Engineering Career Related to Fishing

[lawhorje]

I am a senior mechanical engineering student at an ABET accredited university. My dream job would be one where i could combine my interest and knowledge of engineering with my passion for fishing and the outdoors. PLEASE HELP ME TO FIND THIS JOB. I am not even sure where to start. Other than going to fishing companys’ websites and contacting them directly, is there a better way to try and become and engineer for a company that either makes rods, reels, lures, boats, etc.... any advice you could give would be greatly appreciated 

[Sam]

Pure Fishing (Berkley) and other companies have research and development departments that use mechanical engineers to design rods and reels and baits. Contact all of them.

 

Make a list of those you want to send your resume and credentials and look them up on the Internet or at your local library.

 

All the best for a great career in the bass fishing industry.

[roadwarrior]

Would you be willing to live in the middle of nowhere?

 

http://www.flippinweb.com/

 

 

[Darren.]

Welcome aboard, and good luck with your endeavors!

[lawhorje]

Thank you for the quick responces! I will definetly check out all of the fishing companies that I know!

[blckshirt98]

How fast do you need money?  Maybe you can contact an American reel company like Avet or Accurate and ask them if you can intern with them.  They're probably designing in-house on CAD software and cutting everything on CNC machines.  Or you can find work with a company that does similar stuff for aerospace or the military (Raytheon, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, etc) and who knows maybe one day you can buy your own CNC machines and make your own reels.

 

I have a buddy who does machining work, got to the point where he was able to buy a warehouse full of CNC and other industrial machines to work independently doing contract designing and machining parts for larger companies.  In his spare time since paintball was his hobby, he designed/machined paintball gun parts like barrels.  I think he even reverse-engineered and machined an Autococker from scratch.  You can do the same and start out with star drags or spools, then once you're comfortable enough can build your own reels.

[WRB]

You don't need to be a ME to operate a CNC machine.

I would contact Mercury Marine if looking for a job with outdoor potential, they do a lot of hands on development. My aerospace engineering career allowed me to travel and experience a wide range of fishing opertunity, however the work place was indoors.

Tom

[MassYak85]

I'm currently studying plastics engineering myself (in a way it's a hybrid of the molecular knowledge of chemical and the large scale design and manufacturing of mechanical). It would be cool to one day work in the fishing industry and it's definitely at the back of my mind as I go through school and look for jobs but I don't know if it's something I'll ever seriously pursue. We'll see where life takes me though. 

[curtis9]

If you are set on being in the fishing industry, start with the websites, and job boards.  I'd also try going to fishing and boating shows and try to talk with the folks there and ask if they have any contacts or advice on how to get into the industry.  If your school has a fishing club I'd recommended getting involved with that if you aren't already.  I'm sure there are sponsor contacts through the club you can talk with.

 

As an upcoming graduate the biggest thing you need at this point is experience.  Find something that gives you design experience and learn modeling skills, and you'll have a better chance of landing your dream job in the industry.  A lot of companies aren't interested in hiring new graduates, so you won't have as many options as this point.  Find something that interests you and gives you options to learn, and you'll be better prepared for positions in the future.

 

 

   

[lonnie g]

you never know where life will lead you . my daughter started out wanting to be a pathologist .majored in biology and chemistry.  because of knowlage  of a chemistry design machine like spectrometer or something. started working for a chemical company ended up being an  ass. plant mngr. left there went  to work for valvoline . is lab  and quality control mngr for them just moved to ass. plant mngr .   a long way from med school and pathology. but she loves the challenge. and her job. use the skills you know  to start some where even if its not in the field you want. you will gain experience ,and never know you, just might discover something new. basically, work hard and show them what you got. you will move up , learn more, and gain even more knowlage.   see where it takes you . best of luck to you.  keep fishing and enjoy life.

[h20-50]

I'm an ME, it's going to take some work to get into the industry.  Most employers want experience so be patient.  The best advice I can give you, make your senior project something fishing related.  When you send of your resumes to these companies talk about your project or as I did, include it!  It shows not only that this is your passion but it looks really good to them!

[lawhorje]

Lots of good advice! @h20-50 you said you are an ME. If you do not mind me asking, where do you work at?

[h20-50]

On 1/31/2017 at 3:49 AM, lawhorje said:

Lots of good advice! @h20-50 you said you are an ME. If you do not mind me asking, where do you work at?

I work for the Air Force as a civilian.  All I can say is I didn't find my dream job, it found me.  Sometimes talking the wrong direction at a fork in the road leads

you to an amazing unexpected path.

[curtis9]

I'd also recommend looking into grad school.  Many schools will pay your tuition and give you a stipend in exchange for a research role or as a teaching assistant.  Having a masters degree will give you some more options than a BS.   

[lawhorje]

20 hours ago, h20-50 said:

I work for the Air Force as a civilian.  All I can say is I didn't find my dream job, it found me.  Sometimes talking the wrong direction at a fork in the round leads

you to an amazing unexpected path.

 

Do you work for a company that works on USAF contracts or is there a position in the AF for civilians? I am actually in contact with an AF recruture now. I am seriously considering going to officer trainning school and becoming an engineer for the Af. 

[h20-50]

14 hours ago, lawhorje said:

 

Do you work for a company that works on USAF contracts or is there a position in the AF for civilians? I am actually in contact with an AF recruture now. I am seriously considering going to officer trainning school and becoming an engineer for the Af. 

No contracts, I work directly for the Air Force.  Search USAjobs.gov those are all Govn positions with all sorts of services.  Dept of wildlife, military branches, FAA, you name it, that's how I found my job.  I was prior enlisted so I can say how the service helped me, if that's something you want just be sure because it is an absolute commitment once you swear in, no turning back. 

On 2/1/2017 at 0:15 AM, curtis9 said:

I'd also recommend looking into grad school.  Many schools will pay your tuition and give you a stipend in exchange for a research role or as a teaching assistant.  Having a masters degree will give you some more options than a BS.   

I wouldn't recommend this.  ME's tend to get stuck in jobs because they have a masters in a certain subject.  If you get an engineering master, you better love that one subject and be willing to work on it your whole life. Most ME's get MBA's as a masters degree and move into project management and the business side of the job.  As they say, a business man can't be an engineer,  but an engineer can be a business man. ?

[TheCastaMasta]

BME from GT here.....how sweet would it be to incorporate 3D printing into the fishing industry.....

 

KVD: "dang i wish i had this lure with two dots on it and a fireeye pattern with a chart bottom"

 

3D printer: "here you go"

 

boom

[curtis9]

I'm an ME with a masters degree and have worked as a manufacturing engineer, a program manager and now a design engineer, all in fields unrelated to my masters.   I've found my masters degree opened more doors for me to get interviews.