Which is better ( according to VT students ), Business or Chemical Engineering?

Ruby92 · 10-22-2009, 03:54 AM

I'm applying to VT after I get my Oct SAT score..... I want to major in either Business ( my 1st choice) or Chemical Engineering.... I've been told that VT offers strong courses in CE rather than Business. Is that true???

I'm only applying to VT and UT Austin. VT is my backup plan, however.. I thought of other Unis such as Northeastern. But I just didn't see myself there X\..

yeah before I forget, I'm an international student X).....

chuy · 10-22-2009, 07:00 AM

If you don't want to do engineering don't do engineering, because you'll end up failing out and in business anyway. Our engineering school is very good though, and you'll have much better opportunities with a ChemE undergrad degree than you would with a business degree, all other things being equal.

Ruby92 · 10-22-2009, 07:39 AM

I see, so does that have anything to do with rankings or is it just the program quality? because, I believe, rankings are based on many things other than the program quality and faculty... I want to major in Chemical Engineering because I like both Math and Chemistry, but I prefer Business because many Saudi students ( females and males ) nowadays major in Chemical Engineering which means less job opportunities as time goes on....

ymon · 10-22-2009, 04:13 PM

The engineering programs at Virginia Tech are often considered to be top-notch, including chemical engineering. The other programs, while not bad, generally don't compare to the quality of the engineering program. If you like chemical engineering, then you should really consider majoring in it. Besides, you get to spend lots of time with Trivedi.

The problem with an undergraduate business degree is that employers don't want to put anyone in a management position without experience, so a business degree doesn't necessarily increase your potential job opportunities any more than any other degree. There's also a surplus of students graduating with business degrees, while chemical engineers are going to be in demand for the foreseeable future (probably due in part to the difficulty of the major).

You could always consider majoring in Chemical Engineering and taking a minor in business (or economics).

Ruby92 · 10-22-2009, 04:39 PM

After a LONG dessication with my parents, I've decided to choose Chemical Engineering to be my VT #1 major... A minor in business in addition to that would be a great compromise!!!!!! =D

Is it hard to get accepted?????????????????????

thanks for your replies ..

chuy · 10-22-2009, 05:27 PM

It's pretty hard. Think long and hard about minoring in Business. You're going to have a lot of coursework anyway and an engineering degree qualifies you for any business related job anyway. Taking a couple courses as electives would be a good idea, but a full on minor is pointless.

And you seem to be a little worried about the fact that you're Saudi affecting your job seeking abilities. My advice to you would be, if you're worried about fitting in and everything, join a lot of clubs with diverse memberships (as in, not just Saudi clubs) and be very active. It's good advice for anybody really.

ymon · 10-23-2009, 07:51 PM

Yeah, the business minor at Virginia Tech requires a lot of extra courses. You're going to have to take at least eleven courses above and beyond what you would normally have to take, which is one or two extra courses every semester. That's why I recommended the economics minor as well. It only requires six courses (and you can actually get that down to four with AP credit) which is much more manageable, and it's just as marketable as a business minor, perhaps even more so.

Of course, chemical engineering is difficult enough as it is. Make sure you're confident in your abilities before you start adding courses to an already-stuffed curriculum.

chuy · 10-24-2009, 02:03 AM

Paired with an engineering major I have to think that an economics minor is more likely to help you than a business minor, and 11 extra courses is a huge deal when you're already bumping up against the credit limit in a lot of semesters.

Ruby92 · 10-24-2009, 06:40 AM

Thank you so much, chuy and ymon!! I appreciate your piece of advice..

I'd rather die than take 11 courses in addition to what I study. -_-

*This college thing is really ****ing me off!! I change my mind every hour it's just soo annoying!!!*

college332 · 10-24-2009, 01:51 PM

i was there last year (and this year up until about a month ago). I was changing my mind atleast once a week, but now i think i've finally settled down. Don't spend too much time thinking about it, learn what your options are, but if you're like me you will keep changing your mind regardless of how much you learn about the different engineering (and non eng) majors. If you come in as engineering major you have a full semester to ask questions to upperclassmen / other people you meet around campus which will help you (atleast it did in my case) way more than knowing the different majors' checksheets backwards and forwards.

college332 · 10-24-2009, 01:55 PM

also here's the site where you can find all the checksheets for the different majors:
Graduation Requirements (Checksheets) | University Registrar | Virginia Tech

here's the checksheet for business minor:
http://www.undergrad.pamplin.vt.edu/...eets/minor.pdf

i was also thinking about a minor in business, but, like chuy said, once you look at the classes you have to take as a eng major and the classes you will have to take on top of them for the minor you would have to be very dedicated to finish the two in 4 years.

chuy · 10-26-2009, 10:31 AM

Also you'd probably have to take summer classes which means fewer/no internships.