If you enjoy leading teams, creating new things, and problem-solving, you might be considering getting a degree in engineering management. A Master’s degree in Engineering Management can be the stepping stone that you need into a wide range of career options. Engineering Management master’s degree programs involve developing a range of both business and technical skills to prepare you for these roles. They help prepare professionals to work in advanced engineering positions or leadership and managerial roles in engineering or relevant industries like architecture and construction. Many professionals who decide to get an engineering management degree will already be experienced engineers, although you may decide to enroll in this program after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in engineering or similar. If you are interested in this field, it’s worth learning more about some of the career options that might be available to you with this qualification.
Reasons to Consider Studying Engineering Management
Research shows that the engineering management field is one that is expected to grow in the future. This is especially true in certain areas such as research and development, architectural engineering, environmental engineering, and biomedical engineering. Competition in these fields is expected to increase, which will lead to more companies hiring engineering management candidates with advanced technical knowledge, expert business management and financial skills, and strong interpersonal and communication skills. Getting a Master’s degree in Engineering Management will help professionals develop the ability to better utilize the technical, financial, and human resources available to them, along with presenting opportunities to develop some important soft skills including analytical thinking, critical thinking, and problem-solving.
Some of the roles that you may be interested in working in once you have gained a Master’s degree in Engineering Management include:
Firmware Engineer
Firmware refers to a type of software that is designed to very rarely require any modifications or updates. The role of a firmware engineer involves being responsible for planning, developing, and implementing various firmware programs. To work in this role, you will need a strong knowledge of both software development and electrical or computer engineering. Firmware engineers are often responsible for assessing the firmware needs of various organizations, designing new software systems, minimizing software errors, and optimizing application performance.
Business Analyst
Business analysts measure the structures and procedures that an organization has in place to evaluate how effective they are and to flag areas that may need improvement. A degree program like this Master of Engineering Management Degree from uOttawa will be able to equip you with the skills you need to reach this career goal in the role of business analyst. Business analysts evaluate all business processes, including budgets, department structures, and operations. They also analyze business technology in relation to these specific aspects of a business. If you have engineering skills and experience and are interested in a business analyst role, this position might be ideal for you.
Senior Chemical Engineer
A senior chemical engineer works in a role that mainly involves understanding how to implement various chemical processes to create materials or goods. Chemical engineers use their knowledge of engineering to develop systems that refine raw materials. They are responsible for ensuring that chemical products are safe to be used by people and for the optimization of chemical compounds. The role of a chemical engineer may also involve producing fuel, energy sources, medications, fertilizers, and other products. A senior chemical engineer has a more advanced role that may involve leading initiatives for research and development, supervising projects and leading teams, managing the testing of new chemicals, and balancing budgets for projects and departments.
Senior Electrical Engineer
A senior electrical engineer works in a role where they are mainly responsible for the design, repair, and maintenance of systems that run on electricity. The senior electrical engineer has a more advanced position in electrical engineering. They will often be responsible for managing teams of other engineers, mentoring apprentices and new hires, and researching opportunities to further develop projects, teams, and the business as a whole.
Engineering Project Manager
Engineering project managers are responsible for the management of any engineering-related projects. They are responsible for making sure that teams have all the resources that they need to successfully complete any engineering projects that they work on. Engineering project managers are not only responsible for the management of the daily, hands-on tasks that a certain project involves, but they will also supervise the long-term, overall processes that are involved in the project including assignment of employees to tasks, estimating the costs and managing the budget, and communicating directly with the client regarding the project.
Electronics Engineer
Electronics engineers are responsible for creating and maintaining electronic devices such as computers and laptops, video game consoles, television sets, or smartphones, for example. Electronics engineers are often mainly responsible for the design, development, testing, and repair of electronic devices. To work in this role, you will usually be required to have a solid knowledge of not only electronics engineering but other fields that will often overlap such as IT, computer science, computer engineering, and mechanical engineering.
Hardware Engineer
A hardware engineer or computer hardware engineer is a professional who is responsible for researching, creating, evaluating, and monitoring devices and systems that relate to computer hardware. Hardware refers to the physical parts of computer processes and devices such as processors, circuit boards, routers, and memory devices. The main duties of a computer hardware engineer involve overseeing computer system manufacturing, troubleshooting IT issues, assisting with the installation of new hardware, and evaluating computer hardware products.
Electrical Engineer
Electrical engineering involves planning, developing, testing, and optimizing devices and systems that use electricity. Electrical engineers can work on a wide range of applications from electronic communications systems to power generation equipment on a larger scale. They are usually responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining any systems that use electricity or electronic elements and will often specialize in a specific field of electrical engineerings such as radio frequency engineering, signal processing, or computer engineering.
Technical Consultant
A technical consultant’s role involves creating or modifying IT systems on behalf of companies. This might be an ideal role for you to consider if you are thinking about getting a master’s degree in engineering management and are interested in a future career in which you will have the opportunity to be self-employed since technical consultants are often freelance or self-employed contractors who work with different clients in various industries. As a technical consultant, you will be responsible for the analysis of hardware component capabilities, providing basic IT support management training, tracking system performance metrics, and implementing emerging technologies into your clients’ IT infrastructure.
Plant Manager
Plant managers are responsible for supervising the employees, equipment, and methods used at manufacturing plants. Their main goal is to reduce operational costs and make sure that production strategies are well-optimized. Their day-to-day responsibilities may involve providing safety training to plant employees, creating and evaluating performance reports, monitoring machinery, and coordinating with distributors.
Technical Manager
A technical manager’s role involves leading teams and initiatives that relate to technological developments. If you are interested in working in this role, it is important to develop strong leadership abilities and a range of related hard skills that require specific knowledge and abilities. Most technical managers will work in the IT industry, although you can find this role in a range of other industries and sectors where technical skills are required such as electronics, the legal system, and accounting.
Product Engineer
Product engineers are mainly responsible for the design, development, and overseeing of the production of goods that are produced for the market. Product engineers are a type of mechanical engineers and will often have responsibilities such as developing and testing prototypes for new products and using computer design software to create visual plans and representations of products. They are also responsible for coming up with new ideas for products and evaluating any potential risks that may arise during product development.
Application Engineer
An application engineer is a professional with the main aim of improving software programs and systems on behalf of their clients. They may be focused on making improvements through the development of new software structures, creating new hardware components, or optimizing existing software programs. Most application engineers will work in roles within application development firms that work with a wide range of different clients from various industries.
Automation Engineer
The role of an automation engineer involves being responsible for handling any machinery, tools, and procedures that are related to automation. Automation is a term that refers to any technology system that is able to function without much or any interaction from humans. Automation engineers will often work on software systems and programs rather than directly with the equipment. They are responsible for working with clients in various different industries to help troubleshoot errors and issues, develop bespoke automation software, and minimize computing defects. They are also responsible for tracking system errors, performing quality testing for software programs, and installing automation applications.
Process Engineer
Process engineers are responsible for the supervision and management of equipment and processes that are involved with automation at manufacturing facilities. They work in a similar role to automation engineers; however, their primary responsibility is to ensure that any raw materials are assembled into their correct final forms successfully. They may also often be responsible for optimizing manufacturing materials to reduce possible defects, improving operational costs, increasing the productivity of machine resources, and conducting maintenance tests.
Construction Manager
Construction managers work in a role where they are mainly responsible for all of the factors involved with building construction. Typical roles include planning and overseeing construction projects from the early developmental stages until completion. They are usually responsible for the supervision and handling of communications between crews, architects, building code managers, engineers, and other professionals that are involved in the process of constructing buildings. They are responsible for making sure that all projects comply with necessary regulations, interpreting technical documents, and creating and revision budgets.
Structural Engineer
Structural engineers are mainly responsible for the planning, design, and construction of the physical components of a construction project including aspects such as foundations, columns, arches, and beams. Regular responsibilities in this role could involve calculating weight loads of structural elements, overseeing the construction site, and making sure that any necessary permits are provided before the construction begins. To work as a structural engineer, you may be required to get a license from your state depending on where you want to work.
IT Manager
An IT manager works in a role where they organize, plan, and supervise systems and employees related to IT. Regular responsibilities in this position may involve creating strategies to improve IT network security, coordination of IT initiatives with IT employees, coming up with development and training opportunities for IT employees and new hires, and optimizing the efficiency of IT devices and procedures.
Operations Manager
Operations managers have an advanced position within the human resources department of a company. They are mainly responsible for optimizing the quality, productivity, and cost-efficiency of various procedures and protocols within the business. The role of an operations manager involves overseeing budgets for departments, managing inventory materials, and creating training programs and processes for employees.
Project Engineer
Project engineers are mainly responsible for the overseeing and guidance of teams throughout projects. They need to not only have a strong understanding of the engineering principles that are related to the project itself but also strong business management skills in order to effectively lead teams to a successful result. The main duties of a project engineer may vary depending on the engineering discipline that they work in.
Whether you are currently working as an engineer or in the process of completing your bachelor’s degree in engineering, getting a Master’s degree in Engineering Management in the future can be an ideal way to take your career further and gain a qualification that will prepare you to work in a wide range of advanced roles.