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02 Aug 2017, 13:46
Kudos
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Question regarding possible future MBA.
I’m 26, engineer, poor undergrad GPA (2.9). Dream is to go to a certain MBA program full time in 4 to 5 years. This MBA program sometime breaks top 10 but is consistently at least top 15, and has a “partnership” with my undergrad school. Part of that partnership is that my target MBA program “understands” the uniqueness of my undergrad school and looks at it with special consideration in regards to GPA, etc…. but I don’t know how much weight that holds in reality. I only have a few months doing engineering since right after undergrad I went into the military for 2.5 years. I realize my undergrad GPA is a big red flag for said school (and others I’d be interested in). I’m currently doing everything I can to kick ass as an engineer and will be the sole structural engineer for my company with 1.5 years.
I’m wondering if it would be unintelligent to get a grad school degree in engineering on my company’s dime at my target MBA school. So start a Masters in engineering this spring, at my target MBA school. Can take classes to show my aptitude, then apply if not initially accepted. Finish 2.5-3 years later. Then, within a year or two, attend an MBA full time. I’m not interested in part time programs. Would MBA admissions look down on that Masters and say, “why get a masters if you’re just going straight to an MBA after?”. I also have already been accepted to another Masters of engineering program that would only take 2 years to finish, but is not at a well-known state school (although not a bad school at all), and I don’t believe would help sway MBA admissions as much or help in my career as much.
My reasoning is for getting this initial Masters is: 1. Help offset undergrad gpa, along with a strong gmat. 2. Go to my target MBA school for it, that way I’ll already have one degree from there, and it will help with admissions. 3. If I don’t get into any good MBA schools, atleast I’ll have a Masters in Engineering which can only help my career.
Is my reasoning legitimate, or would admissions look at this as a negative?
I’m 26, engineer, poor undergrad GPA (2.9). Dream is to go to a certain MBA program full time in 4 to 5 years. This MBA program sometime breaks top 10 but is consistently at least top 15, and has a “partnership” with my undergrad school. Part of that partnership is that my target MBA program “understands” the uniqueness of my undergrad school and looks at it with special consideration in regards to GPA, etc…. but I don’t know how much weight that holds in reality. I only have a few months doing engineering since right after undergrad I went into the military for 2.5 years. I realize my undergrad GPA is a big red flag for said school (and others I’d be interested in). I’m currently doing everything I can to kick ass as an engineer and will be the sole structural engineer for my company with 1.5 years.
I’m wondering if it would be unintelligent to get a grad school degree in engineering on my company’s dime at my target MBA school. So start a Masters in engineering this spring, at my target MBA school. Can take classes to show my aptitude, then apply if not initially accepted. Finish 2.5-3 years later. Then, within a year or two, attend an MBA full time. I’m not interested in part time programs. Would MBA admissions look down on that Masters and say, “why get a masters if you’re just going straight to an MBA after?”. I also have already been accepted to another Masters of engineering program that would only take 2 years to finish, but is not at a well-known state school (although not a bad school at all), and I don’t believe would help sway MBA admissions as much or help in my career as much.
My reasoning is for getting this initial Masters is: 1. Help offset undergrad gpa, along with a strong gmat. 2. Go to my target MBA school for it, that way I’ll already have one degree from there, and it will help with admissions. 3. If I don’t get into any good MBA schools, atleast I’ll have a Masters in Engineering which can only help my career.
Is my reasoning legitimate, or would admissions look at this as a negative?
04 Aug 2017, 13:45
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi there, and thanks for writing! That's an intriguing question, and here are a few points:
- In the MBA application, you want to make it very clear how your pre-MBA path has led you to your short-term goals. So what you'll want to consider is: how does a master's degree in Engineering fit in with those plans? While there are certainly MBA candidates who have master's, typically they also have several years of work experience post-masters in their fields, before they apply or the MBA program. Therefore, programs might wonder exactly what you brought up - why you'd go into a master's engineering right before applying to bschool (you don't want them to get the impression that you're collecting degrees).
- What is your post-MBA goal, short and long-term? That will help me understand a bit better what drives you to want to get an MBA, and whether a few more years of engineering experience will be to your benefit (and whether you need an MBA or whether just a master's in engineering is right for you). Looking forward to your thoughts!
- In the MBA application, you want to make it very clear how your pre-MBA path has led you to your short-term goals. So what you'll want to consider is: how does a master's degree in Engineering fit in with those plans? While there are certainly MBA candidates who have master's, typically they also have several years of work experience post-masters in their fields, before they apply or the MBA program. Therefore, programs might wonder exactly what you brought up - why you'd go into a master's engineering right before applying to bschool (you don't want them to get the impression that you're collecting degrees).
- What is your post-MBA goal, short and long-term? That will help me understand a bit better what drives you to want to get an MBA, and whether a few more years of engineering experience will be to your benefit (and whether you need an MBA or whether just a master's in engineering is right for you). Looking forward to your thoughts!
LeeS14
Question regarding possible future MBA.
I’m 26, engineer, poor undergrad GPA (2.9). Dream is to go to a certain MBA program full time in 4 to 5 years. This MBA program sometime breaks top 10 but is consistently at least top 15, and has a “partnership” with my undergrad school. Part of that partnership is that my target MBA program “understands” the uniqueness of my undergrad school and looks at it with special consideration in regards to GPA, etc…. but I don’t know how much weight that holds in reality. I only have a few months doing engineering since right after undergrad I went into the military for 2.5 years. I realize my undergrad GPA is a big red flag for said school (and others I’d be interested in). I’m currently doing everything I can to kick ass as an engineer and will be the sole structural engineer for my company with 1.5 years.
I’m wondering if it would be unintelligent to get a grad school degree in engineering on my company’s dime at my target MBA school. So start a Masters in engineering this spring, at my target MBA school. Can take classes to show my aptitude, then apply if not initially accepted. Finish 2.5-3 years later. Then, within a year or two, attend an MBA full time. I’m not interested in part time programs. Would MBA admissions look down on that Masters and say, “why get a masters if you’re just going straight to an MBA after?”. I also have already been accepted to another Masters of engineering program that would only take 2 years to finish, but is not at a well-known state school (although not a bad school at all), and I don’t believe would help sway MBA admissions as much or help in my career as much.
My reasoning is for getting this initial Masters is: 1. Help offset undergrad gpa, along with a strong gmat. 2. Go to my target MBA school for it, that way I’ll already have one degree from there, and it will help with admissions. 3. If I don’t get into any good MBA schools, atleast I’ll have a Masters in Engineering which can only help my career.
Is my reasoning legitimate, or would admissions look at this as a negative?
I’m 26, engineer, poor undergrad GPA (2.9). Dream is to go to a certain MBA program full time in 4 to 5 years. This MBA program sometime breaks top 10 but is consistently at least top 15, and has a “partnership” with my undergrad school. Part of that partnership is that my target MBA program “understands” the uniqueness of my undergrad school and looks at it with special consideration in regards to GPA, etc…. but I don’t know how much weight that holds in reality. I only have a few months doing engineering since right after undergrad I went into the military for 2.5 years. I realize my undergrad GPA is a big red flag for said school (and others I’d be interested in). I’m currently doing everything I can to kick ass as an engineer and will be the sole structural engineer for my company with 1.5 years.
I’m wondering if it would be unintelligent to get a grad school degree in engineering on my company’s dime at my target MBA school. So start a Masters in engineering this spring, at my target MBA school. Can take classes to show my aptitude, then apply if not initially accepted. Finish 2.5-3 years later. Then, within a year or two, attend an MBA full time. I’m not interested in part time programs. Would MBA admissions look down on that Masters and say, “why get a masters if you’re just going straight to an MBA after?”. I also have already been accepted to another Masters of engineering program that would only take 2 years to finish, but is not at a well-known state school (although not a bad school at all), and I don’t believe would help sway MBA admissions as much or help in my career as much.
My reasoning is for getting this initial Masters is: 1. Help offset undergrad gpa, along with a strong gmat. 2. Go to my target MBA school for it, that way I’ll already have one degree from there, and it will help with admissions. 3. If I don’t get into any good MBA schools, atleast I’ll have a Masters in Engineering which can only help my career.
Is my reasoning legitimate, or would admissions look at this as a negative?
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