Hello! I'm currently a sophomore studying at a university that isn't a top 10 engineering school, and I've been exploring the possibility of transitioning into management consulting at some point in my career.

My current plan is to pursue a career in the pharmaceutical industry after graduation so I can gain technical experience before potentially making the switch to consulting. However, I have a few questions for people who have made a similar transition or have experience in the industry (sorry, I know it's a lot of questions).

1. How many years of technical experience should I gain before transitioning? Would 2–3 years be enough to become a competitive candidate, or would 4–5 years make a significant difference? Does the type of technical role I pursue matter?

2. Would getting a master's degree be worth it? I'm wondering whether a master's in Chemical Engineering, an MBA, or another graduate degree would meaningfully improve my chances of entering consulting or advancing into higher-paying positions, or whether the difference is relatively negligible compared to work experience.

3. What can I do right now to become a competitive candidate? Since I'm still a sophomore, what should I prioritize during college? Would internships in the pharmaceutical industry, undergraduate research, leadership positions, networking, or learning business and analytical skills help the most at this point in time?

4. How much does attending a non-target university affect my chances?

5. How does salary compare? Is the pay really significantly better in management consulting than in a traditional Chemical Engineering career, especially after accounting for bonuses, working hours, and the years of experience needed to make the transition?

6. What is the lifestyle actually like? I'd love to hear about the typical day-to-day responsibilities of someone who started in a technical Chemical Engineering role and later transitioned into management consulting. What are the hours like, how much travel is involved, and how does the work compare with working in the pharmaceutical industry?

I'd also like to clarify that i'm super interested in both technical work and management consulting so in the long run I just want to see which opportunity will allow me to earn and travel more. I know it's a lot of work but I'd like to be earning in the 200k at some point in my life.

I am currently a STEM student in my last year of high school in the Philippines, with research as one of my subjects. We are currently struggling in our study, and many holes were poked in our topic proposal presentation and defense. The panelists emphasized that we lack advice from content experts, the worst part is that we also don't have connections to any content experts whatsoever. I'm not heavily relying on reddit for graces either, but I'd like to give this a shot and see if there's anyone willing to help regarding this topic.

Our study is about the development of an activated charcoal-zeolite toilet deodorizer, its follows a quantitative-descriptive research design. (originally it was supposed to be pre-experimental static group comparison, but was reduced to quantitative-descriptitive due to lack of access for scientific facilities) The current objective of the study is to determine its effectiveness through its ability to reduce perceived odor, with the odour intensity rating according to VDI 3882 Sheet 1. I would like to ask anyone to provide their educational insights on this study, and if it's okay that it mainly relies on the rating of perceived odor for data. Just take into account that this research is high-school level only. Thank you!

Me queda relativamente poco para terminar y en mi pais se centra en la industria azucarera la carrera, sin embargo, no creo en la vida entrar a alguna industria de ese tipo. Estaba pensando en tirar por la electroquimica o semiconductores porque me gusta bastante la electricidad y la electronica, pero me gustaria saber mas en general.

I have a bachelor's degree in chemistry, but most of the job market doesn't see any value in it (there are some well paying positions even with a bachelor's though). I am thinking about doing a ChemE MS degree even if I have to do some prerequisite course work.

I already have a few credits in chemical engineering classes as I switched from ChemE to Chem during my third semester due to a class I didn't like and failed. I regret my decision.

If there is anyone who did this, is it worthwhile? How does it compare to getting a second Bachelor's in ChemE?

I work in sales for AGT/ Sulphur removal simulation software, I am trying to connect with anyone whose in his role would be interested in exploring our software. Our software is using rate based simulation . I would be happy to do a demo for anyone who is interested.

Me and my friend have recently gotten into writing stories as a hobby and as chemical engineers, we were wondering how we could write a 'science fraud' story in chemical engineering. Some examples for references:

Victor Ninov, who tried faking the discovery of element 118 by falsifying alpha-decay chain data. Stanley Pons and Martin Fleischmann, who were claiming to have found a way to harness unlimited energy using cold fusion. Huang Woo-suk, whose research on stem cell cloning turned out to be a forgery, along with revealing the horrible work culture and disregarding of ethics in his lab. (Yes, I'm aware these are all just examples from the documentaries made by BobbyBrocolli)

So, if we were to attempt to write a story about such a science fraud in chemical engineering research, what would be a good premise?

Ich würde mich gerne noch etwas weiterbilden und bin nun am überlegen was ich machen möchte. Ich habe letztes Jahr meine Ausbildung zur Chemielaborantin mit 82 Punkten abgeschlossen. In der Theorieprüfung hatte ich eine 3.
Würde ich einen Meister oder Techniker überhaupt schaffen und was würdet ihr eher empfehlen? Und wo kann man das am besten machen, gerne Erfahrungsberichte. Ich hatte auch über Weiterbildungen in Richtung QM nachgedacht. Was habt ihr nach der Ausbildung gemacht?

Hi all,

Got my first job offer after graduating in May from a top engineering university in the US with a degree in chemical engineering.

Been searching for 10 weeks and finally got an offer. The base is 86k plus equity, relocation, benefits, and bonus. A lot of my engineering peers who have jobs already told me to negotiate.

I was wondering what that process might look like. I am happy with the offer but also think it is worth a shot to try. The salary is within the range the recruiter told me during my first screen, and I said that sounds reasonable. I am waiting to hear back from another company at the moment with whom I completed the final round.

Any advice or suggestions?

Thanks.

I’m trying to better understand how power generation capacity is determined for an oil production field. How do you determine the right power generation capacity for an oil field?

Power demand changes over the life of a field, and so can the availability of fuel gas.

This makes me curious about how designers balance:

a) Peak electrical demand

b) Early, mid, and late field life operating cases

c) Fuel gas availability

d) Generation redundancy and availability

Which field life scenario ultimately governs the sizing of the power generation system?

And is the peak demand generally expected during early life, mid-life, or late life, or is there no typical answer?

I’d appreciate insights from those with experience in offshore power systems, process design, or field development.

Hi everyone,
I'm looking for feedback on this suction scrubber (V-201) and compressor (K-201) P&ID arrangement: 
1. Anti-surge recycle cooler: The compressor discharge needs to remain hot for downstream processing, so we only want to cool the recycle stream. A cooler is placed specifically on the recycle loop upstream of the scrubber to protect the compressor from temperature build-up during extended recycle. 
2. Valve configuration & interlock:
The anti-surge valve (ASV) is a pneumatic modulating control valve (FIC/FY). 
An on/off isolation valve is placed in series with the cooler, tied via an interlock/solenoid so it opens whenever the anti-surge loop is activated. 
Specific questions:
Is using an on/off valve on the cooler line while letting the pneumatic control valve handle the surge flow modulation considered sound practice, or does it introduce unnecessary dynamic/tuning issues?
Would you recommend keeping the cooling water running continuously through the exchanger (or using a CW control loop) instead of an on/off isolation valve on the process side?

Any obvious flaws or recommendations regarding the safety interlock and instrument placement around this recycle loop? 

Thanks in advance!

Chemical Engineering Technologies in the Oil and Gas Industry — Career Prospects in Iraq, the Middle East, and Worldwide

I'm currently studying Chemical Engineering Technologies, with a focus on chemical and petroleum industries, and I'm trying to get a realistic understanding of the field's future and career opportunities.

How is this field viewed in today's job market, particularly across the Middle East? What are the main career paths available to graduates, both within the oil and gas industry and in other sectors such as refining, petrochemicals, manufacturing, water treatment, and industrial process operations?

I'm particularly interested in Iraq, given its reliance on the oil industry. Are there genuine opportunities for graduates in the public and private sectors, and how competitive is the job market? How do salaries, career progression, and long-term prospects compare with those in other Middle Eastern countries and international markets?

I'd also like to understand how this qualification compares with a traditional Chemical Engineering degree in terms of job eligibility, responsibilities, professional recognition, and opportunities to work abroad. How much do practical experience, technical skills, certifications, and further education influence a graduate's prospects?

For those working in the industry, hiring graduates, or familiar with the field, what would you recommend focusing on during university to build a competitive profile?

I'm looking for honest, experience-based insights rather than just general descriptions of the degree. I'd appreciate hearing about both the opportunities and the challenges, especially regarding the long-term future of this field in Iraq and the wider Middle East.

I'm stuck with 2 options for my bachelor's: Chemical Engineering or Environmental Engineering. I'm wondering what the job market for Chemical Engineering looks like in Canada and whether it's a better choice than Environmental Engineering, because right now I'm leaning toward environmental. I'm also trying to look at how AI might affect job opportunities in both fields over the next 10+ years.
I'd appreciate hearing from people who work in either field about job availability, salaries, career growth, and long-term job security, especially for new graduates in Canada.

I know it’s really late, but a while back I wasn't sure what I wanted to do and became set on chem eng a bit after completing my A levels. I’ve left sixth form and am on a gap year, and I feel like all the placement opportunities, etc.- anything good to mention in my PS is only directed at sixth form students, like Year 12 specifically, so I kind of only have online courses and books to speak about in my PS. i did do a relevant epq but would love to diversify talking points a bit more. If anyone has any advice it would be greatly appreciated. just for extra context, im from england, specifically up north like yorkshire - have tried contacting local places but no ones really responded. Thank you :)

Greetings all,

I am a 22 year old, Saudi, oil and gas operator working in Saudi for the past 2 years. During this year i attempted to start my studies whilst working but due to a lack of employees at work i was unable to start. My question is what would you recommend doing? I currently have nearly a year until the next university year starts in my country, and i would like to spend my time working towards something useful. If there are online or in person courses/classes that i could attend to learn and progress towards eventually starting my studies that would be greatly appreciated. I am still at the very start of my carrer but would like to shift from being an outside operator to eventually an engineer. Any advice either carrer or studies wise would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much.

For context, and tw// for the following information:

I was drugged and r*ped on my school's campus over a year ago (I know there has been a lot of this in the news lately, which is definitely not making this easier for me). I tried to take time off school and reduce the time that I would have to keep attending school alongside the perpetrator by doing co-ops, which I was lucky enough to land two consecutively, and fortunately my school has a good way to integrate these into our schedule.

However, even though it's been a year, it's still incredibly hard to be back here. I used to be a good student, I had straight A's, but some days I can hardly get out of bed because this environment is just not good for me mentally.

Anyways, I'll get back to the initial question I had:

I've considered dropping out and I've considered transferring, but both of those would be unrealistic considering I'm just over halfway done + I already came in as a transfer from CC + my grades and gpa tanked significantly right after the incident. So how realistic would it be to get my bachelor's in chemistry (I'd graduate much much sooner), and then pivot to a master's program in chemical engineering at a different institution, especially bc my GPA is not good rn? I really liked my jobs and I'd like to stay in the field, but the coursework is extremely rigorous and I think the sooner I can leave the better, tbh.

Anyways, any advice or feedback is very very appreciated.

For context, I am a Year 12 student doing A-levels Bio,chem,maths (yes I know, very basic)

For a while now, I have been set on doing Medicine and have even done a bunch of supercurriculars on it.

Recently, I learned a bit about chemical engineering and jeez it seems so interesting. Problem is I don’t know much about it and I feel super confused and a tad bit stressed.

Any aspiring or current chemical engineers, please help and tell me your experience with it!

Thanks!!

Hello everyone, I need industrial diagrams and P&ID for the production of green ammonia and green hydrogen, water treatment, renewable energy, and oxygen compression and storage. The process is the production of green ammonia using green hydrogen. Can you tell me where I can find it or help me with that?

Lately I have heard from so many places that it is tough. I'm just wondering how it varies from country to country since I know the engineering job market isn't doing that well lately. Im taking about people without a ton of experience.

I’ve noticed this pattern in the industry where technicians hate on engineers, and engineers with Bachelor’s degree hate on those with PhD. I’d say the latter is more common in my experience. Why’s that the case?

¿Qué tan lejos estoy