Job selection

I was in a similar situation as you in 2004 although I was an electrical engineering major. I fell into a Systems Engineering job for a defense contractor and my experience gave me a solid case for b-school. SE is not as "fun" from a pure engineering standpoint, but it offers you access to management at the junior level. I also participated in a rotation program that gave me a large network and exposure to more areas of the business. I highly suggest something like this to increase the odds of being recognized by key leaders (think future recommendations) and to broaden your experiences. IMHO if you want to exit in 2-5 years and you only have an undergrad degree, then your design experience will be pretty weak anyway. The best leaders may or may not have been designers, but they all understand the design process and how to recognize issues. Being "around" design is good enough if you are perceptive and proactive about understanding what works and what doesn't. The other important consideration is that successful engineering intensive businesses are really not just about engineering design. Most engineers lose sight of the fact that all the other functions are as, or often more, important than design (producibility, operations, supply chain, quality, configuration management, etc.). If you are confident that you don't want to be a long term technical engineer and will apply to b-school, then I would work hard to understand every element of the industry you start in while maintaining enough technical prowess so that designers don't scoff at you. Also, take advantage of everything the company offers and stand out amongst your peers. Training, volunteering, positions in clubs, etc. would all be great ammo for applications.

Well put!

RF

Thanks for all of the insight so far everyone. It is quite helpful to get the perspectives of other people.



I certainly see what you mean. I really think I'd like both jobs and I wouldn't be picking one just to "get me into b-school x." I was just thinking that if something like operations/supply chain might give me a leg up in my career in 5 years, why not do it? But you are right, things can change quickly. If I understand your views though, it wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing to choose either function, right?

Correct - I think you could sell either story in a very compelling way during your b-school applications. Your experiences on the job will drive the stories you can tell, not necessarily the path you choose.

Hey,
Thought I would add my 2 cents into the whole mix. I work as a design engineer for a manufacturing firm. We specalize in custom machinery which poses a unique set of challenges from a design perspective. We have a common platform which we use to build upon to meet induvidual customer needs. All said and done it gives me an insight to both design and manufacturing as both are interdependent. Changes made to design widely reflect the functionality of the part but that said you keep manufacturing guidelines in mind to optimize design parameters. I personally think it is hard to isolate one factor from the other. I agree with steel where you need to pick a job where you feel comfortable and where you feel you can best showcase your ability. I applied to the LFM program this year and asked an adcom member what they looked for. There were people from Boeing, Dell where the scale of operations and manufacturing is much larger than what I have ever experienced.But she told me each induvidual experiences are different and the diversity is what makes the program unique. So from a Bschool perspective I would suggest pursuing something you are passionate about so when you do apply they can see that passion come through rather than a carrer that has been planned for B-School