What degree was Patrick about to receive?

Patrick Murphy about to receive a master’ s degree in engineering, but he still hadn’t found the kind of job he was looking for. He was considering the possibility of working as a sales representative for an engineering company, so he made an appointment to discuss the idea with Paula Duran’ s friend Ray Palmer, who used to be a sales representative for the Western Mining and Manufacturing Company.
   When Patrick got to Ray’ s office for their appointment, Ray shook hands and greeted him warmly. "So you think you might be interested in sales," said Ray.
   "Yes," replied Patrick. "I thought you’ d be able to tell me what the work’ s really like. "
   Ray thought for a moment, "Well, like any job, it has its good points and its bad points. One of the best things about it, though, is the independence. As a sales representative you can set your own schedule and do things your own way. "
   "That sounds good," commented Patrick.
   "Yeah, it’ s nothing like a desk job. There’ s a lot of variety in the work—getting out, seeing customers. That’ s the positive side. Of course, there are some disadvantages too. Probably the worst thing is that you’ re away from home a lot and you get pretty tired of airports, planes and hotels. "
   Patrick nodded thoughtfully. "I see what you mean. Also, I think there’ d be a lot of pressure involved. "
   "There is," said Ray. "If you do well one month, they expect you to do better the next. It never stops. "...