<p>At the moment I have zero engineering related jobs on my resume, however, an opportunity to work at a local lab doing research on wireless sensor networks (as they relate to utilities/power distribution) came up that would fit into my fall semester schedule without too much headache. I am pretty sure I’ll take the job just so I can get something (anything) engineering related on my resume, however, I am an aerospace major (space track) and I don’t want to misstep by seeming to pigeonhole myself with another industry. As well, I’m wondering if I’m off base about my assumptions and that only directly applicable jobs are helpful for the resume. This is especially important as the summer internship fairs start cropping up here in a couple months and I really am looking to land something directly related (willing to relocate).</p>
<p>I think the important thing is that you gain experience. If you ask me, an internship involving reasearch on wireless sensor networks will give you a good foundation. I would not worry too much about it not being a traditional engineering internship. Proving yourself in the internship that you speak of will speak volumes when it comes time to applying for other internships and, eventually, a full time job.</p>
<p>Don’t worry too much about the experience being in a different field than what you are studying. It’s still good experience, and it’s way better than nothing. Most people understand that college students in particular are trying out different things, and I doubt anyone would count it against you (one internship as a college student is certainly not enough to “pigeonhole” yourself in an industry).</p>
<p>When I applied to grad school, I had a lot of experience in seemingly non-related fields, and I had to answer a few questions that were to the tune of why didn’t you do this or why aren’t you going into this field? But really, it’s all about how you sell it. If there’s ever any question about it (which I don’t think there necessarily will be), you just need to be able to explain why you were initially interested in it, what your experience was and what you learned from it, and how that experience will be beneficial to the direction you want to go.</p>