<p>I would like to become a chemical engineer when I attend UF, it's a highly interesting subject to me. I plan on going to a top business school for an MBA after I get my undergrad, and ultimately I am hoping to be more of a businessman then an engineer in the future. I know of many famous people who have BS's in engineering and MBA's who don't do one ounce of engineering. Is this a practical situation? I want to enjoy engineering but also use it as a stepping stone to a top MBA.</p>
<p>I'm worried that my undergraduate degree will get me too caught up in engineering to attend business school.</p>
<p>OP: Chemical Engineering is a great degree and will mold your mind to be analytical, quantitative, and a great problem solver. I ideal in both business and engineering. To be successful in business you will also have a good understanding of sociology, psychology, statistics, and soft skills that create a business acumen, something very few engineers have. We are generally just nerds. Still, if you plan on going to a top MBA you will need to watch your gpa. It is tougher to pull a gpa that will be viewed as strong in the top MBA programs than with other degrees. I wouldn’t worry about the fact that you will find out what you want to do, if business is the ultimate goal than go for it. If you find you love engineering and want to continue doing that then you won’t be disappointed.</p>
<p>Boombox: Why ChemE into brewing? I would suggest you look into brewing/fermentation sciences in food science courses or Viticulture/Enology, this would be a more direct route. Look at schools like UC Davis and the Siebel institute if you want to go into brewing. Some of the brewmasters I know are microbiologist by education, less engineers. Though they do pick up engineering skills because of their trade. As a side note, I am a ChemE getting my MBA and debating microbrews or alcohol beverage industry afterwards. Still, the biotechnology background is about the same since the fermentation process is very similar, hence the microbiologist involvement.</p>
<p>You’ll want to do a search on getting an MBA right after your undergraduate degree. The unanimous decision is that it’s a really, really bad idea unless you’re admitted to a top school (which is extremely difficult after undergrad). </p>
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<p>ChE and brewing actually fit together extremely well. Starting a brewery is another can of worms, but ChE will actually put you in an excellent position to be able to manage the operation of a brewery, winery, or distillery.</p>
<p>to boombox: I know that A-Busch recruits engineers at our career fairs (they have a pretty popular display stand but alas, no samples) so perhaps after getting your degree you could go work for one of the major breweries (or even a smaller one) for a little while, make some contacts and what not, get your MBA, then start the microbrew? It probably isn’t the easiest career path to break into but the experience would probably be invaluable and, like GP said, it isn’t really a good idea to go straight from UG to MBA for most people.</p>
<p>Oh, also, what is the most common UG degree that MBA students have? Does it matter at all skill wise? I know for getting in diversity is good, but some degrees just prepare you better for the rigors of business school.</p>
<p>HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. I don’t usually post like a noob but this thread is just amazing… starting a microbrewery.</p>
<p>@Engineerjw, they have all sorts of degrees. This is what I pulled up from HBS MBA (<a href=“http://www.hbs.edu/recruiting/mba/resources/facts.html[/url]”>http://www.hbs.edu/recruiting/mba/resources/facts.html</a>). I don’t think you have to major in business to get an MBA. A majority of them are engineers. I don’t think B-school would be too rigorous for most intelligent engineering grads. What school you went to also does not matter too much. It is the experiences you gain, in school and in work. Getting an MBA right out of college is a waste because you won’t get the most out of the MBA program since you wouldn’t as much about know how the workplace and business world functions.</p>
<p>Undergraduate major
Humanities and Social Sciences 35%
Engineering and Natural Sciences 36%
Business Administration 24%
Other 5%</p>