<p>I will put in a plug for a BS Math - if you have people skills even better. Landed my first job as a Programmer based on the analytical skills a math background offers and learned most of the coding skills on the job. Spent a few years on the technical side, then moved to the business side where analytical skills were very helpful. Job titles: Programmer, Sales Engineer, VP Sales, Sr Equity Analyst, Investment Banker, Venture Capitalist, CEO. Math foundation served me well in every position and allowed me to switch between the technology and finance industries.</p>
<p>XTXN2CAL–I will second that.</p>
<p>My H says his company will hire Math majors over CS majors. Computer skills can be taught to a person who already knows how to think analytically, which a Math major proves. But a CS major (sometimes) may not know how to THINK.</p>
<p>XTXN2CAL and mommusic, would you 2 say that a Statistics major is similar to a Math major in terms of marketability? Or do you still feel that Math is the better option?</p>
<p>XTXN2CAL, you’ve probably taken some upper level Stat courses for your Math major? How were they compared to your upper level math courses? Were they easier? Did you enjoy them more?</p>
<p>Because I’m actually deciding whether to major in Stat or Math. I do know that a Stat major is a lot less common than Math major. And that Stat is less abstract and more applied than Math.</p>
<p>Any advice?</p>
<p>thanks</p>
<p>Lil<em>Wayne</em>Fan … in my case I didn’t take a lot of Stats courses during my undergraduate degree - mostly Calculus/Modern Algebra/Topology (it was “Modern” at the time) and heavy on theory. But when I got into the work world it was heavy on statistics and numerical analysis, so I took graduate courses that were very statistics focused. Regarding your first question on Math vs Statistics, we hire a lot of engineers that typically have previous experience, but for someone fresh out of college, we would care about the relevant areas of study and focus, so I don’t think it would matter if it was a Math degree or a Stats degree as long as there was some relevance in the course work.</p>
<p>Most marketable major? </p>
<p>Being able to sell yourself! There are self-made millionaires without a college degree… </p>
<p>But for the average person that was only seeking a BA or BS, I’d have to say engineering or nursing… these are pretty much the only careers straight out the gate! </p>
<p>A Mathematics undergrad degree doesn’t get you very far… For that matter neither does a masters degree in Math… haha unless you want to be a community college professor… Applied mathematics may open more doors!</p>
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<p>Mind saying what company that is? ;)</p>
<p>Industrial engineering – very diverse!</p>
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<p>Be very cautious about thinking of an undergrad experience as a place for career-long technical skills. I studied journalism in the '70s. I was taught to type out my story on a manual typewriter, and stick it in a pneumatic chute to go to the editor, who had it re-typed on a typesetting machine. The typeset text would come out on wet film which had to be clothespinned to a clothesline to dry, then run through a waxer to put sticky wax on the back, so that when the editor cut out a paragraph with a pair of scissors s/he could stick it onto the page where it belonged. Oops . . . too long . . . pick up the scissors, cut off the last line and stick that onto the next page!</p>
<p>That’s how you put out a newspaper in the '70s. And the shelf life of useful technical skills today is often only a year or two. Thank goodness I ultimately got a degree in history which required me to write, research, analyze, synthesize new understandings from disparate sources, and work with and present in front of groups.</p>
<p>People refer to technical or business majors as if they had some sort of intrinsic value. I think most of the value of any education comes from the “hidden curriculum”.</p>
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<p>I don’t understand the premise here at all - a CS major has to think plenty. This is whether they are fixated on the practical or doing theory. Using a computer is one thing, but solving complex problem while overcoming the limitations is another. </p>
<p>I’m a non-CS math major who has had experience taking CS.</p>
<p>I always felt a CS major who took a few math classes is in the ideal position to get tons of opportunities - whether they want to go to grad school, go into CS itself, or get a number of jobs which require good analytical skills but also familiarity with computers.</p>
<p>The other issue is - math majors may not be interested enough in getting their hands dirty with the details of CS, even if they find the ideas appealing.</p>
<p>A CS degree is a little more difficult to evaluate because the programs between different schools can be vastly different. It depends on the curriculum.</p>
<p>Note that some schools have CS in the College of Natural Sciences, others in Engineering.
IMHO, a good CS curriculum will first teach one to be a good logical problem solver, under stand the math behind modern computing, being able to code is secondary.</p>
<p>Mike</p>
<p>^^ This is extremely true, and I should have added that to my posts. Computer science at my school definitely teaches you to think, and does it well.</p>
<p>CS majors can’t think? Thats like saying a doctor doesn’t know what a stethoscope is.</p>
<p>All this is great…but isn’t there more to life? If the paper in your pocket is all you worry about, I think that would be a sad life. What happened to progress? what happened to breathtaking architecture, Stimulating philosophers, journeys of self awareness and discovery…Have we really become this obsessed with imaginary wealth?</p>
<p>“All this is great…but isn’t there more to life? If the paper in your pocket is all you worry about, I think that would be a sad life. What happened to progress? what happened to breathtaking architecture, Stimulating philosophers, journeys of self awareness and discovery…Have we really become this obsessed with imaginary wealth?”</p>
<p>The people looking for marketable majors are just the people who have seen real life a little earlier than the rest. Or the people who are just studying what they enjoy without thinking about employment are just the people who haven’t seen real life yet, state it either way. I’d rather do something I’m not super into but then not work at Taco Bell and make 3 times what that guy does makes (yeah that’s right, I did the math), than not. </p>
<p>Anyone who is really into Psychology or Anthropology can study it after college if they really want. I need a piece of paper that says I’m smart and that makes people want to give me a job and lots of money, not one that says I studied what I enjoyed and maybe partied a lot. </p>
<p>The idea that you should study what you like and you’ll be happy only works for 4 years.</p>
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<p>A blast of reality that many 18 year olds may not be able to grasp, and parents - not wanting to be unpopular or considered unsupportive - may be reluctant to to point out.</p>
<p>The idea that you can study something you don’t like and you’ll be happy after you graduate and get a job in that field doesn’t work period.</p>
<p>Obviously the best thing is to enjoy something profitable. LeBron James for example…</p>
<p>“The idea that you can study something you don’t like and you’ll be happy after you graduate and get a job in that field doesn’t work period.”</p>
<p>Looking at the engineering recruitment website for my school somewhere between a quarter and a third of the job postings are for non-engineering jobs (maybe not right now, but back when recruitment was heavy). Engineering degree doesn’t necessarily mean engineering job. </p>
<p>I would be happier doing something I don’t like for 75K/year than I would be for 25K/year.</p>
<p>Does it really get you this bent out of shape that people decide to study english or sociology rather than engineering? Talk about bridge and tunnel. Then again, engineering.</p>