Should I stick with my plan? Engineering/MBA

ChrisTKD
Wed, 04 May 2011 16:14:48 +0000

Msladel “My plan so far is to graduate and get my master’s of ME. Work for a few years in engineering and get some experience and then possibly move into investments or finance.”

Investments and finance is an entirely different world from mechanical engineering. I don’t know why this is such a commonly desired career path. I can see someone with a general engineering degree going down the MBA path but it seems such a waste of time and effort to get a MS in Mechanical Engineering if finance is your ultimate goal.

Investing in someone else’s ideas is typically the role of venture capital. Emphasis on the “capital”, i.e., you need big time funds.

My suggestion is to take everything one step at a time. Start with just your BS in Mechanical Engineering and get a job in ME. You might decide that you actually like working as an engineer. To get into a top 5 or top 10 MBA program you are going to need several years of work experience but an MS in Engineering will not be of any use. Keep in mind that not all top MBA programs are the same, e.g., some teach general management (Harvard, Darden) while others can be more quantitative finance oriented (Wharton).