| Topic Name: |
I just became an AutoCad Certified Professional;What am I worth? |
| Message Name: |
Demand more money |
| Date Posted: |
12/02/1999 |
| In Reply To: |
Hello, I work in Phoenix, Arizona and just became an Autocad Certified Professional (level 2) This is the highest honor awarded to an Autocad user by Autodesk.. When I took the exam, the average score is 81 (you need 80 to pass) I scored a 96. (so I know autocad) I have nearly 10 years of experince in Autocad and 5 years experince in my current field of precast concrete. This is more experince than the other Cad operators in the deparment. (so I know concrete) My resposibilities include shop plans, elevations, floor layouts, details, and piece drawings. However my salary is only slightly over $30K Am I underpaid? There are people coming in here with NO precast experince, virtually no Autocad experince (one guy never knew zoom extents existed) and are getting only a little an hour under me. Thanks for your help! |
| Message: |
It seems that you are being paid a lot less than what you are worth (but I am not sure what the labor market is like in Phoenix). I recently left a civil engineering consulting firm in Santa Rosa, CA, and the CAD operators there, depending on experience, were making upwards of $50K. (They were also bringing drafters fresh out of the local JC at about $32K who knew how to draw nice lines, but did not know what 16d @ 4" OC meant, nor did they know what a #4 bar is). Keep in mind, the ones who were making the "big bucks" provided project management support--dealing with the contractors and architects, issuing CD's, responding to RFI's, and were expected to put together base sheets and dummy sets with minimal supervision.
I would try to land some interviews at other local engineering, architecture, and contracting firms in your area to see what you are worth (I would ask for at least $40K and see where it goes from there. If they give you 40 with out flinching, you know you are worth more. Get a few offers, and if you like the place you are working now, give them a chance to match. If they aren't willing to match, it must mean that they are either a bunch of greedy bastards, or they aren't billing their services at an appropriate level.) At my old firm, they were offering $1000 rewards for successfully referring a CAD operator ("designer").
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