Rowan Keith Menezes began his academic journey with a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) in Mechanical Engineering in India. It was a promising start; mechanical engineers are highly sought after globally. In the US, mechanical engineering jobs will grow by 9% from 2024 to 2034, much faster than other occupations. At the same time, the demand for mechanical engineers stretches across Canada, from Alberta to New Brunswick and more.
But that wasn’t enough for Menezes. “If I want to go and develop to the next level, I need to get that overall picture,” he explains.
That ambition brought him to Dalhousie University, one of Canada’s top 12 universities, where he joined the MBA program in the Faculty of Management. Now, two years have passed, and Menezes has transformed his outlook. He credits this change to “all the framework, the theory, the knowledge of how companies work, how companies align, how they drive strategy – knowing all these things and being able to apply them to my technical background has been invaluable.”
The Faculty of Management is located in Dalhousie’s Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building. It features modern teaching facilities with a five-storey atrium lit by natural sunlight. Source: Dalhousie University
Shaping leaders across disciplines
Dalhousie’s Faculty of Management’s graduate programs are built around the idea that no two student journeys are the same. Whether you come from engineering or any other discipline, you have the freedom to carve your own path to success as a leader. From foundation courses to community-engaged learning, where you’ll collaborate with external organizations, everything about our graduate programs pushes you further.
The result? A space where you are empowered to engage across sectors and impact change. “It’s not just the curriculum, you’re getting to think – it’s a safe space where you get to think, talk, reflect and everything,” says Menezes.
And if you worry that your background may not suit the management programs, don’t be. What matters most is the ability to grow. The faculty values transferable skills and cross-industry knowledge, because today’s world needs agile thinkers who can see problems through many lenses. That’s why students from all kinds of undergraduate fields are welcomed here. The graduate programs add on layers of business and management acumen to existing skillsets, equipping you for meaningful, innovative careers across the public, private or non-profit sectors.
For Menezes, this diversity was one of the highlights of his experience. “Personally, I like to consider myself an open thinker, so being put into that kind of atmosphere with people from different backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives was just amazing,” he recalls. “We all have our experiences. We all have our biases. But when we put them together, we are truly able to come up with unique solutions for problems.”
At Dalhousie, you get the best of both worlds: the strength of a leading research university and the care of a community that makes you feel at home. Source: Dalhousie University
Shared success all around
Moving to Canada to study is a big decision. Beyond academic worries, there’s always the question of whether you will fit in. Dalhousie understands this, which is why the Faculty of Management makes that transition easier by creating an environment where every student feels supported.
Graduate management programs, for example, are intentionally kept small. Menezes felt the impact of this even before starting his MBA. “From the small cohort size, where I knew I would be able to have those meaningful connections at the same time, to the support I already received via e-mail from staff when applying, I knew that I was going to receive that same support throughout my journey,” he says.
That feeling only grew once he started his studies. Faculty and program staff are extremely accessible and invested in your personal and professional growth. “It’s just that kind of openness and approachability – or when I need career advice, just a month ago, I could just reach out to the MBA program director and say ‘Hey, I want to set up a meeting, I want to know how to tackle a situation and how to negotiate when I graduate,’” Menezes adds.
Looking back, he believes that choosing Dalhousie’s MBA was the right move. “I’ve always been a believer that today’s engineers cannot be limited to just their own domain. You always need to be thinking cross field and moving about.”
The MBA gave him the tools to do exactly that. He credits it to how the program put in place a “fantastic system.” “I feel like I’m a much more capable person all around,” he says. “I can take on more challenging situations. It has given me the vision and the right framework to drive change and efficiency.”
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