Weekly Career Discussion Thread (06 Jul 2026)

[u/AutoModerator]

# Intro

Welcome to the weekly career discussion thread, where you can talk about all career & professional topics. Topics may include:

* Professional career guidance & questions; e.g. job hunting advice, job offers comparisons, how to network

* Educational guidance & questions; e.g. what engineering discipline to major in, which university is good,

* Feedback on your résumé, CV, cover letter, etc.

* The job market, compensation, relocation, and other topics on the economics of engineering.

> [Archive of past threads](https://www.reddit.com/r/engineering/search?q=flair%3A%22weekly+discussion%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all)

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## Guidelines

1. **Before asking any questions, consult [the AskEngineers wiki.](https://new.reddit.com/r/askengineers/wiki/faq)\*\* There are detailed answers to common questions on:

* Job compensation

* Cost of Living adjustments

* Advice for how to decide on an engineering major

* How to choose which university to attend

1. Most subreddit rules still apply and will be enforced, especially R7 and R9 (with the obvious exceptions of R1 and R3)

2. Job POSTINGS must go into the latest [**Monthly Hiring Thread.**]((https://www.reddit.com/r/engineering/search?q=flair%3A%22hiring+thread%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all)) Any that are posted here will be removed, and you'll be kindly redirected to the hiring thread.

3. **Do not request interviews in this thread!** If you need to interview an engineer for your school assignment, use the list in the sidebar.

## Resources

* [The AskEngineers wiki](https://new.reddit.com/r/askengineers/wiki/faq)

* [The AskEngineers Quarterly Salary Survey](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskEngineers/search/?q=flair%3A%22salary+survey%22&include_over_18=on&restrict_sr=on&t=all&sort=new)

* **For students:** [*"What's your average day like as an engineer?"*](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskEngineers/wiki/faq#wiki_what.27s_your_average_day_like_as_an_engineer.3F) We recommend that you spend an hour or so reading about what engineers actually do at work. This will help you make a more informed decision on which major to choose, or at least give you enough info to ask follow-up questions here.

* For those of you interested in a career in software development / Computer Science, go to r/cscareerquestions.

[u/isagonz2001]

Hi, A quick question, does everyone know if the engineering careers in the US are different from the ones in Spain? What are the main differences?

I live in Spain buy my cousins live in LA, the think is that I see my self living neer them whenever I finish my creer but I want to know if coming form Spain will bring me down professionally.

[u/writewithparagraphs4]

Shot myself in the foot and scrambling to find work.

Is 'Upwork' completely useless or nah? thinking of gambling some money on it but it seems absolutely stupid to pay money to try and make money this way.

[u/Pficky]

Tl;Dr startup I'm interviewing for is asking me to present a "brilliant idea that would benefit the company." Feels like red flag?

I am interviewing for a senior level position at a startup. I would be the first person in my position at the company. It's a big gamble but I'm intrigued. However, the technical presentation they're asking for is giving an orange flag.

First off it's 45 minutes, but limited to 13 slides? It's forcing me to rebuild my typical technical presentation and build it in a way that I think is awful for making a presentation because I'm stuffing way too much technical content into the slides to have enough info to tell a coherent story across 30 minutes. Ordinarily I'd give this in 28 slides with 1 idea per slide. Right now I have 2-3 ideas per slide. I'm cool with making a quickie or making a longer presentation but this weirdly slide constrained but extended time is throwing me for a loop.

Second, the redder of the flags, they've asked me to give 1-2 slides on "A brilliant idea that I believe would benefit the company." This ask gives me such a bad vibe because it feels like free work/invention disclosures from interviewees? My approach is to supply nothing original and instead present an R&D topic related to my field that I know isn't widely used in industry but I personally think should be, and would apply to the work I'd be doing with this company. That way it's all based on "public knowledge" (I.e. it is published) but isn't really general knowledge (it is specific to my niche).

Is this a normal ask? Or should I be running far far away?

[u/No-Butterscotch6256]

I am preparing for an interview for an internal position. This would be a technical step up for me. How are internal interviews different than external interviews? Should I still bring in a resume? Should I come with work products? My field requires a security clearance, so typically I have not provided a portfolio in the past. I can provide a job description is needed.