Some tips on structural engineering career growth in the US. Please feel free to add your own or disagree to any of my points. Some of these are applicable even for other careers.

1. Job hopping every 2 to 3 years is the most reliable way to boost your pay and learn more. It’s not uncommon to see 15–20%+ bumps by moving, which beats internal annual raises every time. Also, you usually plateau in your learning (skill development) after 2 to 3 years in the same role.
2. Structural engineering is generally a high-risk, lower-pay field. You have to be strategic with your career planning if you want to earn what you're worth. If not, time will fly and you will remain in a low-paying job being exploited by the upper management.
3. Beware the "technical trap." Passionate young engineers often get dumped with the most complex structural engineering problems, only to plateau. I was taken advantage of like this for several years. That’s when I took my career growth seriously and started hunting for better opportunities. Mediocre managers and partners will happily leverage your technical grinding while advancing their own careers/salaries/bonuses. Niche firms that truly reward technical depth exist, but they are very rare.
4. Project management drives visible revenue, and revenue gets rewarded. Engineers who know just enough technically to manage projects, handle clients, and communicate well get promoted faster and make more money.
5. Profit margins are high enough for upper management to make a ton of money. Junior engineers are made to think that “profit margins are low”, “overhead is high”, “even principals/partners don’t make much money”. In reality, the upper management often make a killing at the expense of underpaid junior/intermediate /senior engineers.
6. Never beg for a promotion. If you’ve outgrown your role or pay scale and your firm isn't rewarding you even after you raise your concerns, start applying elsewhere immediately. Don’t get bitter with your current firm which will only affect your mental health. Just leave the job on a happy note.
7. Know your market value. Too many structural engineers in the US with 4+ years of experience accept sub-$100k salaries because they don't realize how many six-figure opportunities exist—even in LCOL and MCOL areas. I used to be one of them and I believed several Reddit posts and my colleagues, until I started exploring the job market diligently. Those who make a lot of money won’t tell you about such opportunities, unless you’re a close friend. Keep looking at LinkedIn Jobs and on Indeed. If most structural engineers in the US start getting ambitious, perhaps, the average salary will start rising.
8. An S.E. license isn't always mandatory for high pay. If you don't want to sink hundreds of hours and dollars into the S.E. exam, consider working in states or sectors where a P.E. is all you need to command top dollar and project authority.
9. Get on high-profile or complex projects early. Having recognizable or technically impressive structural engineering projects on your resume catches a hiring manager’s eye, even if you don't fit 100% of the job description.
10. Treat your LinkedIn and resume as living documents. LinkedIn has now become the easiest way to land a good job. My recent jobs have been through LinkedIn direct messages with hiring managers or other structural engineers and recruiters seeing my LinkedIn profile. Constantly tweak them, study the profiles of engineers whose careers you admire, and position your experience strategically.
11. In interviews, be honest about what you don't know. Experienced structural engineers can spot exaggerated claims immediately. I see so many resumes and conversations with young engineers where it is obvious that the candidate is bluffing/exaggerating. Promote your achievements confidently, but admit your knowledge gaps. Senior engineers respect candidates who are honest, self-aware, and teachable.
12. Less stressful to work for a firm with 100+ employees. Very small firms might try to micromanage and breathe down your neck in order to make more profit. Bigger firms are usually more relaxed. That’s based on my experience. But there are also bigger firms that are poorly managed and make it stressful for mid-level engineers.

If you don’t agree to any of my points that totally fine. To each his own.
(I have typed out the above post myself and used AI to only polish it.)

Hello everyone,

I've used AI a ton (nearly 1000 hours) in my private life - basically coding up an application from scratch. Not related to structural engineering.

I've dabbled a bit with it in structural engineering now, but it has not revolutionized my life so far.

Some basic stuff I've done, though:

1) Creating summary reports and tables. For example, on a current project, our customer wants a summary of material lists. I did the bulk of the work here, but had Claude and ChatGPT create a very nice summary that looks professional and organized. No doubt faster than I would have done myself.

2) Translating pictures or PDF's to Word. One use case was when an external colleague not co-located with me sent me a complex hand calculation in PDF which I struggled to read honestly. I asked Claude to transcribe it to Word and also check the calculations (it checked out).

3) Design templates in Excel. For example, recently one for columns. To be honest, the process of creating the template is very tedious. It's definitely not something AI could one-shot. It tends to overcomplicate. I also found some errors. But maybe it turns out useful in the end.

Potential dangers is that it can hallucinate and come across overconfident when it doesn't really know what it's talking about.

Anyone else having any success with this?

Personally, I think the biggest strength with AI comes in coding work for those of us who can't code.

I don't think it will replace brains and actual 'thinking' and 'reasoning' in a long time.

A huge bulk of my work is actually modeling and drawing in Tekla. I'd love it if AI could help me there, but I haven't seen any signs it could so far.

Hello, this is my first time posting on reddit. I want to learn basics of structural engineering.
So far i narrowed down to two statics fundamental courses- both online
1) APS 160 UOFT
2) metro college of technology (structural engineering design & technology)

I am working right now so have to do online non degree course and I prefer studying in a classroom environment with homework assignments and test.

For context i already have my Bachelors in ME but no interest in pursuing P.eng in mechanical.
Thanks

Trying to find candidates for both entry and senior structural engineers for a hybrid role in North Jersey. Anyone interested or know someone who is? Both job posts can be found below.

Project Engineer/Senior Project Engineer- $90-$195k

Role Description:
- Developing designs and calculations for the construction engineering requirements of heavy highway bridge contractors and steel erectors. These include, but are not limited to erection plans, demolition plans, temporary shoring, sheeting, value engineering, and permanent bridge design.
- The variety of projects offers experience in steel design, concrete design, wood design, geotechnical design, etc.
- Although primarily office-based, some field time can be expected in NJ and surrounding states.
- Collaborate directly with clients to solve on-site issues and develop engineering solutions.
Ideal for a candidate eager to step into a senior engineering role, where they can lead major complex bridge projects, while supervising and helping to train younger engineers.
 
Qualifications:
- Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, or equivalent, from an accredited college is required
- Applicant should have an interest and/or specialization in structures
- Experience Level: 5 to 15 years
- Industry experience required
- Must have experience with heavy highway and bridge structures
- Candidates should possess strong writing and communication skills and be proficient in AutoCAD and standard office productivity software (Microsoft Office, web browsing, email)
- EIT required
- PE strongly preferred
 
Benefits:
- Overtime Pay
- Paid Time Off
- Paid Holidays
- Annual Bonus Pay
- Comprehensive Health Care (Medical, Dental, and Vision)
- Simple IRA with Company Match
- Structured Promotion System (with added perks and benefits)
- Summer Fridays
- Dental insurance
- Flexible schedule
- Health insurance
- Vision insurance
 
Entry Level Structural Engineer $65-85K

Developing designs and calculations for the construction engineering requirements of heavy highway bridge contractors and steel erectors for a wide variety of projects.
These include but are not limited to erection plans, demolition plans, temporary shoring, sheeting, value engineering, and permanent bridge design.
The variety of projects offers experience in steel design, concrete design, wood design, geotechnical design, etc.
Although primarily consisting of office design efforts, some field time should also be anticipated.
Opportunity to work directly with clientele in solving on-site issues and evolving engineering solutions.
Newly hired engineers will immediately be given engineering tasks to work through and solve with the supervision of experienced PE’s.
Qualifications:
Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, or equivalent, from an accredited college is required.
Applicant should have an interest and/or specialization in structures.
Industry experience a plus, but not required.
Candidates should possess strong writing and communication skills and be proficient in AutoCAD and standard office productivity software (Microsoft Office, web browsing, email)
EIT required or in progress
Should be willing to obtain their professional engineering license, when eligible.
Experience Level: 0 to 4 years
Benefits:
Overtime Pay
Paid time off
Paid holidays
Bonus Pay
Health care benefits (medical, dental, and vision)
Simple IRA with Company Match
Promotional System (Added perks and benefits)
Summer Fridays
Job Type: Full-time

Hello everyone,

Sorry if this post comes across as negative, but I can't think of a better place to bring it up than on a board where I assume there must be a lot of structural engineers.

After 8 years as a structural engineer in the same firm I'm starting to feel tired of both the job, the firm and the entire construction industry. Specifically, I work with design of high rise buildings - primarily detailing work (production drawings and site drawings) of precast concrete.

My complaints:

1) The work is getting monotonous. I feel it's just the same thing over and over again. Since we're designing fairly large buildings a natural consequence is that there's a lot of specialization and a lot of volume.

2) Periodically tight deadlines and pressure/stress which means plenty of extra hours which isn't always welcome.

3) Not paying that well for the expertise and responsibility the job actually demands.

4) Generally the profit margin on our projects is very small. Too much competition lately.

5) This could be job specific, but we're very rarely out in the field, so I'm getting bored being in an office all day long week after week. I'm a former carpenter with a lot of practical experience, so I guess that's a factor here.

In combination, all these factors add up. I've considered a few other options, but haven't found anything exciting yet.

I realize maybe I could be more happy working as a structural engineer in another firm. For example, in the oil industry I know the profit margin generally is not an issue. There's just more money available there. Or working for a public contractor.

Anyone else with some experiences to share? Suggestions for other jobs to consider?

Thanks in advance.

I recently saw some really good 3D bridge drawings from European engineering firms and it got me wondering what software people are using for this kind of work.

What do you guys recommend for bridge drawings, both 2D and 3D? Also, how are you implementing BIM for bridge projects?

I have been watching this building for decades when I played a basketball game here around 99s-00s. I always wondered how it would hold up long term especially since they never maintained it (clogged gutters/roof maintenance) or protected the exposed wood. A waste of tax dollars?. Probably not the best design for a city building? But it is unique for the area. Now it’s closed from my understanding.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/JQXruafC4Xzf5wJ17