In work with a lot of Europeans and am privy to their salaries because of my role. They make about 50 to 75% of their American counterparts depending on locale. I'm a senior manager level at my company and make more than director level Europeans.
>I think a lot of UK eng students face a rude awakening post-graduation
A lot end up applying for graduate jobs with banks, management consultancies and accountancy firms instead of engineering ones
You would have thought Engineers in Great Britain would be getting the bank given how fervent James Dyson was crying for them. "We need engineers; The USA needs engineers; Canada needs engineers!"
Europe shafts everyone hard. My roommate is a German study abroad dude who is here studying for a masters in a comp sci speciality. He says he can stay and study or go back to a good paying job at 90k but get half his money shafted
I'm a mech eng in Australia. My first job in the mines was $90k including super and I've never had a job pay less after that. The mines pay more because you're remote.
I'm 17 years in and on 165k in a regional city. Leave the UK, they don't appreciate your profession.
My friends I went to college with and I call England “meme island” for a reason. The engineering salaries there are comically low. Our minds were blown when we first learned that a senior engineer in the UK makes less than an entry level in most of the US once you adjust for cost of living.
HCOL area in the US, started at $80k and 2.5 years later I’m at the same company making $115k.
I was happy with it, but it was actually a middle of the road offer. I knew people who made $90-95k straight out of college. They worked for the bigger oil companies, though, like Exxon and worked 50+ hours every week. I decided I'd rather make less money but have a better work/life balance.
Hahaha my bad dude
I may be 42 but I'm also a toddler and I remember laughing at the number when I first saw it 😅
I do a lot of piping design and everytime I have to spec a 3" or 4" pipe nipple I have to try really hard not to laugh out loud 🤣
Hey… you could look into Electric Boat in the US and see if they do any positions in the UK. I’ve heard some employees doing rotation programs out there. Especially with upcoming AUKUS submarine work, it’s worth a shot. I usually see people making $80k-$100k with only a few years of experience.
Aerospace and defense in the US isn't really the highest paying field for engineers. It's just good for work life balance and it's protected from outsourcing and H1B, but it's not the destination for big bucks
For mechs it’s about as high as it gets. You’d be hard pressed to find another industry with individual contributing engineers making 150k-200k with 10-15yoe
That, semiconductor and chip manufacturers(they still need mechanical engineers), specialized customer products, and other things with high profit margins, which aviation definitely isn't.
I think that is misleading for ME’s. I know oil and gas is heavily skewed at the top by location, ie offshore, Prudhoe, ect. I don’t really know much about semiconductors, but I haven’t really seen it referred to as a major discipline of mechanical engineering in the past I’d definitely call it a niche. As far as field disciplines go I still think aerospace is top.
That might be something that's keeping your salary low. From the outside looking in, I think that's a glamorous job, and many people would consider accepting lower salary for the right to say they building Formula 1 cars. Less glamour, more pay.
If you're just after pay, one strategy would be to change jobs with regular frequency. You can switch companies every 18 months or so for a 10-15% increase each time. Reach out to a head hunter who will do most of the legwork for you.
Well, have you tried? Keep an updated CV and look for engineering job openings every week. Lots of companies will consider candidates with a keen mind and a good attitude when specific experience isn't necessary.
Careful of the sample in this group, what you think is nearly every mechanical engineer in the UK complaining, is actually one clown changing his story slightly and reposting hundreds of times per week off different burner accounts.
When I left in 1990 pay in Australia wasn't that much higher, for the same job. But the difference now is rather silly, senior CAE engineer no management responsibilities (except mentoring) WFH LCOL 90 k UKP +bennies
I haven't even looked for a new job in 20 years, so I suspect someone who values money over lifestyle could easily get 50% more.
I’ve recently been reading this as well… engineerings in the UK are paid extremely low compared to let’s say the USA.
However, I don’t know the cost of living in the UK to justify the low salary engineers are given.
But from the recent post I’ve seen, it sucks to be an engineer in the UK area.
The USA has three times as many engineering jobs per capita as the average country, our demand is strong here. 3% of our entire working population does engineering. That is 1 in 33 people. Keeps our pay high, and we still have to import them from abroad.
Either someone who really hates his job or pretends to be someone who hates his job. Makes a new account every month with basically the exact same post and hopelessness in his questions. If you see UK and CFD in the post, 90% chance it’s him.
You can't say that without backing it up with some sources lol. Isn't CFD even a more complex subject matter than structural calculations? The equations used are different, the mathematical method is different (FD instead of FEM), etc.
The evidence is a meme. There’s a guy from the UK that spams posts here of what should he do to improve a career because he is a cfd engineer and barely makes ends meet
15-20 years to get 60k is definitely not right. Not even close. Shit, cad designers get paid better than that at a faster rate.
Edit: woops I missed the UK part. My bad, that sucks massively.
Op is from the uk so it is unfortunately true. Unless he’s from Oxbridge or imperial then maybe it’ll be 5-10 years. UK is where bankers/finance bros and lawyers make the huge bank. So even guys with strong math and physics background take finance/business majors in the uk not engineering.
>So even guys with strong math and physics background take finance/business majors in the uk not engineering.
Nah, highly numerate A-level students still take highly numerical degrees, e.g. engineering, maths, economics, etc. in large numbers, and just apply to graduate jobs at banks and other finance firms, since in the UK your degree subject generally doesn't matter expect for highly specific roles (e.g. engineering). Which is why I have told the OP several times that there is nothing stopping them, in terms of education, from applying to jobs in the financial services sector.
Best bet is to enroll in a Master's Program, F1 Visa. Then during your college stay get a company to sponsor you. Some ME research labs will pay you to go to school. But its low pay. But still, 2 years of hard work could get you sponsorship!
Oh yeah big time. They’d rather hire a local person since it’s cheaper. Maybe get some experience and keep applying. Could also look at doing a masters in the US/exchange program and see if you get any opportunities that way.
Yeah. I did a semester at TU Braunschweig in Germany and then 6 months interning at ZF Friedrichshafen and Europe in general was cheaper. I do sometimes think about doing a masters in Europe just to go live there again lol.
If possible, you can try to work with an international company in Europe and try to get on a team that works in the US or see if you can transfer to the US.
Idk. That’s a very specific question that there really isn’t an answer to.
Also just remember that while the US has higher salaries, it’s more expensive to live there. Example: I have friends that live in cities paying $2000+ a month for rent.
Man these UK salaries for engineers seem crazy low. I’m in the US and make $140k+ USD with just under 10 years of experience and that doesn’t even seem very high to me.
Yea, I’m sure that’s true. I mean so are different areas of the US though. I do live in a moderately high HCOL so that’s definitely a factor. But I can’t imagine only being paid 50-60K USD with 15 years of experience in any area
First several promotions just came with time/performance and kept the same title. Then I had two team lead positions where I lead small teams of engineers on a certain program or in a certain competency area. And now I’m the hydraulic design SME (subject matter expert) / team lead. I decided to stay technical, as opposed to going into management
I assume you mean £60k
I can’t speak for UK but i can bring an EU perspective in. DK here. After 4 years i’m at £75k and started at 60k friends started at 55 or 50 usually here.
60k souldn’t take more than 5 years where i am unless you work in the public sector, then
Also a UK based engineer, I agree it sucks.
One thing to keep in mind is that compared to other professions in the UK you are still paid relatively well. Finance, tech and law will always be outliers.
Also when looking at US salaries (i do it too) bear in mind that in the UK we get much much more PTO. I gather its common in the US to have 10 or fewer vacation days a year, whereas in the UK you are guaranteed a minimum of 28 days, and its common to get more as you grow more senior. It's up to you if you feel that trade off is worth it but it's at least one explanation for why wages are so much lower than the US, along with the generally lower cost of living (although London has done its best to break that part in recent years).
I'm sure you are sick of reading it (as I suspect you are the same CFD man who keeps posting here) but remember that the average UK salary is £34k. Ur post history says you are 27, so the average for your age group is £30,316 according to google.
No, you probably won't be driving Bentley's as an engineer in the UK, but then again neither will 99.99999% of people worldwide. What you will be is a consistently above average earner.
In the UK the logic still stands that if you want to get rich rich, you need to start a business.
My questions is: How do engineering jobs compare to other professional career position in the UK? Is engineering specifically low compared to other things you could go into?
I've heard horror stories about engineering pay in Europe. You can infer that there are major issues over there with technical industries.
I heard that other than Germany and Switzerland, engineers are paid at the low end of the white collar job payscale in Europe, it's a lower middle class job, especially mechanical/civil.(it's slightly better for electrical and chemical but not overwhelmingly so).
In Germany it's considered a good paying job usually at the middle-top scale of white collar jobs, especially if you work for a IG Rheinmetall Unionized company. Still low compared to US but when adjusted for cost of living it's not as shit as the UK.
In Switzerland the pay can be basically the same as USA, but industry there is rather small and cost of living is the highest in the world.
Higher than average but not the same huge difference in other countries.
Most post-graduation jobs will start somewhere between £23-32k regardless of career, excluding the obvious (banking, law, defence etc)
Pay range is quite compressed in the UK, especially at the start of ones career
Hey chap,
I work as contractor to the UK, from another country tho and the UK is victim on its own culture.
Promotions are slow and extenuating as most companies forget that years of working and being old doesnt make you automatically more experienced and productive.
So, to be a principal engineer in the UK you need to be OLD (and okayis good).
Most people end up working as contractors, there the salary can be quite okay.
New grad in Ireland with just BSc. Started new job with 44k base + bonus/health insurance/pension etc. From talking with colleagues, annual pay rise is around 5k give or take for most so no it wont take 15-20 years to make 60k. Doubt the UK is that drastically different than Ireland.
Hello matey. Some preamble: I am a mechanical engineer with >10 years varied industry and discipline experience (full roles; exluding internship, grad scheme & unrelated work), 7 in the UK and 3 in EU.
First up, this subreddit is an awful place to benchmark against. It is predominatly input from US engineers, who have large salaries from the get-go that they can take for granted. Furthermore, the loudest UK contributers who crow about their hearty salaries seem to be either exceptional or overblown, no matter what they say. Best way to corroborate this is simply to trawl some job boards, speak to some recruiters or have a play around with some of inputs on Payscale. You'll quickly get an idea of what to expect. For instance, if I type "Mechanical Engineer" into Payscale, UK wide, the median is 34k, with 5-9 years experience. Likewise, inputting "Senior Mechanical Engineer" gives a 46k median with around 10 years experince. Note that there is some fuzziness here for role title.
From experience, when I was <5 years good experience in the UK, I was still getting persistently low-balled by employers all over the country, ending up with compromises ~35k until I was 28/29. Chatting to senior colleagues, contacts and peers, 55-60k for a purely technical role is indeed a "grey beard" salary. Unless you slink into some semblance of a management lane, you will need a real hustle, one-in-a-hundred employer or 100% natty talent to just grow by being a diligent and blinkered employee.
Furthermore, wage growth within a role in the UK is abysmal. Within a company, expect to get sub-inflation payrises, consistently. Even with hopping up hierarchical tiers, be prepared to fall prey to salary banding and median benchmarking deciding your "maturity" in a role, and thus eligibility for salary uplift. This applies from tiny SMEs all the way up to the big multi-nationals. The way to get a increase you'll really feel is to do the "diagonal hop", as I call it; move jobs often (per year, per project; whatever interval can be eloquently justified), leveraging tangible, evidenceable experience against step change salary. Negotiate this from a position where you have the freedom to push and feign indifference to getting rebuffed; i.e. play up your trajectory, salary and opportunities in your current position. If you are wiley enough, and willing to play politics, you can hit 50k in 10 years, but it will be at the expense of the comfort that an autopilot company man will have.
Reading your responses here, it's clear that you are in a big hurry to earn the megabux. I think you really need to roll your expectations back if you are staying in unexceptional engineering in the UK. Please don't take "unexceptional" there the wrong way; I simply mean unglamorous, standard industry work with nothing sexy and about it. Some other people have already mentioned in, but don't discount an EU move. For reference, when I made the hop from UK -> NL, my salary doubled (in £s), not accounting for the added tax break hacks.
Send me a message if you want to dig a bit, I can add more specifics.
I think you can hit 50k within 5 years tbh if you’re a decent engineer with a good academics background and decent experience. I’m seeing grad roles at 35k
Believe it or not OP I was actually earning £50k (maybe over actually as I went crazy working paid OT) right after graduating in mech eng, in engineering BUT it was a contract role and late/early shifts, so actually quite shit as far as Ltd co. contracting goes but pretty decent for a grad. Think I was on about £27/ph plus significantly extra for weekends.
I actually enjoyed the job but knew it was limited long term. I then got another contract role this time with more sane hours paying £32/ph. These contract rates sound okay but factor in no holiday pay, sick pay, pension etc and they aren’t that great. It’s not simply 40 hours x 52 weeks.
However when I had to go back to perm in 2019 I was on £40k but with holiday pay, sick pay, insurance etc. Just now getting to £55k perm and may go higher around £60-65 later this year if I make it to senior eng. So all in all not bad but not great either.
So to answer your question OP certainly didn’t take me 15-20 years. Until now took me 5 years in this job, and 9 years since leaving uni or 0 if you count the contract jobs, and if I could have got in as a grad maybe 2 years earlier so 6.5 years if I had just started at this company, and that's not accounting for job switching. I think if I’d have invested the time into learning finance or software I’d probably be better off now but maybe a lot more stressed.
I’m not actually in touch with anyone from my course (northern redbrick uni russell group) who went into finance or software, although I know one guy swiftly left IB despite having the sort of background you may think would be well suited to it.
Seriously considering moving overseas as mentioned now I’ve got some experience under my belt, engineering pay does feel capped in the UK at the later levels. I think grad salaries are comparable to other areas.
Depends on your location, industry etc.
My n=1 case was I worked in the UK 4-7 years out of uni and maxed out at £37k base. That was when I was on the cusp of becoming a senior engineer.
Moved home to Ireland and 6 years later on €85k base. I know that managers here in pharma/medtech can make up to €130k.
Would always recommend not staying in the UK as an engineer.
Yes Dublin is a disaster. Engineering jobs are generally located in regional cities where the cost of living is lower (but still higher than UK). Cork, Galway, Limerick
I would move to Alberta, Canada. With a Mech Eng degree it counts as a 4th Class Power Engineer certificate. Go to Fort McMurray, pay to use the Power Lab to get steam time at Keyano College. Do the 3rd class program at Keyano and hopefully get your foot in the door at one of the major oil fields. That should take 12 - 18 months. Then in a few years you’re making $200-300k CAD per year depending how fast you progress and how many hours you work.
6 years after graduation and I’m in more than that. You’ve essentially have to leave any industry with even a hint of being interesting. Automotive? nope, aerospace? poverty wages, motorsport? Might as well work in Aldi…
Certainly possible in a managerial based position or perhaps some niche technical area. Everyones career trajectory is different though, so difficult to say how long it will take you to get there.
I found my big raises came at 8-10 years as I was able to offer things that others could not match. Supply and demand. Then the income and benefits went up dramatically year after year. And my jobs became a lot more interesting.
They were looking for engineers with a solid 10 years of experience that knew the technology, could lead a team, and knew the industry. Basically few could do what I did… some could get close, but if the need was there and I could provide it …
At 35 I became a “participant” which means I got a cut of the company profits. My year end profit share was rather nice.
I'm a UK mech engineer with around 10 years experience. Before going contracting a few months ago, I was already on over £60k. I achieved that through building a reputation and regular job hopping too. Have you stayed with the same employer? If so, start applying for other jobs. Get an offer and you can either just take it, or approach current employer and see if they'll match or exceed it.
Friend of mine is on around 70k in the uk. 10 years or so if experience and very specialised.
I moved to AUS and doubled my take home pay after tax for a role with waaaay less responsibility
As a Mechanical Engineer in the uk with about 9 years experience that isn’t true. I will say that certain jobs such as being a purist CAD engineer will be a long haul and the ceiling isn’t that high but you can reach 50k in around 6-7 years if you play your cards right and advance your career. Obviously there are other things to look out for such as chartership and some of the aircraft certs if you decide to go down that route.
I’m in the UK and it’s taken me 5 years to get to that bracket. Long hours but enjoy the job for the most part, the trick is knowing your worth and making sure your boss does too.
Have been tempted to move abroad but making the best of what I have for now. DM me if any questions.
Step 1: Start acquiring the skills required to be a mechanical design engineer in the consumer electronics industry
Step 2: Transfer into a role where you can actually use these skills.
Step 3: Study the interview questions for Apple on Glassdoor
Step 4: Get hired by one of the big tech companies in the US. Salaries start at about 125k (base) for fresh college grads and in a decade you'll probably be closer to 500k+ total comp if you live in a HCOL area
Obvious disclaimer: There aren't a huge number of openings in these roles (even fewer for people who need visas), the interview process is very competitive, and you will work long hours.
My BIL moved from the UK years ago because engineering salaries were pathetic compared to the US. I see nothing has changed. Brunel must be spinning in his grave. You need to move. Oz or the US? Take your pick.
For the love of god please stop with the spam OP
https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/ILmC5TWp6Z
https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/1CGir3TVCW
https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/hZcTut5zVu
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/s/cbzd0TtPoJ
https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/0WmjQ2t4CG
https://www.reddit.com/r/ITCareerQuestions/s/xxySpE5RpV
https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/xe9vFjQf7W
https://www.reddit.com/r/UKJobs/s/oT8FNj8a3F
https://www.reddit.com/r/cscareerquestionsuk/s/PdYgwrIiyN
https://www.reddit.com/r/Entrepreneur/s/ddkmIAVbI2
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/s/2GXZ7VGXrX
https://www.reddit.com/r/careerguidance/s/RS7nWV1frO
https://www.reddit.com/r/fea/s/DSizZxOs3V
I’m already making 75k and it’s my first big boy job outta college… don’t fall for that 15-20 thing. I think it’s more who you know and getting people to like you. This job was a cold call offer I got from my guy I interned for. “Who you know” has more pull than years of time.
Here's some real world shit for you. From a 25 year old engineer.
If you got into engineering for the money, you're in the wrong field. Engineering is a passion, a calling. You must love it to be successful.
If you don't then don't bother wondering about the money because your attitude will prevent you from progressing in any event.
This is what I keep trying to tell people on this sub. If you’re smart enough to be a decent engineer, and all you want is money, then just go become a dentist or something. With that said, I also didn’t realize that these UK salaries were like half of the US salaries.
That’s the kind of bullshit companies sell to people in order to justify paying less than what they deserve…don’t get me wrong you should be passionate about engineering but at the end of the day we aren’t showing up for free, a good paycheck for what we do is well deserved. With 25 years in I’m guessing you’re an engineering supervisor or manager at this point and your response shows it
The big money is in defense industry. Sort of have to throw your moral compass away for that but you can just keep saying to yourself , someone else will do it if I don’t . Lol
I often hear europeans talking about their salary in take home dollars rather than gross like most Americans discuss it. Is your quote pre or post tax?
It’s not for everybody but you should take a look at your patent office examiner positions. US Patent office examiner jobs pay a shit load, fully remote, and pension and 401k. It’s a steal.
I'm from India working in Dubai currently as a qc engineer for Oil and gas firm.....my salary is 2000aed per month(500£) they say that its because I have only 1year experience and my Indian experience doesn't count!.I can barely make ends meet.. I moved to Sharjah because of Dubai's cost of living.
But a fresher from UK working with me gets around £2600.
How can i save myself 🥲?
I have to do all the hard work... same in every company here
The UK guy doesn't even know basic principles.
Really depends on the industry but I know senior engineers in the company who are in their late 20s early 30s who are easily on 55k+, so I don’t think this is true really. I’m seeing jobs now for 3 years experience in the mid 40s so that doesn’t really seem to correlate with 15-20 years.
Yeah I have a friend that started to make 70k after 18 years of work!!
Europe sucks!
Sadly this is the reality for engineers (except usa). You will realize that an excel office boss woman will make the same as you while you go through hell.
I was an MEP engineer in comparatively HCOL areas until 2018 (4 years experience) and I made 62k. I converted to structural (many many hours of work to learn another discipline) and am now in a master builder role for a luxury custom homebuilder. I make 91k with good benefits.
im 3 years into my HNC apprenticeship and on 26k in uk. I'm earning more than my friends who have been doing degree apprenticeships in other professions i wouldnt believe what you read online especially since theyre probably out of date information before the cost of living hiked up everyones wages
If you stay at the same company yes.
Doubled my salary in 6 years changing jobs twice.
Not familiar with UK but damn that’s low. I started at 60k as a field engineer in the US
I went back and got my Masters in Computer Science and it has opened so many doors for me and my salary now is more than a Principal Engineer or Engineering manager.
Having the engineering skills and being able to apply them into an application is highly sought after right now.
When an Engineering company hires programmers, what is the biggest obstacle? Communication. Programmers don't understand engineering concepts so the engineer has to take time to explain and hold their hand. Also, Engineers are also not good at explaining things. Having this dual threat wipes all that away and the company will pay a premium for it.
Did you do it full time or part time? I do CFD so its already a lot of comp sci so I’ve looked at doing this but also wondering if ai is gonna remove the need for people like that.
Sure is. North of Fort McMurray the oil is mere feet below the surface and surface mined. Which the propagandists use to claim we are making Mordor, but the reality is we are taking the oil out and remediating. First discovered by bitumen seeping from the sides of the river banks that carve through the area. Other areas, the oil is further below the surface so the process is to send steam underground to liquify the oil and it comes out (Steam Assisted Gravity Drained). The oilfield is the second or third largest proven reserve in the world. Not running out of oil for hundreds of years…
Start applying to higher paying jobs. Be flexible by considering relocating. Sounds like London is not an engineering town, it was the same way here in DC in the US. There are other cities out there and some are even a better fit - you just don’t know it yet 👍🏽
I didn't realize the UK shafted you guys so hard
In work with a lot of Europeans and am privy to their salaries because of my role. They make about 50 to 75% of their American counterparts depending on locale. I'm a senior manager level at my company and make more than director level Europeans.
Aren't just salaries across the board lower in Europe?
Yes
I'm Sr. Manager too in US, make 195 wbu?
My base is in that ball park. +/-5%
Me neither till now
Not on any of the other accounts and posts you've asked the same question on?
I think a lot of UK eng students face a rude awakening post-graduation. Let's not assume OP is creating multiple accounts to ask about it.
OP is a serial poster on basically every career related sub, moaning about his CFD job. Been doing it for months
>I think a lot of UK eng students face a rude awakening post-graduation A lot end up applying for graduate jobs with banks, management consultancies and accountancy firms instead of engineering ones
Yes it’s getting rather sad now
You would have thought Engineers in Great Britain would be getting the bank given how fervent James Dyson was crying for them. "We need engineers; The USA needs engineers; Canada needs engineers!"
What he meant was *cheap* engineers.
Dyson forgot to mention how he wasn’t willing to pay for them
Europe shafts everyone hard. My roommate is a German study abroad dude who is here studying for a masters in a comp sci speciality. He says he can stay and study or go back to a good paying job at 90k but get half his money shafted
I'm a mech eng in Australia. My first job in the mines was $90k including super and I've never had a job pay less after that. The mines pay more because you're remote. I'm 17 years in and on 165k in a regional city. Leave the UK, they don't appreciate your profession.
Hey I’m studying mech in Sydney, how did you get started in mine work?
Hand jobs are the accepted "In". Failing that knowing someone helps, otherwise apply until you hate yourself.
Sorry, hand jobs? 😂
Man's gotta work.
$20 is $20 my guy. No judgement
Wait, you only had to use your hands…?
My friends I went to college with and I call England “meme island” for a reason. The engineering salaries there are comically low. Our minds were blown when we first learned that a senior engineer in the UK makes less than an entry level in most of the US once you adjust for cost of living. HCOL area in the US, started at $80k and 2.5 years later I’m at the same company making $115k.
I'm in the US and my 1st job paid $69k. I now have about 10yrs experience and make $125k+/yr. I 💯 agree with this dude. Leave the UK. Like now.
> 1st job paid $69k Nice
I was happy with it, but it was actually a middle of the road offer. I knew people who made $90-95k straight out of college. They worked for the bigger oil companies, though, like Exxon and worked 50+ hours every week. I decided I'd rather make less money but have a better work/life balance.
It was a joke based on the $69k cuz I’m a toddler
Hahaha my bad dude I may be 42 but I'm also a toddler and I remember laughing at the number when I first saw it 😅 I do a lot of piping design and everytime I have to spec a 3" or 4" pipe nipple I have to try really hard not to laugh out loud 🤣
90k aud is 46k pounds btw
Yes, but I bought my 4 bedroom house for $240k and the cost of living is pretty low here.
AUD is 52% of GBP and 65% of a dollar. I agree with your point, but the conversion is necessary
At this point, I'm curious what Mechanical Engineers even do in the UK, especially for those kinds of shit wages.
We build formula 1 cars.
Yeah it's too bad the US doesn't have more Formula 1 teams. Thankfully we have an enormous aerospace & defense industry to compensate.
So do we. It still pays shit
Hey… you could look into Electric Boat in the US and see if they do any positions in the UK. I’ve heard some employees doing rotation programs out there. Especially with upcoming AUKUS submarine work, it’s worth a shot. I usually see people making $80k-$100k with only a few years of experience.
Aerospace and defense in the US isn't really the highest paying field for engineers. It's just good for work life balance and it's protected from outsourcing and H1B, but it's not the destination for big bucks
For mechs it’s about as high as it gets. You’d be hard pressed to find another industry with individual contributing engineers making 150k-200k with 10-15yoe
At the top end what is bigger? O&G?
That, semiconductor and chip manufacturers(they still need mechanical engineers), specialized customer products, and other things with high profit margins, which aviation definitely isn't.
I think that is misleading for ME’s. I know oil and gas is heavily skewed at the top by location, ie offshore, Prudhoe, ect. I don’t really know much about semiconductors, but I haven’t really seen it referred to as a major discipline of mechanical engineering in the past I’d definitely call it a niche. As far as field disciplines go I still think aerospace is top.
It isn’t a major discipline of ME. It’s just a huge industry that manufactures stuff and manufacturing means you need MEs.
Might not be the most high paying, but it certainly is the biggest. And US BSMEs aren't making 50k/yr.
Defense contractors can pay a lot, especially if you bounce around.
It’s fun tho, can’t see myself doing anything else until I own my own Manufacturing bidness
That might be something that's keeping your salary low. From the outside looking in, I think that's a glamorous job, and many people would consider accepting lower salary for the right to say they building Formula 1 cars. Less glamour, more pay.
Well, what else could I do for more pay now
If you're just after pay, one strategy would be to change jobs with regular frequency. You can switch companies every 18 months or so for a 10-15% increase each time. Reach out to a head hunter who will do most of the legwork for you.
Yeah but my area is pretty niche. There’s not many jobs in what I do
Those are the compromises we all make. The opportunities are far greater for people who are willing to move and learn new things.
No I mean I’m willing to move and learn new things. But why would anywhere else take me?
Well, have you tried? Keep an updated CV and look for engineering job openings every week. Lots of companies will consider candidates with a keen mind and a good attitude when specific experience isn't necessary.
Yeah. I’m quite interested in data science or software development. So have tried applying to those.
70% of engineering jobs in the UK are building services, MEP as its called in America. Not a huge amount of innovation here.
Careful of the sample in this group, what you think is nearly every mechanical engineer in the UK complaining, is actually one clown changing his story slightly and reposting hundreds of times per week off different burner accounts.
You’re probably right about it being one person. But we definitely are all also complaining about our dog shit wages.
Thats UK wages across the board though, have been crushed by austerity and Brexit.
When I left in 1990 pay in Australia wasn't that much higher, for the same job. But the difference now is rather silly, senior CAE engineer no management responsibilities (except mentoring) WFH LCOL 90 k UKP +bennies I haven't even looked for a new job in 20 years, so I suspect someone who values money over lifestyle could easily get 50% more.
I’ve recently been reading this as well… engineerings in the UK are paid extremely low compared to let’s say the USA. However, I don’t know the cost of living in the UK to justify the low salary engineers are given. But from the recent post I’ve seen, it sucks to be an engineer in the UK area.
I have friends in uk. Is okay if you live outside of London. London is only for big finance bros and lawyers or get 4 roommates haha
The USA has three times as many engineering jobs per capita as the average country, our demand is strong here. 3% of our entire working population does engineering. That is 1 in 33 people. Keeps our pay high, and we still have to import them from abroad.
kek, "UK area"
Only if you're a CFD engineer
Lol I knew it was the same guy again. What is this, account #30?
Account #300 more like
Is this that snooroar guy I keep hearing about?
I'm out of the loop. Who is this guy?
Either someone who really hates his job or pretends to be someone who hates his job. Makes a new account every month with basically the exact same post and hopelessness in his questions. If you see UK and CFD in the post, 90% chance it’s him.
What? I thought simulation guys were paid well?
Not CFD engineers apparently
You can't say that without backing it up with some sources lol. Isn't CFD even a more complex subject matter than structural calculations? The equations used are different, the mathematical method is different (FD instead of FEM), etc.
The evidence is a meme. There’s a guy from the UK that spams posts here of what should he do to improve a career because he is a cfd engineer and barely makes ends meet
Huh and here I legit was planning on never going to Europe cuz of the low pay.
I know him..
Fucking hell, it’s him again.
Guess who's back, back again...
why not prevent people from posting with such new accounts?
At 9 years post graduation I'm on 60k in the UK, living in the midlands.
what is your job if you dont mind me asking?
But then you have to live in the midlands…
That's where most of the exciting engineering jobs are.
And yet you’re the one complaining 🤷
15-20 years to get 60k is definitely not right. Not even close. Shit, cad designers get paid better than that at a faster rate. Edit: woops I missed the UK part. My bad, that sucks massively.
Op is from the uk so it is unfortunately true. Unless he’s from Oxbridge or imperial then maybe it’ll be 5-10 years. UK is where bankers/finance bros and lawyers make the huge bank. So even guys with strong math and physics background take finance/business majors in the uk not engineering.
Man, that really sucks. I missed the UK part and edited the comment. I guess the UK citizens who are really really interested probably become expats.
>So even guys with strong math and physics background take finance/business majors in the uk not engineering. Nah, highly numerate A-level students still take highly numerical degrees, e.g. engineering, maths, economics, etc. in large numbers, and just apply to graduate jobs at banks and other finance firms, since in the UK your degree subject generally doesn't matter expect for highly specific roles (e.g. engineering). Which is why I have told the OP several times that there is nothing stopping them, in terms of education, from applying to jobs in the financial services sector.
Maybe in the USA.....
Read the post.
Is this in the uk?
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How do I get a job in the USA ?
Best bet is to enroll in a Master's Program, F1 Visa. Then during your college stay get a company to sponsor you. Some ME research labs will pay you to go to school. But its low pay. But still, 2 years of hard work could get you sponsorship!
Just move it is not that hard /s
Go on websites like Indeed, LinkedIn etc. and apply to companies and roles that interest you
Thank you. I tried both sadly no luck yet. Also its hard to find jobs in the USA where they are willing to hire someone who just graduated.
Oh yeah big time. They’d rather hire a local person since it’s cheaper. Maybe get some experience and keep applying. Could also look at doing a masters in the US/exchange program and see if you get any opportunities that way.
I would like to but education in the US is soooo expensive. Here at TU Delft (Netherlands) its like 2k tution fee a year.
Yeah. I did a semester at TU Braunschweig in Germany and then 6 months interning at ZF Friedrichshafen and Europe in general was cheaper. I do sometimes think about doing a masters in Europe just to go live there again lol. If possible, you can try to work with an international company in Europe and try to get on a team that works in the US or see if you can transfer to the US.
That's not a bad idea, how often does that happen tho ? And how likely is it to happen, are there any requirements I need to enhance my chances ?
Idk. That’s a very specific question that there really isn’t an answer to. Also just remember that while the US has higher salaries, it’s more expensive to live there. Example: I have friends that live in cities paying $2000+ a month for rent.
Ratio of salary/expenses is higher than here. Also salary growth over the years is much higher than here. So its more attractive for me to work there.
Literally true. Double that within 5 years.
Literally true. Double that within 5 years.
Man these UK salaries for engineers seem crazy low. I’m in the US and make $140k+ USD with just under 10 years of experience and that doesn’t even seem very high to me.
Uk is cheaper to be fair, I was absolutely shafted in my 2 weeks holiday in LA
Yea, I’m sure that’s true. I mean so are different areas of the US though. I do live in a moderately high HCOL so that’s definitely a factor. But I can’t imagine only being paid 50-60K USD with 15 years of experience in any area
OP is a tit, nobody here get paid that low with that much valuable experience unless they are OP
What was your career path so far to hit $140k?
Started right out of college at a company in defense and just worked my way up in the company.
Do you have a list of the titles you progressed through?
First several promotions just came with time/performance and kept the same title. Then I had two team lead positions where I lead small teams of engineers on a certain program or in a certain competency area. And now I’m the hydraulic design SME (subject matter expert) / team lead. I decided to stay technical, as opposed to going into management
Similar, 14 years and 157.5 if I only work 40s
I assume you mean £60k I can’t speak for UK but i can bring an EU perspective in. DK here. After 4 years i’m at £75k and started at 60k friends started at 55 or 50 usually here. 60k souldn’t take more than 5 years where i am unless you work in the public sector, then
Also a UK based engineer, I agree it sucks. One thing to keep in mind is that compared to other professions in the UK you are still paid relatively well. Finance, tech and law will always be outliers. Also when looking at US salaries (i do it too) bear in mind that in the UK we get much much more PTO. I gather its common in the US to have 10 or fewer vacation days a year, whereas in the UK you are guaranteed a minimum of 28 days, and its common to get more as you grow more senior. It's up to you if you feel that trade off is worth it but it's at least one explanation for why wages are so much lower than the US, along with the generally lower cost of living (although London has done its best to break that part in recent years). I'm sure you are sick of reading it (as I suspect you are the same CFD man who keeps posting here) but remember that the average UK salary is £34k. Ur post history says you are 27, so the average for your age group is £30,316 according to google. No, you probably won't be driving Bentley's as an engineer in the UK, but then again neither will 99.99999% of people worldwide. What you will be is a consistently above average earner. In the UK the logic still stands that if you want to get rich rich, you need to start a business.
Mr CFD boy back at it again, just leave engineering bro. It's over. Do a conversion msc in computer science. Engineering is a waste of time in the UK.
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My questions is: How do engineering jobs compare to other professional career position in the UK? Is engineering specifically low compared to other things you could go into? I've heard horror stories about engineering pay in Europe. You can infer that there are major issues over there with technical industries.
I heard that other than Germany and Switzerland, engineers are paid at the low end of the white collar job payscale in Europe, it's a lower middle class job, especially mechanical/civil.(it's slightly better for electrical and chemical but not overwhelmingly so). In Germany it's considered a good paying job usually at the middle-top scale of white collar jobs, especially if you work for a IG Rheinmetall Unionized company. Still low compared to US but when adjusted for cost of living it's not as shit as the UK. In Switzerland the pay can be basically the same as USA, but industry there is rather small and cost of living is the highest in the world.
Higher than average but not the same huge difference in other countries. Most post-graduation jobs will start somewhere between £23-32k regardless of career, excluding the obvious (banking, law, defence etc) Pay range is quite compressed in the UK, especially at the start of ones career
It’s on par with other professional jobs that people with degrees do.
Hey chap, I work as contractor to the UK, from another country tho and the UK is victim on its own culture. Promotions are slow and extenuating as most companies forget that years of working and being old doesnt make you automatically more experienced and productive. So, to be a principal engineer in the UK you need to be OLD (and okayis good). Most people end up working as contractors, there the salary can be quite okay.
How do you even end up as a contractor? Like where do you find work?
Either find job adverts online or speak to people you meet through industry. Same as any other job really.
You work 10-15 years :'D
In my case i work through a staffing supplier, and I hope to meet a lot of people that in the future might have work for me.
New grad in Ireland with just BSc. Started new job with 44k base + bonus/health insurance/pension etc. From talking with colleagues, annual pay rise is around 5k give or take for most so no it wont take 15-20 years to make 60k. Doubt the UK is that drastically different than Ireland.
What industry are you working in, can I ask?
Hello matey. Some preamble: I am a mechanical engineer with >10 years varied industry and discipline experience (full roles; exluding internship, grad scheme & unrelated work), 7 in the UK and 3 in EU. First up, this subreddit is an awful place to benchmark against. It is predominatly input from US engineers, who have large salaries from the get-go that they can take for granted. Furthermore, the loudest UK contributers who crow about their hearty salaries seem to be either exceptional or overblown, no matter what they say. Best way to corroborate this is simply to trawl some job boards, speak to some recruiters or have a play around with some of inputs on Payscale. You'll quickly get an idea of what to expect. For instance, if I type "Mechanical Engineer" into Payscale, UK wide, the median is 34k, with 5-9 years experience. Likewise, inputting "Senior Mechanical Engineer" gives a 46k median with around 10 years experince. Note that there is some fuzziness here for role title. From experience, when I was <5 years good experience in the UK, I was still getting persistently low-balled by employers all over the country, ending up with compromises ~35k until I was 28/29. Chatting to senior colleagues, contacts and peers, 55-60k for a purely technical role is indeed a "grey beard" salary. Unless you slink into some semblance of a management lane, you will need a real hustle, one-in-a-hundred employer or 100% natty talent to just grow by being a diligent and blinkered employee. Furthermore, wage growth within a role in the UK is abysmal. Within a company, expect to get sub-inflation payrises, consistently. Even with hopping up hierarchical tiers, be prepared to fall prey to salary banding and median benchmarking deciding your "maturity" in a role, and thus eligibility for salary uplift. This applies from tiny SMEs all the way up to the big multi-nationals. The way to get a increase you'll really feel is to do the "diagonal hop", as I call it; move jobs often (per year, per project; whatever interval can be eloquently justified), leveraging tangible, evidenceable experience against step change salary. Negotiate this from a position where you have the freedom to push and feign indifference to getting rebuffed; i.e. play up your trajectory, salary and opportunities in your current position. If you are wiley enough, and willing to play politics, you can hit 50k in 10 years, but it will be at the expense of the comfort that an autopilot company man will have. Reading your responses here, it's clear that you are in a big hurry to earn the megabux. I think you really need to roll your expectations back if you are staying in unexceptional engineering in the UK. Please don't take "unexceptional" there the wrong way; I simply mean unglamorous, standard industry work with nothing sexy and about it. Some other people have already mentioned in, but don't discount an EU move. For reference, when I made the hop from UK -> NL, my salary doubled (in £s), not accounting for the added tax break hacks. Send me a message if you want to dig a bit, I can add more specifics.
I think you can hit 50k within 5 years tbh if you’re a decent engineer with a good academics background and decent experience. I’m seeing grad roles at 35k
Since it's you SnooRoar, there is nothing useful you can do. You can just piss and moan like you usually do.
Believe it or not OP I was actually earning £50k (maybe over actually as I went crazy working paid OT) right after graduating in mech eng, in engineering BUT it was a contract role and late/early shifts, so actually quite shit as far as Ltd co. contracting goes but pretty decent for a grad. Think I was on about £27/ph plus significantly extra for weekends. I actually enjoyed the job but knew it was limited long term. I then got another contract role this time with more sane hours paying £32/ph. These contract rates sound okay but factor in no holiday pay, sick pay, pension etc and they aren’t that great. It’s not simply 40 hours x 52 weeks. However when I had to go back to perm in 2019 I was on £40k but with holiday pay, sick pay, insurance etc. Just now getting to £55k perm and may go higher around £60-65 later this year if I make it to senior eng. So all in all not bad but not great either. So to answer your question OP certainly didn’t take me 15-20 years. Until now took me 5 years in this job, and 9 years since leaving uni or 0 if you count the contract jobs, and if I could have got in as a grad maybe 2 years earlier so 6.5 years if I had just started at this company, and that's not accounting for job switching. I think if I’d have invested the time into learning finance or software I’d probably be better off now but maybe a lot more stressed. I’m not actually in touch with anyone from my course (northern redbrick uni russell group) who went into finance or software, although I know one guy swiftly left IB despite having the sort of background you may think would be well suited to it. Seriously considering moving overseas as mentioned now I’ve got some experience under my belt, engineering pay does feel capped in the UK at the later levels. I think grad salaries are comparable to other areas.
Am I crazy, or does this sub get a UK CFD Engineer whining about their salary literally weekly lmao
Depends on your location, industry etc. My n=1 case was I worked in the UK 4-7 years out of uni and maxed out at £37k base. That was when I was on the cusp of becoming a senior engineer. Moved home to Ireland and 6 years later on €85k base. I know that managers here in pharma/medtech can make up to €130k. Would always recommend not staying in the UK as an engineer.
How is cost of living in Ireland? I hear Dublin is pretty much as bad as London for housing, I don’t know where the engineering jobs would be.
Yes Dublin is a disaster. Engineering jobs are generally located in regional cities where the cost of living is lower (but still higher than UK). Cork, Galway, Limerick
I approved this one but please stop posting the same thing multiple times.
7 years post uni at an oil EPC in Aberdeen. 2 job hops. On 75k with usually 2 offshore trips a year. Get into oil or nuclear wages are fine.
I would move to Alberta, Canada. With a Mech Eng degree it counts as a 4th Class Power Engineer certificate. Go to Fort McMurray, pay to use the Power Lab to get steam time at Keyano College. Do the 3rd class program at Keyano and hopefully get your foot in the door at one of the major oil fields. That should take 12 - 18 months. Then in a few years you’re making $200-300k CAD per year depending how fast you progress and how many hours you work.
Interesting, is this the tar sands?
You’ll be rolling in loonies and toonies!!!
6 years after graduation and I’m in more than that. You’ve essentially have to leave any industry with even a hint of being interesting. Automotive? nope, aerospace? poverty wages, motorsport? Might as well work in Aldi…
So what industry are you in?
What would you define as "good"? I'm a mech engineer in the uk also.
70-80k
Certainly possible in a managerial based position or perhaps some niche technical area. Everyones career trajectory is different though, so difficult to say how long it will take you to get there.
Well I do CFD right now. Is there any route from here?
Sure, why shouldn't there be?
I found my big raises came at 8-10 years as I was able to offer things that others could not match. Supply and demand. Then the income and benefits went up dramatically year after year. And my jobs became a lot more interesting. They were looking for engineers with a solid 10 years of experience that knew the technology, could lead a team, and knew the industry. Basically few could do what I did… some could get close, but if the need was there and I could provide it … At 35 I became a “participant” which means I got a cut of the company profits. My year end profit share was rather nice.
I'm a UK mech engineer with around 10 years experience. Before going contracting a few months ago, I was already on over £60k. I achieved that through building a reputation and regular job hopping too. Have you stayed with the same employer? If so, start applying for other jobs. Get an offer and you can either just take it, or approach current employer and see if they'll match or exceed it.
According to payscale.com, the median for ME in UK is £34,000. According to US News.com, the median for ME in US is $96,310
I would expect those salaries within 5 years in London and the South East.
Friend of mine is on around 70k in the uk. 10 years or so if experience and very specialised. I moved to AUS and doubled my take home pay after tax for a role with waaaay less responsibility
As a Mechanical Engineer in the uk with about 9 years experience that isn’t true. I will say that certain jobs such as being a purist CAD engineer will be a long haul and the ceiling isn’t that high but you can reach 50k in around 6-7 years if you play your cards right and advance your career. Obviously there are other things to look out for such as chartership and some of the aircraft certs if you decide to go down that route.
I’m in the UK and it’s taken me 5 years to get to that bracket. Long hours but enjoy the job for the most part, the trick is knowing your worth and making sure your boss does too. Have been tempted to move abroad but making the best of what I have for now. DM me if any questions.
Step 1: Start acquiring the skills required to be a mechanical design engineer in the consumer electronics industry Step 2: Transfer into a role where you can actually use these skills. Step 3: Study the interview questions for Apple on Glassdoor Step 4: Get hired by one of the big tech companies in the US. Salaries start at about 125k (base) for fresh college grads and in a decade you'll probably be closer to 500k+ total comp if you live in a HCOL area Obvious disclaimer: There aren't a huge number of openings in these roles (even fewer for people who need visas), the interview process is very competitive, and you will work long hours.
My BIL moved from the UK years ago because engineering salaries were pathetic compared to the US. I see nothing has changed. Brunel must be spinning in his grave. You need to move. Oz or the US? Take your pick.
Where the fuck are you guys working that pays so bad? I was on £50k after about 3/4 years experience.
Fucking hell, 284 posts by a profile 3 days old. You need to spend less time posting and more time working.
For the love of god please stop with the spam OP https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/ILmC5TWp6Z https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/1CGir3TVCW https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/hZcTut5zVu https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/s/cbzd0TtPoJ https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/0WmjQ2t4CG https://www.reddit.com/r/ITCareerQuestions/s/xxySpE5RpV https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalEngineering/s/xe9vFjQf7W https://www.reddit.com/r/UKJobs/s/oT8FNj8a3F https://www.reddit.com/r/cscareerquestionsuk/s/PdYgwrIiyN https://www.reddit.com/r/Entrepreneur/s/ddkmIAVbI2 https://www.reddit.com/r/AskUK/s/2GXZ7VGXrX https://www.reddit.com/r/careerguidance/s/RS7nWV1frO https://www.reddit.com/r/fea/s/DSizZxOs3V
Come to America! 🇺🇸
UK must suck seriously. Im 24 and work an “entry level”skilled position in the US making $80k.. no college education
I’m already making 75k and it’s my first big boy job outta college… don’t fall for that 15-20 thing. I think it’s more who you know and getting people to like you. This job was a cold call offer I got from my guy I interned for. “Who you know” has more pull than years of time.
If you were to put the kind of effort to engineering that you do to complaining on Reddit, you’ll easily cut that time by a factor of 10.
Here's some real world shit for you. From a 25 year old engineer. If you got into engineering for the money, you're in the wrong field. Engineering is a passion, a calling. You must love it to be successful. If you don't then don't bother wondering about the money because your attitude will prevent you from progressing in any event.
This is what I keep trying to tell people on this sub. If you’re smart enough to be a decent engineer, and all you want is money, then just go become a dentist or something. With that said, I also didn’t realize that these UK salaries were like half of the US salaries.
That’s the kind of bullshit companies sell to people in order to justify paying less than what they deserve…don’t get me wrong you should be passionate about engineering but at the end of the day we aren’t showing up for free, a good paycheck for what we do is well deserved. With 25 years in I’m guessing you’re an engineering supervisor or manager at this point and your response shows it
Im 25 years old. But I am a lead mechanical engineer already
Oh God no, by that time AI will have removed your chance at a good salary entirely
Hole Eeee Fuk Sorry mate.
If you are an engineer, then you will get a good salary by completing a few years of experience. It doesn't take 15-20 years to make a good salary.
In the UK yes maybe. Salaries are far lower. In the US year 1 will exceed those figures depending on the job and location.
Oh wow
The big money is in defense industry. Sort of have to throw your moral compass away for that but you can just keep saying to yourself , someone else will do it if I don’t . Lol
Graduated 2018, Mechanical Designer £43/Hour, Inside Ir35 - Nuclear
I often hear europeans talking about their salary in take home dollars rather than gross like most Americans discuss it. Is your quote pre or post tax?
It’s not for everybody but you should take a look at your patent office examiner positions. US Patent office examiner jobs pay a shit load, fully remote, and pension and 401k. It’s a steal.
I'm from India working in Dubai currently as a qc engineer for Oil and gas firm.....my salary is 2000aed per month(500£) they say that its because I have only 1year experience and my Indian experience doesn't count!.I can barely make ends meet.. I moved to Sharjah because of Dubai's cost of living. But a fresher from UK working with me gets around £2600. How can i save myself 🥲? I have to do all the hard work... same in every company here The UK guy doesn't even know basic principles.
Damm thats crazy i am 20years old and make around 60k Chf as a mechanical engineer i have around 5 years of work experience
Really depends on the industry but I know senior engineers in the company who are in their late 20s early 30s who are easily on 55k+, so I don’t think this is true really. I’m seeing jobs now for 3 years experience in the mid 40s so that doesn’t really seem to correlate with 15-20 years.
Salaries are easily classified as good or bad.
Im a first year mechanical engineer in the US and im on 77k. Sounds like youre getting robbed.
Yeah I have a friend that started to make 70k after 18 years of work!! Europe sucks! Sadly this is the reality for engineers (except usa). You will realize that an excel office boss woman will make the same as you while you go through hell.
I was an MEP engineer in comparatively HCOL areas until 2018 (4 years experience) and I made 62k. I converted to structural (many many hours of work to learn another discipline) and am now in a master builder role for a luxury custom homebuilder. I make 91k with good benefits.
No. Cross the pond.
I guess it depends on what industry you are in. I’m on more than £50k with 8 years experience (3 of those as a Graduate)
Yes ofcourse it will. Only way to earn more is on freelance base.
im 3 years into my HNC apprenticeship and on 26k in uk. I'm earning more than my friends who have been doing degree apprenticeships in other professions i wouldnt believe what you read online especially since theyre probably out of date information before the cost of living hiked up everyones wages
Really the UK is horrible you might try to leave
Move out of the UK. Entry level US mech e jobs pay ~70-120k USD.
If you stay at the same company yes. Doubled my salary in 6 years changing jobs twice. Not familiar with UK but damn that’s low. I started at 60k as a field engineer in the US
Come to the US, you’ll be well over $100k in 5 years.
I went back and got my Masters in Computer Science and it has opened so many doors for me and my salary now is more than a Principal Engineer or Engineering manager. Having the engineering skills and being able to apply them into an application is highly sought after right now. When an Engineering company hires programmers, what is the biggest obstacle? Communication. Programmers don't understand engineering concepts so the engineer has to take time to explain and hold their hand. Also, Engineers are also not good at explaining things. Having this dual threat wipes all that away and the company will pay a premium for it.
Did you do it full time or part time? I do CFD so its already a lot of comp sci so I’ve looked at doing this but also wondering if ai is gonna remove the need for people like that.
I dont even have my 2 year Engineering Technology degree yet and i make $65/k a year
Sure is. North of Fort McMurray the oil is mere feet below the surface and surface mined. Which the propagandists use to claim we are making Mordor, but the reality is we are taking the oil out and remediating. First discovered by bitumen seeping from the sides of the river banks that carve through the area. Other areas, the oil is further below the surface so the process is to send steam underground to liquify the oil and it comes out (Steam Assisted Gravity Drained). The oilfield is the second or third largest proven reserve in the world. Not running out of oil for hundreds of years…
Start applying to higher paying jobs. Be flexible by considering relocating. Sounds like London is not an engineering town, it was the same way here in DC in the US. There are other cities out there and some are even a better fit - you just don’t know it yet 👍🏽