In today’s increasingly mobile society, even the job search can be accomplished simply using your smartphone, a few apps, and maybe a mobile web browser. This added convenience helps when you discover a potentially perfect engineering position on the go and you don’t have access to your desktop computer. A few finger presses and swipes and your résumé gets sent on its way — even with a cover letter!

Let’s take a closer look at smartphone résumé authoring and the mobile job process.

The Engineering Job Search at the Speed of Light

With a specialized discipline like engineering, HR personnel are beginning to see the advantages derived from the mobile job search. Weaning through potentially hundreds of paper résumés sent through the regular mail is a time-consuming process that siphons off productivity. So the job seeker isn’t the only one benefitting from the mobile résumé.

LinkedIn, Craigslist, and other online job forums also offer a means for HR and job hunters to virtually interact. Email, instant messaging, and even video chat services, like Skype all play their own role in fostering communication related to the job hunt.

A Wide Array of Résumé Building Apps for iOS and Android

A simple search reveals a wide variety of résumé authoring apps for both the iOS and Android platforms; LinkedIn even has their own app that easily connects with the service. Tablets also hold a usability advantage over the smartphone when it comes to any form of word processing or typography. Tablet users can leverage mobile versions of office software suites to put together a résumé, or even edit one created on the desktop.

Additionally, many apps connect to online services specifically formed to assist job seekers in résumé creation as well as helping to manage the job search. Zerply and ResumeBaking are two examples. With the growing popularity of these digital means for the mobile job hunter, the days of the paper résumé may be on their way out.

If you need any assistance in your engineering job search — mobile or otherwise — talk to the experts at The Talley Group. As one of the top engineering staffing agencies in the Seattle area, they have the knowledge — and the engineering job opportunities in Seattle — to ensure your success. Schedule some time with them today!

Organized competitions remain a great way to inspire the fledgling engineer. When they take place at the scholastic level, these competitions are able to show students that STEM education can be fun, and that a career in engineering is a goal worth striving for by both boys and girls.

The Mindstorms Challenge, a Lego Robotics Competition

Recently the 13th annual Mindstorms Challenge, a robotics competition featuring Lego toys, took place at Wichita State University. In addition to encouraging students to study their STEM subjects, the competition is also charged with promoting the principles of collaboration and teamwork. Those latter skills become highly important when engaged in an engineering career.

The students taking place in Mindstorms found that while building the Lego robots didn’t take too much time, programming the plastic devices involved a significant amount of effort. This year’s competition featured 31 different teams.

Wichita State’s School of Engineering sponsored the competition in collaboration with Spirit AeroSystems. “Kids come here [and] learn about some math principles that actually has application,” said WSU Professor Larry Whitman. Hopefully, today’s Lego robotic engineers will become tomorrow’s mechanical engineers.

Imagination Station Competition part of National Engineers Week

Another competition for students took place as part of National Engineers Week. This event, held at Toledo’s Imagination Station, involved the children designing and building towers made up of only old newspapers and masking tape. These structures needed to be able to hold the weight of a baseball while “towering” to the height of at least 18 inches.

Anna Kolin, Imagination Station spokesman, said the competition intended to teach children the principles of iterative design, construction, and testing. Each tower had to be able to stand while holding the baseball and standing up to the stress caused by a high-powered fan.

If you can remember fondly on the days when you first decided to be an engineer, these stories of youngsters dipping their toes into the engineering science water must inspire.

If you’d like to further your own engineering career, be sure to talk to the people at The Talley Group, one of the leading staffing companies in the industry. Their helpful recruiters can make sure your career stands up to the stresses of today’s market.