What Masters Degree Should I Pursue to Achieve My Career Goals?

[djcrum1107]

Hello all! Not new to the forums but new to post.

I recently received my B.S. in Applied Physics with a minor in Math and Comp Sci and have entered the work force with a great company, but I don't want to stop there. I want to further my education and lucky for me my company pays for roughly 1 class a semester (which works with 40+ hours a week).

My problem is I have no idea which path I want to take. My three "end goals" would be in order:
1. Professor
2. Game Designer (side hobby when time permits but who knows when I retire)
3. CEO (or just climbing the corp ladder as high as possible)

Now I know that all require a ton of full time attention but I am in a spot where I can further my education towards whatever I want and all three of these might actually be possible down the line.

Now for the questions. What should I get my Master's in? Mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, material engineering, computer science, business, or none of the above and something completely different?

I love learning how things work and I have always loved learning things that I can apply (theoretical physics = bad time). I like dabbling in chemistry but I never liked biology. I also don't want to get stuck behind a computer all day and get to work with people. Huge amounts of writing is to be expected I know but the more I can avoid the better.

I don't have to decide right away but I do want to start asap so I can get more than one and/or go for PhD. All inputs welcome! I'm even asking friend's parents and parent's friends who work in a technical/business tech field so anything would be appreciated.

 

[Amok]

Personally I have very different tastes form yours; I just finished an MSc in theoretical chemistry (lots of theory, lots of physics and chemistry, lots of time spent alone thinking about programs and equations and no real life applications :P ), so I'd have hard time placing myself in your shoes. However I can tell you that if you don't want to be stuck behind a PC all day long, then game designer probably isn't for you (or computer science for that matter; my bro does that, so you can trust me). Business is probably a good idea if you really want to go up that corporate ladder, but doing a master in something a bit more interesting (like engineering or science) and then moving on to business is totally feasible as far as I know. Mechanical engineering always seemed to be a very broad field with many different specialtes and applications, so I'd pick that (but then again, I'm not you).

My only real advice, is pick something you think is going to be interesting, or else you're going to do a bad job, be bored for years and it's going to eat at your motivation. Read a bit about what doing a MSc in electrical engineering (for example) would actually entail. After that, you can think about the other factors.

 

[InternetHuman]

1. Professor

Get deep knowledge in a subject, get a PhD and demonstrate that you're capable of teaching.

2. Game Designer (side hobby when time permits but who knows when I retire)

Design (and program) games.

3. CEO (or just climbing the corp ladder as high as possible)

Get yourself employed into a company where you want to make a career. Preferably also have some background in economics to have base knowledge in what it takes to manage business. Or start your own company.

I love learning how things work and I have always loved learning things that I can apply (theoretical physics = bad time).

Sounds like engineering (or science) to me.

I also don't want to get stuck behind a computer all day and get to work with people.

That's mostly a no for fields involving programming and computers, even though programming / software development jobs aren't lonely. If you get into managerial positions, then it's much less about being stuck behind a computer and not working with people. But to get there you either have to be an experienced developer and a good team leader or a hard business person.