It is one thing to be the best, it is quite another to convince people that you ARE the best, and to do this you need to make sure that you are noticed. You need to be the one that always goes the extra mile and always makes sure that things are done right, even when you are in college. There may come a time when you need a letter of recommendation from that professor that you absolutely hate, and while you may dislike them, you will still need their help to get your foot in the door.
While you are in college it would help to get an internship at a company that is within this field. It may not be a huge company, but it will be a company nonetheless. While you are there, you can build up your reputation and help the company itself grow.
Aside from that, you need to make your presence known to everyone. Become involved in every activity at school and outside of school that you can think of whether it is sports, government, or even the chess club. You need to solidify your reputation as an outstanding and dependable person. The more people know you the better off you will be when it comes time to get those references and get the job of your dreams.
Networking is very important. One cannot stress how important it is to know lots of people, especially people that can help you get your foot in the door of the engineering world and help you to slip into the career of your dreams. Knowing the right people will make it so much easier to make your way in the world regardless of who you are. No one ever got anywhere by ignoring people and staying off by themselves unless they invented something revolutionary that changed the face of the world.
Make sure that you stay in touch with fellow engineering classmates; let them know that you are still out there and looking for a job because there may come a point when the company they work for needs additional employees and you want your name to be mentioned at those meetings. Your name is really all you have in a business like this, or in fact, any place in the world so you want it to be out there, and you want it to be in good standing with every single person that it can be.
One also cannot stress the dire importance of certifications. Get all of them that you possibly can; make sure that you are certified in just about everything under the sun that is related to your job so that you will be more hire-able. Skills are everything, reputation is everything, never forget that.
You are trying to enter a field that is more competitive than most, rise to the top and never quit, and make sure that you are the best in everything you do.
