<p>I am an engineering major at a top college. I am planning on going to graduate school for engineering or business. I am going to try and do research/internship each summer. What other things should I do that will help improve my resume? Also, how important are extracurricular activities?</p>
<p>What you do depends on whether you go to graduate school for engineering or business.</p>
<p>Engineering:
-get a research assistant position with a professor whose research interests you. (This is more important if you want a PhD, but will also improve MS applications)
-develop strong relationships with professors who can write you recommendation letters
-take the most rigorous classes in your interest area, including graduate courses if you can
-look for summer research programs in engineering, if you are interested in research
-look for summer internship programs in engineering, if you are interested in applied work</p>
<p>For engineering, extracurriculars that are unrelated to engineering are not going to affect your application. Like, engineering schools will not care whether you were in a fraternity, or Model UN, even that you joined a generic engineering club at school. But if you were on the school’s robotics team or were in an engineering honors society, that matters.</p>
<p>Business:
-Gain leadership positions on campus - the bigger, the better. SGA positions and college/university Senate are great, but even the executive board of well-organized on-campus clubs or fraternities will be good.
-develop strong relationships with professors who can write you recommendation letters
-take the most rigorous classes in your major, including graduate courses if you can
-take some business classes if you can
-look for summer internship programs in either engineering or business, preferably at a top firm</p>
<p>If you want an MBA, most top MBA programs (and even the good to great ones that are not in the top) will require or strongly recommend 2-5 years or more of experience. So plan to get a job after college and work in it for about that long. The internship will hopefully serve the dual purpose of looking good on your CV and getting your foot in the door.</p>
<p>A graduate school is a school that awards advanced academic degrees with the general requirement that students must have earned a previous undergraduate degree. A distinction is typically made between graduate schools and professional schools, which offer specialized advanced degrees in professional fields such as medicine, business, or law. When the economic climate is down and joblessness is high, there is an increase in the amount of people going back to school for additional education. For several students, deciding if you should go after an advanced degree should be made by balancing expenses and potential future gain. [Doing</a> the math of graduate school costs](<a href=“Personal Money Network”>Personal Money Network).</p>
<p>If your applying to graduate school for M.S/M.Eng, do you need research? What if you have LOR from professors and supervisors from internships?</p>