A Ph.D. led me to my dream job at Intel. At age 41, I started an MBA because I realised I was still missing key skills.
A Ph.D. grad who's worked at Intel since 2015 says investing in an MBA is helping him address gaps in his skillset in the age of AI.
Mihirkant Upadhyaya, a supply chain program manager at Intel, is a Ph.D. holder with over a decade of experience at the company. At the age of 41, he decided to pursue an MBA to enhance his career skills. He believes that an MBA equips him with abilities that AI cannot, especially in areas such as executive communication and financial analysis.
Upadhyaya's Ph.D. in nanoscale science and engineering gave him a strong foundation in the semiconductor manufacturing technology EUV lithography, which made him feel prepared for his career. However, after five years in research and development at Intel, he realized he was missing certain skills in his current role. To address this, he started a two-year hybrid MBA course in September 2025, balancing his full-time job.
Upadhyaya estimates that he has invested around $100,000 into his post-graduate education so far. He believes that in the age of AI, becoming an expert in a field and staying curious to keep learning can make one irreplaceable. Intel declined to comment on the matter.
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