<p>I'm very interested in business and engineering. Which has brought me to thinking about civil engineering and business as a double major. Could this help me run a major construction company someday? What masters degrees would help?</p>
<p>If your goal is to run or start a construction company (as opposed to finding something you can do with the double major), you can just major in civil engineering in college. This major can get you into the construction management field. It’s a very experience-driven industry, so having more majors and more degrees doesn’t necessarily help as much as having a good track record.</p>
<p>Down the road, it may be helpful to get an MBA as you get more involved in business development either for the company you’re working for or for your own company.</p>
<p>Hey thanks for the info, you’re very helpful.</p>
<p>I’d agree with ken. You won’t need a business degree because your most likely not going to be able to start your own company right out of college. Your going to need years of experience in the field before you can be successful on your own. I don’t think you would even need an MBA if you had your own company because you don’t necessarily need one to handle the business side of it. Either way that’s down the road.</p>
<p>I agree with ken and ziggy. You really don’t get much out of a business degree unless you are planning to go into a specific field, e.g. accounting, finance, marketing. The best experience for running a construction company is construction. Having said that, a course in accounting wouldn’t hurt.</p>
<p>Full discolsure: I have degrees in accounting and chemical engineering.</p>
<p>What about a master in engineering management or masters in construction management? Would either of these help?</p>
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<p>I have a masters in civil engineering with a concentration in construction engineering and management. I believe it helps slightly in terms of getting your foot in the door. It won’t be the reason why you do or do not become the head honcho.</p>
<p>Are the two masters I referred to previously the same thing for a civil engineer?</p>
<p>CG, where are you now in your studies?</p>
<p>I’m actually preparing to begin college. I’m just very interested and curious on this path.</p>
<p>Curious and interested are good qualities. Nothing wrong with having some plans for moving forward.</p>
<p>One thing I would suggest is to consider taking law courses. In construction, you will always have legal issues such as contracts, property rights, insurance and liability issues, and environmental concerns. And since you are exploring I can even see how a law degree would be beneficial in running a major construction company.</p>
<p>It’s a beautiful thing, you will be concentrating on your studies. At some point, you will get an internship. You are doing the legwork on your options. At some point, it will become clear the direction you will want to take.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>Thanks for thr info. I know it’s a little early in my studies but I guess I’m a little more mature then most and just want to have a successful career.</p>
<p>Also which specialization in civil engineering would be best for my goals? Construction management? Even if I chose this as a specialization I’d still get a general understanding of the other technical areas right? Sorry for all the questions I’m just trying to understand this.</p>
<p>Most civil engineering programs have required courses that cover all aspects of civil engineering, so yes you would have a general understanding of other technical areas. You don’t have to specialize in construction management in undergrad by the way. For most programs that I’ve seen, it’s not material you can’t learn on your own or learn on the job.</p>
<p>If you’re interested in heavy/civil construction, I suggest looking at geotechnical enigneering as a concentration in civil engineering.</p>
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I definitely agree. I took Construction Law in a law school and it’s been pretty helpful. A full blown degree is overkill right out of college though; it’s something to consider much later in your career.</p>
<p>The key to a career in construction management is experience, experience and experience. While getting additional degrees is helpful, it doesn’t replace time spent working in the field. You’ll learn a lot in college, but you won’t realize how much more there is that you don’t know until after.</p>
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The two are different. I took a course in engineering management and it seemed to be very general, almost like something you’d expect to find in an undergrad business school. Not sure if this is representative of the field across the board though.</p>
<p>So a construction management masters is more specialized than an engineering management masters?</p>
<p>It’s much more specific to construction (obviously). I was in a construction engineering & management program and took courses such as Construction Law, Uncertainty & Risk in Infrastructure Systems, Design of Construction Systems, Construction Techniques, Prevention & Resolution of Construction Disputes, Capital Facility Planning & Financing.</p>
<p>So which would you recommend down the line, an mba/ masters in construction management dual degree or mba/jd joint degree?</p>
<p>I wouldn’t do a degree after college that would require me to study full-time. Who knows where you’ll be in four or five years, but some colleges in large cities offer part-time programs, with courses at night and/or weekends. To take off two or three years to dedicate just to school seems excessive to me.</p>
<p>With that being said, if your career goal is to run a major construction firm, an MBA is your best bet maybe 5-10 years into your career. I would not spend time on other degrees as those won’t be as beneficial for business development.</p>
<p>Alright because honestly I have no interest in law school anyway haha</p>