Overview

Career Development

The MEM program assists students in progressing in their careers in a variety of ways. MEM graduates who stay with their present companies are typically promoted to positions with more responsibility, managing more people, or taking on more sophisticated project management responsibilities.

Immediate Working World Application

As the students are allowed to customize the program to fit their desired area of specialization or concentration, assignments from class often have direct and immediate applicability to the students work-life. MEM provides a series of tools, techniques, and perspectives, often revealing issues that are underlying the student's current work situation.

Networking Events

The MEM program, in collaboration with the Student Advisory Board, sponsors activities to develop leadership opportunities for current students and alumni, such as annual competitions and monthly networking events. One annual tradition is MEM Industry Night, which recognizes and establishes community amongst the students, alumni, and companies who value the importance of education at the intersection of engineering and business. 

Post-Graduation Opportunities & Internships

Part-Time Students

MEM graduates who maintain their current employment while completing the program on a part-time basis are typically given significant raises and promoted to positions where they manage larger teams or take on more sophisticated project management responsibilities.

Full-Time Students

The full-time student course of study provides the opportunity for an optional internship during the summer. Most students seek industry-related internship positions, but some students choose to focus on project-based work or even personal start-up initiatives. There are no common paths or industries for our full-time students due to their breadth of experience and diverse backgrounds. Note: students are responsible for securing their own summer internships.

In recent years, the Master of Engineering Management program has graduated 45-50 students each year. On average over 90% of graduates are employed within 6 months, post-graduation. Most graduates find jobs in the location and industry of their choice and those who had worked while in the program were generally promoted at least once. 

Below are examples of the job titles and companies employing MEM full-time students:

Full-time Employment Examples
A.T. Kearney, Principal
AIG, Big Data Business Analyst/Technical Project Manager
Amazon, Product Manager
AT&T, Product Manager
BCG, Senior Consultant
Caterpillar, Senior Manager
EY, Manager - Financial Services Advisory
GE, Project Manager
GE Energy, Operation Manager
Ipsos, Director, Marketing Management Analytics
Microsoft, Software Engineer
Microsoft, Program Manager
NCR Corp, Program Manager
Pacific Gas and Electric, Principal Investment Planning & Governance
PNC, Project Manager
Sears, Manager, Analytics
Stanley Black & Decker, Global Sourcing Specialist
Tesla, Product Manager
Whirlpool, Senior Engineer

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Additional Resources

Engineering Career Development

The Engineering Career Development Office helps provide career advice to engineering students and helps them find internship and full-time positions.

Northwestern Career Advancement

Northwestern Career Advancement offers comprehensive career services including career counseling and assessment, resume reviews, and individual job searching assistance.

Northwestern Alumni Association

Take advantage of the networking and mentoring opportunities available through the Northwestern Alumni Association.

Professional Organizations

Many MEM students join local and national chapters of highly recognized professional organizations such as IEEE, INCOSE, PDMA, or SWE to name a few.

The Farley Center for Entrepreneurship

The Farley Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation evolves engineering beyond the application of the sciences to the creation of businesses that capitalize on innovations. Farley has innovative curriculum like NUvention, which are experiential project-based courses in medical, energy, transportation, entertainment, and media. Many MEM students take NUvention courses as electives to advance their business knowledge or get more involved in the entrepreneurial ecosystem at Northwestern.