You apply through jobstreet only for new jobs? Do you search through newspapers?
Do you try Altera, Intel? I mean they have their webpage for vacancies.

Your current job details too short in my opinion.
You may refer this.

- Responsible for overall process engineering and product engineering.
- To sustain and improve process yield and quality.
- To take up cost reduction projects. (You may edit this)
- To determine the corrective actions related to process yield issue.
- To analyze evaluation and make conclusion.

Your "Solves >10 process abnormality and develop improvement for optimal performance & food safety ..." - improve how many % and how did it helps your company?
Achievements are important.

Dreamer is right. From your resume, I don't see anything like course that you learnt that support you to become software engineer.
Mechatronics definitely is not add any value too.

You should find back and try to compute your improvement. Do your company use Lean's Six Sigma?
Maybe those terms like JIT, kaizen, 5S, poka yoke etc may remind you.
I do feel like you disconnected from manufacturing after I read you resume.

What have you done in free time, company kaizen, etc using computer technology? Because if you like software etc, you will done something in your free time, or office time.
I give you another example for this,
-"You did an automation sending out daily report to every engineering bosses utilising tools you have in the company, using excel, vba, vbs, smtp email and sql."
-"You join and contributing to open-source e.g. certain linux, certain projects."
-"You got few certs from computer science, A.I etc from online courses or other sources."

Know programming is no use, even a 5 years old know it. You must show the passion why you like this kind of job.

Are you talking about VBA? What I know is VBA (Visual Basic for Application) which is coded at the back of a spreadsheet. It's can run as macro and other form.
Just read some books and use google, a lot of resources you can learn from. Trust me for this.

Please don't think your company can help you refine any skills. Every skills you need for the future, you have to learn it by yourself.
Just want to let you face the reality, you said you want to change to software, talk is cheap. You need to show what you done to the interviewer and your resume. (Dreamer mentioned this already)

Just want to ask you few simple questions, what do you think of your current resume?
Do you feel that you can survive in software engineering with your current skills?

In your current job, do you do report like using excel etc? maybe yield report, data mining etc?
Why do you work in your current job in the first place? Why you not pursue software engineering last time?

Edit: Chances are not given, is you create by your own.

This post has been edited by quovadis123: Feb 3 2014, 01:36 AM

Some of the simple questions I asked, you have not answer yet.

How many hours do you work if include OT?
I think you can able to learn during your working hours since you also using the excel in workplace.
Do you have subordinates like technicians?

This post has been edited by quovadis123: Feb 4 2014, 01:19 AM

There are few methods to reduce your workload so you can concentrate on learning new things.
- for the yield report, you should create automation on it. Auto query data by schedule, auto crunch it, auto tabulate, auto send to your bosses, subordinates and you.
Even you can auto predict the abnormality. This should remove most of your workload.
You should understand this, because you are an engineer. You need to shine brightly.

I did this before, you can find a way to do it.
Last time, I do have 4 technicians and 2 lines to take care of. I remove my technicians and my own workload in reporting(>6k % improvement projects since it is RM 0 project, able to optimize alot of headcounts including my own headcount), so my technicians can concentrate more on the line, and me will always do cima-cima kaizen and other improvements. This is my own design project last time(using software, scripting), and finally extended to full manufacturing line after I leave the company.
Yup, I like software and programming.
Real engineer is not doing reporting, but help company to save money, improve processes and solve problems.

Don't find excuses. When your boss asked you to do something, just answer him/her "I will do it right now!". Become a do-ers.
You will attracts alot of bosses and seniors to teach you other things in life or other useful things.

- You dump all your things to your subordinates (not recommended)


Actually is quite simple, you just need to show your passion in your resume or interview, you will get the job.
From what I seen, you resume lacks of something related to software engineering. You do not show your related achievements related to software.

For FYP, how your FYP is different from others? Do you propose your own topics, did something your mechatronics faculty never did before?
Since you small until now, what do you do that can show us your interest to software or software engineering / CS is deep?
Why I asked this question, just want to know whether you like software out of nowhere in this year or long time ago.

edit: Please do not feel that we are harsh towards you.

This post has been edited by quovadis123: Feb 4 2014, 02:36 AM

It's a > 6000% improvement projects because it reduces workload of >10 hours old data crunching and reporting to 0 hours.
So, many of the engineers no need to prepare for most reporting, and can concentrate on solve line issue.
Every morning, a report will deliver for big bosses and engineers including technicians ,FA, Software, Product, Process, Managers, S. Managers and Plant Managers. Like a newspapers, engineers read it and solve it.
Why send to so many people? Because when any engineer absent from work, manager can solve the problems in the line.
This even can train our own technicians to solve the problems since they know which equipment and the yield, they will have faster response.
RM 0 means zero cost project. Why company like it? Because it saves alot of manual work and can optimize excess headcounts.
Whole manufacturing line become more responsive, the manager expect more from engineers and technicians after that.

I remind you again, programming is just a tool used by us to solve problems.

About the fyp, I think it will be better if we propose our own topic to the lecturer. Never mind, time passed.

I would like to hear from you since you're in this field for very long.
How do you tell a person love programming apart from those don't love?

Thanks for clear explanation.
I think I'm programming guy.
I like to solve problem, but I will try different method of programming and languages, sometime mixed few languages to solve same problems.
I feel very excited about programming. FYI, I'm not grad from programming related engineering course. I learnt by myself.
I do take a lot of online courses and grad with flying colors like A.I course, programming course. I did enjoy learning programming.
Most of my time, I will read programming books. Most of the python and objective-C languages books I also read before (more than 30books each).
Other programming languages I read just for few books to understand how it works.

I feel like smile from my heart when I start think of programming.

TS,

I do have friend that he said he like photography.
He bought a DSLR after he start working as engineer.
At the end, he seldom takes any pictures, he did not learn how to use DSLR efficiently.
But, he said he like photography. Even now, after 2 years and half, never see any pictures from him.


This is the problem, he actually do not know what he likes.
Because he think his friend as photographer very cool, then he think he also like photography.
A person like photography will takes pictures at every moments. They study the angle, contrast etc (This I no expert at all).


After you realised what you really like, your path will be clear.

This post has been edited by quovadis123: Feb 5 2014, 12:51 AM

What do you intend to become as your final career choice? Architect, Evangelist? Or Managing path?

brightjoey,

From the highlighted in blue,
Why do you think skill in programming is important?

Programming language is a language to communicate with machine. What dreamer learn is just a communication.
For example, I know how to communicate in Bahasa Malaysia since I learnt it since schooling time.
But my command in B.M is weak, but still I'm able to communicate with most people in B.M.
So, will I will improve my command in B.M ? No!
I will never good in BM for my entire life, just an average joe because I don't like.

In programming, you can use multiple method and algorithms to solve the same problems. For those dislike programming, they will only use one or two methods.
If the method can get the job done, then they are ok with it. They will never good at it.
For those like programming, they will continue for their entire life to find better way to solve it.

Like I said before, programming is just a tool of solving the problems. You need to know what field you really like.
In fact programming field are wide, there are software development, mobile computing, testing, architecture, analysis and very long list.

Let's say you are an expert in C programming(tool). But what field you want to enter with your profile?
Actually you still need a destination.

In fact, we already know programming is not for you. We don't want another average joe in this field. YOLO
You should in the field you really like! We want you to unleash your full potential, so, you will benefits to the world and society.


This post has been edited by quovadis123: Feb 9 2014, 04:37 AM

Just want to ask you simple questions,
What do you want to become in the future? Maybe next 2-5 years...
Work in engineering? become own boss, open a restaurant? running ecommerce? become lecturer? making movie? or prefer unemployed stay at home?

Just a honest answer..

Seems this time you have some firm answer for us. For design machinery, normally you will exposed to CAD, for example AutoCAD, SolidWorks, ANSYS and etc.
During my FYP last time, I did propose and do projects of verifying fatigue life of certain steel using ANSYS via Finite Element Analysis.
I'm only one in the course proposing such computational method and compare with real experiments. Most of the 99% undergrad that time only taking titles given by lecturers/supervisor.
The ANSYS do have programming features if you want to custom run some extra simulations for those not available in the software itself.

Below is only illustration of the software.

ANSYS just like other simulation software. Similar softwares are like CATIA, solidworks etc.
You create a 3D model through AutoCAD/Solidworks/ other CAD software then you exported to ANSYS to do testing in terms of materials strength, simulate and predict the product in real life etc.
Those jobs are called Finite Element Engineer.
It's not like a engineer design by drawing only... Those can be done by draughtsman already.

Edit: There are a lot of jobs using those simulation softwares, maybe other professionals can comment about this too.

This post has been edited by quovadis123: Feb 18 2014, 12:46 AM

What right equipment do you mean? You can use your phone camera, right?

Like a typist, at beginning, they will use normal keyboard a.k.a membrane keyboard or maybe you can use laptop keyboard.
After that typist break alot of keyboard after long time use, they will move to more reliable keyboard like mechanical keyboard. They will notice the drawback of membrane keyboard.
Moving from membrane keyboard to mechanical keyboard is like from RM 20 keyboard to RM 500 keyboard.
Everyone start at level 1, then slowly level up..

You will notice what is the drawbacks of that item then you will upgrade based on your needs.
Even if I give you a best equipment, you still don't know how to use its full potential.

My advice is use what you have currently have.

This post has been edited by quovadis123: Feb 18 2014, 01:05 AM