How Duke MEM Builds Engineering Leaders

Duke Pratt School of Engineering’s flagship Master of Engineering Management program has a track record of propelling students with a variety of backgrounds into engineering leadership roles. At the intersection of technical skill-building and business fundamentals, the program is designed for those who aspire to lead teams and bridge engineering and business and shape the future of their chosen industries.

Whether a student arrives with a background in biomedical engineering, computer science or industrial engineering, the MEM program meets them where they are and equips them with the business judgment, communication skills and execution mindset that needed by today’s engineering leaders.

“A lot of the students who are the best fit for our program come in knowing they want to do something meaningful, impactful and bigger than just one narrow job title, but they are still figuring out exactly what that looks like,” said Mike Schneider, Senior Program Coordinator for the master’s program. “What I share with them is that this program is really built for people who want to grow—as professionals, as leaders and as people.”

Meet a cohort of students and alumni from both on-campus and online degree programs to learn how MEM prepares them for launch into their careers and helps them succeed long after they’ve graduated.

From Engineer to Program Manager

For Ki’Yona McClary ’25, earning a Master of Engineering Management from Duke meant keeping her job while building leadership skills to match her technical expertise.

“When I was deciding between pursuing an MBA or staying closer to my technical background, Duke’s Engineering Management program felt like the perfect balance of both. It gave me the chance to build business and leadership skills without straying too far from tech.”

Before enrolling in Duke’s online program, McClary earned a bachelor’s degree in Information Technology and went on to work at Microsoft with a focus on cloud architecture. Over time, she realized she was most energized by the program management aspects.

“I knew I wanted to step into roles where I could influence and lead programs. Pursuing further education felt like the right moment to build on that foundation, and Duke’s Engineering Management program gave me the perfect bridge to do it.”

After graduation, McClary stayed at Microsoft and moved into a technical program management role.

“The program’s focus on product management, leadership and applied problem-solving aligns directly with the skills I wanted to sharpen,” McClary added. “It prepared me to step into roles where I can drive impact at scale while still leaning on my technical foundation.

When Jessi Lozada Picón ’18 graduated with her Engineering Management master’s and launched a career with Lenovo, she didn’t expect how prepared she felt to lead in an entry-level position.

“One surprising door the degree opened was early leadership responsibility,” Lozada shared. “I’ve been entrusted to be a team lead for global teams, serve as a customer facing audit representative, and own multi-million-dollar cost and quality KPIs. The degree prepared me to lead, communicate and make decisions.”

As the team lead for strategic projects in Lenovo’s ISG Global Supply chain, Lozada manufactures new initiatives, oversees audits and executes a variety of company-wide strategic goals.

“I’m drawn to global manufacturing and technology organizations because of the scale, complexity, and real world impact. The work requires balancing engineering depth with business priorities, customer expectations and operational risk. This is exactly the kind of environment where I enjoy operating and creating measurable value,” she added.

“We have always attracted talented students with strong academic and technical backgrounds, but now we are seeing students come in with a wider range of interests, experiences and goals,” said Schneider. “They are thinking about product management, consulting, operations, entrepreneurship, analytics, leadership and all of the spaces in between. Our students today are increasingly global in their thinking and much more intentional about the kind of impact they want to make.”

Learn from Anywhere

For engineers like McClary who are looking to grow into leadership roles without stepping away from their careers, the online Master of Engineering Management program offers the flexibility to do both. Ranked #4 by U.S. News & World Report, the two-year program offers the same depth of Duke’s on-campus curriculum with three short in-person residencies to create a tight-knit cohort while learning from a distance.

During residences, students can expect to participate in hands-on workshops, hear from expert speakers and enjoy an array of social opportunities with their peers.

“The residencies and the opportunity to engage with my peers and professors were especially valuable,” said McClary. “Now I have a network of people I can reach out to, share ideas with and learn from.”

As an active member of the U.S. Navy, Hailey Dikeman ’25 found a few more characteristics that made the online program a perfect fit.

“I wanted something I could do entirely remotely to fit in with my work schedule, but that still allowed me to build a sense of community with my cohort,” Dikeman said.

The program also gave Dikeman the opportunity to apply military service toward course credits, which allowed her to finish her degree within the compressed timeline she had while serving in the U.S. Navy.

“My professors have always been accommodating when I’ve needed support,” she added.

Conner Jefferson ’25 also found the online learning environment to be supportive while growing his family.

“I wasn’t able to attend the first of the program’s three residencies because my wife and I had our first baby,” Jefferson said. “The staff was very understanding and allowed me to participate virtually by completing alternative assignments. That really showed me how willing they are to accommodate different life circumstances.”

“It was very reassuring and helpful for both me and my family throughout the program,” he added.

Support Every Step of the Way

Whether studying online or on-campus, Duke Engineering offers a breadth of opportunities, including tailored support for graduate students, annual events and industry experience opportunities to help students get the most of out of their program and support their job search.

To start, the school houses its own Graduate Student Programs & Services (GSPS) team that offers comprehensive and holistic support in addition to resources offered by campus partners. Regardless of where they are studying, Engineering Management students can access services from three unique teams: Admissions, Recruitment & Marketing, Graduate Student Affairs and Career & Communication.

“Our goal is not just to help students succeed at Duke,” said Bridget Fletcher, executive director of GSPS, “but to leave here confident, resilient and ready to make an impact wherever they go next.”

A signature event that helps prepare students to make real-world impact is the MEM Executive Challenge, a high-intensity strategy simulation that brings together over 100 students each year. Participants organize into teams and apply what they’ve learned throughout their classes to solve business challenges.

On-campus students can also gain valuable industry experience by pursuing a co-op. The co-op program enables students to take on full-time industry roles during the summer or the academic year while remaining enrolled at Duke.

“Because of the rapid rate of change of technology, all organizations are changing how they
function,” said Pat Gunsch, executive director of Duke’s Master of Engineering Management program. “The fact that we have students who are learning how to adapt and evolve and help their companies adapt and evolve as well is really an appealing prospect for those companies, and it allows our students to have a significant impact.”