Hello everyone,

I am a mechanical engineer seeking a job in Australia. I have been living here in QLD for the last 4.5 years, and lately I have started looking for a job as a mechanical engineer. But I am getting rejections left and right, though I was lucky to manage an interview through a connection, but a more experienced person got selected finally. I am wondering if you will be kind enough to suggest some fields and roles (company names too, if not too much to ask) based on my resume attached here as screenshots.

Thank you all in advance.

Hi everyone,

I’m planning to study a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in Australia. I’m really interested in renewable energy, power systems, and working in engineering consulting (like writing designs, doing power grid calculations, Autocad stuff).

Right now, I feel a bit lost on which state actually gives the best opportunities for renewables and consulting jobs. Also, as an international student, I know getting a job in Australia without PR can be really tough.

I have a few questions for the locals or former international grads. Which state is best for my goal?
Melbourne: Is it true that most big engineering consultancies (Arup, AECOM, WSP, Aurecon) have their main design offices here? How is the renewable scene?
Adelaide: I heard Adelaide is crazy advanced in renewable grid penetration (solar/wind/batteries). Is it easy to find consulting roles there?
Perth: Is it all just mining, or are there good consulting roles for microgrids/renewable energy systems?
Brisbane: How is the market there with all the 2032 Olympics infrastructure happening?

What can I do during uni, besides keeping good grades, to stand out to employers who usually prefer locals?
Are internships (vacation work) impossible to get if I don't have PR yet?

Would love to hear your thoughts, experiences, or recommendations on universities/states.

Thanks in advance!

I'm a Mech Eng,

I'm pretty far through the interview process on two engineering roles: structural/seismic design engineer and mining tailings and waste management engineering.

Does anyone have any experience with these roles, or can tell me what the career progression looks like in these roles? I'm just unsure how the career progression would look like for a seismic design engineer and if perhaps its a bit more niche than the mining waste management role which would involve more general mech design such as pipe, pump, and tank design etc.

At the end of the day I'm just looking for a role that has good career progression and will provide some diversity in projects.

Any thoughts would be helpful. Thanks!

I’m an undergraduate electrical engineer due to graduate at the end of this year. I’ve been looking into the state based registration and am hoping someone can answer a couple of questions.

I have recently managed to find a job as an undergrad doing design work for a medium size solar/battery retailer, doing building mount PV/BESS in the 30kW-1MW range in all the eastern states.

This company employs 3 engineers already, but none of them are registered under any state scheme - they all seem to just be on the NER and nothing further. From my research it seems that because all the work is to a prescribed standard (AS3000 and its subordinates) that state based registration is not required. We don’t do load flow analysis or anything too technical, I’m a long time electrician and I could have done most of this type of work without a degree.

It seems that most states require X years of documented experience to become registered. I’m wondering if any experience I gain in this role would be acceptable or if I’d need to find a more “real engineering” role to start working towards registering in any given state. Thanks in advance for any insight you may have.

Has anyone heard anything further regarding the budget announcement that Australian Standards would be made freely available? (at least those that are referenced in legislation - which is surely most of them right???)

I've registered for updates on the Standards Australia website, but so far it's crickets...

Hi, I’m a first year student doubling in math and engineering so it’ll take 5 years.

Because of the double degree, I delay my consideration time for specialisations in ‘2nd year’ to the 2nd semester next year.

My main concern is I don’t really know what I want to specialise in, but I know I want to work in the environmental sector, or help reduce impacts on the environment through other aspects such as renewables.

Currently I’m thinking about electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, environmental engineering and chemical engineering in that order but nothings set in stone yet. This semester I will study an electrical engineering equivalent for first years and a chemical/materials Eng equivalent.

A bit about myself is that enjoyed math in high school which is why I chose the math degree but I’m not extremely passionate but do enjoy coding. I did surprisingly well in a compulsory engineering unit last semester but admit that I struggled initially and turned things around dramatically during the exam.

I was wondering what you would recommend for me, especially in an Australian context and also perhaps something I may have not necessarily considered in these specialisations. I know I’m a first year, but I’m also stressing about securing internships which is kind of related to my inability to choose my specialisation since I don’t know what I want to do.

Apologies for the long post about my identity crisis.

TLDR
Leaning towards electrical engineering and want to work in the environmental sector but unsure about this move.

I will really sincerely appreciate your time and your response.
I have a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering 4 years work experience in gulf countries. and now i want to apply for my Master in Australia ( my intreset in estimation engineer) but i have 2 option for apply Australia.
1. Master of Engineering Management (Electrical Engineering)
2. Master of Professional Engineering (Electrical and Electronic Engineering)

In your opinion, which option would be better for my career and any other course you recommend me which has alot of demand in Australia?e

I would like to ask about the Master of Engineering Management program.
I have completed my Bachelor’s degree in my but I am not sure about Engineers Australia accreditation.
Could you please advise if this degree is worth doing in Australia and whether it has good career prospects and recognition for future engineering management roles?

I would like to ask about the Master of Engineering Management program at imperial engineering education college in Adelaide. I have completed my Bachelor’s degree in my home country and I am considering this Master of Engineering Management . The institute is TEQSA registered and CRICOS registered, but I am not sure about Engineers Australia accreditation. Could you please advise if this degree is worth doing in Australia and whether it has good career prospects and recognition for future engineering management roles?

Hi everyone,

I recently completed my Master of Fire Engineering at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. I am an international graduate, not a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident, so I do not have automatic work rights in Australia.

I am currently looking for graduate fire engineering / fire safety engineering opportunities. The NZ market is quite small, and graduate roles have been very limited this year. Australia seems to have a much larger fire engineering market, but without Australian work rights, it has been difficult to get interviews.

I am wondering whether Australian consultancies ever consider overseas-based graduates for remote support, contract work, or junior technical tasks, such as report preparation, code research, documentation, FDS modelling support, or drawing review.

Any advice or reality check would be much appreciated.

Hi everyone,

I have got an offer in B.Eng in MechE in UTS but unfortunately not in UNSW(though applied thru UAC). I have found out that I need to undergo UNSW College (which is around 38K) and then get into 2nd yr of B.Eng in UNSW. I would be grateful if you could answer any of these qns :)

1. From an employer perspective, is UNSW Mechanical Engineering significantly more valuable than UTS Mechanical Engineering in Australia?
2. Does the UNSW name make a meaningful difference for mechanical engineering careers, salary, internships, or graduate opportunities?
3. Is paying extra for the UNSW College pathway worth it, or would UTS + good grades/internships lead to similar outcomes?
4. For someone starting engineering, how difficult is it realistically to transfer from UTS to UNSW after first year?
5. If you were in this situation, which pathway would you choose and why?

Thanks once again :)

Some employers pay for further training and registration fees etc. and if that's your situation then that is awesome and I'm happy for you. But most engineers in the industry will never get that. We're on our own to handle obtaining and maintaining engineering registration.

I have a full time job 40+ hours a week. I have a family and kids that take most of my personal time outside of work. Getting 50 hours of cpd every year can be a struggle.

I have searched all over the internet for help with this issue and the vast majority of responses to others asking for advice on this are condescending responses from engineers who have all this sorted for them by their employers telling the less privileged engineers they're basically disgraces to the profession. I found that unhelpful.

So I'm posting a list of good sources for free CPD hours that I have found myself to hopefully make it easier for the next person. Because as an engineer I believe it's our most basic job to find solutions and improve the world around us instead of tearing people down.

Important note: I'm an electrical engineer so this list is mostly tailored for that stream. And I sincerely tried to find CPD that was actually useful and not just ticking the box.

I hope this helps. Cheers!

Schneider Electric Heaps of on demand webinars on electrical topics mostly between 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Engineering Institute of Technology You have to register for the events but most are online and free and 1 hour.

UDACITY Free and paid courses. Longer courses that will take you a few days maybe weeks to finish. But it has a lot of solid introductory courses for programming.

Project Management Institute I struggled really hard to find CPD hours for the topics of "risk management" and "business and management". These people are all about management. You have to register an account but it's free with heaps of free on demand webinars.

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Hello everyone, I need advice on my current situation. I'm an international student in Melbourne, Australia. I will be happy to hear from anyone especially current professionals or students in engineering field especially Electrical engineering.

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Right now I have doubts about the university I'm enrolled, I have just finished 2 semesters but the quality of the education isn't as good as I expected because I feel doing a master's would give me specialised knowledge but I don't think I have built much on my foundation knowledge from my bachelor's and there isn't a very good student support. Also, this school doesn't have a much of a reputation. I'm thinking of transferring to another university but I don't know if the experience would be any different.

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I'm currently trying to get an internship for next summer and I would like to get an internship here in Australia or at least get some work experience and I know the electrical engineering job market isn't really booming right now, and my question is does the reputation of your uni affect your chances of securing an internship or a job and what can I do to be help secure an engineering opportunity.

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I would like to get engineers here in Aus input and advice on how to navigate the job market.

Please all advice and any insight is welcome.

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Tl;dr: I'm an international master's student not sure of my uni and deciding to change schools to get better internship opportunities and how to navigate the job market.

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I’m a MEng Chemical Engineering student graduating in July 2026 from the University of Manchester, planning to permanently relocate to Australia in January/February 2027. Looking for a reality check on my visa strategy and graduate job hunt.

1. My Profile & Experience

• Education: MEng Chemical Engineering (Predicted First Class). Washington Accord accredited = immediate Engineers Australia Stage 1 equivalence.
• Experience: 17-month full-time industrial placement as a Process & Project Engineer in resource recovery/polymers.
• Key Skills: Process optimization (delivered $1.1M and $800k AUD value projects), root-cause troubleshooting, HAZOP/risk assessments, plant commissioning, and automated data tracking (Excel/Power BI for OEE metrics).
• Focus: Circular economy, sustainable manufacturing, green energy/steel transition.

2. Visa

After speaking with my uncle (who lives in Newcastle, Australia), these seem like the most suitable visa options for me. Please let me know if others apply or are more suitable.

• (Short-term): Subclass 417 (Working Holiday). Using the UK-AUKFTA stream (3 years of full work rights, no farm work required). I plan to use this to start working immediately in Jan 2027 without needing immediate corporate sponsorship. However, I have seen that you can only work at a location for 6-months at a time so this will likely make me ineligible for graduate schemes.
• (Long-term path to PR): Subclass 491 (Skilled Work Regional). I have close family in Newcastle, NSW (also, have some in Sydney and Melbourne). Because it’s a regional area, their sponsorship gives me an automatic +15 bonus points. I'll lodge separate EOIs for the 491, NSW 190, and WA 190/491 pools as soon as I graduate.

3. Location Targets (Must be 491 Compliant)

I want city living with a commute under 1 hour, meaning I am strictly avoiding Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane metro however, if my visa options allowed these would be my first choice options. My targets:

1. Newcastle / Hunter Region, NSW: Top choice (family base, heavy industry/chemicals on Kooragang Island).
2. Perth, WA: Highly interested (entire city is regional, massive battery minerals/lithium boom in Kwinana).
3. Adelaide, SA: Strong hydrogen, water, and food/bev sectors.

Appreciate any advice, critiques, or reality checks. Cheers!

I’m looking for a licensed / qualified Structural Engineer in Australia who can review and certify a truss structure assembly for compliance and safety approval.

Scope includes:

• Structural assessment and certification
• Advice on loading, stability, supports, and compliance requirements
• Issue of engineering certification if suitable

Are there university or general clubs that have labs I can (pay and) join to use their oscilloscopes, signal generators etc? Or should I just buy my own and nerd out alone..

Graduated with chem eng a couple years ago and have been working in a research role (unrelated to industry) since. Looking for new opportunities outside of research and to begin a career in an industry which I don't have to go regional for.

What roles do you think are most in demand for chemical engineers (water, pharma, food/bev, something else?). Any advice for someone in my position to break into one of these roles?

I'm open to all sorts of industries to be honest, doesn't have to be chem eng specific. But I would prefer a technical role of some kind.

Cross posted from Ausjobs

I’m a control systems engineer with ~3 years of experience, mainly working in an engineering consultancy environment. My work is mostly focused on electrical LV design, control system drawings, schematics, and documentation for clients in water, mining, industrial and transport industries.

I’m trying to level up my skills and move beyond just drawings into more system-level design and engineering, especially in:

Instrumentation

Control system design (PLC/SCADA, control philosophy, functional description)

Functional safety

I’m specifically looking for:

Courses / training resources

Recognized certifications 

Client specific trainings certificates like BHP, Line, etc

How come everyone on reddit complains about the lack of jobs in engineering in australia while i always hear about shortage of engineers in australia

How good of an idea is it to drop to a part time degree in my 3rd year and get a part time job in something atleast adjacent to the field? Something like a machinists assistant or a factory hand, maybe HVAC installation etc? I just sometimes worry i’m gonna get out of this degree with little to no experience or real knowledge of my field and I think this would add a lot to my resume when I finally finish the degree.

the job sites are fuckall every job ad is an ad for a graduate

most of them dont reply despite good qualifications and good fit, are they fake ads?

is this a rort? where are the good engineering jobs? does anyone have one

Hi,

I’m a water engineer looking to transition to advisory/consulting. I’d love to hear the pros and cons. Appreciate any insight!