{"id":11714,"date":"2026-08-13T14:35:35","date_gmt":"2026-08-13T14:35:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/online\/?p=11714"},"modified":"2026-08-13T16:35:43","modified_gmt":"2026-08-13T16:35:43","slug":"online-masters-in-industrial-engineering-student-balances-graduate-school-with-work-at-lilly-and-assignment-abroad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/online\/online-masters-in-industrial-engineering-student-balances-graduate-school-with-work-at-lilly-and-assignment-abroad\/","title":{"rendered":"Online master\u2019s in industrial engineering student balances graduate school with work at Lilly and assignment abroad"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Before Ayrton Birnbaum was a student in Purdue University\u2019s online Master of Science in Industrial Engineering<\/a> program, he was a runner. In Birnbaum’s words, running is an exercise in delayed gratification. It requires consistency and the determination to keep starting, even if you don\u2019t want to.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\n \"Ayrton\n <\/figure>\n
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It may be hard to continue, but, once you start, you\u2019ll never regret starting<\/p>\n\n <\/blockquote>\n

Ayrton Birnbaum<\/p>\n

Pictured with his fianc\u00e9e, Sofia, who is also a Purdue graduate<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The same can be said about graduate school. Earning a graduate degree in engineering from Purdue University is hard work \u2014 hard enough that most people never start it. But Birnbaum, like many Purdue graduate students, believed he could rise to the challenge, and that belief has kept him motivated, even as he balances online coursework with a full-time job at Eli Lilly and Company as a senior scientist in technical services and manufacturing science.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Birnbaum is a native Hoosier who has never shied away from hard work. He grew up in Indianapolis and Zionsville, and then, after high school, he went to Purdue to major in chemical engineering. Purdue\u2019s reputation as a rigorous, challenging engineering school drew him to the university.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was always wanted to go to Purdue when I was growing up,\u201d Birnbaum said. \u201cIt\u2019s the best engineering school out there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Explore Purdue’s top-ranked online master’s in industrial engineering<\/strong><\/p>\n

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By the time Birnbaum graduated with his bachelor\u2019s, he felt like he had learned enough to hit the ground running. He worked a couple jobs in manufacturing and then was hired on to Lilly in the beginning of 2025. He was excited about the career opportunities that Lilly could offer him, and he was becoming increasingly interested in the prospect of going back to school for a master\u2019s degree \u2014 an endeavor he knew the company would support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLilly is great about continued education,\u201d Birnbaum said. \u201cManagement supports it all the way. There\u2019s also a lot of really educated people at Lilly, a lot of people with PhDs and master\u2019s degrees in leadership, and a lot of people who went to Purdue.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, Birnbaum floated the idea of going back to school to his manager during his first year as a Lilly employee. His manager wholeheartedly supported it, and he started looking into online master\u2019s degrees in engineering. He wanted something flexible so he could continue building his career, but he also wanted a prestigious, respected program that would challenge him. He knew Purdue could deliver on both fronts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe industrial engineering program had coursework that really applied to manufacturing, and I knew the knowledge would be practical in my career,\u201d Birnbaum said. \u201cI already have all the fundamentals, but this will help me deepen my understanding further.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Around the same time that Birnbaum started his master\u2019s degree, he learned Lilly was sending him to Ireland for several months to support startup activities there. He took the new opportunity in stride, moving abroad and adjusting to his new coursework by staying consistent and organized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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During his trip to Ireland, Birnbaum got to experience new vistas and running trails. The most special moments included his fianc\u00e9e, Sofia.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Birnbaum and Sofia in Ireland. Sofia graduated from Purdue University in 2022.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI take one class at a time, and that helps keep me on track,\u201d Birnbaum said. \u201cIt encourages me to learn outside of work, and it helps me with work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though he\u2019s still in the early stages of his program, his courses have already exposed him to new ideas and processes he can use at work. In the long-term, he hopes to use some of those new concepts to become competitive for a leadership position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI just took a technical project management course, and the tools I\u2019ve learned from the course have helped me stay organized,\u201d Birnbaum said. \u201cWe\u2019re learning about tools that I wouldn\u2019t necessarily get exposed to unless I was in a leadership role, so it feels like a leg up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Birnbaum, one of the biggest benefits of Purdue\u2019s industrial engineering master\u2019s program is that it combines technical expertise in engineering with management and business courses. \u201cIt\u2019s a good alternative to something like an MBA (Master of Business Administration),\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By pairing advanced technical expertise in engineering with business acumen, Birnbaum hopes he can keep his options open. At Lilly, he can pursue higher-level engineering roles or management positions. His master\u2019s and the new skills he\u2019s built are likely to increase his chances of qualifying for both kinds of opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m building a really strong technical foundation at work and in the program,\u201d Birnbaum said. \u201cI can always dive deep into something I might want to specialize in in the future. There are so many courses available [in the online program]. It gives me options.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For now, Birnbaum is planning out the rest of his classes and enjoying his time in Ireland before coming back to Indianapolis. His experience abroad has reaffirmed for him why he loves what he does \u2014 and it\u2019s given him access to new running trails, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI love running here,\u201d Birnbaum said. \u201cIt\u2019s been an amazing opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more about Purdue\u2019s online Master of Science in Industrial Engineering at the program\u2019s website.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Before Ayrton Birnbaum was a student in Purdue University\u2019s online Master of Science in Industrial Engineering program, he was a runner. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":11717,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[71],"tags":[],"area-of-study":[11],"person":[74],"class_list":["post-11714","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-student-success","area-of-study-engineering","person-students"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t