Hi all, I'm a new graduate looking to start a career, and I believe operations is where I want to be. I have been watching job postings for a while and have not seen any openings in the area. At this point I'm considering applying to a contract company, but I'm concerned that if I'm locked into a 6 month or year contract I may not be able to apply for the jobs I want when they become available. I would like to end up working in Minnesota, but if I had to work somewhere else for a year or so first I'm not opposed to that.
My other question is whether there is another area I should be looking into- such as maintenance or IC- that might be equally appropriate for my skillset. My degree is a BS in Automotive Engineering Technology with minors in Physics and Manufacturing Engineering Technology. I actually nearly completed the physics degree but I just couldn't hack the wave calculations in quantum. I have experience repairing and running a particle accelerator and have built and tuned a homebrew ECU for an engine. I interned at Prairie Island a couple summers ago and while I was there I got some information on the NLO-RO-SRO and direct SRO options. Direct SRO actually didn't sound as appealing to me as I am sort of a hands on person. My aspirations are to do rewarding work with big machines, not to position myself to become high level management.
I would appreciate any advice you all have to offer.