Thoughts on Econ major vs Business if offered

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are the 25 schools with undergrad business degrees are MIT, Penn, Cornell, Cal, Rice, Notre Dame, Carnegie Mellon, Michigan, UVA, and WashU? Am I missing any school?

Yes and my DS is headed to one of the above. He wants to major in a social science that he likes but also wants to pick up a double major in Econ or the business school (maybe Finance specialization), which could clearly be helpful for a career in business. So the debate is, should he double major in Econ or something within the business school? My inclination is to take advantage of the strong business school.

Definitely utilize a strong business program. Also - a master's/5th year isn't necessarily required for Accoutning. To sit for the CPA, you need 150 credits from ANYWHERE, as long as it meets requirements. My oldest works at one of the big 4 and completed the 15 additional credits needed through the firm. Graduated with more than the minimum required, so only had the gap of 15 credits. They offer the program to interns, to be completed before they start full time employment with them. She graduated in May, already at 150 credits, studied for CPA over the summer, took 2 parts and started employment in Sept.

How does she like her job so far?

She absolutely loves it so far. Has made good connections, participating in the social stuff. Busy season starts soon, so ask me again in 6 months!

Good for her! 👍

[Anonymous]

Econ is IMO a much stronger major than Business.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At UT-Austin, the premier major is business in McCombs, and the major that people get who can't get in McCombs is Econ. Recruiting is much much stronger at McCombs for jobs. No one picks Econ because they think it makes them look stronger - and many have trouble finding jobs.

Maybe because Econ is in COLA, a massive program that accepts anyone in the top 6% of their high school class and has the worst students at the colleges? How you didn’t mention this is beyond me.

I said mc combs was much stronger. I Econ is a selective major within cola (along with psych) so it is not true that just being in cola makes it weak.
What is your point anyway?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I double majored in Econ and Accounting.
If you are not at a T25, then do Business (preferably finance or accounting). I do not think Econ majors get too much respect if you are not at a top school.
Totally opposite - you can go to University of (insert state), major in accounting, pass the CPA exam and get a job that pays well. If you don't want to be an accountant, it is trickier and have to find a school that has a good business program in what you want to do plus be at top of class.

Right now, my son is planning on getting an economic degree. Basically, he doesn't know what he wants to do after college. However, he is interested in accounting. So, he may end up majoring in accounting or with an economics major and an accounting minor. The problem with this path is he will need to get into a Masters in Accounting program in order to sit for the CPA exam. This will likely require more classes than required for a minor.

If he has never taken an Accounting course, then best to wait and see. Most people have an immediate reaction to accounting, for good or bad. If he likes it, he will understand the need for 5th year and it won't be a big deal.

He has taken one accounting course in high school and will take another one second semester (accounting 2). He has been told it is very similar to a college level accounting class. Hopefully this helps him decide on which major he wants. His college allows you to ask switch majors before starting. No guarantee but there is the option. We will explore that if he really likes his second accounting course.

Part of the reason he is considering accounting is that he interested in federal law enforcement, and he thinks that an accounting degree will be helpful.

[Anonymous]

Econ major at Mich years ago and the had to really muscle in for interview slots at Ross- Bschool got first dibs. Econ is more interesting to me but Bschool is more practical and probably would have saved me the cost of MBA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Econ major at Mich years ago and the had to really muscle in for interview slots at Ross- Bschool got first dibs. Econ is more interesting to me but Bschool is more practical and probably would have saved me the cost of MBA.

OP- This is exactly my thought. If there is a prominent undergraduate business program, the Econ majors in liberal arts school get sort of frozen out when the recruiters come.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Econ major at Mich years ago and the had to really muscle in for interview slots at Ross- Bschool got first dibs. Econ is more interesting to me but Bschool is more practical and probably would have saved me the cost of MBA.

OP- This is exactly my thought. If there is a prominent undergraduate business program, the Econ majors in liberal arts school get sort of frozen out when the recruiters come.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Econ major at Mich years ago and the had to really muscle in for interview slots at Ross- Bschool got first dibs. Econ is more interesting to me but Bschool is more practical and probably would have saved me the cost of MBA.

+1

[Anonymous]

I'm surpised everyone is suggesting physics vs math. Everyone I know (4 people admittedly) who has degrees in physics (ranging from PhD to BS) somewhat regrets choosing it. I think math is a better path because it requires less training from employers to make the resource productive.