Our DS is heading to college this Fall. For some time, he has expressed interest in engineering, specifically chem E. That being said, he heard a career presentation at school recently by a CPA and told us yesterday that he could definitely see himself pursuing an accounting career. We want to guide him but I know that engineering is pretty rigorous and necessitates diving right in freshman year. Would anyone have wisdom to share regarding both professions and how we could help to guide his decision-making? Part of me feels that accounting would be a “better quality of life” major that would give him several career options. The other part of me sees engineering opening all kinds of career doors down the road.
Accounting doesn’t have the degree of near all-consuming academic requirements as ChemE or other areas of engineering.
In fact, he can cover both bases by majoring in ChemE, taking the required accounting courses, and reach the 150 minimum credit threshold needed to fulfill the credit requirements to take the CPA exam.
While this may be a lot, if he finds engineering not for him, he can drop it and continue with accounting. It’s far more difficult to start off as an accounting major and then decide to add ChemE with it.
Also, while he can double major in accounting, it’s not necessary as I have known several folks who have managed to become CPAs while majoring in other fields…including Philosophy and Asian Lit.
Incidentally, like Economics, Accounting is sometimes regarded as another natural fallback major for engineering majors as the much greater mathematical requirements in engineering tends to make those of those two fallback fields a walk in the park for most in comparison.
I realize that many colleges make you apply to a major, so this is only partly on point, but here goes.
A good friend’s husband started college absolutely certain he wanted to be a chemical engineering major. It took maybe two months for him to figure out that it was totally the wrong major for him. He majored in Econ, got an MBA at Wharton and enjoys his career as a finance guy in industry.
Similar story for my husband, but it only took him a couple of weeks to realize that chemistry was not his subject. He majored in comp sci.
Friends of ours have a daughter who started college as a business major (mostly at her father’s urging, so this isn’t really about what she thought she’d like), eventually realized she hated it. She transferred and is happily finishing up a nursing degree, but college was longer and more expensive than anyone originally planned.
I think the idea that 17 year olds who have little to no academic or practical exposure to any area should declare a major before they get to college is ridiculous.
Chemical engineering and accounting are very, very different fields despite both using math. As is reasonable for a person of his age and experience, your son doesn’t know what he wants to do for a major or a career. Lots of varied things look interesting. If he gets to college and takes classes in subjects he’s never been exposed to before, he may find other things that also interest him, maybe even more than the two he’s thinking about now.
In short, if at all possible, I’d urge him to apply to schools where he doesn’t have to commit to a major before he’s been to his senior prom. Go somewhere that will allow him to try things out and explore different options. By time he has to declare a major he’ll have a much better clue.
Oh, yeah, and he doesn’t have to major in accounting or even take serious amounts of accounting undergrad to become a CPA. My husband the comp sci major didn’t take accounting classes undergrad, but he focused on accounting in B school. He’s a CPA with an MBA who works on the finance side for a major advertising and media company and he never really used his comp sci degree. Very few 17 year olds have any idea what they want to be when they grow up.
@miillie210 I could not agree more.
To proffer another anecdote, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, my father went to college intending to be pre-med. He found the courses insufficiently interesting and challenging. He switched into Chem E. 
I would add that if he does apply to schools where you have to formally declare a major and be admitted to that major, check into how difficult it is to change majors later.
The fact is that both paths can open many doors for your son. It is a matter of what path he wants to take.
Here are a couple of examples from my life:
-My brother was an electrical engineer undergrad, went back for his MBA, and is now CFO of a company.
-I am a CPA who worked at a Big 4 firm for a number of years and went into municipal bond finance.
Keep in mind that with both of these majors he would have to decide relatively quickly and must be able to flip into the program he wants at whatever college he is or will be attending. Engineers typically start off right away with courses in science and engineering and business majors have a business core curriculum to fulfill.
Note that to become a CPA one now needs 150 credits, and a typical bachelors degree is 120 credits. Some can fulfill this through AP credits and taking some summer courses, but many CPA candidates now go on for a one year master’s in accounting to fulfill this requirement. The CPA exam is challenging and requires a great deal of committed study time. Still, accounting is fine field which can lead to a multitude of different opportunities.
Do not obsess about this at all. Your son starts college with the courses he needs for engineering and accounting as a freshman (ie so he can take the next courses required later). He falls in/out of love with one or both majors. He then plans his next semester based on his college experiences. It will not hurt him at all to have taken some courses he doesn’t need for his eventual major. He will have an education and no regrets later because “what ifs”- such as if only he had taken that chemistry/accounting/xyz course.
It is common for engineers to complete MBAs and become management for companies.
I was a chemistry major, no way was engineering on my radar (became a physician). Your son may love or not love chemistry or engineering. He’ll figure it out in due time.
The biggest issue with the “don’t commit now” argument is that engineering curricular are very rigid and sequential. It’s ALWAYS easier to switch out of engineering than into engineering.
As for quality of life, accounting will be quite a bit easier in college, but if he plans on going into tax accounting, which most do, it’s crazy busy for about half the year. I’m not sure the lifestyle would be greatly different.
What school(s)?
@eyemgh I’m a CPA with 30+ years – many many accountants work for corporations and public firms and don’t do tax work. Still there is a busy season, typically when financial statements are about to be issued. And young accountants at the big public firms so work a ton of hours whether they are on the tax or audit staff.
I do agree with you that sometimes it is necessary to commit early – for many colleges one would need to apply directly to a business or engineering program and it can be difficult to flip into that program down the road. and the option is typically open for a students to move out of an engineering or business program.
Accounting will be an easier major than Chem E.
However, a Chem E, can change to accounting later, but it is very difficult to change from accounting to Chem E.
Maybe try this…
Sign up for classes following the ChemE track for Fall semester.
Then, this summer, take some accounting classes at a local CC or online and see if he likes. If he does, he can then change his path. If not, he’ll continue with the ChemE plan.
@eyemgh he is seriously considering University of Richmond, Widener University, Catholic University of America and awaiting several other decisions.
Maybe he would like something like management engineering?
YMMV. I am a chemist who took a lot of engineering and my D is an accountant. I happen to think Chemistry and Engineering are way easier than accounting, but that’s just the way my mind is wired. (I also thought organic chemistry was pretty easy, but again, people are different.)
And like @happy1 says – not all CPAs do tax stuff. I still do my D’s taxes and she’s the CPA; she’s an auditor…
My brother entered Notre Dame as an engineering major, didn’t quite fit despite my engineer Father wanting it to. He switched before Sophomore year, and never looked back, becoming a vice president before my Father did ; ). Being at a school with both majors worked best for him.
Widener is the only one with ABET Chem E and they have a B school. I can’t dig up the curriculum path though for Chem E, so I can’t see how dedicated it is from the get go.
I am one who started out as a EE major and switched to Accounting after my second year. I guess I got weeded out during those weed courses. lol. I am fine with it and found that my strong math background really helped me when I dove into the deep finance classes and Econ classes. The accounting classes came easy to me because I have that type of tic & tac personality. I ended up losing a full year from the switch so it was a 5 year plan for me.
The thing is. I thought I knew what I wanted to do and I am glad I scratched that itch. I have no problems saying that I found the second year of EE hard. I am who I am. One thing it did was give me lots of confidence when I deal with all the Quants that cook up these crazy financial products that I have to evaluate. I have the math background and mind to understand and challenge them on finer points.
If he wants to give CE a try, then I say do it from the get go and dive right in for the sequential reasons mentioned above. He can always catch up later by taking some Accounting 101 & 102 courses during the summer.
Tell him it is totally natural to switch majors and not to stress about knowing what he wants to do. Encourage him to shoot high first.