Business at Smith?

Momwaitingfornew
Tue, 14 Apr 2009 07:29:58 +0000

It all depends on what kind of education you want. Economics is a academic, liberal arts subject while business is pre-professional. A liberal arts education focuses on critical thinking skills, breadth of knowledge, and, of course, depth in one area while a pre-professional education concentrates on skills that apply directly to employment. That doesn’t mean that you will get a job with one and not the other. In fact, schools such as Dartmouth and Princeton don’t offer undergraduate business, yet their alumni are some of the most influential in the business world.

I’m a great proponent of a liberal arts-style education because I believe that graduates have a more interesting knowledge base to draw from. Still, that kind of education isn’t right for everyone. Some people, even at 18, are passionate about business, and these are the ones that should be undergraduate business majors. But don’t major in business/go to the school that offers it if you’re merely trying to prepare yourself to get a job. I know two recent college graduates, one who majored in economics and the other who majored in business, neither of whom has found a job. You just can’t predict. For undergraduate, you want to be happy and challenged. You might also want to look at peer ratings for your undergraduate choices since you will probably want to eventually get an MBA. You’ll want to get into the best grad school possible, and your undergraduate institution can have a huge impact on admission – provided you do well.