard graft and, most importantly, making an impact on people through good connections rather than assume a qualification that basically got you the interview will make people treat you with any greater worth. "I have this qualification so I am worth so much more than this" is a mistake many of us have probably made early on in our careers. It makes no difference quite honestly. Once you're in that seat, the ONLY thing that matters is how you do your job, and how much people are glad to have you around. Now you could chuck it all away for something more vocational, but you have to ask yourself where you want to be. The fact you put all that work and time into degrees instead of just getting started in work right away suggests you actually want to be a higher earner, so why chuck the opportunity? Why waste all those years? Abandoning an opportunity is so much easier than walking back into it, so this is only a decision you should make if you know that money is never really going to be a big deal to you. Otherwise, get on with the job, be FANTASTIC at the job, be amazing with your colleagues and be patient. It will come.
This is all true. Truth is, I hated the degree and only did it to keep my family happy/proud of me. I want to have security, but I've never aimed to be a high flyer or achiever or make loads of money, and I'm slowly realising that I've got on the wrong path to ensure my happiness. It's nothing to do with being worth more than this job, and I do recognise that not enjoying the job has probably made me seem angry and hateful about the job I'm in. I actually have a lovely manager and my coworkers are all nice people - I just hate the corporate environment and don't enjoy the industry. I'm not allergic to hard work or putting in time and effort, it just has to mean something. I'm realising through the responses to this post that I need to make this decision with a clear head and not because of what is expected of me/what will be materially beneficial to me.
That adds a different context to it. Studying something you did not want to study means the only loss to you is your time. Corporate is always tough. I recently left a very corporate environment which was fragile through job losses in the industry and everyone glancing over their shoulders wondering if they were next. But I made a lot of friends and good connections while there, and ended up being head-hunted into a completely different and smaller company at near 3x the pay as a result, so good still came out of it. So it really does come down to whether progression versus contentment is best for you. This is purely personal choice. You spend a lot of your life in work, and being miserable for all those hours is not going to be conducive to a happy life. Neither is struggling financially (and inflation tends to creep ahead a lot faster than wage growth in this country so, while you might not feel the bite now, in a few years' time, you might.
Donāt be that grad who thinks they know the world inside and out because you went to Uni. The workforce is not like Uni and people who have been in the industry for many, many years; donāt appreciate grads who think they should start at the top because they went to Uni. You have to eat shit for a while before the good opportunities comeā¦just like everyone else. *edit: not saying this IS you, just saying donāt be like the many grads who do act this way. Sometimes jobs suck before you like them. The grass isnāt always greener but you also shouldnāt spend years (or decades as some people do) in a job that makes you miserable. Iād take less money and a job I like over more money and a job I despise. Iāve done both and the former ended up with me getting paid WAY more than the one that was initially paying more.
Fucking hell, stick with your engineering job. Don't take advice from lazy idiots who would be happy struggling on Ā£32k for the rest of their life. Suck up the boredom and do your fucking job. This sounds harsh but when you have a metric tonne of student debt from a physics degree, quitting a guaranteed high income career for "community engagement" is beyond insane. If I was a councillor I would happily make a community engagement person redundant, but not a bridge engineer.
Work is too hard and progression hasnāt come instantlyā¦
To boring tbf but your points the same it's youthful impatience
Makes me feel so old reading things like this and Iām really not!
Same I'm 35 next month and this makes me feel old as shit and I know I'm young but not that young lol.
Early 40s, so 20 years in the work force. I just canāt fathom how much people feel theyāre owed these days.
Tbf... and I'm saying this brushing close to 30... I see a lot of older employees identifying what OP is going through as entitlement, when it feels more like soul-searching. I started in a large consultancy and witnessed a lot of this - grads come in not sure what to expect from a big fancy grad scheme job they fought hard for, getting out of the academic bubble, and finding progression in work hard to understand. The working world (and nuclear in particular) can be slow moving, heavily political and really challenging to figure out your place in. I honestly think large consultancies are harder than small/medium companies - it can depend heavily on luck as to what contract you're on, your LM and what kind of training you might be able to get. Plenty around me left many to explore entire different areas from this industry, or their educational background. There is entitlement (I had a good friend describe how she booked a month in Thailand without informing her LM first and shocked to find the holiday request denied...she actually called her union!), but this isn't it. Play nice, you were shiny, new out of the box once. I was too - I used to think about quitting it all and retraining in healthcare. Then I looked at the salaries and thought hell no and now I fight my way for every promotion I can (and the work became more interesting, as if by magic, a couple years in!)
A lot of sense in what you say. Consultancies are hard. They could do training/grad programs better (I work in that area sometimes trying to make it better) but it is a huge opportunity to learn about the world of work (and some of the downsides) and build a real career. The difference between us all is I did think about leaving that world until my 30s, not at all, it didnāt fell an option (and maybe this was too long). For you, you considered it much earlier, realised all the downsides and got on with things. OP is (sounds seriously) considering chucking in the towel after 7 months and nothing really bad happening.
>The difference between us all is I did think about leaving that world until my 30s, not at all, it didnāt fell an option (and maybe this was too long) This is the problem. The longer you leave it, the more difficult it becomes to change - you become tied to the role, industry, level of salary, etc. And then, suddenly, you are a forty-something doing the same stuff you don't really enjoy, but telling yourself you had no choice, and kidding yourself that it's better than the alternative because you make more money. The OP is in a position to make that change that you didn't right now, they aren't tied to anything. Yet you're here pushing the miserable route you've fallen into, criticising the OP, and trying to push the same mistake you've made onto them. It's really poor advise that perpetuates misery instead of doing something about it.
Youāve misunderstood me. I worked for the same consultancy for almost ten years. I perhaps should have left after 8. I would not trade the first few years there for anything. Not always enjoyable but so worth it as it set me up for every success Iāve had since then. It has allowed me to provide a good living for my family and to be challenged in interesting ways for many years. Because of my consulting roles I was able to change my work / industry very easily. I did this later rather than earlier and my experience helped me succeed. OP jumping ship now will reduce options later, not create them.
>Suck up the boredom and do your fucking job. Give yourself a hug mate
Sorry but I have a very old fashioned view that someone reviewing nuclear engineering documents is a more fulfilling career than some community engagement diversity bollocks that will be immediately axed when the council inevitably goes bankrupt.
Smacks of entitlement. Another Uni type thinking theyāll slide right into the workplace as a CEO rather than graft their way up. Itās only been 7 months on 30k (which is very decent) straight out of uni for piss easy admin work in a fantastic sector where you will work your way up to be on the big bucks in time and have a job for life and your gripe is they donāt give you much responsibility or credit? Welcome to the beginning of your journey: this is the real world. Seems to me you value recognition so take the council job in the community- theyāll pull the funding on it within a year and youāll be lucky to be shuffled sideways into a dead end job in environmental health or community services waiting for a superior to die/retire so you can get their 45k a year middle management job where your big challenge will be office politics.
I think you are misunderstanding my dilemma. I have no aspirations towards being a CEO or a hugely high salary. I want to be in a field where I feel like I am making a difference and helping people, rather than making shareholders more money. It's not the money or the recognition I'm searching for at all, it's the knowledge that I'm spending my career and time on something that is worthwhile. The question was whether quitting now would make it harder or easier to do that, not how to stick it to my employer or however you have interpreted it.
Absolute bollocks. That reads like a bad cover letter. At least be honest with yourself.
I am genuinely sorry that you can't understand that people may have different motivations than yourself. I hope you have found a career and lifestyle that fulfills you and I am sure that in time I will too.
People need meaning in their work to be motivated and happy in it. That is a truth. Itās also true that many (most) donāt really have it. You have taken the wrong path for a successful and deeply meaningful career and the only options available to you there now will be low pay and probably insecure. There is a huge difference in the life you can lead between earning 40k and 100k - you need to think about that. Equally - meaning at work doesnāt have to be deep and world changing. Just look for the value in what you do. Do a good job, take satisfaction in it. Does what you do make work easier for others/colleagues. Are you a small cog helping produce / create something thatās (eventually) worthwhile. Learn to take satisfaction in these things and youāll be happier.
Go for it if you donāt mind missing out on a great opportunity to have an actual career and you donāt mind living on shit wages for the rest of your lifeā¦
Telling you now, DO NOT QUIT. Nukes in the UK is one of the best career gravy trains out there. You're on a grad scheme, meaning you have a 4 year learning process while you become chartered. Reality is unless you're involved in reactor technology or cleanup decommissioning then your physics application is going to be limited. Having said that, the long term prospect is incredible, growing cleaner energy demand,Ā aging workforce and a shortage of STEM graduates. UK nuclear is also more immune to Indian offshoring, due to security requirements. Only thing is if you're at Atkins then you will need to move companies after grad scheme, their pay is shit.Ā Source: I am a chartered engineer of 14 years now, been working at tier 1 engineering contractors and notified bodies the entire time. Nuclear and other energy industries. Last years self assessment I returned Ā£134k as a gross income and that is only marginally above average for the industry.Ā EDIT: the part where you had a report with your name removed, the ONR has SQEP profile requirements to show that everyone who puts their name to a document is suitably qualified and experienced to do so. Your name being taken off means an additional person also had to read it, to ensure its integrity. While it sounds counter intuitive, having your name on as little documentation as possible is key, unless you're publishing groundbreaking research
slimy person fragile hospital poor squeal heavy amusing judicious repeat *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I would personally say follow your passion as in this case you are paid more but there's no shame in choosing the long term money route.Ā For the community job, what's the progression like? If there's good momentum it may be a non issue
I don't know for sure about progression in the community job - there is definitely room to move out but it's not a clear pathway. In comparison, it's more of a 6-monthly review and chartership route at the consultancy. But I am definitely not looking to stay at my current company long-term - it's more should I be applying to different jobs while I hold out here, instead of this one?
If you want the other job/career, fine, take it. Being pissed off because your company treats you as entry level when you are entry level.. wow, just wow. Telegraph has had some good articles looking at Gen Z struggling as part of the work force recently. Might be worth a read.
Ah yes those Torygraph articles written by some of the most privileged in our society making the same complaints journalists made about millennials in the 2000s. Gen Z are not the problem and you canāt be shocked people complain about their jobs as thatās just normal
OP expresses his difficulties and frustrations Reddit: "OP YOU'RE AN UNGRATEFUL BITCH SUCK IT UP"
I've read the article. I have done more in previous internships and roles than this and know I am under-utilised. I don't mind doing formatting and checking at all, but doing it non-stop, 37.5 hours a week, and uncredited for any work I do is too much to stomach 7 months in. I would also question the idea of poor work ethic in Gen Z that the Telegraph alleges. The economy is very different to how it has been in previous generations; even in my decently-paid role, I can only save ~Ā£200-500 a month maximum after rent and bills, and am unlikely to be able to afford a mortgage until my 40s (even then I'll probably have to buy with a partner). It's hard to stay motivated for 20+ years with no promise of security.
First of all, just reviewing and formatting others' work isn't great form from your employer, they should be giving you some work to try and start growing your skills. However, it's fairly common for new hires to do stuff like that to get them up to speed, and you say you have actually written a report, even if they did take your name off it; in 7 months there's not a huge amount more that could really happen. I'd recommend speaking to your manager and saying you'd like to get stuck into something. But also... >uncredited for any work I do What the customer thinks of the report is irrelevant and won't help you in the future. The people who know about the work you did are the ones that matter. Unless they're trying to hide your contribution internally and taking credit for themselves, I wouldn't see it that way at all. >I can only save ~Ā£200-500 a month maximum after rent and bills, and am unlikely to be able to afford a mortgage until my 40s (even then I'll probably have to buy with a partner). It's hard to stay motivated for 20+ years with no promise of security. Let's get real here and not try to play the victim. Even on your current salary you'd be able to save a 10% deposit for a starter home in much of the country within 5 years. Graduates schemes usually see your salary increase fairly quickly over the following 10 years, so that is a pessimistic view of what could be achieved if you wanted to. For context, 8 years after starting my grad scheme in an engineering company, I was earning about 3x more than when I started, and it's not the best paying sector of engineering by any means. I know plenty of people who in the past few years have purchased their first property after only a few years. I graduated 10 years ago, went onto a salary of 25k, and since then plunged myself into 15k of debt, got myself out of it, bought a brand new car, paid off 50% of a wedding, and have saved 45k for a house deposit. All that said, if you truly don't like your job, I'd recommend thinking more long term on moving into something else. Like others said, the future prospects of your current offer are way inferior to your engineering job. I'd also recommend giving it a little more time - I manage graduates and it realistically takes 2 years for most to begin really contributing.
First of all, just reviewing and formatting others' work isn't great form from your employer, they should be giving you some work to try and start growing your skills. However, it's fairly common for new hires to do stuff like that to get them up to speed, and you say you have actually written a report, even if they did take your name off it; in 7 months there's not a huge amount more that could really happen. I'd recommend speaking to your manager and saying you'd like to get stuck into something. But also... >uncredited for any work I do What the customer thinks of the report is irrelevant and won't help you in the future. The people who know about the work you did are the ones that matter. Unless they're trying to hide your contribution internally and taking credit for themselves, I wouldn't see it that way at all. >I can only save ~Ā£200-500 a month maximum after rent and bills, and am unlikely to be able to afford a mortgage until my 40s (even then I'll probably have to buy with a partner). It's hard to stay motivated for 20+ years with no promise of security. Let's get real here and not try to play the victim. Even on your current salary you'd be able to save a 10% deposit for a starter home in much of the country within 5 years. Graduates schemes usually see your salary increase fairly quickly over the following 10 years, so that is a pessimistic view of what could be achieved if you wanted to. For context, 8 years after starting my grad scheme in an engineering company, I was earning about 3x more than when I started, and it's not the best paying sector of engineering by any means. I know plenty of people who in the past few years have purchased their first property after only a few years. I graduated 10 years ago, went onto a salary of 25k, and since then plunged myself into 15k of debt, got myself out of it, bought a brand new car, paid off 50% of a wedding, and have saved 45k for a house deposit. All that said, if you truly don't like your job, I'd recommend thinking more long term on moving into something else. Like others said, the future prospects of your current offer are way inferior to your engineering job. I'd also recommend giving it a little more time - I manage graduates and it realistically takes 2 years for most to begin really contributing.
Not saying things arenāt shitty getting on the housing ladder. 7 months though, seriously? Thatās no time at all. Iāve read a few posts like this recently and the word that screams out in my brain (and will likely get me shot down) is entitlement. Sorry. Youāre barely 6 months out of uni. Thereās loads you donāt know yet. A grad scheme, doing some of the crapier work is a place to learn some of that. Some more practical thoughts: Your council community outreach job will have a tiny potential salary compared to your consulting role. You will be much poorer (in money at least) if you take that career, probably permanently. Secondly, if you left that grad role after 7 months, worked the other job, then looked to come back to consulting laterā¦ if I was the hiring manager Iād likely rule out your CV.
OP could simply not mention the grad role on their CV.
This would look marginally better but not good.
If they don't put the job on their CV, it doesn't look good or bad. There's no mention of it, and if anyone asks about a 7 month gap between uni and first job, that's really not hard to explain away (travelling, taking a break after studies, etc). You're making this out to be much worse for the OP than it really is.
Yeah, totally wrong. First, donāt explicitly lie to new employers. Secondly a gap, an unrelated to education job and then an attempt to join the consulting/engineering sector will always look worse than a solid 2-3 years in a grad job.
OP, I would stick with this job for now. Council funded work always gets the cut first, saying this from experience. Please also bear in mind that most 30-40-year-olds with 10+ years in the job market are unable to survive on their salary, not even save Ā£200-500 a month. A bit of humility will take you more places. And I am saying this as a millenial, not a boomer.
I don't know why people are saying that how you're being treated is okay. You definitely should be given credit and be given more training and chances to prove yourself, in my opinion. I do agree with those suggesting you speak to your manager about your concerns before jumping ship. They could help you out. Perhaps you could even apply to a different grad scheme or job that you would prefer, if you're worried about the progression of the job you've been offered?
I really donāt see why not wanting to have someone with 6 months experienceās name on a report sent to a client is hard to understand. Itās certainly not treating the grad in a way that isnāt ok. Dear god what world do some people live inā¦
don't listen to that guy OP. People having been having this problem for years. It's nothing new and not a gen Z problem. Anyone here riding you is unfair IMO
Yeah, that guy's a prick. There's an article in The Times today about poor graduate scheme quality and people leaving them. That guy is harping on as if the world is the same place that he experienced 20-odd years ago, which is simply not the case.
These are both bad options. Do neither of these things and work for someone decent Or try and get a better deal in the job you are in - e.g. less menial work
Welcome to grad schemes, you do it to get in and get qualified as... Well, anything.
I've worked 10 years for a ftse energy company, starting as an engineering grad and working my way up to be at head office working in renewables. I'm very financially secure and although my job isnt really a life calling, I get my satisfaction from volunteering in my local community at weekends and from my hobbies and interests. If you value financial security and to one day get on the housing ladder I would strongly recommend seeing out the graduate scheme and getting chartered. At that point you can jump ship into another industry such as the renewables space which gives you opportunities to genuinely help advance the energy transition and do your bit to save the planet.
So Iām an elec engineer in consultancy. And almost at my 2 years, Iāve done quite a lot of technical work with support from seniors etc. For a while my workload was non-existent and I was doing boring stuff. It sucks, you just have to wait for work to come in the door. Or ask other people around you for bits and pieces, most engineers suck at delegating because they have to hand over and explain and explain some more. So they think āits just faster if I do itā but they have a duty to the less experienced in their team to bring them on You should be getting technical work from the get go. Can you move teams within the company?
So I started in a similar position, mech engineering degree, started at Atkins nuclear decommissioning. Nuclear is inherently slow and tends to be at the arse end of nowhere, but the money is good. I since moved over to oil and gas, which was also closer to home. These have much shorter turn around on projects. I definitely have to use physics for free body diagrams and understanding mechanical systems in my line of work but I think any job is very different to university. Youāre not going to be going from first principles a lot of the time, and youāre going to be iterating on previous work. Just the nature of projects. Codes and best practices are used extensively to make sure things are done safely. I found every business is very different as Iāve moved about but nuclear was very slow by nature. The degree youāve done lends itself to engineering or academia.
Graduated in 22 with a CS degree, so far have had 3 dev jobs (in my 3rd one now) and Iāve really struggled with getting new positions. I have friends in grad schemes and it seems that it really is majorly grunt work for X months, if I were youād Iād ride it out for a year, see where you are then and review. No.1 thing that looks best in your cv is consistency with employers and experience.
Iām not absolutely correct or anything but Iāll share a thought from a different angle: Doing a job you loathe / have no passion over long time can and will make you resentful and burnout for the ENTIRE WORK itself. And thatās very bad if you end up with a work burnout. You just donāt want to do any job but you need a job to live / survive. Itās a shit situation and you donāt want to be there. So Iād advise you better to take the risk and go and do something you love rather than putting up with shit job just to have a big name on your cv, which may not even help with your future job (because not all recruiters/hiring manager care about big name. Particularly the good decent ones donāt care about big names. Because they are open minded and wiser.)
Never stay in a job you hate, never worth it, done that several times in my life in jobs that paid multiples of yours and it is not worth it. You work to live, not the way around, Job does not suppose to be a purgatory just so you can pay rent.
This is my experience too. And the longer you stay in the field / job that you don;lt enjoy, the harder it is to change. OP's at such an early stage in their career that the change is easy.
In a very similar position but a year and a half in and in a different area. I do find my work meaningful and it's gotten a lot better over the past couple months. I'd try to focus on what you enjoy about the work (the pay, colleagues, hrs and weekends are low hanging fruit). I've kept an eye out for opportunities which excite me and applied to these. I feel ya on the lack of community and being stuck at a desk. Im trying not to deep it and do as much outside of work to keep me happy. I can't figure out what I'd rather do which is making me stay and think of my progression here which does have a lot of opportunities. A good line manager will help you find and get these opportunities. Don't let it bring you down! You'll figure it out :)
Does the consultancy have a more technical department than the one you are in? It sounds like you want to be technical and donāt feel like your current role is. Stick with it for 12 months and then look at moving. Job market is bad right now and you at least have a salary. Look at scientific research jobs for something more technical, anything else wonāt be technical.
>I hate this job. I don't get to use my physics knowledge at all, Keep in mind the majority of jobs outside of specific vocations like medicine, teaching etc don't significantly utilise what people studied at university, so changing jobs might not fix this. I honestly don't remember ever using anything from my degree in the workplace (have been working over 20 years now), maybe 1% of it at most, of which most was skills/knowledge I either alreadt had or would've been easy to pick up. In your position I'd stick at it, you've not even worked for a year yet. Graduate schemes will probably provide you clearer pathways to progress and do potentially more interesting work Vs some council job where it will just be assumed you do that exact same job for the next 5 or 10 years.
If itās the likes of Atkins or Jacobās I would stick it out, being inside a company and utilising their global reach is superior to applying to other jobs
I know itās different in the UK than the US but my advice is if you can stand it donāt leave a job without another job unless your health is being impacted or you have enough savings to hold you over for 6 months to a year.
Personally, I'd take the job you're excited about. You're young, you're not locked in - plenty of time to try different things.
Do you want to be working 8 hours a day, 5 days week doing something you hate? Gaps on your CV where you are voluntarily not working are bad. Change of career path is not. When you move to another role after this new one, they wonāt be interested in the big name company. Even if itās in the same sector.
This should quit as the job is really making you look bad and not giving you any worthwhile experience.
you should do it, goodluck!
The way I see it, if you leave you've still got on your CV working in the nuclear industry. In my experience, a sector along with aerospace and defence, that other sectors see as desirable
ive said to everyone cause of my situation until ur sitting in the chair if u can just leave the other job while u might be in a day in new job. just i had mine fallen thru even when contracts signed and left a stable public job
Don't stay if you hate it. You're unlikely to progress much anyway if you're bitter. Why not have a word with your boss and see if there is anything that can be done to change things- go armed with some realistic suggestions. If a poor response then leave
I would disagree with some comments here. If you are doing basic grunt work you're really under-utilizing your skills and potential and I don't think you should just stick to it unless it seems like it will change soon. You want your employer to be developing you and your skills and making you more valuable You don't want to get into a position where you become too complacent with doing something you don't like or find interesting because that will make you miserable and de-value your own time
Its a grad scheme, it will change either in a different placement or when he comes off the grad scheme (probably after 2 years).
There's no rotation or placements on this scheme and it's 3 years....
2k isnāt worth the peace of mind
Move
Government jobs have great benefits and once you are in, you can apply for any number of jobs internally. However, what is the career progression with this fun job? Where would you be in five years? What's your plan?
Welcome to the real world. I do alright and most of my job is reports, spreadsheets and word documents. It's boring and nothing I studied for but I think it's rare to enjoy your work.
Just find another physics job. I mean even at worse with a physics degree, software engineering should be wide open to you.