[Nfb-science] [nfb-scinece] professional networking

[aerospace1028 at hotmail.com]

Dear List,

I apologize in advance for the lengthy post.

 

I have been lurking here for the past couple of months now
and feel I should introduce myself.  My
name is Paul, I am a recent college graduate and I have been visually
impaired/blind since birth (for those of you that are curious, I have “retinopathy
of unknown etymology”).  I have some
usable vision, but I travel with a cane, read Braille (g2, Nemeth, and recently
I’ve started dabbling in UEB), and I use a screen-reader to access a computer
(I’m most familiar with JAWS, but have also recently familiarized myself with
Orca on Ubuntu).

 

Like many persons with visual disabilities, I am unemployed.

 

Ever since my childhood, I have had a fascination with spaceflight.  In primary and secondary school, I did well
in the sciences.  When I graduated high
school, I enrolled in college to study engineering.  I successfully obtained my undergraduate
degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering, with a focus on
structural mechanics.

Unfortunately, during my term of study, I was unable to
obtain any relevant work experience--and not for lack of trying.  One of the prerequisites for internships is
1-3 years previous internship experience. 
Upon graduation, the prerequisite for an entry-level engineering
position is 2-5 years previous experience.

 

I remained persistent and kept applying everywhere; from the
big-name contractors like Boeing, Lockheed-Martin, and ATK Thyakol, to the
smaller sub-contractors like Analytical Mechanical Services, and even some of
the newer private-sector companies like Armadillo Aerospace, bigellow
Aerospace, and SpaceX.

 

On several occasions, I was able to land an interview.  The question of my lack of employment always
came up, some companies were even less critical than others that it was not an
oversight in updating my resume.  But I
always ended up getting a letter, "regretfully informing me that the
position to which I had applied was being filled with another qualified
candidate."

 

I am working with VR, but they seem to have trouble with my
education as an aerospace engineer.  They
recognize me as being "smart,"' and they see my resume has a list of
"computer skills" and seem to be herding me towards software
engineering and network administration positions.

 

I had a recent close call with a job.  I found a start-up company in Portland
 Maine that was willing to hire me for
structural consulting, but they have since folded under.

 

I am finally willing to admit, the cliché is correct; who you
know, is more important than what you know.  My problem is that I have no network of "whos"
inside the engineering industry.  None of
my relatives works for any aerospace companies, and living in a rural community
on the Maine-New Hampshire border, there just isn't much aerospace presence around.

 

Finally, arriving near the end of my post, is there anyone who
can help?  Does anyone on this list have any
contacts with whom they could put me in contact?

 

Thank you

--Paul Boucher


_________________________________________________________________
Want to do more with Windows Live? Learn “10 hidden secrets” from Jamie.
http://windowslive.com/connect/post/jamiethomson.spaces.live.com-Blog-cns!550F681DAD532637!5295.entry?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_domore_092008