I currently started my Masters degree, its a Masters in Science and Engineering(MSE). Great degree, once finished the possibilities are pretty much endless! However, I really want to do something in an aerospace field. I could switch my Masters to a degree in Aerospace Engineering, but do you think that I should just stick with the plain MSE, or go for the more in depth Masters? I think sticking with the general MSE might give me more room to "play" once I am completed rather than the aerospace engineering degree, but........... I would eventually love to work for nasa, lockheed martin, or EG&G, some type of top secret projects! Opinions please!!!
In the most general sense: If you do what you like and there's a market for it, you will be successful. If you do what you like and there's no market for it, you will be successful if you can be (or partner with, or anticipate) a marketer or market. If you do what you can be good at (whether you like it or not), you will be successful until the marginal return from additional success becomes less than that which you would get from doing what you like. Different people reach that point at different times, depending on their individual circumstances. -=-=-=-=-= You, in specific, are fortunate, since becoming skilled as an MSE could serve as a great background to becoming well rounded and highly skilled in aeronautical engineering. But taking that path would mean you should anticpate more schooling and more (less meaningful) work for a longer time (albeit only about 2 years, but it could be a long 2 years) before you get to play in the samdbox you prefer (today). If you have the fortitude, the wherewithall, and the determination to take on the additional 2 years, stick with what you've got going. If you simply MUST be entertained immediately (and that's not derrogatory - some of us require more stimulation than others to reach our full potential), then go for what scratches your itch. Given the thought and actions you've already invested and demonstrated, I suspect you won't go wrong either way.
