Partners and spouses provide critical support for engineers who decide to go back to school to pursue an advanced degree while maintaining a full-time work schedule.
But what happens when both decide to go for it?
In the last few years, The University of Texas at Austin Texas Engineering Executive Education (TxEEE) has had several couples graduate from the engineering management and software engineering weekend master’s degree programs. The Cockrell School of Engineering offers three master’s degrees and two graduate certificates, either on weekends or online, in formats that allow students to maintain their full-time jobs.
These couples learned how to balance work and study while maintaining their bond. They’ve navigated challenging coursework amid changing work environments and a global pandemic. We spoke to several of these couples, and they shared their stories and strategies for striking the right balance.
Patrick Guha and Robin Franklin Guha
Patrick and Robin live in the Austin area and have been married for three years. Robin was the first to return to school, pursuing a master’s in software engineering at the Cockrell School, while working for Meta as a security engineer. Robin graduated in 2020.
“The software engineering program introduced me to data science and machine learning. I had no experience with those concepts during my undergraduate degree,” said Robin. “I was inspired to pursue the degree to further my career. In my current role, I develop and deploy machine learning models to scale security.”
Patrick saw Robin balance work and studies as part of the program. And that inspired him to enter the Cockrell School’s master’s program in engineering management. Graduating this summer, Patrick is a senior solutions architect at Amazon Web Services, helping customers implement cloud computing technologies.
Patrick’s experience has expanded his horizons in skills and opportunities. “The master’s degree has given me a deeper insight into the orchestration of economics of completing cloud computing/engineering projects. It also has illuminated other paths in my field, such as product management.”
Why UT: “I was interested in getting a master's, but I needed a program with specific times to accommodate my work schedule,” said Robin. “I attended UT Austin for my undergraduate degree and heard about the software engineering master’s program while completing my bachelor’s degree. When I looked further, many of my favorite undergraduate professors were teaching in the program. It was a natural fit to pursue the software engineering master’s degree.”
Patrick wanted to explore career opportunities as a solutions architect, a position that blends engineering with business. “The engineering management program stuck out to me as a great opportunity to deepen my business knowledge with a familiar and useful engineering background,” said Patrick. “I was admitted to an online program at Texas A&M University and the UT engineering management program. I selected the Cockrell School option – the flexible hybrid design best fit what I was looking for.”
The Balance: “While working through my degree, I was fortunate to have a supportive manager who let me take time when needed to attend virtual office hours,” said Robin. “With my manager’s support, I applied things I learned in my classes to my work environment which helped me understand the material better and explore new areas of security.”
Robin designated specific evenings for a particular class. “If I finished the homework or projects early, I rewarded myself with taking the evening off. And on weekends when I had class, I would always take off the immediate Sunday to reset and digest the material after being in class all weekend.”
Patrick also benefitted from a supportive work environment. “I worked with my manager and colleagues at Amazon to craft my schedule so going to class in person one weekend per month did not disrupt my work,” he said. “I also set boundaries, so I was not working after hours. This allowed me to focus on studying and completing homework during the week.”
Patrick added, “A few Saturdays and Sundays were devoted to completing coursework, but overall, the program didn’t impact our home routine too drastically. Since we both went through similar programs, we understood the time commitment required.”
Christina and Denny Gosting
Christina and Denny Gosting are based in the Dallas area and both work at Lockheed Martin. Christina is a software engineering manager, who received her engineering management degree from UT in May 2022. Denny is a senior software engineer, working as a software architect. He finished his software engineering degree in summer 2022.
“I manage a high-performing, fast-paced team of software developers. My master’s degree helped me develop techniques for good management practices. I think back on several of the courses and the material and how it has reinforced many aspects of my role at work,” said Christina.
“With my degree in software, I was able to improve and expand development techniques and get exposure to different methodologies. As a software architect, having this technical background has allowed me to design cleaner code,” said Denny.
Why UT: “I was debating between an MBA and a master’s in engineering,” said Christina. “When I saw that UT had a program that blended both, featuring such highly rated engineering and business programs, it seemed perfect for me.”
Denny added, “I appreciated that UT had a top-ranked program and allowed me to experience the classroom setting, while limiting the onsite needs to once a month. We both knew we wanted to go for our masters simultaneously, and coincidentally, both selected our UT programs independently.”
The Balance: Christina and Denny benefitted from a company policy allowing them to work four-day weeks, 10 hours per day. “We tried to be intentional about getting our schoolwork done primarily on Fridays. That way we could bleed into the weekends if necessary or enjoy our weekends. It also helped when we both did our schoolwork simultaneously, so we didn’t miss out on spending time together,” Denny said.
Regarding time management, “we were both aware of how much time we needed to dedicate to schoolwork, which limited our social events. And we were attending during COVID, so our social calendar looked a lot different than it does today,” added Christina.
Zhenxing Xi and Wei Yan
Zhenxing Xi and Wei Yan live in Houston with their three young children. Both Zhenxing and Wei were inspired to pursue the Cockrell School’s engineering management degree and started a year apart. A 2023 graduate, Zhenxing is a principal research analyst at S&P Global, and Wei, who just graduated this summer, is an analytical chemist at Sinopec Tech Houston.
“The engineering management program has equipped me with engineering, business, and management knowledge,” said Zhenxing. “Those skills and learning have been a good fit for my current market analysis job.”
Wei added, with agreement from Zhenxing, “This program equipped me with business and management knowledge and a mindset as a project manager. With expanded knowledge in risk decision, project management, operation management and marketing, I look at the current projects I am working on and I can see the full picture of each project and better manage it in different stages. I am more confident and well equipped to manage projects as I progress in my career.”
Why UT: “My previous employer with a chemical plant in Houston encouraged continuing education in Six Sigma, lean manufacturing and business. For me, a master’s in engineering management from UT Austin was my top choice, given the school’s reputation,” said Zhenxing.
Wei was inspired by Zhenxing decision. “I was seeking a good opportunity to recharge myself after working 15 years in industry. Zhenxing came home and shared lots of interesting topics from his courses. I became very curious and decided to attend a marketing class to check it out. I realized that the engineering management program would be good for me as well,” said Wei. “My youngest turned five in 2022 and Zhenxing had made good progress in the program. I decided it was the best time to do it.”
Zhenxing and Wei reviewed MBA programs from across Texas as alternatives to the UT engineering management degree, but both decided that the Cockrell School hybrid program offered the optimal courses to equip engineering leaders.
The Balance: Wei shares, “It was very challenging to balance work, studies and three young kids. Zhenxing entered the program during COVID-19 and usually spent one to two hours studying every night after the kids fell asleep. Fortunately, I am an early-morning person, so I studied before the kids woke up. We are both quick learners and very focused. We have been focusing on efficient study habits and supporting each other, which has been beneficial.”
“We traded off a lot. One would study while the other watched the kids. They knew we were doing homework just like they did in school and our hard work was a good example for them,” added Zhenxing. “There were some disagreements, but we worked through it. We both enjoyed this fantastic and unique journey. We consider the period in the master’s program as a golden time in our lives.”
