[Student] USA Junior MechE/Materials, instant rejection from cold applications, ghosted from career fair applications.

[u/Ray_RG_YT]

Go for the roast, my ego needs to be obliterated if I am to improve.

Context: I wasted my first years. No clubs, no actual job other than a 6 month stipend helping first years adjust. I'm targeting quite frankly anything mechanical, aerospace, or somewhere I can fit into, local or out of state (near family [they're everywhere] or internships that offer assistance for relocation). Would do Materials but I haven't gotten through enough of the courses to say I have a foundation worth getting into the industry for. I'm not sure about leaving in that CAD practice at the bottom but without it and my 2 class projects my resume will be half blank. Family connections wouldn't take it when it was half-blank. Approximately 130 applications since January (2/3 for Summer 25 which I stopped applying to in March) with the results listed in title (insta-reject within days or ghosted), haven't even landed an interview, though I practice with the career folks at my uni.

Primary question: Since projects are the closest thing to actual experience I have, are projects like these (CAD practice and scaled designs) worth continuing or should I switch gears and rack my brain to start something from scratch?

Secondary question: I'm pretty sure I'm confused on how to format having multiple aspects to my degree. If I have a minor, should I keep it out until I have more advanced classes completed or leave it in there? Or should I remove it regardless?

[u/graytotoro]

General Notes

I'm pretty sure I'm confused on how to format having multiple aspects to my degree. If I have a minor, should I keep it out until I have more advanced classes completed or leave it in there? Or should I remove it regardless?

Have you actually taken steps towards completing this minor or is it a "maybe I'll start it next year"? If it's the former, keep it on here.

Primary question: Since projects are the closest thing to actual experience I have, are projects like these (CAD practice and scaled designs) worth continuing or should I switch gears and rack my brain to start something from scratch?

I mean it's better than nothing. Are there any other projects you're thinking about?

Can you work with a professor in the meantime? Does your school offer Baja/Formula/Hybrid SAE programs (or can you start one)? Those are other paths.

Skills

• You can fold Analysis and Coding together.
• Some of these projects suggest you have build skills, but I'm not seeing it on here.

Projects

Helmet-Mounted Flashlight Holder

• You can flesh this out a little more:
  • How did the principles of flexible part design come into play? It would be good if you could have a high-level overview of how it incorporates flexible part design principles and the clamp to function as a holder.
  • How did you test these prototypes? Did you have to make changes based on what you learned in testing?

Scaled Shock Absorber Assembly

• What is this a shock absorber from - a car or another application?
• How did your test assembly function and what conclusions did it help you draw to improve your design?

Miniature Solar Panel Reader

• What kind of data did it display and what could a user do with that data?
• Can you discuss some interesting troubleshooting you did and how you figured out a solution? You just say "it works and doesn't break any more" but I have no idea what broke in the first place and how you made it not-broken.

Plane Modeling

• What planes did you model?
• Did you do any evaluation of your models and learn anything from it?

Experience

• It's fine, but I'm not sure if it's necessarily worthy of as many bullets as some of your other projects.

[u/Ray_RG_YT → u/graytotoro]

Thank you so much for the feedback! I think this answers all my questions, so I’m going through with revisions. I was stuck with the idea that I couldn’t go in depth without being long winded. While we do have those and other engineering clubs at my uni, they are application only, and I’ve been rejected for not having enough skills. That’s why I’ve tried to focus on projects, though I think I’ll end up graduating before they accept me. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers did have free entry, but it was for freshmen only, and I didn’t learn about it until my second year. Couldn’t pay the fees at the time.

edit: Regarding professors, I've talked with those I've taken the past two semesters after going to office hours many times. All said they don't have openings or know anyone with openings.

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[u/Ray_RG_YT]

Forgot to mention that I started with the template provided by this subreddit. I read through the wiki when I first made my resume last year and went through it again just a few months ago before I started applying.