Your thoughts/experiences on hard science grads going the MBA route?

[samoth1]

Background: BS physics, double minors in chem and math, c/o 2008. Started with chem major, but switched to physics for interest/challange. No absolute career goals, but always considered bigpharma as a good place to go. Considered physics grad school, but never that interested in teaching.

Work/Career: Internship in R&D pharma. Currently work in the lab at bigpharma as an analytical chemist -- QC side, not R&D. Enjoy work, but looking at long-term future career goals/possibilities, I think I'd like to work my way up through management.

Now: Considering going MBA route. I'm well aware of the devaluation of the degree (and of degrees in general), but I think that a hard science BS with business/MBA would yield a great degree of versitility and present a rare/interesting combination WRT intersts/skills/abilities, for both employers and myself.

A part-time MBA at the local state university would be basically free thruogh work. The state flagship is much more prestigious, but I'm not going to Wall Street, nor am I willing to pay $60K for an MBA.

Thoughts or opinions on this? I'm finding it rare for science/lab people to intentionally pursue the business/management side in industry... but I know PF's got to have some. :D

 

[twofish-quant]

Thoughts or opinions on this? I'm finding it rare for science/lab people to intentionally pursue the business/management side in industry... but I know PF's got to have some. :D

One thing that is surprising is that it's quite common for science/lab people to go into business/management but once they do so they tend not to post in forums like this.