Careers

Chemical engineering is a very bad option in Ontario.

Deal Addict
User avatar
Mar 16, 2004
2032 posts
178 upvotes
Live AT, Work FL, Ho…
peanutz wrote: Wow, this thread is saddening.

Hey OP, are you still there?

I think you should re-read this post. It concerns me that you might be doing a Masters in Ontario.

If you were going to put more time and money to do a Masters, you should have seriously considered applying to a US or German or some other program, outside of Canada. Maybe Singapore if they have any demand there...they speak English and yet have Asian connections. This would have expanded your connections and also give you potential access to better markets.

If you couldn't find a job you wanted here, how do you figure a Canadian Masters would help? :/
There's nothing wrong in doing a Master's. It's the expectation of having a local position. There's just nothing in Ontario.
Do a Master's and apply elsewhere. US Gulf Coast has lot of opportunities. Check out chemical parks in Germany (e.g. Mannheim). Saudia Arabia has huge JVs with mega-complexes. Singapore's Jurong Island is literally an artificial island created specifically for the chemical industry.

The only language requirement is really English proficiency.

Lastly, a Canadian Master's is well recognized internationally. In the Swiss office I'm working in, 3 have Canadian degrees.
Banned
User avatar
Nov 19, 2014
910 posts
248 upvotes
peanutz wrote: Wow, this thread is saddening.

Hey OP, are you still there?

If you couldn't find a job you wanted here, how do you figure a Canadian Masters would help? :/

I'm At The W, But I Can't Meet You In The Lobby, Girl I Gotta Watch My Back, Cuz I'm Not Just Anybody, I Seen Em' Stand In Line, Just To Get Beside Her, That's When We Disappear, You Need GPS To Find Her, Oh That Was Your Girl? I Thought I Recognized Her."
Deal Addict
Mar 6, 2015
1836 posts
279 upvotes
Aristophanes wrote: There's nothing wrong in doing a Master's. It's the expectation of having a local position. There's just nothing in Ontario.
Do a Master's and apply elsewhere. US Gulf Coast has lot of opportunities. Check out chemical parks in Germany (e.g. Mannheim). Saudia Arabia has huge JVs with mega-complexes. Singapore's Jurong Island is literally an artificial island created specifically for the chemical industry.
A BSc physics who was about to finish his master in engineering chatted to me that expectation of the local industry is important.
If the post or comment helps or delights you, please CLICK that LIKE BUTTON!
Meiji: Ambassador Swanbeck, I have concluded that your treaty is NOT in the best interests of my people. So sorry, but you may not.
Swanbeck: This is an outrage!
Newbie
Jan 23, 2017
4 posts
My sincere advice to the OP is to move to the US for masters. And, this is how you are going to do it:

1. You have a great GPA. Make use of it. Give your GRE and aim for a good score.
2. Work with one of your professors as a research assistant and try to get a publication out. Doesn't matter which journal you publish in. Get a strong recommendation letter.
3. Apply to the schools in the US for masters. Aim for the top schools. If your GRE score is not good enough, you could still apply for an M.Eng in chemical engineering at places like Cornell University (ivy league).

4. You could either work in the US or (if you do well in your M.Eng and GRE) you could go for your Ph.D. at one of the top schools like MIT, Harvard, Cambridge. etc.

Get out of Canada while you're still young. Things will not get better, only worse. Canada's economy is already in the slump due to falling oil and potash prices ( an area where a good number of chemical engineers would usually get hired), and it won't get better due to the trade wars with the US.

You have two strong assets (GPA and age), make use of them, get out while you can.
Deal Addict
Aug 8, 2010
1215 posts
437 upvotes
Ottawa
qwerty662 wrote: 2. Work with one of your professors as a research assistant and try to get a publication out. Doesn't matter which journal you publish in. Get a strong recommendation letter.
3. Apply to the schools in the US for masters. Aim for the top schools. If your GRE score is not good enough, you could still apply for an M.Eng in chemical engineering at places like Cornell University (ivy league).

4. You could either work in the US or (if you do well in your M.Eng and GRE) you could go for your Ph.D. at one of the top schools like MIT, Harvard, Cambridge. etc.

Get out of Canada while you're still young. Things will not get better, only worse. Canada's economy is already in the slump due to falling oil and potash prices ( an area where a good number of chemical engineers would usually get hired), and it won't get better due to the trade wars with the US.

You have two strong assets (GPA and age), make use of them, get out while you can.
I think that's great advice.
Deal Addict
Mar 6, 2015
1836 posts
279 upvotes
Aristophanes wrote: Ontario's key industries are finance, some manufacturing, agriculture, formerly steel, etc, etc. Except for Chemical Valley in Sarnia, there's not much of a chemical industry, except for satellite locations here and there. You go study chemical engineering and hope to land something in the field in a province where chemistry is not a core industry. What do you expect? Magic chemical plants to show up down the street? If you study chem eng, then expect to move somewhere where the skill-set is needed, to where large chemical companies have their operations. Google chemical parks in Germany, Saudi Arabia, China. Nothing in Ontario will ever match these. Talk about expectation management. You expect a good salary while there's huge over saturation on supply. You want to be close by work but no real working experience. I've been in the chem industry long enough and I can confirm Ontario sucks, and will continue to suck for eternity, for chem eng / chemistry grads. Best advice: reeducate yourself in something Ontario has a demand for, or move.
I am just reflecting on posts' contents, not biting on anyone. From the information therein, the industry about chemistry has been decreasing ever since 2012?
If the post or comment helps or delights you, please CLICK that LIKE BUTTON!
Meiji: Ambassador Swanbeck, I have concluded that your treaty is NOT in the best interests of my people. So sorry, but you may not.
Swanbeck: This is an outrage!
Deal Expert
User avatar
Oct 26, 2003
39343 posts
6342 upvotes
Winnipeg
cybercavalier wrote: A BSc physics who was about to finish his master in engineering chatted to me that expectation of the local industry is important.
how does one take master in an unrelated field?
Sr. Member
May 9, 2012
520 posts
173 upvotes
SF Bay Area
Physics and math degrees are very versatile, it's pretty easy to transfer knowledge from them to engineering.

For example, a person with physics degree can do a master in semiconductor device physics/ device modeling.
Deal Addict
Oct 6, 2015
2463 posts
1401 upvotes
pltz77 wrote: Physics and math degrees are very versatile, it's pretty easy to transfer knowledge from them to engineering.

For example, a person with physics degree can do a master in semiconductor device physics/ device modeling.
But that's really not an unrelated field, now is it? Physicists have always been involved in that sort of work, semiconductor device physics being a very specific application of physics. Depending on undergrad programs, the Physics grad may very well have a stronger preparatory background to do a MSEE in that area than your typical BSEE grad that took 2-3 courses in material sciences, and isn't well rooted in, for example, Boltzmann statistics or mathematical modelling of partial differential equations.

That said, engineering in Canada is notoriously cyclical. Graduate at the right time, and you could be golden for a good decade or more until things slow down. Graduate at the wrong time from the wrong program, and you could spend a good chunk of your life selling used cars until things finally pick back up again.
Deal Addict
Mar 6, 2015
1836 posts
279 upvotes
burnt69 wrote: That said, engineering in Canada is notoriously cyclical. Graduate at the right time, and you could be golden for a good decade or more until things slow down. Graduate at the wrong time from the wrong program, and you could spend a good chunk of your life selling used cars until things finally pick back up again.
What do you mean?

Secondly, a Physics background in burnt69's perspective meant a better preparation for engineering. In other words, taking chemical engineering is limiting a person's horizon?
If the post or comment helps or delights you, please CLICK that LIKE BUTTON!
Meiji: Ambassador Swanbeck, I have concluded that your treaty is NOT in the best interests of my people. So sorry, but you may not.
Swanbeck: This is an outrage!
Sr. Member
May 9, 2012
520 posts
173 upvotes
SF Bay Area
burnt69 wrote: But that's really not an unrelated field, now is it? Physicists have always been involved in that sort of work, semiconductor device physics being a very specific application of physics. Depending on undergrad programs, the Physics grad may very well have a stronger preparatory background to do a MSEE in that area than your typical BSEE grad that took 2-3 courses in material sciences, and isn't well rooted in, for example, Boltzmann statistics or mathematical modelling of partial differential equations.
I guess what I am trying to say is that a lot of engineering is really just applied physics so they aren't unrelated to begin with. Same can be said about math.
Deal Fanatic
User avatar
Dec 16, 2015
5405 posts
5751 upvotes
Distance: 50 Metres
Op should have taken the position at silicon valley, battery tech is the next big thing. Try setting up yourself to target this market. It's not too late.

Once a friend of mine took a 1 week contract which leads up to an executive position at big 5 bank today.
To the moon

Top

Thread Information

There is currently 1 user viewing this thread. (0 members and 1 guest)