Students who can't decide between a career in business or science have another lucrative option.
With the UA's professional master's degree program, which began in fall of 2000, students can combine both science and business-based studies into one degree.
There will be an informational meeting concerning the degree program today at 5:15 p.m. in the Physics and Atmospheric Science building, Room 218.
"It's all about the connection between science, business and industry and how they collaborate," said Alaina Levine, the director of special projects in the College of Science. "This
really makes a student unbelievably marketable."
The degree takes just as long to complete as others, usually taking the student two years. The student can focus on one of three science disciplines: applied and industrial physics, applied biosciences or mathematics. After the core science classes are taken, students take business classes, such as the foundations of business for scientists and project management.
"We created these two business classes just for this program," Levine said. "The management skills really give you a foot in the door."
Many students in the program feel that the combination of business and science gives them a step up in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries.
"The program does a really good job of marrying science and business for people with a science background," said third semester graduate student Megan Lehrkamp. "I wanted to stay in the science discipline, but I also wanted to get some business sense in hand."
A colloquia class is also offered in order to expose students to the various careers in the science industries.
CEOs, managers and directors of top companies like Honeywell and Motorola visit the classroom and give inside tips on the industry. One of the last parts of the program is an internship. A large number of students are hired by the companies that they interned for. The average starting salary of
graduates in this program is $53,000.
"A lot of these jobs are in Tucson and that is really a remarkable salary for this area, especially when just starting out," Levine said. The program will accept about 60 students, 20 from each science discipline.
"I had an undergraduate degree in science, but didn't want to just do research after graduation," said Pascal Herzer, who works at the UA Office of Technology Transfer. "With this degree, I learned about business in addition to everything else and it made me and others a lot more marketable to biotech companies."
The small size of the program allows Levine to help gradating students prepare resumes and contact employers.
"This is a revolution or even an evolution in the way that students are taught science," Levine said. "Students bring valuable skills to the companies, and the students also get skills that will advance them further and faster."