Technical Management
What you'll do in college
Technical Management programs (sometimes called Engineering Management, Industrial Technology Management, or Engineering & Management) bridge the gap between technical depth and business leadership. Coursework mixes engineering fundamentals—statistics, operations research, systems design, manufacturing processes, supply chain—with management topics like finance, organizational behavior, project management, and economics.
Projects often involve real industry partners, and most programs build in an internship or co-op. Expect to leave knowing how to read a balance sheet AND a CAD drawing.
What you'll do after college
Grads become project managers, operations managers, product managers, supply chain analysts, technical consultants, and engineering team leads at manufacturing, energy, aerospace, defense, and tech companies. Many use the degree as a launchpad to an MBA, MEM, or a startup leadership role.
Pay is competitive—usually a step above generic business administration—because the technical fluency commands a premium. Career arcs tend to follow a familiar shape: technical IC for a few years, then move into management.
Famous graduates
- Tim Cook — CEO of Apple; B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Auburn University
- Sundar Pichai — CEO of Alphabet/Google; B.Tech in Metallurgical Engineering from IIT Kharagpur, M.S. from Stanford
Selectivity vs. earnings
By acceptance rate
By SAT median
Majors in this category
| Major | Colleges | Degrees ▼ | Male/Female | Intl | 5yr Earn |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technical Management | 67 | 1,373 | 79% / 21% | 6% | $88,183 |
| Engineering Management | 47 | 1,081 | 78% / 22% | 7% | $87,929 |
| Engineering and Management | 1 | 75 | 79% / 21% | 0% | $104,059 |
| Supply Chain and Sales Engineering Technology | 1 | 61 | 90% / 10% | 11% | $96,572 |
| Transportation Management | 4 | 37 | 62% / 38% | 5% | $63,242 |
| Applied Engineering | 1 | 32 | 97% / 3% | 0% | |
| Management Engineering | 1 | 22 | 59% / 41% | 14% | |
| Applied Engineering Technology | 4 | 18 | 89% / 11% | 6% | |
| Science/Technology Management | 4 | 15 | 87% / 13% | 0% | $75,117 |
| Industrial Technology Management | 1 | 13 | 85% / 15% | 0% | $64,452 |
| Applied Engineering Management | 1 | 9 | 78% / 22% | 0% | |
| Telecommunications Management | 4 | 7 | 43% / 57% | 0% | |
| Petroleum Land Management | 1 | 3 | 67% / 33% | 0% |