Political science vs communications major

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Communications is viewed as a much fluffier degree. Less critical thinking, making an argument and supporting it, etc.

Right. Probably the only one worse, in terms of indicating lower academic ability, is advertising. Unless you want to be taught how to be dishonest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What school?
That's an important information.

Change to econ and minor in data science

CUNY Baruch. She is not a math or science person so data science is a no go. Would economics open up more jobs compared to a poly sci or communications degree

Economics at the college level is very math heavy.

To me, poli sci signals better critical thinking skills than communication. But I don't think the available jobs will be that different. Which classes sound more interesting to her? Getting good grades and making strong connections with professors matters more than the major, so I'd choose based on which is more interesting to her.

Longtime comms professional, and I agree. I would never advise someone to major in comms. Writing, research, analytical skills are foundational, which she will develop in poli sci. Tell her to write for the student newspaper and get an internship at a firm that does political or issues comms.

What is the comm major is more interesting to her? She is getting bored of the readings in her poly sci classes and the theoretical approach that she feels is not preparing her for a career outside academia

College isn't vocational training. The point of the theoretical approach in poli sci isn't to prepare her for a particular career, it's to teach her how to read, think, and write critically.

I’m the comms PP, and this is it.

[Anonymous]

Can she keep poly sci and add communications? Either double major or as a minor? Might make her a little more marketable. She really needs to be talking with the career office and hopping on internships for the summer. And might need to expand outside the NYC market.

[Anonymous]

If she wants to do business/corporate, big media, tech comms, NYC is the place to be. If government/policy/political comms, then Washington. Internships are critical.

[Anonymous]

PP here. More so than majoring in comms, which is not considered a rigorous major.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Major does not matter...internships do. If she does not have one lined up for summer...tell her to get on it.

Major matters getting the right internship

Not true. My child was an English major, interned on Wall Street after junior year, and now is a millionaire at age 30. HYP Grad. (They wrote a " cold call" email to an alum who help them line up an internship).

[Anonymous]

The major is not completely irrelevant but as long as the subject matter is in the ballpark, the specific major is not important.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The major is not completely irrelevant but as long as the subject matter is in the ballpark, the specific major is not important.

OP here. So should she switch to comm if she really feels like it’s more interesting?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The major is not completely irrelevant but as long as the subject matter is in the ballpark, the specific major is not important.

OP here. So should she switch to comm if she really feels like it’s more interesting?

If she finds poli sci so uninteresting that she won't/can't do well, then yes, she should switch. But are there no majors that grapple with ideas that she could switch to? What ideas/concepts/questions about the world does she find interesting?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DD is currently a college sophomore. She is a poly sci major right now and enjoys it. However, she is now unsure abt going to law school. I know a poly sci degree doesn’t mean you have to go to law school after but she is unsure if it is the right degree for her. She is not interested in coming back to dc(she goes to school in nyc). She is inspired by the wealth and plentiful of high paying jobs she sees in nyc in industries like finance marketing advertising etc but doesn’t know how to break into those fields. UN might be a possibility but does not want to work as a gov employee or do political campaigning where there is little compensation for lots of hard work. There is a major at her school in her current arts and sciences discipline called business communications. It would overlap with lots of her classes she already took and doesn’t require the math heavy classes that the business school does(she is no math student). Any advice on switching major and future career paths?

If she wants one of those high paying finance jobs, she needs to go into finance/MBA.

Working in Comms at a business can pay well but isn't going to generate the kind of wealth she seems to envision to live in NYC, unless she bootstraps for a start up and gets lucky in an IPO.

Same thing with marketing or advertising. Being a young 20-something in those fields in NYC means she is likely living with 3 other people in a small apartment in Brooklyn - not like "friends" or "seinfeld" or some other NY based TV show.

And getting a UN job right out of college is highly unlikely.

Usually you need to become a subject matter expert in an area which for the UN requires living abroad and being in country or working deeply in food, or development or health or some other area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Major does not matter...internships do. If she does not have one lined up for summer...tell her to get on it.

Major matters getting the right internship

Not true. My child was an English major, interned on Wall Street after junior year, and now is a millionaire at age 30. HYP Grad. (They wrote a " cold call" email to an alum who help them line up an internship).

We don't care about anecdote.

Ture. HYP English major outcome is not impressive at all by an official source

https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?166027-Harvard-University&fos_code=2301&fos_credential=3

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD is currently a college sophomore. She is a poly sci major right now and enjoys it. However, she is now unsure abt going to law school. I know a poly sci degree doesn’t mean you have to go to law school after but she is unsure if it is the right degree for her. She is not interested in coming back to dc(she goes to school in nyc). She is inspired by the wealth and plentiful of high paying jobs she sees in nyc in industries like finance marketing advertising etc but doesn’t know how to break into those fields. UN might be a possibility but does not want to work as a gov employee or do political campaigning where there is little compensation for lots of hard work. There is a major at her school in her current arts and sciences discipline called business communications. It would overlap with lots of her classes she already took and doesn’t require the math heavy classes that the business school does(she is no math student). Any advice on switching major and future career paths?

If she wants one of those high paying finance jobs, she needs to go into finance/MBA.

Working in Comms at a business can pay well but isn't going to generate the kind of wealth she seems to envision to live in NYC, unless she bootstraps for a start up and gets lucky in an IPO.

Same thing with marketing or advertising. Being a young 20-something in those fields in NYC means she is likely living with 3 other people in a small apartment in Brooklyn - not like "friends" or "seinfeld" or some other NY based TV show.

And getting a UN job right out of college is highly unlikely.

Usually you need to become a subject matter expert in an area which for the UN requires living abroad and being in country or working deeply in food, or development or health or some other area.[/quote

Op here. Would u recommend an mba after undergrad if she intends to work high up in marketing communications etc

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD is currently a college sophomore. She is a poly sci major right now and enjoys it. However, she is now unsure abt going to law school. I know a poly sci degree doesn’t mean you have to go to law school after but she is unsure if it is the right degree for her. She is not interested in coming back to dc(she goes to school in nyc). She is inspired by the wealth and plentiful of high paying jobs she sees in nyc in industries like finance marketing advertising etc but doesn’t know how to break into those fields. UN might be a possibility but does not want to work as a gov employee or do political campaigning where there is little compensation for lots of hard work. There is a major at her school in her current arts and sciences discipline called business communications. It would overlap with lots of her classes she already took and doesn’t require the math heavy classes that the business school does(she is no math student). Any advice on switching major and future career paths?

If she wants one of those high paying finance jobs, she needs to go into finance/MBA.

Working in Comms at a business can pay well but isn't going to generate the kind of wealth she seems to envision to live in NYC, unless she bootstraps for a start up and gets lucky in an IPO.

Same thing with marketing or advertising. Being a young 20-something in those fields in NYC means she is likely living with 3 other people in a small apartment in Brooklyn - not like "friends" or "seinfeld" or some other NY based TV show.

And getting a UN job right out of college is highly unlikely.

Usually you need to become a subject matter expert in an area which for the UN requires living abroad and being in country or working deeply in food, or development or health or some other area.

Op here. Would u recommend an mba after undergrad if she intends to work high up in marketing communications etc

She should get work experience first. Get a job. Spend that time figuring out what she likes, what paths she might want to follow. Identify an appropriate graduate degree as part of that exploration.

She needs to get into the professional world and do some work before plotting her ascent to the top of the food chain. She doesn’t even know if marketing/communications is what she wants to do, or if she’s good at it. And that’s OK! That’s why internships and early career jobs exist, to figure that stuff out. I’m a communications executive, and I spent the first ten years of my career focused exclusively in editorial. Then an opportunity to expand into digital presented itself, and I took it. Then corporate communications. Etc. I built my skills and built a career.

[Anonymous]

I think a double major would be good especially since many of these classes could possibly overlap in credits

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What school?
That's an important information.

Change to econ and minor in data science

CUNY Baruch. She is not a math or science person so data science is a no go. Would economics open up more jobs compared to a poly sci or communications degree

Economics is a great major, but requires math and its not an easy major.

So then not much hope for good salary in NYC