donovan
Where can I job shadow an electrical engineer?
I'm in 11th grade doing a job shadow project and cant find anybody that will allow me to job shadow them. I've called many businesses and asked them if i could job shadow and so far non have allowed me to. #engineer #job
4 answers
Afifa Tawil
Afifa’s Answer
Hi Donovan,
It is easier to reach out to direct individuals than companies. I would recommend going to linkedin.com and reach out to people that work in those companies near you that are in HR or foundation (the give back organization). You can also reach out to people directly. Linkedin requires you to pay if you direct message but, you can send requests with notes or join groups. IEEE is a big electrical engineering club and you can join a local group on linkedin and post your question or reach out to people in the group that are local to you.
The other option, does the shadow need to be done in person? It is easier to ask people for a brief call than an all day shadow. Many people work on confidential things. I used to work at Intel. Many EE's were heads down while some were more hands on and actually soldered. It really depends what you are interested in, it is a very broad field.
Good advice, reach out and connect directly with working EEs
Tim Deraney
Sarah Williams
Sarah’s Answer
I 100% with Afifa's answer. You will have a lot more luck reaching out to individuals rather than companies directly, and LinkedIn is a great way to do this.
I strongly suggest requesting a 1-hour "mentoring conversation" instead of a "job shadow." Oftentimes, busy professionals may say "no" to a job shadow because it sounds like a big commitment, in addition to intellectual property and other concerns that Afifa mentioned. However, if you ask for a mentoring conversation, it will sound like less of a commitment, and you will still be able to ask the questions and get the input you need to make your career plan. If you have a conversation with a professional (either in-person or over the phone/Zoom), at the end of the meeting, you can always ask to schedule another conversation in a few weeks if you want to learn from them more.
Another suggestion may be to shadow or talk to an electrical engineering college or university student. IEEE may have a student chapter at the college/university, and you may be able to have some participation in that. IEEE offers student memberships and may be another resource to get connected to different companies and individuals in your area.
Best of luck!
Dominique Fantasia-Amin
Dominique’s Answer
Also, the linkedin suggestion is good too. A lot of larger companies have job shadow programs. You can try and reach out to individuals on there or I would suggest reaching out to someone in HR from a company near you and ask them if they have opportunities for job shadowing.
Good Luck!
Jai Girod
Jai’s Answer
I recommend working with your science teachers and asking them if they know of any electrical engineers. Networking is a great tool which you will use throughout your lift and can help to connect you to people you would otherwise never know.
Does your school or local community college put on career development fairs? You can use these events to become acquainted with the business needs of your community.
Another option is working with your local utilities providers. Often, your electrical and network service providers use electrical engineers to develop and sustain the distribution systems for your electricity and internet networks.
Hope for the best!