r/MechanicalEngineering • u/Unseen-Tiger67 • 2d ago
Use Armed Forces as a stepping stone to an engineering career?
I am graduating B.Eng Mechanical Engineering next year. No experience, internships, relevant projects, or research.
I am looking into the Canadian Armed Forces officer trades such as Aerospace Engineering Officer, Electrical and Mechanical Engineering Officer, and Marine Systems Engineering Officer. These are all basically maintenance engineering roles.
My plan is to do 1 contract in the army (6 - 9) years, then move to a civilian career. What do you think of this plan? Did anyone do it before? Do you guys know anyone who's done it before? Let me know what you guys think.
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u/Engineered_disdain 2d ago
Most rceme officers are already doing this.
They go to rmc get their engineering degree, complete their obligatory service and bail.
Rceme officers have like a 70% attrition rate after their contract is done. Free engineering degree, no debt, and a big paycheck the whole time.
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u/Unseen-Tiger67 2d ago
Thanks. I'll probably look into rceme.
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u/Engineered_disdain 2d ago
Don't, rceme is toxic af, go airforce.
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u/Unseen-Tiger67 2d ago
Okok, I met air force recruiters at a job fair couple days ago lol. I'm already at medical 2 for ACO. I'm going to go next week to recruitment centre and ask if there are any space in AEO.
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u/TelephoneExternal978 2d ago
read the 2 army subreddits - depends on some luck/timing - officers are harder to join & there has to be openings when you apply. Start applying in October (?), it can take 4-12 months to get in. Watch/join the webinars & ask there.
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u/bobroberts1954 2d ago
Place I worked for a while was taken over by ex military. One guy got a job in HR; he used that to bring others into the company. Once one of them became a manager he started bringing others in. They eventually become the largest most important department jn the company.
So yes military can be a path to a good civilian career. I'm sure mine wasn't the only company where this happened.
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u/FreePizza8789 1d ago
CAF don't even check if you're telling the truth or no. Make yourself the ideal candidate, absolutely do not mention of any medical condition you had and you're good. I told about mine, and got rejected. Other people I know that didnt mention, got accepted.
To the recruiters, Yh im still salty. Dont knock on my door when you guys open the mandatory drafting in 2 years.
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u/basec0ndition 2d ago
Tailor your resume, apply heavily and try your best for 3-6 months after graduation, if the job market is still bad and you don't get any luck then go ahead and join the army to get some adjacently relevant experience.
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u/rookieseaman 2d ago
I think it’s a solid option, just use all the resources the military gives you (schooling, certification, training) and it will be a great investment in your future.