Im graduating May 2027 but I received 2 potential entry level engineering offers for the same salary (minus relocation); one in Tucson and one in Huntsville. I’m from Huntsville so I know a bit about the area, but I was wondering if there’s insight about living in Tucson. How is it as a city? How is it for young adults and for social life? Part of me wants a new environment but I don’t know nearly enough about the city or climate. Any insight is much appreciated 🙏🏾.

Hey all,

I recently got recommended to apply to RTX roles from a friend, which I did, and after the interview process I got an offer for Mechanical Engineer I at Rhode Island. The base salary is $89k with a relocation package of $4,500 for any type of relocation expenses, and a lump sum of temporary lodging for 15 days with no meals included.

This is a very good opportunity for my career, but I live in Texas, so this could be a full relocation across the country for which I am worried about the moving expenses. I've been unemployed for 5 months and this is the only job offer I have at the moment.

What do you guys think about the relocation package? Are relocation packages provided by Raytheon fixed or is there some flexibility for negotiation? How do I approach this to my recruiter?

Any advice/tips are welcome.

Anyone ever heard of a military video game that coincides with the active denial system? It's a first person military game but instead of seeing the game aspect on a TV screen it's instead seen inside the mind of the user. When played with others you actually get to use the active denial system weapons as well as being able to feel the physical damage you incurred. I came across this where I am living in Louisiana where a prison warden and a Chief of police have a hard on for me that I recently found out that the prison here has guards who have a league where they play until the death sometimes. I have played it and know it exists. Please reply if you know anything about the game or the league.

-mudd

Too afraid to ask HR… If I’m planning to leave the company, do I need to wait until Jan 1 to receive a bonus, or the usual March-April timeframe (after performance and merit) to get it? Has anyone started a new job close to the end of the year?

Has anyone ever done a trust through MetLife Legal with our benefits? I would love to use it for a trust as it’s only $150 a year.

I am graduating with my BSME in May and have been applying to many RTX jobs (mostly Raytheon). Lots of my applications say they are under review but no interviews yet. I have completed a Co-Op at Collins and an internship at Pratt so personally I think I'm a pretty good candidate, but I wanted to see if the community had any thoughts on what I could do to make myself stand out. Thanks!

I recently stated helping another program along with some Collins work. Both have approved over time and since I’m remote it’s pretty simple working 60 hours a week. I’ve noticed alot of my coworkers are doing Exempt OT as well although I’m not sure how much. I am getting my work done and I’m also one of the people leading the with the work load so is not like I’m doing time card fraud, I’m just curious how many of you are regularly doing OT? My previous section did not allow it due to the recent layoffs so going from barely making 40 how to having 60 available feels wrong maybe? My section feels closed off to everywhere else so I really don’t know the politics of this.

I recently interviewed in the final round, and I'm currently waiting on a decision. I got good feedback from the recruiter last week who stated he's waiting on more information, but I'm starting to feel less optimistic due to the long period of time.

The writing has been on the wall for some time now. Let's just hope that Sita wants to invest into MUSE and like-products vs taking what they want and throwing everything and everyone away. Luckily, there is some time since contracts must be fulfilled.

I got an email telling me to continue their application process and in the email it reads "DO NOT HIRE" multiple times. While leading on like there's an still an opportunity to join. Even asking me to complete tasks. This type of time wasting when someone is trying to build themselves and their career feels like a slap in the face.

Has anyone else had a similar experience with RTX recruiters? Across a few interactions, I’ve had emails go unanswered, and some responses have felt short or rude.

I’ve also had recruiters reach out about a role and move me toward an interview without an initial screening call. Then, when I’ve tried to ask questions leading up to the interview, my emails and calls have gone unanswered.

I understand recruiters manage multiple openings, but it’s frustrating trying to prepare and determine whether a role is a good fit without basic communication.

I used to work for the company but wondering is this common now, or does it depend on the recruiter or business unit? Curious to hear how others’ experiences compare.

It was recently announced that several teams in my department will be part of a realignment to “more accurately reflect the work they do.” Changing from Software Engineer to Project Engineer or System Engineer depending on the role.

Seems silly to spend the time and money to make this change. Supposedly there’s no impact on compensation. And that might be true in the short term but affects market analysis and the target band.

I’m writing a recommendation letter and I’m having trouble sending it in as it needs to be “tagged”. What’s the best way to go about this. Obviously I can easily use Gmail but using work email to send it holds more value for my applicant. I select unrestricted no tech data but still having issues

Looking for advice and just a place to vent

For context, I’m a P4 software engineer and have been in my level for nearly 5 years. I always get stellar reviews. I have been with the company for 14 years straight out of graduate school.

For the past five years I’ve been the lead on preparing for major test event (writing the tests, dry running, leading formal reviews with the customer, etc). We conducted a successful formal dry run in May and I received a $750 achievement award.

In July, formal execution was successfully completed and garnered lots of visibility to the program (2 week test event completed almost flawlessly). At the end of July, I got a teams message from the chief engineer asking if I received an additional achievement award because he said it doesn’t look like it went through on his end. I said I didn’t, so he said he’d look into it. 2 weeks later I emailed him asking about it but never heard back.

1.5 weeks later, I received a $200 RStar from the program manager. When I emailed him to thank him, he told me that he tried to give me an achievement award (presumably the one the chief engineer was asking about) but he was told I just recently got one and couldn’t (the one from May).

Last week I had a one on one with my section manager. He was talking about end of year stuff and goals. He mentioned the RStar and achievement award I received in May. At this point, I mentioned the PM giving me an RStar instead of the second achievement award. He said that they try to spread the achievement award money around and not concentrate it to just the high performers. Whatever, I shrugged it off.

Fast forward to yesterday. We were in a standup meeting and the scrum master encouraged us to give each other RStars (something about some bucket of money being replenished). After the meeting, a P5, who had assisted me in conducting the testing, asked if I had received an RStar he put in 2 weeks ago as it was still showing as not being awarded yet in RStar. At that point, we had realized that there had been 3 additional achievement awards issued by the PM that he had received that I haven’t for post test activities that we had conducted together. The awards he received and I did not, amounted to just North of $5,000.

At this point I’m deeply disappointed and a little angry. The P5 is in a different department (systems). Is my department manager killing these awards? Does each department have their own bucket of money? It seems like he’s limiting me to a single RStar and a single achievement award for the year. It seems like he’s trying to not give the same person “too much”, but isn’t the point of these awards to reward high performance? Should I email my section manager or let it go?

Advice welcome.

In the questionnaire, I was sent prior to my interview, it asks “ In a competitive job market, hiring managers often consider the cost when making decisions. Considering this, what hourly pay rate should I convey to the manager as your rock-bottom price?”

The job posting for EH&S shows $33.29 an hour.
Safety isn’t a difficult job, but the amount of effort and after hours I put into my work, I feel like I could at least ask for an “even” $35/hr. Trying to keep people safe is something have a real passion for.
I already have a TS clearance as well.

I worked as a safety rep for another company for several months before leaving to active duty training.

This Raytheon job, if I get it, will be my first big boy job outside the Air Force in 12 years. I haven’t had a formal interview since I was 19.

Is it ridiculous to ask for more money?

Is the Apex building area in McKinney that dysfunctional as most people say it is? I hear a lot of chatter how bad morale and people leaving are abundant.

Hi everyone! Someone I know has an upcoming in-person panel interview for a Test Technician I position at Collins Aerospace in Wilson, North Carolina.
Has anyone interviewed there or for a similar role? What kinds of technical and behavioral questions should they prepare for, and do you have any tips for doing well in the panel interview?
Thank you

Hi everyone,

I recently attended a Raytheon hiring event in San Diego for entry-level engineering positions based in Tucson, Arizona.

I wanted to ask those who have attended similar hiring events or currently work at Raytheon: How can you tell whether the hiring team is genuinely interested in moving forward with you?

I’m particularly curious about how the hiring process works after these events. Are there certain signs during conversations or interviews that suggest you’re being seriously considered, or is it mostly a matter of waiting for a recruiter to contact you?

For those who received offers after attending a Raytheon hiring event, what was your experience like? How long did it take to hear back, and were there any indications beforehand that you were likely to receive an offer?

I’d appreciate hearing about your experiences, especially from engineers who were hired through recruiting events.

Thanks!

I got an interview confirmation email for Collins that says a member from the hiring team will contact me. Is this for a recruiter screening or an official interview? Would it be a HireVue interview or one with the manager? This is for an internship.

Just received an email about the internal labor compliance review this morning. It looks like a questionnaire to answer some questions. I’m just curious.

1. Is it randomly selected ? ( it seems like it )
   
2. Any positive or negative outcome if I answer these questions correctly or incorrectly?
   

Thanks !

If you don’t use your vacation days that you buy, do they reimburse you?

If they don’t reimburse, it feels like that would be wage theft because you worked a week for free.

hey folks, graduating this May and have an offer with rtx for an entry level mech e role at marlborough any1 have any input as to:
1) what i'd actually be doing
2) whether the marlborough location is good or not
3) whether I should ask if i can meet/call who I'd be working under or if i can ask for more time to decide (they gave me like 2 days to accept)

I've had some interviews with other companies (mostly construction companies) but they haven't gotten back to me/given me an offer yet. I'm unsure whether i should accept for rtx... any advice greatly appreciated!

Hey everyone,

I interned at Pratt & Whitney this past summer (2026), and my manager mentioned that there could potentially be a full-time opportunity for me after graduation.

I'm a Computer Science major graduating next year, and I'm interested in potentially joining P&W full-time as a P1 Software Engineer or in a similar software/CS-related role at the East Hartford, CT location.

For anyone currently working at P&W or familiar with the compensation there, what is the typical starting salary for a P1 Software Engineer or a similar entry-level technical role? I'd also appreciate any insight into signing bonuses, annual bonuses/raises.

I'm trying to get a better understanding of the compensation before making any career decisions. I enjoyed my internship, but I also want to evaluate other opportunities before committing to a full-time position.

Any information or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Hello,

Interviewing soon for this position ^ and was curious about QoL, interview process, schedule, and any other amplifying info you’d wished you knew at the time.