<prompt> Human: To make it short. I graduated in May with an Engineering degree. I had worked through college for my father as a machinist. I didnt really consider this very relevant experience, nor that it had been a lot as it was only 2 years in high school and then summers during undergrad.I was hired in May and started work in June. I put down 75k as a salary requirement, and I hadnt done much research into salaries in that area, and comparative cost of living. Its really expensive to live where I live. Near a large city, in the top 5 most expensive cities to live in.At first I was really excited that they made me an offer for what I had put down. But when I started budgeting I realized it wasnt as much as I had assumed. With my wife looking for work, and paying off student loans. We dont have a lot leftover, and we live within our means with a strict budget and one bedroom apartment.Then, in December my boss dropped in casual conversation that the position I hold actually required 5 years of experience to be considered. And they considered me to have that experience given my prior work. He also said that if I stay around for a year hell give me a reason to stay aroundI looked up the statistics and the low end of a 5 year ME in my area is 85k, high end is 115k. I just passed 9 months at the company, which is the official end of the time period of being ineligable for a raise. We have yearly evaluations which normally come with a raise in June.My day to day supervisors as repeatedly said that I am doing useful work, and that Ive made his job easier. Thats not normally something that a first year engineer does, as I thought I was.Should I ask for a raise now or wait until June? How do I approach asking for something large? I know they pay their employees well here. And if i had asked for more originally there would be no reason that I wouldnt be making the higher end for the area. Thats just what my specific sub field of work pays in general.what do?  <response>: you dont have 5 years of mechanical engineering, they hired you because its was cheap for them to do so. In my experience on both sides of the equation, you can ask for a significant raise 10 and higher but rarely will it come thru. What you might want to consider is updating your resume as now you will nearing a year of experience on the job and may find a new employer willing to pay you 20-30 more now. 