Engineering vs. Math -- What to major in?

pseudoghost
Wed, 30 Mar 2011 21:48:34 +0000

Here’s the lowdown on math versus engineering:

Applied math, more general, wider range of opportunities. You will almost certainly have to go to graduate school for a MS in an engineering field or applied math to get an entry level job that you could obtain with an engineering degree with a BS. I’ve had quite a few friends graduate with applied math degrees, and they have had a hard time getting good paying jobs (relative to my engineer friends).

Engineering - Still pretty broad. A graduate degree in Engineering is a waste of time unless you want to teach.

Pure math - Get a PhD or don’t do it at all. If you can’t land a job in academia (it’s almost impossible these days) then you’ll be starting out slightly better than someone who’s just coming out of college. It’s a huge opportunity cost. I would not recommend a pure science to anyone at this point in time.