SPAWAR

SPAWAR is a very relaxed atmosphere. I'd come in and surf the net, check email, and just hang out for a bit and I totally enjoyed it. Just do what you are told to do, and you'll do just fine. The job security is really good here and the federal government benefits are nice. I'd like to work here after I graduate school.

There is a cubicle setting so if you need to be social, you may not enjoy that. It doesn't bother me however. The location is close to my house so it is an easy commute.

Was a short gig, had to scan a bunch of stuff for a certain office at SSC (the one on top of the hill). Got paid very well to do a crappy job, so I don't regret it. It seemed like other people were getting paid well to do cooler stuff, so overall, I didn't mind it. The drawback is that a bunch of boring old dudes work there.

The line of work at SPAWAR can be very interesting. SPAWAR allows you to tour departments for a short duration before you decide to stick with one department. You also get to pick the projects you get to work on. There's work for every type of engineer. And if you don't like your project, you can propose one of your own for grants. You can hop around projects too. You also get the opportunity to travel if you like!

Job security is really good. I don't recall anyone ever being fired or let out.

All of this does come with responsibility and it can get stressful when you have to worry about getting your grant renewed.

I do not like the government environment. Their support system is horrible. You usually have to fix things yourself. The pay system is horrible. Their performance review structure is also horrible! It is hard to move up the ladder. You are not reviewed by your direct manager, but your department head who would know nothing of your work. You move up depending on how many years you been there and not merit.

If you can handle the government annoyances and want interesting work, this is the job for you. If I were to work at SPAWAR, I would do as a contractor instead of a full time. This gives you the benefit of interesting work but not at the expense of being surrounded by government red tape.

SPAWAR is probably one of the most interesting places to work at. Each project you work on is often very different from the previous project making it hard to get bored.

The environment is very much like academia as it involves lots of research and application of research.

The pay is ok, not great. But hey, it's the government, what do you want?

Overall, not a bad place to work.