Thinking about going back to school? Trying to decide on an MBA or MS? No worries, just choose the rest of your career path (and no pressure either, by the way).

When I was preparing for graduate school, I was torn over whether to pursue an MBA or a Masters, when a professor asked me: Do you want to be a CIO or a CTO. This advice stuck with me.

If it’s a CIO you want to be, you may want to consider the MBA. The business skills, strategy and management expertise will server you well. If it is a CTO you want to be, the Masters degree, especially in a Science field, will gain you the respect of the technical staff and establish more technical credibility. Of course, both will truly server you very well in either role.

If you are incredibly smart, or just a glutton for punishment, you can, of course, do both. I’m no glutton though.