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Gavin
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Galax, Virginia
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What do I need to look for at a university besides the ABET accreditation for an engineering degree and will it be enough out in the job market? Do I need to plan on getting a masters in engineering as well? #Fall25
What do I need to look for at a university besides the ABET accreditation for an engineering degree and will it be enough out in the job market? Do I need to plan on getting a masters in engineering as well.
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2 answers
Cory Yeager, PE, SE, MsC, PPM
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Cory’s Answer
Yes and no.
Professional Engineers (licensed as consultants) need the abet degree but loads of work experience to be good. Masters degree only makes sense to jump the career ladder in this scenario.
Owner engineers don’t need license and can be system specific so unless the masters is in the same field it may not be as beneficial as expected.
Government engineers may or may not need abet and a secondary degree is a huge step up on selection criteria.
It’s hard to say and the information be really tailored to you. Personally I was a govee and used my time to get a second degree while I worked. It provided no value at state level. I flipped that into a consultant gig and got a really big pay raise. After this the degree did less for me than work experience.
That masters degree is good for those hiring that want those skills. This last part is what you need to focus on. What skills are needed for the job you want. Identify the skills and educations requirements. Work backwards from the de there of the maze.
Good Luck:
Professional Engineers (licensed as consultants) need the abet degree but loads of work experience to be good. Masters degree only makes sense to jump the career ladder in this scenario.
Owner engineers don’t need license and can be system specific so unless the masters is in the same field it may not be as beneficial as expected.
Government engineers may or may not need abet and a secondary degree is a huge step up on selection criteria.
It’s hard to say and the information be really tailored to you. Personally I was a govee and used my time to get a second degree while I worked. It provided no value at state level. I flipped that into a consultant gig and got a really big pay raise. After this the degree did less for me than work experience.
That masters degree is good for those hiring that want those skills. This last part is what you need to focus on. What skills are needed for the job you want. Identify the skills and educations requirements. Work backwards from the de there of the maze.
Good Luck:
Thank you for responding. My original thought was a double major but the schools just want to talk about a masters. This gives me a good perspective from real life and things to consider. Thanks again.
Gavin
Cory Yeager, PE, SE, MsC, PPM
65
Answers
Updated
Cory’s Answer
The idea of a double major, minor or masters are all in the same bucket IMO. Each of these has different resource requires on time and money.
I would look at it like this:
Minor is great for business and social type degrees. It’s a little perspective that can easily be obtained. For me a minor in math for a technical degree didn’t make sense unless the higher level of math was needed (ie weapon systems on telemetry, research, etc…). A minor is management or leadership would benefit cause most engineers rarely stay below managing teams.
Masters is usually a good idea but I came to that conclusion after seeing a need to differentiate from other engineers. This one makes the most sense for a technical degree cause it’s time spent honing your engineering craft cause it requires some specialization.
PHD I would love to get one but for my field, age now and employers this would be ornamental for me. For others in research or field needing way more specialization like aerospace, some mechanical and some structural or even a bioengineering these might be necessary. You have to know where you’re going.
Double Majors are harder to qualify IMO. They are a blend of specialization like a PHD but lack the specialization cause it’s a bachelors so closer to a minor. Cause of the resources I would make sure I knew where I was going.
The X factor to all of this is your opinion. If resources aren’t an issue (they were for me) then the time learning could be good but make sure you want to learn that much. Some people love school I did. If resources aren’t a big factor then plan how much school you can do relative to your time and money. The logistics on this might solve your problem for you. Lastly remember no decision is permanent on this topic. You can switch and change as your resources including your interest allow.
I would look at it like this:
Minor is great for business and social type degrees. It’s a little perspective that can easily be obtained. For me a minor in math for a technical degree didn’t make sense unless the higher level of math was needed (ie weapon systems on telemetry, research, etc…). A minor is management or leadership would benefit cause most engineers rarely stay below managing teams.
Masters is usually a good idea but I came to that conclusion after seeing a need to differentiate from other engineers. This one makes the most sense for a technical degree cause it’s time spent honing your engineering craft cause it requires some specialization.
PHD I would love to get one but for my field, age now and employers this would be ornamental for me. For others in research or field needing way more specialization like aerospace, some mechanical and some structural or even a bioengineering these might be necessary. You have to know where you’re going.
Double Majors are harder to qualify IMO. They are a blend of specialization like a PHD but lack the specialization cause it’s a bachelors so closer to a minor. Cause of the resources I would make sure I knew where I was going.
The X factor to all of this is your opinion. If resources aren’t an issue (they were for me) then the time learning could be good but make sure you want to learn that much. Some people love school I did. If resources aren’t a big factor then plan how much school you can do relative to your time and money. The logistics on this might solve your problem for you. Lastly remember no decision is permanent on this topic. You can switch and change as your resources including your interest allow.