<p>First, let me explain my situation. I’m planning on doing a double degree program. My first degree is in chemical engineering, and the second one will either be a business degree or something else, like psychology, computer science, biochemistry, and philosophy, which are all out of interest. </p>
<p>If I’m going to get an MBA later on in my life anyway, will it be beneficial to take that business degree as my second degree, or will it not matter much?</p>
<p>It won’t matter much.</p>
<p>This may sound bad, but the truth of the matter is, many people don’t get your MBA in order to really ‘learn’ anything. That’s often times not the first priority. Obviously you CAN learn a lot of things if you choose to, but plenty of MBA students choose not to do that. Instead, for them, it’s really a 2-year networking and social club. The goal for them is to make contacts, meet people, and get interviews. </p>
<p>Some people have said that having a business undergrad degree is bad because you’ll be forced to relearn things in MBA school that you already knew. I would instead look at the situation as meaning that you would have to spend less time on coursework and therefore have more time to do all that social networking, which many people believe is the true value-add of an MBA program.</p>
<p>It seems like a lot of working engineers in Silicon Valley “work” on their MBA while employed, because they eventually want a management position. It also helps them to be able to tap into their employer’s tuition reimbursement benefits while working on their MBA.</p>
<p>I’m sure I still need to do well in order to get my MBA, so will a business degree prepare me for that, or should I just get another degree?</p>