His Diverse Career Path From Manufacturing to Consulting
Currently a Failure Analysis Engineer at Exponent, Nevin Taylor graduated from UBC Materials Engineering in 2018. As an undergrad in MTRL, his fondest memories were the friendships he made and activities like starting an intramural basketball team, playing foosball in the student lounge, and attending the TMS conference via a trivia team. He actively participated in extracurriculars, including a co-op at a titanium manufacturing plant, and led a small group in the Formula SAE Design Team at UBC, working on projects like quantifying adhesive strength in vehicle components.
1. Can you tell me about your current job? How did you end up with it?
My current job is working in the field of failure analysis. I work for a technical consulting company, composed of experts who help other companies figure out why their products and services fail.
My career path was heavily influenced by my experiences at UBC. During one of my co-ops, I took on an opportunity at TIMET in Pennsylvania where I worked at a titanium manufacturing plant. This hooked me into the world of titanium, and after my undergrad in MTRL, I went on to pursue a Ph.D in Materials Engineering, focusing on titanium alloy development. I have long been interested in the field of failure analysis, and developing a specific expertise allowed me to build a role for myself as a metallurgist expert, while getting to help out the world’s most exciting companies solve their biggest problems.
2. What does a typical day look like for you? Does a typical day exist?
A typical day exists in the sense that every day I come in to work ready to take on a new problem. However, every day that may look completely different. Some days I am in the lab building test frames to crash cars together, while other days I am studying literature and patents on solar panel technology.
“In the technical consulting space, you have to be willing to learn, adapt, and apply yourself to solve new problems, which is something I find extremely rewarding and satisfying.”
3. You did a graduate degree after your undergraduate degree. How did this help you to end up in the career that you are in? Would you have advice for others considering graduate school?
I pursued a graduate degree after my undergraduate degree, and got a Ph.D. in Materials Engineering which did help me land my current role. There are definitely some circumstances where this approach can be valuable, but there are still many career paths where a graduate degree is not necessarily needed to advance, and can be made up for in valuable work experience. A graduate degree is also always something you can pursue after a couple years in industry, where you can get a better understanding of how it can advance your career, and what specifically you want to study.
4. How does your career now compare to how you originally envisioned your career in undergrad?
During undergrad, I envisioned my career being spent in manufacturing, but after a co-op position in manufacturing, I realized it wasn’t the best fit for me. During my graduate degree, I envisioned going into R&D, before most recently deciding to try out technical consulting. Needless to say, my plans have changed many times since undergrad, and I’m sure will change many more still.
5. What opportunities do you see for materials engineering graduates in the field you are working in?
Failure analysis is a unique discipline of problem solving. It often involves understanding complex mechanisms of corrosion, mechanical loading and manufacturing processes. Many companies do not have a team dedicated to failure analysis, and instead rely on design engineers with limited resources to understand these complex relationships.
“Many companies I have worked with could have mitigated significant issues if a well-trained materials engineer was a part of the team.”
6. What do you wish you had known about your career when you were a student?
I think the importance of communication can not be understated. Every day as an engineer, your most important asset is your ability to communicate. Solving technical issues may be a part of your job, but being able to communicate technical concepts to non-technical people will be as well. It’s also important to think critically about how to market yourself: convincing others that you can solve their problems based on your background and experience is not always simple. “Solving an engineering problem is often easier than convincing a team of people that you will be able to figure out how to solve that problem, before having done it.”
7. How did your materials engineering degree lead you to get the job you have?
“My degree in materials engineering was crucial in paving the way to my current position, as I work closely within this field. My degree also allowed me to consider many different possible career paths before deciding to narrow my expertise to metallurgy.”
Every day I work with colleagues with specific expertise in fields such as polymer chemistry and mechanical engineers, and my background in materials engineering allows me to easily bridge the knowledge gaps due to the diverse background that materials engineering offers.
8. How do you think your MTRL degree sets you apart from graduates of other programs?
“I think that a MTRL degree opens lots of doors, and allows you to choose a career path that fits your interests.”
You can choose to pursue R&D or manufacturing. You can choose to advance lithium-ion battery technology, or thin-film displays used in phones all with the same degree. Your career in MTRL is very much what you make of it, and I believe the number of possibilities for the future is unique. Since a degree in Materials Engineering is less common than Mechanical or Electrical, it also allows you to market yourself as unique which can be instrumental in landing an opportunity.
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