<p>Thanks for taking the time to read! I will attempt to be brief.</p>
<p>I am currently planning on returning to school to get a degree in Engineering. My choices are between Industrial and Mechanical. I am interested in the Industrial side, and I feel somewhat more inclined towards it, however, I also have some design ideas which lead me to stick more to the Mechanical side. I was told by a few people that Industrial cannot do Mechanical, but Mechanical can do Industrial (Moreover, Mechanical is more of a blanket, cover-all). </p>
<p>I have talked to several engineers on both sides, but I am still on the fence as far as a decision goes.</p>
<p>My background: I studied International Studies and Business in my first undergraduate. </p>
<p>My goals: I want to be in international business (Originally in International affiars/relations, but I do not want to work for the government for my entire life). Ideally, I would like to live and work abroad on a variety of projects. I favor positions that require diverse skills, and would probably like to do some form of project management in the future. </p>
<p>My thoughts: Honestly, I am not overly enthralled with the idea of spending more time (3-4 years) and money at the university (Although, I have no debt). I have thought for some time that I would be able to make a decent engineer if I applied myself, as I think it fits my personality and mindset. I tend to look at things analytically and look for solutions to problems.<br>
I originally thought with my previous undergraduate degrees that I would be able to get into that field, but it was not as easy as I had thought. Therefore, I see engineering as a means to get into the field where I want to be.<br>
If it is relevant, I am nearly 25.</p>
<p>My questions:
What are your initial thoughts?
What do you think as far as the two fields go (Industrial vs. Mechanical)?
Is going back to school a bad idea?</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Many schools do not accept students studying for second bachelor’s degrees. Check the schools on their policies about second bachelor’s degrees.</p></li>
<li><p>Your previous studies may be able to fulfill breadth courses for an engineering degree. Check the schools on their policies about this for second bachelor’s degree students.</p></li>
<li><p>Taking prerequisite math and physics courses at a local community college and then transferring to a university to complete the bachelor’s degree can be a less expensive way.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks for the response.
My school does accept second bacheloers students so that is not the issue. I get a fair amount of course transfers, but not everything. It will still take some time to complete. My local community college is not signifigantly cheaper than my university, but still a good thought. Perhaps I can take some courses.</p>
<p>You interests seem to fit Industrial Engineering better; project manage, project variety, and analytical problem solving.</p>
<p>Yes, a MechE can do Industrial Engineering, and the reverse is not necessarily true. If you are not already mechanically inclined or have a leaning or yearning towards mechanical, hands-on, activity then don’t go into MechE, you will be out shone. Industrial Engineering is more the “how things are done” than the nuts and bolts that MechE. Operations Research, Project Management, and Process Flows are more Industrial Eng and I think you will benefit more from these studies than MechE.</p>
<p>I would also consider Eng Mgmt and Op Research as Masters degrees if I were you, they might meet your timeline and goals much better.</p>
<p>Thanks for the insight Japher. I agree with what you said. Maybe I am overthinking it (which I often do) but I just do not want to limit myself career wise. I would like to be very flexible in my career and have the opportunity to work in a variety of fields.<br>
I would also like to test some of my design ideas, which I think I will get a better idea of how to do through MechE. Can you explain what you mean by the “out shone” idea. Do you mean that other people will constantly out do me or that it will be a challenge to keep up?</p>
<p>Out shone in that others will out acheive you. Basically, if you love your work you will be better at it than those who don’t love the work. You selected to fields that have very different pulls. </p>
<p>I don’t think either will limit your career.</p>
<p>This is IE to a ‘T’, variety variety variety… I am also a second degree IE student at NC State and can tell you from experience that you will not feel limited with what you can do in this field. Seriously, IE’s are into everything. So far I have interviewed with the following industries: Healthcare Management, Space (Nasa), Automotive (Volvo), (Consumer Products)P&G, Logistics/OR/Business Optimization (Norfolk Southern). We also have Deloitte consulting, and like 80 other companies looking at IE’s all the time. Great field with lots of potential. My problem is actually trying to limit myself to one field!</p>