<p>I am interested in pursuing a graduate degree, because I enjoy learning/research and also want to start my career at a higher level than say “code monkey” or “circuit monkey” as was mentioned in the other thread.</p>
<p>My only concern is, if hypothetically I get a PhD in Electrical Engineering and then decide NOT to work in an EE field but instead work for a software company, is it possible to still start at a higher level? Or because my PhD is not exactly in this field, it will not be an advantage to my career-progression?</p>
<p>Thoughts?</p>
<p>So to sum up my question: if someone gets a PhD in something like EE or Math, and then works as a ME or software engineer…will they “reap the benefits” of their degree in getting a position, or will the benefits be lost because they studied a different field and are not necessarily considered a specialist in the current field?</p>
<p>I’m bringing this up because I find EE more academically interesting, but professionally I think I want to work in software.</p>
<p>If you’re doing a PhD… it depends on what your dissertation / research area is. You could major in History, write a PhD about applications of the lambda calculus to the construction of back ends for e-commerce servers on parallel distributed architectures (lol) and if it’s good, and if you have good courses / research in the area, you can work in Software.</p>
<p>I know I can work in software…but i’m talking about a benefit.
I don’t think my coworkers or managers will care about my dissertation as much as whether or not I went through the process of obtaining the degree.</p>
<p>If a guy with a PhD in womens studies manages to get a job at microsoft, they arent going to shoot up the ranks or be given a very strong starting position necessarily. I’m just asking whether this is also the case for EE.</p>
<p>Ok, I admit thats true.
So if my dissertation is in a field of say integrated circuits, but i decide to work at google, it won’t really get me anywhere in terms of a higher starting position, etc?</p>
<p>Well, I think that would depend on the position your applying for and how revelant your field is to the position.
There are a lot of different positions at google…</p>
<p>Well, I don’t know. It’s close, and Google may have some sort of job for you. But would it help you get what I consider a “normal” job there? Not as much as a PhD in something else, at least. But more than a PhD in non-technical things.</p>
<p>I don’t think it will help mainly because it shows a lack of commitment. Why commit to a PhD and then not use it? Are you going to commit to my company and then decide in a year or two that you really want to use your degree?</p>
<p>A PhD in engineering is a highly specialized focus, and if you aren’t willing or wanting to go down that path then don’t do it.</p>