Throughout my undergraduate degree, I was unsure of what I wanted to pursue for my career even though it was narrowed down to Biomedical Engineering. Even with a BS in BME, I could choose to go into R&D, sales, consulting, etc. in a medical device industry and so I had to really think about what my future aspirations were. The TEAM program has not only prepared me with a set of diverse skills but also helped me decide on what field I want to follow. After an active job search, these positions are what I have decided to apply to that will aid in my future goals.
My top job choice after graduating from the TEAM program is a project management position in a MedTech company. However, because many companies require years of experience for that kind of position, I may not be able to reach that level until a few years of industry work. Based on my technical background and business acumen from my undergraduate and TEAM courses, I believe any TEAM student has the capabilities to become a successful project manager. I have also been applying to a couple of leadership development programs that I think are great transitions from academia to industry and will definitely prepare anyone to be a defining manager. Those programs are very competitive but a quick and challenging opportunity.
Although I will soon receive my TEAM degree, I still have a strong technical background from my undergraduate program and so I am still interested in R&D positions. The only difference with applying to R&D positions as an undergrad and as a TEAM student is that having a strong business education is extremely beneficial when developing a medical device. The end goal of the product is to sell to the customer and to market the device to reach optimal sales, so having had business training while designing a product is always useful. Also, in the industry, many R&D engineers are eventually promoted to project managers or team managers as well based on their success and leadership abilities.
One major realization that surprised me throughout my college career was my excitement to present and discuss through group projects. That made me also consider the paths of consulting and sales. I always love to talk to, help and build strong connections with people and figured why not bring that to the work place. Specifically, I have been targeting clinical specialist positions that require both a strong technical and presentation background. These positions offer the best of both worlds: they match my educational credentials and provide a chance for me to do what I love most—socializing.
– Stephen Zhang ’14 (MS) 