An investigation of Canadian engineers: Exploring the impact of educational work experiences on career and mentor satisfaction

In 2005, a study was undertaken to collect quantitative and qualitative data on the career mobility of Canadian engineers in the province of Manitoba. Findings from the qualitative data drew attention to the value of prior work experience with their employers in enhancing women engineers´ acquisition of soft skills. This paper examines the quantitative data on the impact of prior educational work experiences with their current employers in contributing to both male and female respondents´ career and mentor satisfaction. Results show that prior work experience with current employers does not influence career satisfaction overall, but has some impact on mentor satisfaction. Gender differences in the data are further explored and implications drawn.