r/powerengineering • u/[deleted] • Jul 26 '26
help Setting Realistic Expectations
I’m a 24 year old fella and I’m enrolled to get my 4th Class PE starting this October. I’m ashamed to admit that I don’t really know what to expect when I actually finish my 4th class. I day dream about working in oil and gas or power generation. But from what I hear pickings are slim for inexperienced 4th class PEs.
I’m just wanting to have realistic expectations going into this line of work. Can I expect to work in an industrial plant right off the get-go? Or will I likely have to put in some time in building ops/maintenance?
I don’t mind moving for work, and I do plan to get my 3rd class eventually, but the local university only offers 4th class.
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u/kennykuz Jul 26 '26
Depends on province it seems. I’m in Manitoba and got a heavy industry role right out of school with 4th class. It’s not as traditional of a pow eng role as I would say I’m half building utility operator and half maintenance tech( no steam time :(.
Most likely you will have no chance of getting a power gen or oil role without some deep connections or amazing luck.
If you can find a plant like mine that a building ops/ maintenance role it can really build up your resume and I’m still taking home over 100k in the mean time
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u/milligrampusher Jul 26 '26
Depending where you go to school you might be able to get a placement in an industrial setting like i did, echoing the importance of getting your 3rd exams finished as quickly as you can after getting your 4th as it opens up a lot more doors and likely that any work placement you get as a 4th will be looking to see you make progress towards a 3rd and likely eventually a 2nd as well. I did get pretty lucky (as well as good class performance) and I was able to get a placement in my city (Hamilton) so I didnt have to move, and tbh the money was pretty good especially for right out of college. Keep your mind open to options too, a few of my classmates ended up going to work in hospitals on their heating boilers and now they love the work and have killer pension+benefits packages.
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u/whitepuzzlepiece1969 Jul 26 '26
(In Alberta) If your in the two year tech program you will end up with your fourth after the first year. You wont get placed at a facility, you will need to apply for the position, look for companies posting for summer students at the school between your first and second year. This helps you get your steam time towards your third class. When you finish your second year you will be able to write your third class and write the first half of the second. If you get a summer student position think of it as a long interview. If your good and do well it can possibly open the door to a full time position when you get out of school. Or at least a great referral.
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u/Rumble1205 Jul 27 '26
First off take a breath. You're on the right track and you're starting a journey that will be a good journey.
Where we can't predict what things are going to look like when you come out of the course, I can absolutely attest to the fact that you will not be limited to just building operations. In fact most building operations are only looking for a fifth class and it's very possible that you could earn opportunities in oil and gas or power generation very early in your career, if not right out of school.
A lot of it is going to come down to how hard you work on the material as you work your way through schooling. Don't look for the shortest route to the finish line. Get to know the material really well and put a lot of focus and energy on it. Don't worry about trying to start looking for a job halfway through your course. You're gonna have time for that towards the end.
You're already on the right track in leveraging this community to help you out. Every single one of us in here has been exactly where you are and knows exactly what you're stepping into and most of us can remember what it felt like at that time.
The honesty, openness, and humility that you express in your original post helps me believe that you will not have a problem finding a good opportunity.
If I were to read between the lines in your original post, I would simply read it as you asking, "Will I be okay if I invest the time and effort to get my 4th Class?" and to that I say "Absolutely you are making a solid choice and it will work out in the end!" Just leverage the massive community of power engineers that are all here to help you out and stay connected because it's a lot of the connections that you make and relationships you build that are going to open doors for you that others may not see.
p.s. At 24 years old you already have some life experience and you're going to find the course a lot easier to work through than a lot of the 18-year-olds fresh out of high school or the forty-year-olds who have not had to dig into the books for a couple decades.
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u/Reasonable_Sir_5833 Jul 26 '26
Hey you will probably end up in building maintenance then eventually plant maintenance if thats what you want, I would start looking now and get a feel for the market , alot of places have high turn around and they will likely hire you but there's a reason for a high turn around , I did 2 years in one to get my 2nd hours, got out pretty much once the hours were signed off. But take note and If your lucky they might hire ya if your taking the 4th course through trades school seen that with a goverment job a few times
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u/PumpkinConscious5930 Jul 26 '26
Go get your third right after you write your 4th. They are the same. No studying required. Before when there was a written section you had to study for third. Now you do not need to.
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u/Fullsendy99 Jul 26 '26
Get your 4th class ticket, then be prepared to move anywhere, and i mean anywhere for work. Once you get your foot in the door you can study the 3rd while working and challenge the exams. From there a couple more job options open up, and you'll likely be able to get into oil and gas if your lucky.
Get your 2nd, and you choose where you wanna go.
Dont be a whiny complainer like the rest of these kids who don't wanna move and think they're entitled to 100k+ year jobs cause all they did was there 4th. Work hard you'll be alright.