At a time when employers increasingly prioritise skills over degrees, many job seekers continue to struggle to secure well-paying jobs that offer career growth and work-life balance. Stories of unemployment, low salaries, layoffs, and prolonged job searches frequently surface on social media, where people seek advice, share their struggles, and recount their career journeys.
One such story was shared by a mechanical engineering graduate on Reddit, where he spoke about his inability to secure a core engineering role despite nearly four years of trying.
The man, who identified himself as a mechanical engineering graduate from the 2022 batch, sought honest advice from fellow users.
In a post titled, "Did I make a mistake choosing Mechanical Engineering? Looking for honest advice," he wrote:
"Hi everyone, I'm a Mechanical Engineering graduate from India (2022 batch). It's been almost 4 years since graduation, and I still haven't been able to land a proper engineering role."
Describing his current situation, he added: "Right now, I'm working 12-hour shifts and earning around Rs 18,000 per month. It pays the bills, but I feel like my career hasn't really started."
The graduate said he had applied for countless graduate engineer trainee (GET), trainee, and other entry-level positions over the years. While he managed to secure some interviews, he said he faced numerous rejections and was often ghosted by recruiters.
Questioning his career choice, he wrote: "Lately, I've been questioning whether choosing Mechanical Engineering was the right decision or whether I simply took the wrong path after graduation."
Seeking guidance from people who had experienced similar challenges, he asked:
"For those who were in a similar situation: How did you get your first proper mechanical job? Is it still worth staying in core mechanical? Should I pivot towards automation, robotics, embedded systems, or another field? If you rebuilt your career after a few years, what worked?"
Did I make a mistake choosing Mechanical Engineering? Looking for honest advice.
by u/Soundar_mech in MechanicalEngineering
Reddit users offer career advice
The post drew responses from several Reddit users, many of whom acknowledged the challenges faced by mechanical engineering graduates in India while suggesting possible career paths.
One user wrote:
"Honestly, it's very tough for mechanical engineers in India. I have seen people struggle if they don't get placed right out of undergrad. The pay, as you mentioned, is low-not as low as you indicated-but nowhere near entry-level software roles. You need to make a decision if you want to remain in mechanical if that's your passion. Else, purely from a salary and opportunity perspective, I feel pivoting to a different sector might help you. I know people with bachelor's degrees in mechanical who did a few SAP courses or worked on basic SQL and are now doing well in related fields."
Another user suggested pursuing higher education if the graduate wished to remain in core mechanical engineering.
"Unfortunately, the demand for core mech is low, so that means only engineers from the top colleges get those few jobs. I don't know which college you are from, but if you consider yourself academically competent and really want a core mech job, the easiest way is a master's degree, preferably from the US or Europe. A master's in India is also an option, but only from the top colleges."
A third user encouraged him to build additional skills and practical experience.
"I guess you should do the free certifications in different subjects like Safety Engineering, HVAC, robotics, and many more. After that, make some personal projects and add them to your resume. Also, try to do internships on the ground level and learn how things work. My honest advice is to go to the marketing side; it may be a better option because doing an internship will show you what mechanical engineers actually do. It's a very hectic role that not everyone can handle. And yes, after gaining some experience, try to go abroad. If you didn't get the right role, then it means God wants something else for you. So don't blame yourself or start questioning yourself."
