Confused: What to do after Master's?

[koolraj09]

Confused: What to do after Master's??

Hello Everyone.
I am currently enrolled as a Master's student with bachelor's in mechanical engineering. I am now in my final year. But i have remained confused over what to do after my master's. I am confused between taking up a job, entrepreneurship(i am sound at building hobby robots) or a PhD.
I thought i'd write down these(& probably more) alternatives with all the constraints each one has and where will I land if I choose a particular one.
But can anyone just outline which of the options would be worth in a long run?? Or at least where each of the alternative would probably lead me?
Thanks.

 

[Floid]

I would put off the entrepreneurship route until you have worked for someone else a while. There is a lot you will learn that isn't taught in school and it will help you if you know that side of things before you take a shot at it yourself.

 

[Ben Espen]

I can give you my totally biased and limited perspective. Take it for what it is worth.

1. There are lots of cool jobs in Mechanical Engineering. This is a really broad field with lots of opportunities. I am biased, because this is what I do, and I like it.
2. Entrepreneurship is really satisfying for some people, and can have really big rewards. However, this is accompanied by really big risks too. You need to look at your stomach for failure and rejection before you try this. There is a reason people take jobs with salaries.
3. What, precisely, do you want to do with a PhD in ME? Or do you *want* a PhD in ME? As a field of study, a PhD is pretty narrow. There are some positions where a PhD can be used as a broad qualification that says: "I'm smart and willing to work hard!", but also many looking for a real specific skillset. In ME, a Masters is usually the terminal degree [exceptions abound], so this may not be necessary. I personally hate this question, but it is very relevant. What do you want to do? A PhD is a necessary qualification for some things, and superfluous to others. You need to know how a PhD relates to what you want.

 

[koolraj09]

Thanks for those tips Floid & Ben!
Based on Ben's advice I think sticking to Master's is a pretty good option.
I am confused as to whether after working for some years (when I am stable) isn't it more difficult to jump onto entrepreneurship? Apart from this I completely abide by your opinion.

 

[Ben Espen]

From my point of view what makes it hard to jump into entrepreneurship is your obligations. If you have a mortgage to pay and a family to support, the uncertainty of starting your own business can be tough.