Any Eng. Managers or Engineers with advanced degrees?
Any Eng. Managers or Engineers with advanced degrees?
(OP)
I graduated in 2003 with a BS in Mechanical Engineering from UC Irvine & have been working full time ever since. I would like to plan my next career move & look into grad school but I have so many choices I dont know which is the best route really. Masters in Engineering, MBA, Masters in Engineering Management, etc. etc. etc. Either way I would like to stay within industry as opposed to teaching or lab research.
I know it comes down to MY personal preference eventually, but I guess I just want to hear from others who pursued advanced degrees & why & how they are doing as a result. Any opinions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Jose
Manufacturing Engineer, CCI Valve
I know it comes down to MY personal preference eventually, but I guess I just want to hear from others who pursued advanced degrees & why & how they are doing as a result. Any opinions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Jose
Manufacturing Engineer, CCI Valve





RE: Any Eng. Managers or Engineers with advanced degrees?
For the first option, one would determine the path followed by most of the people in your industry that got promoted- sometimes it is via field engineer==> saleperson==> MBa==> chief mucky-muck. For the second option, a masters degree works, but without any field or sales or financial experience, it is unlikely you would get past engineering manager.
RE: Any Eng. Managers or Engineers with advanced degrees?
personally, i think the school of hard knocks has lots to offer. experience is interesting, and valuable. i don't think you get that much for a M.E. ... you're going to give up 2 years of full time salary, and pay someone a bunch of money, for what sort of salary increment ? and you've limited (slightly) your career options, by specialising.
i do have an MBA ... it was an interesting experience, gave you a different view of the job, beyond the technical aspects. now i'm happily technical, and contracting (having been punted).
the previous post is right, do you intests you. unfortunately you'll only know if your decision was right in hindsight ! if you do cross over to the dark side, try to keep a technical skill, to give you something to fall back on. on the other hand, not having a fall-back (like william the conquerer, who burnt his boats) does focus the mind mightily.
and remember, everything scott adams writes is real, and you'll have to do some of it ...
RE: Any Eng. Managers or Engineers with advanced degrees?
I doubt that there is a lot of difference between a Master in Engineering Management and an MBA once you get out of school and start using it. An Engineering Management degree would most likely be a lot like a MBA with an operational management concentration with a more of the hard science of managing (PERT, statistics optimization etc) than a general MBA.
I have an MBA because I like managing projects better than designing them. An Master’s of Engineering management was not an option for me at the time.
In any case better to get a few more years experience to see what it is about engineering that appeals to you. You will be better able to make informed choices and then and in the case of a management degree will be better able to put the information into a business content.
Rick Kitson MBA P.Eng
Construction Project Management
From conception to completion
www.kitsonengineering.com
RE: Any Eng. Managers or Engineers with advanced degrees?
Talk to a recuiting agency perhaps, for their take on it?
RE: Any Eng. Managers or Engineers with advanced degrees?
IMHO, R & D of the practical variety,is the most fulfilling carrer path an engineer can follow and if it relates to products that save energy or the environment, so much the better.
RE: Any Eng. Managers or Engineers with advanced degrees?
Which ever choice you make, we wish you the best of luck.