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Old 07-28-2011, 10:06 AM
 
13 posts, read 44,361 times
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thanks tobester

vacation and sick leave yes, medical benefits vaguely yes

no educational expenses (not sure how this applies. for masters?)

have to check about the others.
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Old 07-28-2011, 11:38 AM
 
Location: Settled in Seattle
76 posts, read 257,644 times
Reputation: 38
most companies don't offer 401k matching or education reimbursement
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Old 07-28-2011, 05:56 PM
 
Location: US Empire, Pac NW
5,003 posts, read 12,337,043 times
Reputation: 4125
Quote:
Originally Posted by calibound1 View Post
most companies don't offer 401k matching or education reimbursement
I wonder if this is the case with engineering companies? I know "most" don't but "most" companies aren't engineering companies. I would not expect a barista at a bikini bar or a techie crunching data on predefined scripts with a bachelor's in anything to work for a company that matches 401(k) or education reimbursement.

I also wouldn't expect small start-ups to offer those either for obvious reasons (but would expect them willing to offer a bigger cut of any profits).

If I were you, I'd push to see if you can get education reimbursement. Why? I've been in the aerospace industry for 10 years now and still am going to school. I want to both keep that knowledge fresh and expand my educational background. I also take advantage of any hands-on training.

50k for a base salary for a ME though is not bad. I'd consider it.
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Old 07-28-2011, 07:46 PM
 
1,630 posts, read 3,876,271 times
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From engineeringsalary.com:

[SIZE=2]Mechanical engineer starting salary for BSME graduates averages $59,180. New MSME graduates have an avererage starting salary of $66,720, and new PhDs have an average starting salary of $85,640.[/SIZE]
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Old 08-01-2011, 12:34 PM
 
7 posts, read 16,952 times
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Hi,
I'm an engineer in another state (Texas), so Seattle info may not be too relevant, but as far as an engineering company goes, you could normally expect to receive:
401k - you contribute up to 10% (varies) of your salary, employer matches first 6%.
Probably no pension plan - very dependant on the company you work for - if an oil company, may be there, but not for general engineering company.
vacation - 2 weeks paid, might be 1 week for the first year, can typically rise to 4 weeks after 15-20 years service with the company
sick leave - where I work, they don't want it abused, so they just give you 3 extra days of 'vacation' time - basically if you're sick a lot, you get less time to spend on vacations.
Life insurance - usually covered for amount of your salary for free, you can buy additional.
Medical - expect to pay about 20% of what a policy would cost, employer covers the rest. standard 80/20 coverage, deductables, etc. For a single person, the cost shouldn't be too high.
Dental and Vision are nice to be able to get, cost is nominal.
Usually have to pay extra for short and long term disability - probably not something you're thinking or worrying about at first.
50k salary for grad is probably reasonable, since you're not in California - Texas is similar to Washington in no state income tax, fairly high sales tax,
at least you've got better scenery and less a/c bills up there (my opinion).
You can expect good salary increases as you learn your field, show expertise, and make yourself more valuable to your company.
Good luck in your career.
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Old 08-07-2011, 09:58 AM
 
13 posts, read 44,361 times
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thank you all for your information
i'm going to take the job.

I assumed most companies do 401K matching but i guess not?

my offer doesn't mention anything about it so i mostly likely wont get any.

oh and anyone knows if sales tax applies to everything except food?
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Old 08-07-2011, 11:19 AM
 
Location: US Empire, Pac NW
5,003 posts, read 12,337,043 times
Reputation: 4125
Quote:
Originally Posted by artemist View Post
thank you all for your information
i'm going to take the job.

I assumed most companies do 401K matching but i guess not?

my offer doesn't mention anything about it so i mostly likely wont get any.

oh and anyone knows if sales tax applies to everything except food?
You can ask about 401(k) matching once you start. If you went to work for a large firm they'll give you training and/or a book about the benefits. Most engineering companies do 401(k) matching of some sort. More companies are starting to do stock matching of the 401(k), that is, you put 8% into the 401(k) pretax and the company matches up to 6% at 0.75 cents to the dollar and the match is in company stock, and is usually at a discount. You get the benefits of the match (free money, dividends if applicable, etc) but also the bad parts (cannot freely sell it when you want due to insider trading regs ... a few guys at my company recently got busted for that and could be liable for the profits or preventable losses and a fine plus perhaps jail time ... nevermind the bigwigs always do this, it's the little guys that get screwed).

Again, I'd call to ask now that you've accepted.

Sales taxes apply to everything, even online purchases for those companies that care to apply it (e.g. Amazon.com).
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Old 08-07-2011, 09:01 PM
 
3,969 posts, read 13,636,401 times
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Congrats on accepting the job.

One fine point on 401K's. They are actually suffering right now with fewer and fewer employees taking part, to the point where many small to mid-size companies are ending their particiaption due to high maintenance fees. And, no, many who still have them are are not matching, part of the problem. This is an under reported problem, but employer 401K's are in trouble all over the place.

Last edited by pw72; 08-07-2011 at 09:10 PM..
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