There are nearly 160,000 professional engineers working in Canada according to Statistics Canada and as the economy continues to stagger the demand for skilled professionals grows. Yet new engineering graduates may be left wondering whether the market still has room for them.   “If you look at the stats online, engineering is still one of the top fields to get into,” says Dan McDowell, senior recruiter for the Engineering Search Firm in Woodbridge, ON. Despite the economic downtown, global staffing agency Manpower Inc. reports engineering is among its top five hot jobs in 2009. Still, in a weakened economy, job availability is becoming increasingly harder to come by as employers raise the skills bar, says McDowell.

“In the last year things have changed in terms of what employers are looking for. Increasingly more employers looking for not just the engineering degree, but for also the P. Eng,” says McDowell of the professional certification that designates an individual a licensed engineer. “Employers are also pushing hard for project management professional (PMP) certification, which takes a couple of years to obtain.”

Employers are seeking engineers with a balance between technical and non-technical skills. Not only do they want a professional with industry experience, but one familiar with the technology that comes from working in the field, says McDowell. For post-secondary graduates with limited experience this seems like a tall order to fill.

“Many of the job requirements are geared towards intermediate and senior level positions. At the entry level there are not many positions,” says Neramith Khamvongsa, 24. She recently graduated with degrees in civil engineering and biology from the University of Western Ontario. She knows first had how hard it is to find a job. Because of hiring freezes, companies are enforcing quotas to limit the number of new engineering graduates being hired, Khamvongsa says. “My job search was very extensive. I went through the Internet, job banks and any Ontario programs recruiting students,” she says. Khamvongsa spent nearly five months handing out résumés to prospective employers before eventually finding a job as an engineering assistant at Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources.

So can grads really expect to find work? Yes, according to the Engineering and Technology Labour Market Study, which reported 32 percent of university students graduating with an engineering degree found employment in engineering. “Generally speaking, job prospects for engineering graduates are quite strong despite the recent economic downturn. The government has been putting money into infrastructure and it continues to support the technology industry, therefore its reliance on science and engineering graduates will likely continue to grow,” says Chantal Guay, CEO of Engineers Canada. Engineers Canada is the national organization of the 12 provincial and territorial associations that regulate the practice of engineering in Canada and license the country's more than 160,000 professional engineers.

Still, there is always the difficulty of gaining experience – to get a job you need experience but to get experience you need a job. So where do you start? The portal to real world experience lies in internships, says Guay. “The next step for graduates is real on-the-job experience in the form of an internship, just like their fellow graduates aspiring to become professionals in fields such as law, medicine or accounting,” she says. Finding any work, even outside one’s field, is beneficial because it gives you the opportunity to work under a professional, she explains.

However, it will be a steep grind for grads one or two years out of school in most engineering disciplines, says McDowell, who agrees employers are continually seeking skilled recruits, but notices grads skilled in specialized disciplines are in higher demand.

“If there are students looking to get into engineering, the field I see most often in demand now is electrical and electronic engineering, specifically for electronic power engineers. There are very few around and employers know this,” says McDowell, adding employers are less demanding when it comes to experience in these areas because of a limited applicant pool.

“In any case, engineers are expected to keep current on the latest advances in technology, materials, standards and practices and acquire additional training if necessary,” emphasizes Guay.

Khamvongsa, for her part, understands that it will take some time to sort out her engineering career, but believes the future is bright on the path towards becoming a professional. “Positions in engineering change quickly according to the economy. I am hopeful.” jp