Civil Engineers moving into Business Management?

forfcksake

Hey all,
I am currently studying civil engineering (going into final year in September) and lately I have been looking into doing a masters course in Business & Management/Project management. Some courses I have been looking into are:
MSc in Project Management - UCD
MSc in Project Management - UL
MSc in Business & Management - TCD
Business Management MA - UL
I was just wondering if anyone on here had any experience of taking this route after their honours degree and what they thought of it and how they got on. I dont seem to be getting the same buzz out of civil engineering as I was earlier on in the course I dont know if it has anything to do with the employment prospects or not. So I just can’t see any point in doing a masters in a civil engineering discipline or going out looking for a job without having to emigrate. I would have a small interest in business but I love the buzz of undertaking a project and getting it completed so that’s why I was thinking of going this route.
All of your views are appreciated, cheers!

dan_d

For what it's worth, my 2 cents are....

Many PM courses require you to have PM experience before they'll let you do them.

The Masters in PM is a good course but there are other PM qualifications out there that are equally recognised, and cost far less. The PRINCE2 qualification is one that you can get through the UK, or the PMP qualification is the American version. Personally, I think it's more worthwhile going for one of them. In my job hunt over the last year, I've noticed many, many jobs specifying a PMP/PRINCE2 requirement plus X no. of years of PM experience, but I've never seen a Masters in PM being requested. Engineers Ireland do training courses to pass the PMP exam which is a worldwide recognised one. But you do have to have a certain amount of experience.

The reason I say this is because I would consider that if you are going to spend a lot of money and at least a year on a Masters, you would be better to get your PM qualification through the PMI or PRINCE. It's cheaper, quicker and still recognised everywhere. That doesn't mean it's easier btw - it's still a tough exam.Then do your Masters in something business related (since that's what you're looking at), which opens even more fields to you.

That's the route I'm currently looking at myself...I've done a course in PM and have signed up for the PMP exam for the next couple of months, and then hope to go on and do a different Masters come Sept.

forfcksake

Thanks a million for the reply dan!

dan_d wrote: »

Engineers Ireland do training courses to pass the PMP exam which is a worldwide recognised one. But you do have to have a certain amount of experience.

I have just looked at this and it seems a good way to go, the only sticking point being the requirement of 3 years PM experience which I wouldn’t have just having completed my undergrad. It’s also a lot cheaper too which is a plus!

If any engineers have done their masters in business or management, I’d be interested in their thoughts, what the course was like and what the job prospects are like, cheers!

forfcksake

BUMP!

edwardlenihan

Hey,

I'm a Civil Engineer with 5 years experience. I was actually going to do the Project Management Masters but have decided against it and have been accepted to do the Business Management Masters.

From my experience of working on Site and in consultancy the PMI provide some highly recognised Project management courses, so I will worry about the project management side of things in the future. I would agree with the previous posts about this hence why I also decided to do the MBM instead of the PM Masters.

I also found while working that the more experienced you become as an engineer the more responsibility you get, and are pushed more into project management roles. Its kind of a natural process. A lot of Multi national engineering consultants make it mandatory within there organisations to participate in PMI Courses.

In regards job prospects after completing the Business Management masters, I really don't know, but it will definately help you get the foot in the door above someone who only has a Civil Degree. The course is very broad and from speaking to people you should have a good idea of what route you may like to take in business i.e (HR, Operations Management, Sales, Marketing etc) after completion.

Ideally an MBA would be ideal but you don't have any work experience and you need between 3 to 5 years, you also need cash behind you because they aint cheap (€30,000 +).

I'm going to stick to my guns and go for the MBM and hopefully I'll enjoy it and get something out of it. Best of luck with your decision and if you've any further questions keep posting.