Combine finance major and engineering major?

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

<p>Hi all,</p>

<p>I would like to ask about my case.</p>

<p>I already graduated from a New Zealand university with a bachelor degree in finance major in 2010. In this finance major, I learned mostly about equity market, stock return, calculating net profit of investments… I graduated with good grade because I am really interested in finance major and its topic. After graduating, I worked for various companies (bank, manufacturer, logistic company…) as a credit analyst, finance cost controller and commercial analyst. My main jobs there are mostly work with Microsoft Office and some web-based system.</p>

<p>I just came to US 3 months ago and after going through some job search as well as interviews, I have to say that it is hard to land on a financial job in this country (but some positions for insurance agency). After being advised from family members and college advisors, I decided to choose Engineering major as a second major. In the previous studying time, I believe I am good at math and very hard-working in studying. I also enjoy fixing stuffs around me and other household appliances. Therefore, I think studying engineering major again for the next 4 years is not too hard for me. I will start my Engineering major in this Spring 2013 at a community college and plan to transfer to University of Washington in the next 2 years.</p>

<p>I am currently living in Washington (Seattle) where Boeing, Amazon and their supplies locate in. With these plants around, I think it would be best if I choose Manufacturing, Electrical, Mechanical or Industrial Engineer so that my internship and job employment can be secured.</p>

<p>My big concerns now are: </p>

<p>1/ Which pathway in Engineering major should I choose to best combine with my bachelor degree in finance? I am still interested in finance but my communicating skills are not excellent to compete in equity sector.</p>

<p>2/ I feel like to get into Manufacturing or Mechanical Engineer as they are like more practical in “making a visible product”. With those plants around in Washington, should it be the good move when choose those pathway?</p>

<p>3/ I’m 24 now. So if I finish my study on my 28, will the job market for engineering grow good enough for fresh graduate in 4 years? ? I did a little research on Bureau of Labor Statistics website, it indicates that Engineering job growth is slower than average.
[Architecture</a> and Engineering Occupations : Occupational Outlook Handbook : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics](<a href=“http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Architecture-and-Engineering/home.htm]Architecture”>Architecture and Engineering Occupations : Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)</p>

<p>4/ Choosing the pathway is more like a decision in 2 years from now. But I just want to make my mind clear because it’s a hard decision to study again, especially when I just got my first bachelor degree. Therefore I need everything going in the right way or else I will end up with nothing but 2 bachelor degrees and some sh***y jobs. Could you guys give me advice for the first 2 years? The 2 final years? What should I do besides getting a good grade in order to enhance my resume profile?</p>

<p>Thank you very much for your advice or any comment.
Regards.</p>

2

<p>I think you should just pick one and stick to it - the two aren’t especially compatible.
Also, in your specific situation, I would not recommend getting another degree. You already said you liked finance - why not just polish your less-proficient finance skills and continue searching for a job? It’s much easier to learn to be personable than it is to spend four more years learning another trade.
The grass really isn’t greener on the other side in this situation. Engineering has its own problems, and while the job market isn’t great, it’s not bad either. </p>

<p>You don’t need another degree. Do yourself a huge favor and get back to job hunting (brush up on the necessary skills as well).</p>

3

<p>You tried for three months to find a job - - that’s not a long time in this economy. The job search may be more difficult for you because people may not be familiar with New Zealand university. I’m surprised that family and college advisors have suggested you obtain a second degree in engineering. A BS in Finance is not equivalent to a degree in Medieval History. Companies are hiring finance graduates. I suggest you expand the geographical area of your search. It’s also possible that hiring will pick up in a few months. Keep looking for a finance job. Good luck.</p>

4

<p>In terms of matching, I’d say Manufacturing Engineering (part of Industrial Engineering usually). You could do a relatively quick MS degree without too many prerequisites. The only catch is ME is best learned the hard way, on the factory floor… It’s not one of those things you learn in a lab or classroom. </p>

<p>Industrial Engineering has a lot of ties to finance, whether in operations management, operations research, logistics, and a myriad of other things.</p>

<p>But again, I’ll reiterate. It takes a special someone to be a plant rat. I’m married to one :).The pantheon of plant rats includes none other than this guy:</p>

<p>[Chrysler’s</a> Tom LaSorda, a ‘plant rat’ turns CEO [Archive] - DodgeIntrepid.Net Forums - Dodge Intrepid, Concorde, 300m and Eagle Vision chat](<a href=“Chrysler's Tom LaSorda, a 'plant rat' turns CEO | DodgeIntrepid.Net Forums”>Chrysler's Tom LaSorda, a 'plant rat' turns CEO | DodgeIntrepid.Net Forums)</p>

<p>and many other plant floor legends.</p>

5

<p>Those engineering companies all have large finance departments. I would get a professional resume service to polish up your resume and cater it to US company standards. Banks have taken a huge hit, but there should be tons of openings at tech companies for analysts and the like. I would resume bomb different parts of the country if you don’t mind moving.</p>

6

<p>Thanks for all your advice.</p>

<p>I got 4 uncles. One has an EE bachelor degree and currently working at Intel, one has a Computer Science (or whatever, I don’t remember exactly), one has a Mechanical Engineer and own a plant in Ontario - Canada, and one who earned a BS in Law already before he moved to US and he decided to take an IT degree. Three of them encouraged me to re-take another BS at US (the last one has not confirmed yet) and somehow agreed that Engineering major would give me better opportunity with this New Zealand degree which is less recognizable. Of course I aware that back in their time (about 20 years ago), technical major, especially engineering, is the most demanded job in US market and it was very easy for them to look for an engineering job. I just dont know the actual current demand in job market now.</p>

<p>English is not my first language and I just moved to US 3 months ago from Vietnam and that make me less competitive when I want to fit in a position in front office (customer service, etc…). Say if I continue looking for a job in finance, with my competence (communicating skills, networking, different social interaction, etc…), I would end up in an office job with salary slightly above average and boring daily routine tasks… </p>

<p>I know now I sound like a coward who afraid of getting outside into job market and looking for another shelter in 4 years. But I think it is reasonable in this down trend of economic.</p>

7

<p>If you want to switch by all means. But I wouldn’t get a BS in EE. That is a lot of work UNLESS you want to be an engineer. Sounds to me like you want a career change but not necessarily you want to be an engineer. </p>

<p>Ask yourself if you are good at math before you decide to enroll in an engineering program. </p>

<p>I know Oregon State has an online BS in Computer Science that can take a year for those that already have a degree. But comp sci jobs can be outsourced…engineering jobs are less likely. Combined with your finance degree it will be a pretty lucrative combo in my opinion and less time to achieve a well paying job. </p>

<p>[Computer</a> Science News Release – In the News – Oregon State University Ecampus – OSU Extended Campus](<a href=“New online degree in computer science a gateway to exciting career opportunities - Oregon State Ecampus News”>New online degree in computer science a gateway to exciting career opportunities - Oregon State Ecampus News)</p>