Tuesday, November 3, 1987/The Battalion/Page 3 =?: l State and Local =B — ;? Alumni tell engineering majors to check options il prefc >ng mat ition Ik; giving ire of tl ding nger heir rt| and _ elected, mch wii ians iews ounce o from it rity wain wrong ii d leaden )ver diet e can se lay’s elet- i itself n By Mary-Lynne Rice Staff Writer There are diverse career options for engineering graduates, espe cially in the rapidly expanding busi ness world, a panel of four Texas A&M engineering alumni said Mon day night. Three speakers, Michael E. Hum phrey, Class of’78; Thomas R. Lan- ;fits hoJlgford, Class of’81, and Jack N. McC- evervoi rai 7’ d ass of ’59, hold masters of ^ "business administration degrees from Harvard Business School. Wel don D. Kruger, Class of ’53, earned a masters degree in engineering from A&M. Humphrey is vice president in an investment banking company, Lang- Iford is an associate with a manage ment consulting firm and McCrary i come li is managing partner of a part nership aimed at developing tech nology and is president of a medical device corporation. Kruger recently retired after a career with Exxon. The panel told members of Tau Beta Pi, the national engineering honor society, that business offers wide opportunities for the engi neering graduate. J. Wayne Stark, moderator of the 1 lecture and director emeritus of the itorym M emor i a l Student Center, said, ft forTn “ Man y y° u are thinking about or Thave already made up your minds I go to graduate school. Many yet years Photo by Robert W. Rizzo Weldon Kruger, left, Thomas R. Langford, Michael E. Humphrey and Jack N. McCrary ago, the only counseling many of you got was in engineering. “What we want to do is to show you the other options, should you decide to go that way. There’s a lot of opportunities for people with an engineering backround as well as going on to engineering.” Humphrey said, “There are a lot of Aggies who have gone before you, and I suspect, a lot in the future — and it’s a viable alternative — for those of you who have an interest in the business side of things. “With experience, if it Fits into the plans you are developing, it it some thing you should consider.” Kruger said familiarity with busi ness is almost a prerequisite for many careers today. “The business world is becoming more and more compact,” he said. “If businesses are not competing in ternationally now, they will be soon.” McCrary said, “The world is get ting so small. If I were in school now, I would load up on accounting and marketing, and I would try very hard to learn something about inter national business.” The speakers recommended working before beginning graduate education to strengthen a commit ment to a career choice and to deter mine interests. Recognizing personal interests is essential, Humpnrey said, but not al ways as obvious as it may seem. “You might not be able to do that until you actually get out there and try, like I did,” he said. “It might take a little bit of experience to fine- tune and hone those preferences.” McCrary emphasized the impor tance of broadening the base of knowledge when entering graduate school, especially for students with an engineering degree. “I encourage you all, when you’re leaving school, to go someplace you can learn something, because you really don’t know very much,” he said.“Engineering was tremendous, but the breadth of engineering when I went to school — and I really don’t think it has changed that much — is really quite narrow. “I really encourage you to some how, some way, try to broaden your base as you go out and even after you go out in the business world.” Stark included attending a differ ent school for a master’s degree in broadening educational experi ences. “I hope that if you are going to go on to graduate school, that you try to go to places other than A&M,” he said, “to have the prestige of having degrees from two schools.” As experience and education in crease, however, personal commit ments and values should not be sup planted by business or career interests, panel members said. “I think you will Find that people will throw themselves into their job excessively,” Humphrey said. “And you may find out a few years down the road that you may not have held on to all the things you thought were important. I encourage you to retain a sense of longer duty.” Langford also said that there is more to success than academics and the goal of graduation. “When you graduate, it’s not the piece of paper, it’s what’s in your head, what you learned and how well you can articulate that and implement it,” he said. “That’s what’s really going to keep you in good shape.” j* Professor: Pari-mutuel betting would aid local economy By Annette Primm Reporter If the pari-mutuel betting measure is passed, the increased opportunity for Bra zos Valley farms probably would have the greatest effect on the local economy, an A&M veterinary professor said. Ken Campbell, information director for Texas Horse Association, said 7,000 new farm-related jobs would be created statewide by passage of the legislation. And according to Dr. Joerg A. Auer, an A&M associate professor of large animal medicine and surgery, Brazos Valley farms would be affected by the legislation the most. “Where I see the increase in opportunity in this region of Texas is in farm devel opment,” Auer said. “This area (the Brazos Valley) will be one of the major areas where they are going to raise horses.” Pari-mutuel legislation also would legal ize dog racing in Texas. But he said Brazos Valley farms defi nitely would be affected more than local veterinary services. Brazos Valley would stand in the middle of the Texas horse racing triangle, he said. Class 1 tracks would be built in Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio and Houston. Doug McClure, race horse owner and breeder, said these Class 1 tracks are built in heavily populated areas to draw in the finest horses in the world and to bring in larger “handles.” A handle is the total amount of money bet at a track on a given day. Auer said there are many provisions in the racing bill that encourage the breeding of Texas horses. McClure said when a state-bred horse wins a race, the track will pay a Breeder’s Cup Bonus in addition to the purse the horse wins. The bonus goes directly to the breeders of the horse. But Dr. Sturge C. Maurice of the eco nomics department at A&M said legalized horse racing will not increase the demand for Texas horses. “There is definitely a breeding industry in Texas, but it will not really bring that many more horses,” Maurice said. Horse racing is basically a national indus try, he said. Many horses race on a national circuit as well as within states. Good horses travel to states such as New York and California as well as Louisiana, he said. And a lot of people already are involved with horse racing, he said. Maurice doesn’t anticipate a large num ber going into it now. “I am certainly in favor of the state reve nue it would bring, but it would not have much of an impact economically for Bryan- College Station,” he said. Maurice said cities such as Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston will benefit directly be cause people would come into these cities and spend money for hotels, - restaurants and other tourist services. But the twin cities would benefit indi rectly, he said. Education would benefit from the addi tional state revenue, he said. Because A&M would benefit, so would the Brazos Valley. eulogy Mr. i?) is uture M£K KIP OH... GO GIVE SOME BLOOD! 1987AGGIE BLOOD DRIVE Pi November 2 r 3,4 & 5 Commons—10 a.m. to 8 p.m. MSC—10 a.m. to 6 p.m. SBISA—10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Zachry—10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Also on Nov. 6 at AASC — 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. “Sponsored by The Aggie Blooddrive Club” Another service of Student Government, APO, OPA. THE BLOOD CENTER at Wadley Illustration by Kyle E. Jones Wednesday! Special j I Buy a LARGE one topping PIZZA plus a pitcher of soft drink for only 501 University 99 good every Wednesday Northgate FLU STUDY PARTICIPANTS WE WILL TAKE BLOOD SAMPLES Wed., Thurs., Fri., NOVEMBER 4-6, 1987 ($10.00) Come To: Beutel Health Center, Room 03, Basement Nov. 4 or 5,9:00 AM to 4:00 PM Nov. 6,9:00 AM to 12:00 Noon or Vet School, Room 23, Bldg VH; Fri., Nov. 6,1:00 to 3:30 PM Dr. John Quarles College of Medicine 845-3678 Call Battalion Classified 845-2611