So I'm getting out of the Navy in about a year and a half. I'm considering using my GI Bill to get a Masters in ME. There's gotta be some TWWers out there with that degree! Is it worth it? Or does a masters make you "overqualified" for a lot of jobs?

Also in most programs you have to specialize in structures, thermo, or controls/manufacturing. Any advice on which of the three will yield the most $salary? I'm not specifically interested in one over the others so money will probably be the deciding factor.

Thanks!

6/17/2011 4:45:14 PM

You wanting to stay .gov or go private?

6/17/2011 4:47:20 PM

either. I'm not going to get back in the Navy though

6/17/2011 4:59:17 PM

What kind of industry are you thinking of going in to?

6/17/2011 5:03:15 PM

A masters will qualify you for the highest level jobs at most companies. My last company had a "graduate degree" requirement to be able to be promoted above a certain salary line, but going further to get a PhD didn't seem to offer any advantages salary-wise (at least there.)

Good luck!

6/17/2011 5:04:31 PM

If salary is driving your decision, look at fire protection engineering or project management over a masters in ME. In the facilities engineering and federal contracting/program management industries another ME degree won't get you anything.

6/17/2011 6:18:03 PM

From what I've gathered, process control is big money in engineering.

6/17/2011 6:18:08 PM

Depends on the job market at that time. A year and a half is a long way away you'll need a refresher course in some things.

6/17/2011 6:49:51 PM

getting your PMP seems to be the big thing right now where i work

6/17/2011 7:25:56 PM

My friend got his masters in ME, and hasn't even used it. Got into a startup PC repair company instead. He said he prefers the business life over engineering.

Seems more worthwhile to get an MBA so you can move above the bottom feeder status faster.

6/17/2011 7:39:10 PM

In my somewhat limited experience I have found that a masters in engineering is pretty pointless. In my experience masters programs in ME are pretty throw away--they are either completely unrelated to any practical position in industry or they are merely a stepping stone to a phd and either teaching or research. That isn't to say that some engineering based masters programs aren't relevant. For example, there are schools that offer masters degrees in engineering management that are a great help to those who wish to work on the business end of the engineering industry.

As to being overqualified? It is a bit of a yes and a no. Yes, having a masters might make some companies automatically assume that you are too expensive to bring in especially if you will essentially be an entry level engineer. I have no clue what you are doing/will do while in the Navy. If it is related to the field of engineering in which you want to get your masters and then find work, well, an MS might not scare off nearly as many employers because you will have some practical experience to back it up. Going straight from undergrad to a masters program and then looking to find work...yeah, probably not a good idea.

That all said, I must confess that I went straight from undergrad to graduate school where I got my masters in ME. I had potential employers tell me straight up that the MS was a bit worrisome for them in that it meant I would be part of a higher pay rate but doing the work of someone fresh out of undergrad. Once hired I had the fancy title of "Senior Engineer" and was paid at the same rate as another person hired at the same time who didn't have a masters but did have about 5 years of work experience. At the end of the day though, she was doing actual engineering and I was doing drafting because I didn't have enough practical experience to be let loose on real design projects. I might as well have been fresh from undergrad.

One thing I do have to say is that should you decide to get your masters in ME and if you have no real industry experience (i.e., you are spending your time in the service working in the supply corps) then school name matters, A LOT. I firmly believe that I got all of my interviews based upon my school credentials when I was first starting out. Now that I have experience, it is slightly less important, but in this case, school matters.

6/17/2011 11:36:23 PM

Yeah it really depends where you want to work/what you want to do. For me, a PE and experience is more important to them than a Masters in ME. I know a couple people that have them and basically they only come in 1 paygrade higher than someone with a BS since it isn't worth them paying more when the actual experience is much more important in what I do. And they definitely don't come in as a senior engineer either since it takes many years of experience to get there. Basically, instead of coming in at associate engineer I, they come in at associate engineer II, which is worth about 1-2 years experience depending on your ability and your manager's opinion.

I am not a big fan of Masters degrees in engineering management or similar degrees if you don't have a few years of actual engineering under your belt in the field you are trying to find work. 1) Because you won't get placed into a management role right away (or possibly even any sooner) than someone without it and 2) I'd let your employer pay for that kind of degree (I know this isn't an issue for you, just stating in general). Similar for MBA and PMP.

In general, I think it REALLY depends on the specific industry you are looking at and the career path within that industry when it comes to licensure or graduate degrees etc. relating to mechanical engineering.

IE: at my company, if you want to be a senior design engineer/technical expert as your career goal, I would just get a PE plus become an active member/board member for your appropriate society (ASHRAE, ASME, etc.) If you want to become a project manager, I would focus on the PMP and your PE. If you want to become a project director or an engineer on the sales side of things, get the PMP and your MBA etc.

[Edited on June 18, 2011 at 12:08 PM. Reason : ]

6/18/2011 12:05:59 PM

Thanks guys!

I don't really know what I want to do for my career. Grad school is a way to put off making that decision, right?

As for engineering experience, I'm an instructor at Nuclear Power School. I teach electricians right now. So it's not engineering, but I do have to learn and teach pretty challenging technical material. That has to count for something! It's at least kept me fresh on basic EE stuff. There's some Navy Nukes on TWW who can tell you all about it!!

6/20/2011 7:37:04 AM

If you don't know what you want to do then project management is definitely the way to go. There are tons of federal contracting jobs out there classified as consulting/professional services, whatever that means, and military experience is a huge plus. A PMI accredited project management degree will help you get your PMP faster, and there are arguments for both the engineering/project management and MBA routes. The MS in Project Management program at University of Maryland is part of the civil engineering department and is geared specifically towards the federal sector and big engineering projects. Some engineering management programs are rooted in systems engineering, and you can find MBAs that have a project management focus also. I went the PM route over the MBA because it's more targeted towards being a technical manager over an operations manager.

6/20/2011 8:21:06 AM

I know this is probably highly specific to my position but I learned more at my job about practical/hands on engineering in the first year then I did for the 5 years I was studying engineering at school. There are lots of folks here with their masters degree (I work with a mix of AE's, ME's, and EE's) but a lot of them don't and it seems that after a few years of working you get enough experience were a masters isn't really necessary.

One thing I'd like to point out also is that if you do go for a masters, you'll probably be concentrated in a very specific field of mechanical engineering. This will make you a lot less flexible when looking for a job.

6/20/2011 10:27:39 AM

I did my time in the AF in a related, operational, field. I earned my ME in aero part time before I left, and came to the conclusion that between the educational skillz and operational experience I could either compete with kids straight out of school for entry-level engineering jobs or point my nose towards management/project management type jobs.

I chose grad school to delay the choice a bit longer. Unfortunately, the PhD will absolutely make me overqualified in the competition with the fresh grads. My opportunities will be much more limited, and will be project management (especially at a DOD contractor serving as engineer-to-military translator), DOD or academia. If I am lucky, R&D with someone might be a possibility.

The question for you, then, is do you want to compete for the same jobs with snot-nosed grads? If the answer is decidely no, and you don't intend on going beyond the MS, then a management degree might put you in a better position.

6/21/2011 2:34:58 AM

Personally, I always prefer to compete against people with less skillz than me

6/21/2011 6:41:30 AM

I got my Masters in ME right after undergrad. I struggled for a while to find a job, probably because all of my experience was in research and I never did a full year of coop in undergrad. I also had trouble getting calls for entry level jobs. I could sense in interviews that employers were scared that I would take their job and then leave quickly when something better appeared.

I finally did get a job with a company that was willing to equate a Masters with experience in the field in which I did my research. In this way, if you have flexibility to choose your research area, you can use a Masters as a stepping stone into a field of your choosing. After clearing that initial hurdle I'll have to see if having a Masters plus experience will pay off when I look for my next job.

6/29/2011 8:31:54 PM