Hello friends. I am new to this forum and what brings me here is a question that has been haunting me for a while now.
I am 29 years old and working in the merchant marines (merchant navy) for the past 7 years. I currently hold the rank of a second engineer. I think i have served enough i this field and want to shift over to land based jobs for which i want to do a postgraduate. I am in a fix right now in choosing between an ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT program and MBA. I have graduated with a 4 year B.S. Marine engineering degree back in 2008. What perplexes me is the question "is Engineering management okay for me with 7 years of experience and at an age of 29 where the class average in terms of age is 24/25. Secondly, being a seafarer, there always a lack in soft skills as we more often deal with machinery rather than software. In that case would coping up in the MBA program with classmates would be quite a thing to assimilate?
Your valuable feedback would be very helpful. Thanks and best regards.
Vivek
Vivek, the average age of MBA students is about 28, Harvard is 27 so you are not far off the mark. You will bring an interesting set of experience to offer the class. MBA schools also teach you some very practical soft skills. My daughter who attended a top 5 MBA program said they taught the class how to hold a plate and a drink in one hand and shake hands with people with the other.
You will have to write a convincing essay telling the schools why you need an MBA and what you wish to do with the degree.
Good luck.
Thank you cbreeze. I myself am bent towards the MBA program. But what breaks my pace is the fact that I am more of a technical guy who has been looking after machinery and upgrading them as and when required, while working on sea going ships where you are almost cut off from the world for a good 7 months a year. Commerce and business have always intrigued me. Which on the contrary makes me challenge myself to go for an MBA. But reality bites hard and it is this hesitation that is confusing me to an extent.
My Dad was in the Navy for a few years, got out, went to college for Mechanical Engineering and was then offered to get his MBA through a prestigious college where we live. I’m only a high school junior, but my advice to you is go for the MBA. It has brought my father great opportunities, including rank over others and more money for sure. I believe my dad was 31 or 32ish when he went to get his MBA, it’s never too late! If you find success with the MBA you could always go to law school or get a master’s in engineering later. Best of luck to you! 