Is it worth to do M.S. and/or Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering for a future engineer if they already have B.S. in it?
Currently I am a chemistry major, and I am planning to switch to Chemical Engineering but I am not sure how much I should learn to be a competitive engineer. #chemical-engineering
4 answers
Michael’s Answer
M. A. Rafe’s Answer
My undergrad research advisor told me several years ago that getting MS in Chemical Engineering isn't worth much more than a B.Sci. He instead encouraged me to get a PhD because MS non-thesis is just more coursework than BS and not much experience is gained per say. If you are looking to get into research and development, which is usually a different direction than what you do after getting a B.Sci. in industry, then I highly encourage getting a PhD or at least MS thesis (meaning completion of a more open-ended research project over a few semesters instead of a single-semester project). Otherwise it is not worth getting a PhD or MS.

Robert Rossi
Robert’s Answer
Jayavignesh’s Answer
My personal opinion is that here in the US getting your Masters is becoming more prevalent. There is A LOT of varying thoughts on this issue so I would suggest further research.
If your school has a program where you could get your Master's with an additional year and you can afford to do so, I think you should go for it (or at inquire about it). A non-thesis Master's degree won't do much to set you up for a R&D career but it will give you some advantage in getting the more traditional industry positions. The magnitude of the advantage depends on the company, but if you have your Master's I think you immediately set yourself apart from a lot of your fellow fresh graduates when applying to entry level positions given everything else is equal. Prior work experience though will always be the most desirable.