Second interview for construction management position.. Advice?

Question

I've been called back for a second interview at a Civil Engineering and Project management firm. I'm a recent graduate with a BS in civil engineering. The position is the junior office engineer, which supports the managers. I haven't been to a second interview before... anyone with experience in this field have any tips as to what I should ask the employer?

Answer 1

The questions you ask depends on what role you see yourself in, as well as where you want to be in the future.  As a young engineer, it is very important to get the right kind of experience for your career path.  If you desire to get your PE license, you need to make sure you are put in a setting that will allow you to gain the necessary experience to make that happen.  If you would rather work out in the field, you need to make sure there is an opportunity for that as well.  With out a doubt you are going to be stuck with a lot of CAD work at first because you are young.  I would definately ask how much CAD you would be expected to do, or for how long.  Picking up marks in CAD is not good experience for a  young engineer.  You need to find out what kind of mentoring there is available as well as what kind of career path you can expect.  Do they want you to grow into a Sr. Engineer, a project manager, is that even possible?  Remember, you are interviewing them as much as they are interviewing you.  If you want a field job and this is for desk work, you need to find that out up front.  Are you willing to travel?  If not, you need to find out how much travel is involved so you are prepared.  I would focus on learning about what kind of experience you are going to get.  What you learned in school will definately be helpful, but you get your real engineering knowledge out in the work place, make sure you are going to have ample oportunity to learn, no matter what role you play to start off with.