let's talk about adulting!

[Mikaiah]

@Mikaiah may I ask what region you're from in the US? I know the culture can vary by region, I'm from the good ol liberal Midwest. My hope is to major in Accounting and find a school that has a dual degree program to get a Masters quicker. But just out of curiosity, what does an Engineer do? It sounds interesting and worthwhile!

I'm a chemical engineer, so my work will be VERY different from a Mechanical, Electrical, or Computer engineer, and you're better off asking people in those fields what they do.

Anyways, the chemical engineering job is actually pretty diverse. Day-to-day it'll depend on the phase of the project I'm in so I'll give some examples (I'm in consumer goods/food industry which is also additionally very different from Pharmaceutical or Oil/Gas).
I'm not allowed to spill company secrets like line names or specifics, so I'll have to keep it generic.

So as an engineer, usually the plan is scale-up and production. Product development will create the new products, your job is to figure out how to make a million of that product as efficiently as possible.

OK, so project start -> usually here are budget talks with vendors and stakeholders on what the new line they want to build is. Your role in this as an engineer will vary, usually there is one "engineering manager" or someone who is the primary engineer managing the project. We'll say that I work at Company A and we're making a new line for producing half-gallon milk bottles.

vendors selected -> once the vendors are selected, they will develop the part of the line they are responsible for (ie. the pasteurizer, bottle-filler, and coolers, etc.)
Usually the company making each of these parts are different.

Once the vendors complete their development, they will send the documents over to the engineering team at Company A. The head manufacturing specialist will read this document (usually a P&ID - piping and instrumentation diagram) amongst other specifications and send them back with questions or revisions. (ie. why is this valve here, we need backpressure here or things will explode, stuff like that).

The back-and forth will continue for quite awhile. Safety is super important, so we need to make sure we have everything covered.

Months after the initial revisions are committed, we now have a line, but we need to test the automation (PLC code).
This is currently what I'm personally working on.

So my job at the moment is to:
- Build a simulation (ie. place valves, pipe connections, tanks, etc in order).
- Load the PLC code (someone else is actually doing this to me) into the rack so that it can be tested.
- Run the simulation and debug both the PLC coding and my own work.

This process normally takes months (the better part of a year).
I know that I put them each on one line, but they're actually quite complex.
For building the simulation, you need to parse through hundred of thousands of pages of a technical manual that the vendor provides you. Normally you're looking for things like the pump curve, heat transfer coefficients, etc. Sometimes you have to calculate them yourself (this part is the only part you learn in university).
Then you have to think through multiple unit conversions (ie. in to meters, meters to millimeters, stuff like that) and make sure everything is working together.

Then you need to figure out how to get your blocks to talk to each other, and that's what the PLC code is for.
I'm probably getting too detailed here but feel free to ask if you want more details xD.

ok, once the PLC code is tested/debugged, we send a document with all the bugs back to the vendor for correction, and continue testing corrections until everything works properly.

While that was happening, all the equipment got delivered onsite and is ready for installation. Usually the vendor will go onsite and assist with installation, usually the engineering team isn't too involved here.

Where we get involved again is for test runs. Things like bottle rejection (it was the wrong shape, we need to make sure the computer correctly rejects these) and correct processing (monitoring temperatures of the milk while it's pasteurizing, for example). We have to test the seal, and make sure the conveyors are running smoothly.
This is a lot more involved than you might think.

While test runs are happening, we also have to run operator training. We need to make sure they know exactly what to do on the factory floor if a valve suddenly fails and starts draining, or if the CIP (clean in place solution, this is something commonly used in food production for more efficiency) starts leaking into the balance tank. This is often run using the simulation that I built before.

Then after that is factory/project ramp-up. We don't stop supporting until the line has successfully run for 8-10 weeks, by which point it can go into full production.

wow this turned out a lot longer than I thought, hope you don't mind reading! xD
I also know roughly what a lot of the other engineering disciplines do, but I won't be able to speak with as much detail on them.

 

[lyradelphie04]

@Mikaiah I'm actually in shock lol!! I'm also from SE Michigan and MSU is on my list to apply to (Along with U of M, EMU, and GVSU) and two of my friends will be attending this fall.

Engineering sounds a bit too complicated for my simple brain but I appreciate the insight on an occupation I thought only involved cars... now I know that I was thinking of a mechanic whoops. If you feel like sharing more on the MSU experience I'd be very glad to read! You don't have to of course. But like, what are the chances that I'd find a Michigander who actually goes to a university I've been considering heheh

 

[Mikaiah]

edited for privacy >///<

 

[DJStarstryker]

Hey all!!

Now that I know there's so many more people than silly teenagers (like me! don't take offense lol) I'd love to ask some questions about life and adulting!!

Recently... a very unfortunate event has placed me in the position of helping my mother figure out how to pay bills, mowing the lawn, fixing things around the house, and more or less manning up, since out of everyone in my house the smallest girl is apparently the strongest heheh.

Anyways... for you adults out there, what are your words of wisdom? Did you apply for college? What was/is college like? How do you find people to date if you don't want to use the internet and you're no longer in school? Is work as gossipy as school? What kind of jobs do you have, and why did you choose them? Any advice on dorm/apartment roomies? What's your bill-paying and organization system? Do you own a home or rent? Do you own a car or lease? What leads you to these decisions?

Here's a great opportunity to talk about your adulting life and share your experiences and give some advice to a poor, clueless 17-year-old girl :')

College - yes. But I went part time at night because I worked full time. The night time college experience is a lot different than the full time, living on campus kind of college. You don't really build as many friendships, nor is there any focus on partying or anything like that. People are focused on getting their education, and your classmates are generally fellow working adults too.

Dating - I met my now-husband at work. Work and also having interests where you can meet others are ways to meet others as an adult.

Is work as gossipy as school? Yes. Yes it is. It's both not as bad and worse at the same time. You generally don't get bullied as much in my experience, but you have the problem of the gossips spreading rumors to your boss and potentially impacting your job itself or promotion/raise opportunities.

Bill paying/organization - I set up a lot of bills to auto-pay, but make sure even when you do this that you always review the actual bill too. Make sure you're not being overcharged or paying for something you shouldn't. I highly recommend using some sort of way to track your spending. You're less likely to get yourself into debt if you know exactly where all of your money is going, and you won't have surprises either. I've definitely seen people be surprised at, for example, how much money they spent eating out in a month because they never tracked it. They just finally noticed when they got their credit card statement.

House - I've both owned and rented. It depended on the situation. I've moved a stupid amount in my adult life. I currently own my house. Some areas are cheaper to own, some are cheaper to rent, so you do want to look into that for your area. But you also sometimes have to base the own vs rent calculus on other things as well. I sometimes moved to places knowing I was only going to live there a short time. I moved hundreds of miles once, lived there for only 10 months, and then moved hundreds of miles again. Was it worth owning in that 10 months? No. So I didn't. It's not worth the hassle of buying and selling for short periods and it's also not worth the expenses of realtors, closing costs, etc.

Car - I own. I honestly don't recommend leasing a car. Ever. It's just not financially worth it. For owning, I recommend trying to save up and buying a reasonably priced car if you can. Some people don't seem to understand that not having a car payment is wonderful. My current car I've owned for about 5 years now. I paid 100% of the cost upfront when I bought it. No car payments, no interest.

I personally also don't recommend buying a brand new car. They lose a large chunk of their value the moment you drive it off the dealer's lot. The newest you should go for is 2-3 years old IMO. You don't take that massive depreciation hit and they're generally just as good as a new car.

I also recommend keeping a car as long as reasonable and keeping it maintained. Some people trade their car out for the newest model every 3-ish years. That's not necessary. Most modern cars are built really well and you can keep them for a long time. My previous car to this one I owned for about 10 years. It actually still ran well, but I had to get rid of it because I was moving to Japan and couldn't take it. Sure, I had to do oil changes, replace brake pads, buy a battery once, buy tires, etc over the course of owning it. But those are all expected maintenance expenses, not major issues that show the car is breaking down and should be replaced.

 

[Taj]

I loved reading all of these! Today is my 18th birthday (although I'm not on the birthday board how dare you tbt) so reading these are really helpful to my future

 

[LadyDestani]

how does credit work exactly? If I were to have a credit card, could I 'build credit' by buying 5-20$ worth of goods a month?

Yes, you could. You build credit by using it (either through a credit card or loans) and then paying it off, so as long as you are making regular payments above the minimum amount required you are building credit. In order to not fall into the pitfalls of debt, it's best to only use credit for amounts you can pay off in full each month.

 

[Mikaiah]

how does credit work exactly? If I were to have a credit card, could I 'build credit' by buying 5-20$ worth of goods a month?

Imma tack on to this.

If you have a problem with spending, I'd still apply for a credit card (this prolly counts as advertising but you can DM me for a referral link lol, helps me out a bit), any credit limit will do (lets just say its 100$).
then you can put some regular, monthly charge that normally doesn't change onto it, set on autopay (ie. my Comcast internet bill is $50 a month and does not change very often. Or you might subscribe to Netflix for something like $15 a month, which also doesn't change).

and set your bank account to autopay the credit card every month (make sure you're paying the statement balance and not the minimum payment).

I don't recommend putting rent on a credit card because they usually charge a ridiculous processing fee.

Then you can basically leave the credit card in your drawer and you don't need to be scared about overspending.

 

[Emzy]

Hi hi! This is a very interesting thread so i thought i might add my 2 cents c: I'm only a couple of years older than you and i'm from Australia so i assume alot of things are quite different but nonetheless~

University made me realise how small my worldview really was. The highschool i went to required an exam to get in and resultedly it was full of a certain demographic of people. However, after entering uni i got to meet so many different types of people from all different walks of life and it has really helped enrich my experiences and knowledge. If you have the opportunity to go i would defs reccommend it, although i am not sure how the process is in the US. If you can, apply for as many scholarships as you can, even the relatively smaller ones, every dollar counts. Interms of workload, I have to say that there was a significant increase - or atleast i started actually caring about doing work since i was doing something i enjoy c: - it got to the point where i was pulling an all nighter atleast once every week (this is extremely unhealthy and avoidable!! It was in addition to some other problems but as long as you're on top of your work it should be ok! c Nonetheless, uni is alot more enjoyable to me than high school because i'm doing something i enjoy and as cheesy as it sounds thats a tip! haha Although i understand the though process of wanting to so something with high pay aswell. All in all, don't think you're locked into ur occupation as soon as you have picked what you study. There are many routes to get to where you want to go as well as paths that you can stray off onto.

In university, i find that the people you meet depends on how much you put yourself out there. I'm in a few societies (uni clubs) and i was an executive aswell, so i get to know alot of people there as well as from work and mutual friends. Alot of my friends in fact have found partners through mutual friends.

In terms of gossip in the work environment i found that it depended on where i worked. I've worked quite afew jobs/internships and it was different each time. As a university tutor/private tutor (i worked under a company) I found that everyone was extremely encouraging and friendly - my co workers were all around my age and my higher ups, although older were extremely nice and supportive. Wherever I found working in retail and my internship at a magazine company alot more different. My personality didn't really click well with my retail coworkers - our interest didn't match and I always live under a rock when it came to gossip - so I found it alot harder to get close to them, similarly, at my internship there was a clear wall between me and the other workers - i guess part of it is that as a disposible intern there wasn't really a need to get to know me as i was just free manual labour xD Futhermore, there was a huge age gap between me (who was fresh out of high school) and them (whose average age would be about 30-40s?). Nonetheless, I found it managable as long as i was just friendly with everyone.

For my part time jobs, I choose the ones that paid the most with the least amount of hours. I wanted to become independant quickly and so coming from a selective highschool as well as my exam results allowed me to get more than decent pay for my age whilst still allowing alot of time to dedicate to uni. I study a double degree with one part being fashion design so that dictates the rest of my job choices

I've never properly rented an apartment or anything, the closest thing i have done is my one year exchange in Japan. I was able to get a private dorm instead of shared due to a pre-existing medical condition and i think as an introvert, that really helped. Although it would've been nice to dorm with other people as well as my other friends who got shared dorms instantly has a friendship circle of sorts - although the flip side is that if you don't vibe with them then you're stuck with them. There wasn't an automatic payment system in Japan, we had to go to the post office to pay before the end of the month. For budgeting, i wrote down EVERYTHING i bought. I used excel but there are plenty of apps out there too! Luckily i busted my ass on three part time jobs before going on exchange, got a few scholarships and i was really stingy on everything so it turned out ok. Personally, i liked to pay at the start of the month so I know how much money I have left over for the rest of the month (and i also don't have to pay a late fee if i forget!), but my friends liked to pay on the last few days.

Also, I'm sorry to hear about what has happened! I hope you power through c: wishing you all the best!

 

[Aliya]

I just skimmed this thread and everyone has such good advice! I'm from the Midwest if that helps and I'm more than happy to chat with anyone via discord.

I just graduated with my bachelors in a health science field this past semester. I'm going back for my masters in public health and I eventually want to get my PhD and become a professor. Career wise, research is an area I love and I want to do cancer research while teaching students.

I highly recommend going to a community college if you are unsure about what you want to study. It's way cheaper and taking your general education courses at a discounted rate is highly preferable since these will likely transfer to wherever you want to go. I changed my major a good 10 times before finally picking my bachelors degree field and I'm switching again for my masters lmao. I loved undergrad and really made the most of it my final two years to network (extremely hard as an introvert) and get to know my professors/cohort. Get to know your advisor (especially if they are faculty in your program) and meet with them regularly so you don't end up taking something you don't need.

I'm currently not working since my field has gone completely stale with the pandemic, but I worked all throughout college. I had an extremely intense internship I needed to complete in order to graduate which was toxic (coworker wise), but I learned a lot! Always keep your head down and out of it since it always bites you in the rear imo. I'm currently home, but I live alone on-campus while I'm at school since it's easier for me to focus. My field is mostly remote work so I'm hoping to secure a position soon while working right now on applications to get my graduate education funded (essentially I work in exchange for tuition so no loans!)

I always used excel to track my finances! I also prefer to own rather than lease so my car is used, but under my name. I like not being able to worry about miles too! I'd much rather invest my money into something I can use long-term also.

Wishing you the best of luck and please feel free to reach out if you ever need anything! I love to listen to others and help people out whenever I can.

 

[Lightmare]

Wow, I never got back to this to say thank you to you all!!

It was incredible to read through your stories and get some insight from people actually out there and getting that bread! I know a lot of this kind of information and advice can be found somewhere on the internet, but it feels more real and reliable when it comes from actual people, ya know?

I've been referencing this thread as I get my future plans together! Thank you for all the kind words and advice, it means a lot to me that you all took the time out of your days to write out all this thoughtful stuff.

@Imbri is a commuter college similar to a community college? Or is it an average four-year university in driving distance?

@LadyDestani and @Lightmare how does credit work exactly? If I were to have a credit card, could I 'build credit' by buying 5-20$ worth of goods a month?

@aloherna does each university have it's own general education requirements? Do you know of any universities that don't require general education?

@Mayor Ng I'd love to hear more about the hospitality industry! I always thought that'd be a nice job, but I was worried about the salary thing. You already stated that wages are not exactly high, but is it enough to make a comfortable living? And for paying rent at your parents (something I would really prefer to do if I end up staying with my mom for a bit after university) what did you do to determine a rent? Do you buy your own food and necessities?

@InkFox I've always been afraid of living abroad without a solid partner to go with, but I find it interesting you went to Southern China! I was actually born there before my parents adopted me. I don't know the language or culture, but I feel like it'd be cool to go there someday. Was the whole communism system difficult to deal with, with them monitoring so much of your daily activities?

Thanks again all!

yes, that's a good way to start! make sure you're able to pay it off before your grace period ends. a grace period is the time you're allowed to pay your credit bill without interest. once you exceed it, interest will be charged. it's around 21 days, so i suggest starting buying small things that you know you're able to pay for each month.

 

[meo]

Figure a spoiler would be nice haha. I'm in US just for relevancy to country.

Spoiler

What are your words of wisdom?
First, don't stress about where you are or the time it takes you to get to certain milestones/goals/deciding goals/etc. It's cliche, but truly everyone has their own timeline and whether it takes you longer/shorter to get to where you want to be is okay. Remember everything is temporary and what's true for one moment in your life won't and doesn't have to be true for the next.

Did you apply for college?
For brief context, I grew up in an abusive and dysfunctional household. There were a lot of factors from my family that prevented me from getting into college right away but, yes, I did eventually apply and start in my early 20s.

What was/is college like?
I had to pay out of pocket initially in college which can be very hard. I couldn't qualify with loans/financial aid/grants because my parents weren't involved and, with changes that were made to financial aid, you couldn't apply for it if you didn't have your parent's involvement under the age of 25 (unless you were a single parent, married, etc). I got married at 24 so I was able to qualify for financial aid after that which helped a lot in financially being able to stay in school...if I wasn't able to at that point, I probably would have had to leave school till I hit 25 to resume. That said, we didn't choose to get married when we did for that, we were just in the timeline we felt comfortable and ready to do so. We had a small simple ceremony which is what we would have preferred regardless of being in college or out/higher income vs lower income.

College in itself is fine depending on your attitude. Finances were always a big deal to me and a huge source of anxiety especially in my childhood/parent's household. So, going into college I had the intention of focusing hard and getting any help I needed to get the most out of every course and not waste any of the money going to it. I also didn't start until I had the intention of what I wanted to pursue (and there's nothing wrong with doing the opposite) just due to my own circumstances and considerations. The savings I did have due to starting later allowed me to pay out of pocket for the periods I did. I definitely recommend looking into information events and sessions for any fields you have interest in if you are undecided...for me, it solidified my passion for the health field I'm going into.

I didn't have a lot of academic help in neither my household growing up or in previous schools but, going into my college, I found a lot of resources that really empowered me and made me realize my capabilities. So, I'm very proud of myself academically.
Quarantine has been the biggest hitch in the experience naturally. I was set to graduate next spring but it could potentially be put off into summer because I'm in the health field so clinicals/labs are behind. Program studies that are purely lecture/on campus class based easily can convert to online but many of our courses can't for that reason. It's okay though, things happen and you just got to adjust.

How do you find people to date if you don't want to use the internet and you're no longer in school?
I wasn't too into the club/party life and I worked full-time in addition to majority of my college studies. So, finding time to meet people outside of that was pretty difficult (and I wouldn't say I had too much interest in people in my courses/jobs). I joined a dating site just to see since a lot of people were using it at the time...I was on it at most probably a week. I was just about to delete it when I met my now husband. I wouldn't say the dating site was something I would have continued to use (a lot of low quality interactions/creepy messages) but yea. It was just luck I guess or fate to be cheesy that we connected before I deleted it. The apps work for a lot of people though so it's not necessarily a wrong avenue, you just need to know what you're going into and be safe in any meetups you plan.

I would say just try to get active in things that you enjoy. Many colleges have groups/events. There's also community events/classes you can look into (facebook makes it easy to see some). Overall, you're young though and just don't stress it...enjoy your time figuring things out and the right person will come along in what you're active in.

Is work as gossipy as school?
It can be, yes. It really just depends on the people and place. What matters is how you choose to partake in it. If you don't and you focus on work then it's fine. You can control how it affects you if you don't let it. Of course, anything that goes against HR should be reported to HR and management.

What kind of jobs do you have, and why did you choose them?
I worked ever since I was 15. A lot of retail and sales jobs. For college, I chose to go into the health field (not really going to specify just for privacy) because I enjoy it. I enjoy the advancements of health, the science of it, and helping people. I also really like consistency and security coming from the childhood I had so the health field is something that I could move anywhere with.

Any advice on dorm/apartment roomies?
I can't really give much experience on this. I've only ever lived with my husband outside of moving out of my parent's home. I lived off campus so also can't speak for dorm life.


What's your bill-paying and organization system?
My husband and I have a combined finances system. I'll be honestly in that he handles more of the bill arrangements and I handle other things. He does make sure to always pay extra not just what's due monthly so that we are essentially several payments ahead on pretty much everything. So, I highly recommend that because in emergencies it helps. We make sure to budget what we want to go into savings every check and what we want our weekly spending to be capped at. What we limit for weekly we put into checking and what we want in savings we put in there. Any large purchases we simply discuss or let one another know beforehand.
When I was single, the idea was the same.

Just want to add, I know I was deadly afraid of any hint of debt or owing payments. But, you may find yourself in a situation where you do take on debt at some point in life and it's okay....obviously, you shouldn't want to and should try to plan to where you don't but, if it happens, what matters is how you plan and organize paying it off. There have been times where we've had debt and to date we have none so don't feel like should you end up with it that it's impossible to get out. The US has a lot of factors especially with our healthcare system sadly that can really affect households should you get sick seriously or be in an accident which is sadly something we've had to deal with.

Do you own a home or rent?
Own a home.

Do you own a car or lease?
Own. I had car payments, it has been paid off.

What leads you to these decisions?
For my husband and I, we just prefer home owning. Financially and in terms of investment owning is better than renting. However, that's not to say renting isn't viable/better for some people and situations. It just comes down to figuring out what is ideal for you and then planning for it.
Cars are never good investments. What I mean by that is the value is always going to go down as you own it. It's an asset surely especially for areas where cars are needed to get around. But, with that mindset, I definitely buy used over new...and to be fair, the car I have now was close to new with only a few 1000 miles on it but it saved me several thousands in money vs getting truly new. Handling payments is the same as regular bills, pay more than what your payment is to pay it off faster and have extra set aside.

My husband and I have gone through periods of decent incomes to periods of very small incomes and it's entirely possible to make things work especially on only one person's income so long as you really plan around what your means are, properly allotting your money to necessities over wants, and putting into savings. We definitely have sacrificed a lot and budgeted for considerations of being in school and also major health factors that occurred...but it's all okay and soon will be entirely what we sacrificed for in that I'll finally be done with my degree and licensing and onto the next phase in our goals.

 

[ting1984]

Hey there. I saw you got some replies already, but here's another just in case.

35 year old here. I remember when I was your age! 9/11 had just happened, and I was getting ready to enter college a year early. To answer your q's...

My words of wisdom --please know that your life will not always go the way you planned, dreamed, or expected. I'm an older Millennial, and my generation was -- generally speaking -- very indulged by our parents, who were mostly Boomers. We got everything we wanted, we were told we were special and brilliant and wonderful, and we were told to chase after our dreams. What we never learned was how to handle failure very well. Our parents would often just bail us out of whatever predicaments we found ourselves in. I don't think future generations will be as lucky with all that's been going on this last decade, so don't assume everything will be wonderful and fine. Learn resiliency.

Ok, as for the rest of your q's...

1) Yes, I applied and graduated
2) College was fairly easy because I always excelled academically
3) Can't help you there; I met my husband online back in 2004
4) Work can be just as gossipy as school, yes
5) I ended up working in a lot of pink collar jobs like substitute teaching and direct care because there was always a demand for them (I graduated right before the 2008 recession, so I couldn't be picky about employment)
6) Never had those; can't help you there
7) Not sure what you mean here -- I just pay whatever bills as they come; most things are going online these days, so I usually pay online
8) Husband and I own
9) We each have one car
10) We worked them out with each other and some parental input

 

[nintendoanna]

im also 17 and this entire thread is stressing me out LOL