<p>I've heard that even with a MS in engineering, companies and coworkers will still look down on you if you don't have a BS in engineering. Is this true?</p>
<p>If you have an MS in engineering you also have a BS so that doesn’t make sense…</p>
<p>No, you may have a BS in Chemistry or Physics, and a MS in Engineering.</p>
<p>I know a girl who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English, then earned a master’s in engineering at MIT. Then she was hired as a Director of Engineering.</p>
<p>^That’s impressive/ridiculous.</p>
<p>That’s why I was skeptical about getting an M.S in Chemical Engineering. I heard that lack of Engineering internship might hurt you. Maybe you’re just better off getting a 2nd Bachelor’s degree. But I’m not sure.</p>
<p>Check out this thread: [How</a> Useful Is Master’s In Chemical Engineering? - Cheresources.com Community](<a href=“How Useful Is Master's In Chemical Engineering? - Student - Cheresources.com Community”>How Useful Is Master's In Chemical Engineering? - Student - Cheresources.com Community)</p>
<p>Hope this helps!!</p>
<p>I’m not worried about actually getting into the MS in ChemE program because I actually took/taking/will take several ChemE classes and passed those I already took with A’s and B’s. The core background as defined by my current school is simply Thermo + Reaction Kinetics + Transport Phenomena. I’ll have those by the time I graduate. I just won’t have the piece of paper saying B.S. in Chemical Engineering. What I am worried about is not the background limiting me but the piece of paper that says B.S. Chemistry and being looked down due to it regardless of background since employers don’t seem to care what classes you take, only the name of your piece of paper.</p>
<p>Not true. In order for you to get a ms in eng, you need would either need a bs or be in eng, or the take certain required undergradute classes. Unless your program is differnet.</p>
<p>I knew someone who graduated with a bs in polictical science (could not find a job) and went to ms in eng. Acceptance to the ms program was condition on complete certain undergraduate courses. Instead of finishing in 2 years, she took 3 years. she went to work for a consulting firm.</p>
<p>Remember, first year or two are core courses. 3rd or 4th most people take maybe 3 eng related classes per semester. As the most, you may miss a few courses, but no one is able to take all eng electives offered.</p>
<p>In my office, we all mech eng and yet very diifferent concretration in college: some take general (a bit of everything), some in energy, some in packaging and solid mechanics. For most eng’s you are trained on the job. So don’t worry about it.</p>
<p>You will always have folks in hiring positions who will frown on someone not following the “conventional” way to a career. Some hiring manager will pick out SOMETHING whether it’s the B.S. degree title from 10 years ago or was it an online degree or something to nitpick at. In the end, supply/demand wins out and not every employer can be that way.</p>
<p>I did the B.S. in Math to M.S. in Engineering route. My grad degree is more of an systems engineering management degree but hey, it “checks off the box” for the requirement and after all my years of experience, that is all I needed. I have never had a problem securing software engineering jobs.</p>
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<p>AFAIK, the girl I know who got her master’s in engineering at MIT after a bachelor’s in English has never taken a single undergrad engineering course in her entire life. </p>
<p>Similarly, I know a guy who graduated with a bachelor’s in biology and then earned a master’s in engineering at MIT, and he also has never taken a single undergrad engineering course in his entire life. </p>
<p>{So perhaps the moral of the story is, if you want to avoid ever having to take any undergrad engineering courses while picking up a master’s in engineering, go to MIT.}</p>
<p>There have been several anedoctal examples on CollegeConfidential of non-BSME holders who later earned an Engineering MS. Many of them, maybe most of them, were BA/BS in Physics, Chemistry or Mathematics. Check the individual graduate schools’ websites. At some renowned Engineering schools a Physics, Chemistry or Mathematics major can earn an MS in just over 1 year of study; maybe even less than that, depending on the specialty and the student’s academic preparation/ background. School have such programs because often it’s employers whom are paying for the MS.</p>
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<p>Somehow I don’t think that too many people are looking down on the two people I discussed above who don’t have engineering bachelor’s degrees, but then earned engineering master’s from MIT. That would be like looking down upon a team who had an unremarkable regular season, but then blazed through the playoffs to take the championship.</p>
<p>No one will look down on you if you have an MS in engineering without a BS. It is not worth doing a second BS.</p>
<p>doesnt have bachelor degree in engineering but have master in engineering n can work as engineer???huh…totally unfair for engineering graduate…if he/she doesnt hve bachelor degree but have master in engineering, could he/she apply for ‘ir’ in front of his/her name?
i also hve a friend that doesnt have bac in eng but currently further her studying in one of famous university in japan for master in engineering…</p>
<p>As I stated in another thread, I’ve seen many people earn an MS in engineering without a BS.</p>
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<p>It’s not unfair. People make the mistake of thinking of an MS as an advanced BS, and a PhD as an advanced MS. They’re not. They’re different degrees that enable you to do different things.</p>
<p>BS = a generalist degree in an engineering discipline (e.g. Chemical Engineering). You know a little about everything and can solve a wide range of fairly complex issues.</p>
<p>MS = a specialist degree in a particular area of engineering (e.g. Catalysis). You know a lot about a few things and can solve a narrow scope of highly complex issues.</p>
<p>PhD = a research degree in a very specialized area (e.g. Nontraditional Template Synthesis of Microjagged Bismuth Oxide). You are trained to solve highly specialized problems with no known solution using a specific technique or research methodology.</p>
<p>If you want someone to work in a chemical plant troubleshooting and optimizing a chemical reactor and other unit ops, a BS-only would be fine and a BS + MS would be helpful. You wouldn’t hire an MS-only or a PhD.</p>
<p>If you want someone to specialize on managing just the catalyst in your chemical reactor, an MS-only is fine. A BS-only wouldn’t be your first choice unless she has extensive experience. A PhD is not necessary.</p>
<p>If you want someone to work in a lab and develop new improved catalysts for your chemical reactor, then a PhD is required (or maybe a thesis-based MS with supervision or additional training). An MS-only (which wouldn’t be thesis-based) or a BS-only would not be sufficiently trained.</p>
<p>How is it unfair? Half of an engineering degree is outside of the engineering school, so a BS in engineering is actually only two years worth of actual engineering related courses, often less than one years worth of specialization courses. The BS/MS holder we are discussing here has a broader education, has invested more time and money into that education and will have the same skill set as the BS holder. Despite that the MS holder will usually have to compete with BS grads, so if it’s unfair for anybody, it’s the MS grad.</p>
<p>I’m a ChemE major who doesn’t think it’s unfair, because I’m able to qualify for a position after 4-5 years of study, whereas a person who does a BA-> MS or BS Unrelated -> MS Engineering has to do a total of 2/3 years for the MS plus the 4 years they put into their other degree. </p>
<p>We get the advantage of not needing the graduate degree to get our job, and if we do the BS -> MS route, you can bet money we’ll be the prime candidate. Plus we get to CHOOSE what MS route we take since we have the bachelor degree under it. A person who does BA -> MS or BS Unrelated -> MS doesn’t have as many options due to the limited amount of programs that accept them. </p>
<p>I don’t think it’s unfair at all. If I did a four year degree in something boring and lame (to me) as English, that would be the unfair route. I can’t stand studying liberal arts!</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/12495700-post15.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/12495700-post15.html</a></p>
<p>very well said, thanks</p>
<p>If I plan on working towards an MS in some physics/engineering field, is a bachelor’s degree in physics at a liberal arts college going to allow me very much flexibility?</p>