Cool College Majors. Do you know any?

[karl wasabi]

Hey guys. So...I am an engineering major, and I have to say that it is just fuckin hard. lol. And I am only a first year, so that means it's just gonna get even harder. It's not that I'm stupid, it's just that it's stupid hard. lol. So, I think I am going to change majors before I was another year or two in college.

I want to know what majors you guys have gone through, or graduated from, and what you think about them.

-Major
-What does it consist of?
-Did you graduate?
-How long did it take?
-Are you working in that field now?
-How does it pay?

The only reason why I wanted to be a mechanical engineer was cause it seemed like a really cool job. My uncle is an engineer, and he told me I would probably be good at it. IDK what he was thinking. haha.

Chat away!!!

[FRpilot]

my brother is an electrical engineering major. you gotta work hard. engineers literally live in the library. my bro is at school by 9am and comes home for dinner around 12am.

[karl wasabi]

my brother is an electrical engineering major. you gotta work hard. engineers literally live in the library. my bro is at school by 9am and comes home for dinner around 12am.

I know right. I can't handle that. I cannot be that committed. Friends are a big part of my life right now, and I know college is only 4-5 years and it pays off and what not, but I guess I'm still too immature for that kind of responsibility.

[DirtyS14]

I'm a 3rd year mechanical major and I have to say this much, you shouldn't give up. The first two years are to weed people out and if you can survive that, then you should be fine.

In some sense it gets easier as you go on... you do less hardcore math/physics and start shifting to dynamics, statics, materials sciences, thermodynamics and things of that nature which are much more applicable to the real world and in some cases, more fun than pure maths like calc and diff equations.

Keep at it!

Edit: Also think about this, as an engineer you need to learn how to do EVERYTHING, applied math, sciences, writing etc etc, you are basically mastering many many different domains through engineering. That is what makes engineers stand out amongst ordinary people and most other majors.

[CrimsonRockett]

Keep at it you bastard!

Or, you'll end up in an office sitting on your ass all day like me.

Wait...that's not so bad.

:keke:

[murda-c]

I regret not sticking with engineering like i wanted to, even though i'm only 20 i still feel it's too late to go back.

don't make the same mistake i did, lol

[karl wasabi]

I'm a 3rd year mechanical major and I have to say this much, you shouldn't give up. The first two years are to weed people out and if you can survive that, then you should be fine.

In some sense it gets easier as you go on... you do less hardcore math/physics and start shifting to dynamics, statics, materials sciences, thermodynamics and things of that nature which are much more applicable to the real world and in some cases, more fun than pure maths like calc and diff equations.

Keep at it!

Edit: Also think about this, as an engineer you need to learn how to do EVERYTHING, applied math, sciences, writing etc etc, you are basically mastering many many different domains through engineering. That is what makes engineers so capable and special.

I really enjoy some of the courses, but the math is just a pain sometimes. Not to mention that, but I go to Cal Poly, and a lot of the classes fill up super super fast, so it is really hard to graduate in 4 years. The average is like 6! That is what I am looking at right now if I stick with it.

Keep at it you bastard!

Or, you'll end up in an office sitting on your ass all day like me.

Wait...that's not so bad.

:keke:

haha. It's not. ?????

I regret not sticking with engineering like i wanted to, even though i'm only 20 i still feel it's too late to go back.

don't make the same mistake i did, lol

That is what I don't want to do. Regret it...but IDK!!

[240love^_^]

I'm a 3rd year mechanical major and I have to say this much, you shouldn't give up. The first two years are to weed people out and if you can survive that, then you should be fine.

In some sense it gets easier as you go on... you do less hardcore math/physics and start shifting to dynamics, statics, materials sciences, thermodynamics and things of that nature which are much more applicable to the real world and in some cases, more fun than pure maths like calc and diff equations.

Keep at it!


^^^What he said... Lower division classes are usually set up to weed people out. I know my upper division economics classes are way better than the lower ones were. Don't worry it gets better. :]

[DirtyS14]

I really enjoy some of the courses, but the math is just a pain sometimes. Not to mention that, but I go to Cal Poly, and a lot of the classes fill up super super fast, so it is really hard to graduate in 4 years. The average is like 6! That is what I am looking at right now if I stick with it.

Trust me, mechanical engineering is hella fun once you get into. Solid modeling is so much fun, you can join the sae team which is also a fun experience, component design and fabrication/machining are more fun than work. FUN FUN FUN!

[OptionZero]

Engineering is going to be intense undergraduate work (possibly 5 years) that will pay fairly well upon graduation. Seems like there's good demand for that type of work w/o post grad degrees required.

Vets, Dentists and Doctors will require science major as well as post grad work, M.D. likely being the most intense. That translate into alot of work during 4 year undergrad, lots of work during Med school or equivalent, and likely lots of job experience in a residency. The pay seems pretty certain upon finishing the long journey.

I do not know what the tech sector is like now, so I can't speak to CS or CE.

Going to law school (what i'm doing) does not require a specific major but I personally found poli sci to be fairly useful. There aren't many dedicated "pre-law" programs in undergraduate campuses. It's 3 years to get your J.D. , so that makes 7 years total. I would not recommend this path if you are lookin at this economically, since the job market is ultracompetitive and quite hit-or-miss. Only the top 10% figure to have a shot at the mythical megadollar jobs that you picture a typical lawyer has, and those are drying up.

Beyond money I would not recommend it unless you are completely dedicated to the career and have a suitable mental makeup, as it is highly depressing, stressful, and generally unfulfilling.

Majors like english, social sciences, or art don't seem to be in huge demand so it's going to take effort to get a good living out of it. Education is not a career path for making money. The only advantage seems to be that you can do it in 3 years if u plan well.

Lots of things to do with a business major.


Take the time now to decide if there's something you like doing, something where the work would take your mind off your pay. Otherwise, just say fuck it and find what's gonna give you the most pay for the least work.

Be happy at work or be happy on pay day.

[duffman1278]

I'm an M.E. major at Cal Poly also, and I've gotten to speak with 2 people that graduated from CPP, one got his masters their too in M.E., and he told me exactly what DirtyS14 said, stick with it because they usually try to get the weak out within the first 2 years then it gets a little bit better, not so much EASIER, but its not as bad. I dunno though, or maybe math just isn't your area? I like math so I'm sticking with this. I do study like alot though which means I pretty much get no time for my friends during the week or car,plus I work, but I'm a second year right now, so hopefully it'll be easier next year.

[karl wasabi]

I'm an M.E. major at Cal Poly also, and I've gotten to speak with 2 people that graduated from CPP, one got his masters their too in M.E., and he told me exactly what DirtyS14 said, stick with it because they usually try to get the weak out within the first 2 years then it gets a little bit better, not so much EASIER, but its not as bad. I dunno though, or maybe math just isn't your area? I like math so I'm sticking with this. I do study like alot though which means I pretty much get no time for my friends during the week or car, but I'm a second year right now. Hopefully it'll be easier next year.


haha. So you know what it's like then being at Cal Poly. Don't you have trouble getting classes as well?

Well all these words of encouragement really do help. I think I just do need to study more. I mean, I study, but I don't study the recommended 3-4 hours for each class. lol. I am pretty behind on math though...at least 3 quarters. The problem is, I can't get classes!! It's just frustrating sometimes.

[karl wasabi]

Engineering is going to be intense undergraduate work (possibly 5 years) that will pay fairly well upon graduation. Seems like there's good demand for that type of work w/o post grad degrees required.

Vets, Dentists and Doctors will require science major as well as post grad work, M.D. likely being the most intense. That translate into alot of work during 4 year undergrad, lots of work during Med school or equivalent, and likely lots of job experience in a residency. The pay seems pretty certain upon finishing the long journey.

I do not know what the tech sector is like now, so I can't speak to CS or CE.

Going to law school (what i'm doing) does not require a specific major but I personally found poli sci to be fairly useful. There aren't many dedicated "pre-law" programs in undergraduate campuses. It's 3 years to get your J.D. , so that makes 7 years total. I would not recommend this path if you are lookin at this economically, since the job market is ultracompetitive and quite hit-or-miss. Only the top 10% figure to have a shot at the mythical megadollar jobs that you picture a typical lawyer has, and those are drying up.

Beyond money I would not recommend it unless you are completely dedicated to the career and have a suitable mental makeup, as it is highly depressing, stressful, and generally unfulfilling.

Majors like english, social sciences, or art don't seem to be in huge demand so it's going to take effort to get a good living out of it. Education is not a career path for making money. The only advantage seems to be that you can do it in 3 years if u plan well.

Lots of things to do with a business major.


Take the time now to decide if there's something you like doing, something where the work would take your mind off your pay. Otherwise, just say fuck it and find what's gonna give you the most pay for the least work.

Be happy at work or be happy on pay day.

That's the thing too. I don't want to be stuck doing something that everyone else is doing. =/

[hitman]

philosophy is pretty sweet. have to get a phd though to do anything with it.

[YoungGun]

Some of my friends are majoring in different types of engineering, all I hear from them are complaints. But I guess if you're not really into math it would be harder. I'm personally looking at majoring in global or business economics. Maybe even accounting/finance. I'm still chilling in a CC so I have time to think.

[karl wasabi]

Some of my friends are majoring in different types of engineering, all I hear from them are complaints. But I guess if you're not really into math it would be harder. I'm personally looking at majoring in global or business economics. Maybe even accounting/finance. I'm still chilling in a CC so I have time to think.

Aren't those majors boring as hell?? lol.

[duffman1278]

haha. So you know what it's like then being at Cal Poly. Don't you have trouble getting classes as well?

Well all these words of encouragement really do help. I think I just do need to study more. I mean, I study, but I don't study the recommended 3-4 hours for each class. lol. I am pretty behind on math though...at least 3 quarters. The problem is, I can't get classes!! It's just frustrating sometimes.

You said this is your first year iirc? It wasn't like this before but I heard that it should get a little better next year, believe me, I didn't really get good classes either this quarter. For engineering classes, I would highly recommend getting a professor whose got a good rep because if you get some prick, you wont learn much and you'll probably just fail the class. gradecalpoly.com I also try to stay at school for as long as possible lol, you'll be surprised, the arcade it whats keeping me in school lol. Believe me, ALOT of people drop out of engineering, its just incredible because so many do not want to put the time in to study, so alot go into buisness.

[YoungGun]

Aren't those majors boring as hell?? lol.
I'm not really sure to tell you the truth lol, but that's what i'm planning on so far.

[OptionZero]

That's the thing too. I don't want to be stuck doing something that everyone else is doing. =/

I don't think uniqueness should be a criteria unless that is what will make you happy...

...happy enough to not care about the money.

[FRpilot]

philosophy is pretty sweet. have to get a phd though to do anything with it.

and even then, what can you do with a PhD besides being a philosophy professor.

[karl wasabi]

You said this is your first year iirc? It wasn't like this before but I heard that it should get a little better next year, believe me, I didn't really get good classes either this quarter. For engineering classes, I would highly recommend getting a professor whose got a good rep because if you get some prick, you wont learn much and you'll probably just fail the class. gradecalpoly.com I also try to stay at school for as long as possible lol, you'll be surprised, the arcade it whats keeping me in school lol. Believe me, ALOT of people drop out of engineering, its just incredible because so many do not want to put the time in to study, so alot go into buisness.

yeah, I know about that site, and I got the prick teachers. lol. We should hang out then.

I don't think uniqueness should be a criteria unless that is what will make you happy...

...happy enough to not care about the money.

Yeah, that's true. NVM that part then. It's just sometimes I hear about people getting into these really cool majors that no one's ever heard of.

[duffman1278]

If you want something kinda different, go with Manufacturing Engineering, I was in it and most of the professors are really chill there, and it was pretty fun, not as hard as M.E. I liked it and all but I like M.E. better. You might wanna consider taking a few class in MFE and see.

I think I've seen your car parked in front of the CLA building before, with an oil cooler sticking out in front? lol If anything, I'm always at the arcade lol literally, ALWAYS, M-F, mornings usually.

[coww-cho!!!!!]

My bro graduated from CPP and got a bachelors in electronic engineering.
it tookhim close to 5-6 years going to school, partying, and working at del taco night shift. He got in to Hughes which is now Boeing he worked himself up the latter, and within a few years he gained management position and gets over 80k a year. He's gonna go back to school for his masters and make more bank. His section at Boeing is Satellites, he made one of the XM satellites, but the company not only does satellites they do a lot of air crafts, missles , basically anything that goes in the air. i went there for a private open house, its pretty sweet, but thats just me.

[karl wasabi]

If you want something kinda different, go with Manufacturing Engineering, I was in it and most of the professors are really chill there, and it was pretty fun, not as hard as M.E. I liked it and all but I like M.E. better. You might wanna consider taking a few class in MFE and see.

I think I've seen your car parked in front of the CLA building before, with an oil cooler sticking out in front? lol If anything, I'm always at the arcade lol literally, ALWAYS, M-F, mornings usually.

Yeah, I'm taking an MFE class right now. It's pretty much a solid works class.

And yeah, that's my car. =)

[yoni_nismo]

haha... im a electrical engineering major and i want to change my major durring finals every sem 4 tha past 2 years now... i like the enginering classes but the math classes are killer...for the classes that r full u can prob take at a CC its more chill and tranfer tha units.. but make sure the classes are tranferable or u will be wasting ur time.. GL and stick wit it u wont regret it in tha future

[duffman1278]

What math are you in? Because believe me after you finish mat116 its all down hill from there. I'm about to finish (knock on wood) with my last class for math this quarter and from mat214-mat224, its literally just simple review of derivatives, algebra, and a big of integrals.

[coww-cho!!!!!]

if you decide to go to your local CC always talk to your counselors at your current college and community college to make sure that the credits go over like yoni_nismo said i personally think its cheaper and easier to go to your CC to do the classes

[1989rps13]

haha. So you know what it's like then being at Cal Poly. Don't you have trouble getting classes as well?

Well all these words of encouragement really do help. I think I just do need to study more. I mean, I study, but I don't study the recommended 3-4 hours for each class. lol. I am pretty behind on math though...at least 3 quarters. The problem is, I can't get classes!! It's just frustrating sometimes.

why dont you just take the match class at a community college? it will cost you lesss money than at cal poly thats what im doing just taking all my classes at community college to literally save thousands of dollars

[shrimpscampi]

-Major: Fine Arts

-What does it consist of?: Museums and brush cleaning

-Did you graduate?: No...ran low on money

-How long did it take?: 3 Years for me to not finish

-Are you working in that field now?: Yes:wiggle:

-How does it pay?: 45K plus free clothes & shoes

[lflkajfj12123]

I'm in ME right now also. You can always look into a MET degree which is more hands on (easier) its not quite as in demand as a normal ME and won't let you work anywhere you want but you can land some nice positions with an MET degree

[emersonLP]

I was in a similar situation. I was an engineering major and simply could not do anymore math (I was in a differential equations class) and I was sooo sick of science too (chem 2 is a bitch).

I switched to Management Information Systems because I think I am pretty computer savvy. I did not go with computer science because I dont like coding that much and MIS does not focus too heavily on that aspect. Its more technology decision making for business and a lot of acccounting/finance/ etc also. Basically a technology consultant. Last point: UGA has a fantastic Business School.


-Major - MIS
-What does it consist of? programming and business skills
-Did you graduate? yes - from University of Georgia
-How long did it take? I was there 4.5 years - took extra time because of major switch.
-Are you working in that field now? Yes sortof - I will be a Consultant in about a year for my company. Now I am an Application Specialist so i can learn the software products that we use.
-How does it pay? great starting salary imo. Low per Cali numbers but average starting salary graduation from my major from UGA was $45,000 (a few years ago).

[adictd2b00st]

let me tell you something........i'm 26 going on 27 in 2 months and HATE where i'm at right now. i'm going back in winter for Mechanical Engineering. Yea, its tough, but think LONG TERM trust me! You'll be much better off in the end...... and like someone else already stated, it seems that those first 2 yrs are to weed people out, stick with it!

[iwishiwas-all*]

u know with all these people studying engineering here, we should start a engineering thread to keep up on stuff and ask class questions cause lord knows we all got some lol.

[flip3d]

Get a business degree and manage a strip club.



I wish... but yeah, I'm majoring in Computer Information Technology. I just took a Network Security course and they teach you how to exploit all the flaws and bugs in different operating systems and how to protect yourself from attacks. Pretty cool stuff.

[stiizy]

-Major- Fashion Design

-What does it consist of?-- Clothing design and marketing

-Did you graduate? - Yes with a BA

-How long did it take?- 4.5 years ( don't take time off)

-Are you working in that field now?-- No

-How does it pay?-- If i worked in that field i'd be making 30k more than what i do know..

Everyone wants someone with experience not a fresh grad as Louis Vuitton told me..no bullshit

[ziptiedae86]

let me tell you something........i'm 26 going on 27 in 2 months and HATE where i'm at right now. i'm going back in winter for Mechanical Engineering. Yea, its tough, but think LONG TERM trust me! You'll be much better off in the end...... and like someone else already stated, it seems that those first 2 yrs are to weed people out, stick with it!

OP you need to listen to this man.

You have to do what you have to do. If it was easy everyone would be an engineer. If you enjoy engineering or can see yourself doing it in the long run, stick with it--guaranteed job in the future. If you can't stand it, then find something you like and do it--business is where most of the engineering failures end up. Just don't complain when you're working for minimum wage out of college.

[trsilvias13]

I finish with a BS in accounting and going back to school for my master in taxation.

If I were to do it again, I would pick geography major and try to work with the fish and game dept.

[eastcoastS14]

Im a business management major right now....its pretty easy except for the economics parts, which kinda suck....sometimes I wish I had transferred to art school and taken up industrial design, Im gonna be 21 tho and idk about starting another 4 years

[karl wasabi]

lot's of cool advice!! And yes...I am considering everything. I really do want to stick with it, it's just that it is depressing when you study as hard as you can all night long, and you get a D on a test. lol.

[240trainee]

-Major
-What does it consist of?
-Did you graduate?
-How long did it take?
-Are you working in that field now?
-How does it pay?




-Psych
-Bullshit Classes
-Hopefully 3 semesters
-Forever
-No
-Shit

[lflkajfj12123]

lot's of cool advice!! And yes...I am considering everything. I really do want to stick with it, it's just that it is depressing when you study as hard as you can all night long, and you get a D on a test. lol.

you probably need to rethink the way you study

you should check out MIT's open course thing they have video's of lectures and notes for a bunch of different classes

http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/web/home/home/index.htm

what class did you get a D in?

[RiversideS13]

-Major - Dentistry

-What does it consist of? - histology, anatomy, physiology, restorative, periodontics, ethic, biochemistry, labs, microbiology, pharmacology, everything about head and neck, everything about clinical surgery ...etc

-Did you graduate? 3 more years to go

-How long did it take? 4 years undergraduate courses + 4 years dental schools

-Are you working in that field now? just doing some basic lab work

-How does it pay? $100k +

application is highly competitive based on academic and extracurricular work. my tuition is $220k for 4 years btw.

[karl wasabi]

you probably need to rethink the way you study

you should check out MIT's open course thing they have video's of lectures and notes for a bunch of different classes

http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/web/home/home/index.htm

what class did you get a D in?


I haven't gotten a D in any class. Quizes and tests sure. haha. I think I might get a D in this final quarter of chemistry. =(

[lflkajfj12123]

I haven't gotten a D in any class. Quizes and tests sure. haha. I think I might get a D in this final quarter of chemistry. =(

chemistry can be hard a hard class not because chemistry is hard but just because its the lab course

you gotta realize though when you're graduating out with a bachelors in ME companies do see your transcripts and the difference between you getting the job and some other ME can be who ever had a higher GPA

don't waste you're time if you're not going to apply yourself 100% and man up and get A's for the rest of your degree

[low and slow]

u know with all these people studying engineering here, we should start a engineering thread to keep up on stuff and ask class questions cause lord knows we all got some lol.

I'm going to, because that's an awesome idea.

Right meow.

I'm an ME, just finished up my second year. My advice: suck it up, man. All the pre-reqs (Calc I-III, Chem, Physics, etc) are to weed you out and determine people that don't have the patience for it. But if it's something you really really want to do, and love it, then stick to your guns. I'm finally taking full fledge classes next year (over at the e-school all day), and I'm looking forward to it. The classes that they use to weed you out are just that: weeders. Boring, too broad, and don't help you realize what the major is actually about.

[SR2Zero]

chemistry can be hard a hard class not because chemistry is hard but just because its the lab course

you gotta realize though when you're graduating out with a bachelors in ME companies do see your transcripts and the difference between you getting the job and some other ME can be who ever had a higher GPA

don't waste you're time if you're not going to apply yourself 100% and man up and get A's for the rest of your degree

I took two years of Chem in high school, the first just being a basic intro. course, second being AP. I hate it. I was going to go into pharmacy, but just that one course pisses me off too much. I mean, I passed easily, just not something that I'd want to do.

[duffman1278]

I changed my ways of studying, and my grades went up quite a bit. Honestly though, its more about understanding wtf you're doing in these ME classes then just memorizing how to do them. Watch the MIT videos though, I do that, especially for my current math class cause my professors sucks ass and can't speak english

[wrapmeup2005]

My parents own an electrical contracting company and so they wanted me to go for electrical engineering to get my stamp. I said sure, went and did all core and some EEE classes, the physics I could understand but calc was killing it for me and so was code. I looked at what all of the schooling would consist of and realized that none of it would help me out in electrical contracting, they were taking it to the electronics side of the scale. I then looked at what my future holds and what makes me happy and decided to switch over to Construction Management. Since Ive made the switch, I've learned more about electrical circuitry then I did in any of the EEE classes (pretty fucking sad if you ask me). Some of the classes required in the this new degree have already had me learn code, but only in small amounts (enough to get done what you need and not rewrite microsoft :smash: ) I will admit, I have looked to see what I would need done to meet the requirements of the engineering board here in AZ just to get the stamp (to make my parents a bit happier) but 4 more years of college just isn't in the picture. I know that personnally I like construction more, general and different specialties, not to say I don't like electrical construction. Electrical engineering was not cutting it for me, they weeded me out...not because Im not capable, because I didn't care, I didn't want to learn about the ins and outs of a computer (sorry to all the computer guys :) )

Basically, anything you get into, you are going to start out with a shitty salary, both base pays for construction management and electrical engineering are $45K. After that point it will go wherever you take it. If you don't choose to advanced in your career than you probably won't be getting a bigger paycheck. You can make money with any degree you get, it really just depends on what you make of it. No joke, my dad has redesigned many engineered plans and they were accepted (we had to pay for someone to stamp it though :duh: ) but that just shows you that the degree doesn't mean shit if the person can't do it. Its all up to what you make it, go for a degree you will be happy with in life, something that will help you with what you will enjoy doing.

Construction Management
-General building/heavy/specialty
-1 1/2 years to go
-I work for my parents company now working as warehouse guy/ assistant estimator/ assistant project manager
-$45K and up to whatever you strive for (you can own a business too ;) )

Hopefully all of that made sense, do what you want, everything is going to take work so whatever you pick, make sure you put all your effort into it

[gmarzan]

I was going for ME after I got my EE degree, but decided I don't have the passion to continue engineering, so I went back for chemistry. Just like everyone said, you have to dedicate your time and yourself in able to get through engineering. if you dont have the passion, you'll lose interest. Chem II and Calc II are the classes that most people struggle, which are all in the first 2 years. As mentioned before, once escape your 2nd year, it gets a little better. I wish I went to CC for my first 2 yrs, taking Gen-Ed courses and saving me money and less debt. I recommend taking courses outside of your major, like Art History. Not only it takes your mind out of all of the math/science, formulas, calculation, etc. you get to see and meet HOT GIRLS IN YOUR CLASS (which most engineering classes don't have) and just chill there and look at pictures.

[low and slow]

Yeah, big +1 to taking other classes. I've done that, and needless to say, it makes things a lot easier. Not to mention that in the state of Florida, you have to satisfy "The Gordon Rule", which is a bunch of classes you have to take (broken down into different categories, i.e. history, social science, etc).

[kahlistrophic]

If you choose to do any engineering major just stick with it man..it really does get easier...when I started in EE I was having a hard time at first and then my last 4 semesters I got straight A's in all my cores up to graduation...it gets better...
Doing my Masters now and got straight A's for my first semester too...so its not so bad...once your mind gets aclimated to learning and dealing with everything in a certain way you start to get it. Plus as some one said...there are NO....NO hot girls to distract you in higher level engineering classes,,,barely even any half decent ones... :(
It all depends on what interests you though..and also what you see yourself being ok with doing in the future (i.e. getting paid) because if you have no interest and get stuck later on in life doing it your gonna hate everything, even if your being payed.

[NiSmo240luvR]

and even then, what can you do with a PhD besides being a philosophy professor.

Philosophy majors average the highest LSAT scores of any major. So law school afterwards is not a bad idea.

[OptionZero]

LOL

no way man

I would say law school is generally a bad idea

and secondly

LSAT scores are irrelevant to success in law school
zero
nada
none

it is not even remotely related to the type of work u do in the field

do not go to law school
its a scam

law sucks

highest depression rate
highest suicide rate

it will kill u

[hitman]

ya. im pretty sure in terms of thinking ability no discipline could even touch philosophy. actually all disciplines sprang from philosophy. adam smith the economist was an ethics professor. and galileo, newton, copernicus, etc all philosophers. you could take the lsat or something but chances are if you took engineering philosophy would be greek to you (literally lol). same vice versa though.

[lflkajfj12123]

actually a philosophy major or minor compliments engineering really well in terms of your critical thinking skills

it looks good

[ALTRNTV]

I'm a music/sound engineering major. Dope.

:)

[240trainee]

Yea, my roomie is a Jazz Guitar major.

Our house is populated my directionless kids in useless degrees, hahahahaha.

[ALTRNTV]

He got a major just for jazz guitar? lol

[xHASTEx]

what about computer networking? Heard it pays decent and is not difficult at all..

[lflkajfj12123]

yeah

after the first 2-3 computer courses

see if you can go without grabbing the

http://mxgm.org/web/images/stories/jena6/noose.jpg

[iHeartTheTouge]

i've started looking into Aviation Mechanics. Sounds like a lot of, working on a big ass 747? And the money is pretty nice. I actually found an ad in the paper for a local school for it so i'm gonna give them a call tuesday and get more info.

[jdm538]

my cousin graduated from calpoly 2 years ago as a mechanical engineer now he works for NASA JPL. he almost changed majors to business because he was so stressed out from all his engineering classes.

i had a pothead friend from high school that graduated with an aerospace engineering degree from NYIT. he now makes $100k a year, he claims pot helped him through all the stress.

they both tell me the same thing, school is hard but worth it in the long run.

[Mr. H]

im in Mechanical engineering and from what my friends tell me of the math the only classes that are tough are calc 1 and 2 after that it gets easier. What helped me decide is looking at the classes in the last 2 years of the program and they sound really fun. In my opinion your shouldn't look at how much money you can make with a major, and make sure its something that you will enjoy doing. plus i was in buisness management befor switching to engineering and it sucked major balls. Classes were really easy but also really boring

[theicecreamdan]

calc 1 and 2 are hard?

I'm a bio major, I want to get paid to go play outside and catch bugs and stuff.

[Dirty Dee]

haha... im a electrical engineering major and i want to change my major durring finals every sem 4 tha past 2 years now...

I have been done the same thing for the first 2 years in school. But now things arent so bad. The programming classes were the worst because they took so much time writing the code and debugging.

I'm graduating a semester late, but currently have an internship that pays 18/hr. If I work for the same company when I am done, I should be getting 28-31/hr.

[Gnnr]

Wow, lots of engineers here.

I was in a similar situation. I was an engineering major and simply could not do anymore math (I was in a differential equations class) and I was sooo sick of science too (chem 2 is a bitch).

I switched to Management Information Systems because I think I am pretty computer savvy. I did not go with computer science because I dont like coding that much and MIS does not focus too heavily on that aspect. Its more technology decision making for business and a lot of acccounting/finance/ etc also. Basically a technology consultant. Last point: UGA has a fantastic Business School.


-Major - MIS
-What does it consist of? programming and business skills
-Did you graduate? yes - from University of Georgia
-How long did it take? I was there 4.5 years - took extra time because of major switch.
-Are you working in that field now? Yes sortof - I will be a Consultant in about a year for my company. Now I am an Application Specialist so i can learn the software products that we use.
-How does it pay? great starting salary imo. Low per Cali numbers but average starting salary graduation from my major from UGA was $45,000 (a few years ago).

Hey, just like me. :D Joint major in MIS/MBA. 2.5years to go....ugh..not even in upper level yet. But I like it and it pays. Want to work for myself though.

what about computer networking? Heard it pays decent and is not difficult at all..

If your just going to be doing regular networking go to a tech school and get your certs from CompTIA, Microsoft, or Cisco. You can find some sweet jobs with a CCNP. If you actually like it it wont be hard. I always tell people not to get in the IT world unless they enjoy it.

[turtl631]

LOL

no way man

I would say law school is generally a bad idea

and secondly

LSAT scores are irrelevant to success in law school
zero
nada
none

it is not even remotely related to the type of work u do in the field

do not go to law school
its a scam

law sucks

highest depression rate
highest suicide rate

it will kill u


That bad huh? I thought docs were up there too. Either way, professionals don't want to admit they have psych problems, and then they just escalate.

Why so much negativity about law school?

OP, I'm in med school, pretty similar to what was posted about dental school. Lots of hard work and long hours, hopefully Obamary doesn't screw my future earning potential. I had to laugh when you complained about studying hard the night before an exam and getting a D. Night before? Time to stop studying like you're in high school.

[OptionZero]

Consider the natures of our respective professions.

The doctor faces whatever ailment or condition that his patient is suffering from. In the end that's what he's battling, and when he is successful, his patience gets good (or at least better) health.

Certainly, there's challenges in diagnosing, treating, or performing whatever needs to be performed, but those are mental and physical tasks that you've trained for.

The lawyer faces problems, as well: the mental part is analyzing the legal issues, formulating his argument, and then doing the technical writing part of it.

The physical part is speaking, whether before a judge or jury, examining a witness, or conducting a deposition.

Yet through all of that, you're also out to beat opposing counsel. When one lawyer wins, another must necessarily lose. Competition and rivalry are built into the system, our adversarial legal system.

This is bred into law students from the very beginning. The top 10 percent gets a shot a good jobs. The rest scramble for whatever unpaid or minimal paying work they can find. The top 10 percent have no money worries, as they can pay off their debt by graduation or thereabouts. The rest carry the loans for who knows how long. Win and thrive. Fail and struggle.

As I understand it, there's of course competition in med/dent/doc school...but who's really worried about not getting a job? Yeah, you worry about failing, we all do, but the legal market particularly in the bay is really, really oversaturated. The government jobs face budget cuts, the private firms are scaling back to streamline and reduce costs. The law changing to try to reduce litigation (tort reform, less oral argument, etc), and thus, reduce available work.

If your mentality is not to embrace competition, if you don't enjoy deep analytical problems, if you don't have some sort of killer instict, and if you losing or adversity personally...don't go to law school. Period.

It's that simple.

The greatest fault of our profession is that people get into it without knowing what it's about. What you see on TV is a tiny microsm of what real legal work (it's based on a handful of exceptions then stretched for added drama).

Furthermore, what's the reward? Transactional lawyers win money, occasionally civil lawyers will win some sort of injunctive relief, and criminal lawyers, well, they're a sick bunch of bastards (like me). It's very rare you see tangible results from your work.

Also...law school is all about being able to argue a position. Any position. Even the one you don't believe in. Especially the ones you don't believe in. You'll be asked to learn, understand, and embrace what you're totally against, then stand up and advocate that position as if it's your heart and soul's dearest ideal. You can't do that unless you can set aside your own opinions and emotions.
Guess what? You do that often enough and it's a habit. Stick with it, and pretty soon you won't have any opinions, and your emotional responses aren't too long in going away too.

Analyze everything. Argue anything. Believe nothing.
Law students are trained to analyze, and soon your brain can rationalize anything, which is dangerously in human...since most people are irrational to begin with. When you start looking for reason in the absurd, well, then you know you've gone crazy.

When I've been reading or doin alot of work, sometimes i can't even talk to non-law school people. I literally cannot connect with them and i struggle not to say something that i know will completely piss everyone off and sound like a jackass, because my first response is always to point to the flip side, or reason out whatever.

Law school makes you less human, but if u want to be a really good lawyer...you have to be a robot.

Sad truth. No lie.

[revat619]

-Major
-What does it consist of?
-Did you graduate?
-How long did it take?
-Are you working in that field now?
-How does it pay?


- Psych
-a bunch of classes telling you why people are the way they are
- i'm not done yet
-not yet
- at the bachelors level, shit. you cant do anything really with a psych degree. You have to go to graduate school (which is what i'll be doing). After that you can make good money.

I've always been fascinated with the mind and why people are the way are and why they do the things they do, so naturally i chose this field. Not to mention i totally despise math. hahaha

The way i see it, people will ALWAYS have mental issues. So i'll always have work. I'll be dealing with all you stressed out lawyers and engineers asking "so how does that make you feel?"

lol

At the end of the day though, you've gotta be happy doing what you're doing. If you hate your career, you'll be unhappy with your life, and no matter what your salary, you'll just be unhappy. Find a job doing something you love and you'll never work a day in your life.

[revat619]

Consider the natures of our respective professions.

The doctor faces whatever ailment or condition that his patient is suffering from. In the end that's what he's battling, and when he is successful, his patience gets good (or at least better) health.

Certainly, there's challenges in diagnosing, treating, or performing whatever needs to be performed, but those are mental and physical tasks that you've trained for.

The lawyer faces problems, as well: the mental part is analyzing the legal issues, formulating his argument, and then doing the technical writing part of it.

The physical part is speaking, whether before a judge or jury, examining a witness, or conducting a deposition.

Yet through all of that, you're also out to beat opposing counsel. When one lawyer wins, another must necessarily lose. Competition and rivalry are built into the system, our adversarial legal system.

This is bred into law students from the very beginning. The top 10 percent gets a shot a good jobs. The rest scramble for whatever unpaid or minimal paying work they can find. The top 10 percent have no money worries, as they can pay off their debt by graduation or thereabouts. The rest carry the loans for who knows how long. Win and thrive. Fail and struggle.

As I understand it, there's of course competition in med/dent/doc school...but who's really worried about not getting a job? Yeah, you worry about failing, we all do, but the legal market particularly in the bay is really, really oversaturated. The government jobs face budget cuts, the private firms are scaling back to streamline and reduce costs. The law changing to try to reduce litigation (tort reform, less oral argument, etc), and thus, reduce available work.

If your mentality is not to embrace competition, if you don't enjoy deep analytical problems, if you don't have some sort of killer instict, and if you losing or adversity personally...don't go to law school. Period.

It's that simple.

The greatest fault of our profession is that people get into it without knowing what it's about. What you see on TV is a tiny microsm of what real legal work (it's based on a handful of exceptions then stretched for added drama).

Furthermore, what's the reward? Transactional lawyers win money, occasionally civil lawyers will win some sort of injunctive relief, and criminal lawyers, well, they're a sick bunch of bastards (like me). It's very rare you see tangible results from your work.

Also...law school is all about being able to argue a position. Any position. Even the one you don't believe in. Especially the ones you don't believe in. You'll be asked to learn, understand, and embrace what you're totally against, then stand up and advocate that position as if it's your heart and soul's dearest ideal. You can't do that unless you can set aside your own opinions and emotions.
Guess what? You do that often enough and it's a habit. Stick with it, and pretty soon you won't have any opinions, and your emotional responses aren't too long in going away too.

Analyze everything. Argue anything. Believe nothing.
Law students are trained to analyze, and soon your brain can rationalize anything, which is dangerously in human...since most people are irrational to begin with. When you start looking for reason in the absurd, well, then you know you've gone crazy.

When I've been reading or doin alot of work, sometimes i can't even talk to non-law school people. I literally cannot connect with them and i struggle not to say something that i know will completely piss everyone off and sound like a jackass, because my first response is always to point to the flip side, or reason out whatever.

Law school makes you less human, but if u want to be a really good lawyer...you have to be a robot.

Sad truth. No lie.

if i wasnt so far along in psych, i seriously would've considered law school.

I dont know if admitting that, however, is a good or bad thing. lol

[aznpoopy]

law school does turn you inside out. sometimes i inadvertantly piss off friends with half conscious argumentative comments.

i can't speak for cali, but generally the cream of the crop do land the big paying $160,000/year first year jobs. that doesn't mean the rest starve. there are mid-size and small firms as well, paying anywhere from like 50k to 100k+ per year. and there's always public service - public prosecutor, public defender, etc. (ew)

the actual work also varies heavily depending on what field of law you choose (or get tossed in) and what your role is in the firm. if you're new at a small firm you might find yourself drafting actual court pleadings or even making appearances in court. if you're at a big firm your role will probably be more limited to writing briefs and memos or doing document review. i do none of the above. i'm trying to get into patent prosecution... where you typically deal with the PTO and draft patent applications for clients. there's alot of variety in the law.

that being said i think there are other fields that are less stressful for the same money, or similarly stressful for alot more money.

[SC_S13]

Some of my friends are majoring in different types of engineering, all I hear from them are complaints. But I guess if you're not really into math it would be harder. I'm personally looking at majoring in global or business economics. Maybe even accounting/finance. I'm still chilling in a CC so I have time to think.

If you're looking to do that, apply for UCSB. The founder has a solid business/economics history, so that major is really good here. So is the global studies sector.

[WanganRunner]

-Major
-What does it consist of?
-Did you graduate?
-How long did it take?
-Are you working in that field now?
-How does it pay?

1.) Major: Finance, with a minor in Economics

2.) Yes, I graduated.

3.) I got out in 4 years. Technically 3.5, as I spent 1 semester on study abroad (Semester at Sea).

4.) Yes, I currently work in Real Estate Private Equity. We invest money from wealthy private individuals into real estate deals (both development and existing). Our investors all happen to be located in The Netherlands.

5.) It pays pretty well, considering I've never been to grad school. I'm 26 years old and I make just over six figures. I'll be expecting to jump up a little north of $200k/yr my first year out of MBA (will start MBA this Sept). If I wanted to relocate to NYC and work on wall street, I could expect almost $350k/yr as a new MBA grad (not that I'm considering relocation, I'm from DC and I like it here)



Finance can land you in a lot of different places. Some of them suck and some of them are great. I love my job because it's interesting work, I work easy hours, and I work with cool people. I just got back from a company "fun" trip to Paris a couple weeks ago. It's a decent life, I can't complain.

Don't go into commercial banking, accounting, internal corporate finance, or retail brokerage (i.e. stockbroker) if you really want to make serious money, because you won't. Stick to investment banking, private equity, real estate development, management consulting, trading, or private wealth management.

Grades and School Name Bling MATTER in Finance. You need to have good grades, you need to test well, and you need to have good schools on your resume to get into the top-tier shops.


Additionally, I don't know where you live, but to really work in the top echelons of finance you need to be living in like NYC, Chicago, and maybe Atlanta, LA, DC, etc. I just barely get by in DC. You can't live in a small town or midsize city and find a global investment bank. They ain't there.


ALSO, I don't want to paint it like commercial banking, accounting, etc.. aren't great careers. They ARE. In a smaller city or town, if you want to stay there, you'll be a happy person so long as you like the job, because they pay well enough. Just don't go into internal corporate finance (i.e. "Financial Analyst" for some company) thinking you're going to be scoring seven figure bonus packages like Wall Street guys, because you won't. You also won't be working 90 hour weeks like Wall Street guys, so it's all a trade-off.

I'm in a field that typically works very long hours, but somehow I've gotten off easy. I think it's because I work for a European company, and the Dutch don't tolerate that shit. They won't work 15 hours a day like Americans will.

[mrpeepers]

I know right. I can't handle that. I cannot be that committed. Friends are a big part of my life right now, and I know college is only 4-5 years and it pays off and what not, but I guess I'm still too immature for that kind of responsibility.

Buddy i am telling you i have been there. My cousin is a mechanical engineer at Rutgers and he really had to buckle down the first few years, but in his last year forget it, that bastard partied up so hard he could not have cared less about the first 2 years.

Remember to manage your time wisely. Its ok to party, but dont go panty chasing all effing day. Oh and remember "its better to cry about how hard your job is in a Porsche than it is in a Honda". A wise engineer gave me that little diddy right there. STICK WITH IT YOU WILL THANK YOURSELF!!

[kurissuS13]

...
The lawyer faces problems, as well: the mental part is analyzing the legal issues, formulating his argument, and then doing the technical writing part of it....

Also...law school is all about being able to argue a position. Any position. Even the one you don't believe in. Especially the ones you don't believe in. You'll be asked to learn, understand, and embrace what you're totally against, then stand up and advocate that position as if it's your heart and soul's dearest ideal. You can't do that unless you can set aside your own opinions and emotions.
Guess what? You do that often enough and it's a habit. Stick with it, and pretty soon you won't have any opinions, and your emotional responses aren't too long in going away too.

Analyze everything. Argue anything. Believe nothing.
Law students are trained to analyze, and soon your brain can rationalize anything, which is dangerously in human...since most people are irrational to begin with. When you start looking for reason in the absurd, well, then you know you've gone crazy.

When I've been reading or doin alot of work, sometimes i can't even talk to non-law school people. I literally cannot connect with them and i struggle not to say something that i know will completely piss everyone off and sound like a jackass, because my first response is always to point to the flip side, or reason out whatever.

Law school makes you less human, but if u want to be a really good lawyer...you have to be a robot.

Sad truth. No lie.

Philosophy majors are trained for all that I quoted from you. I know this because I speak from experience. I've argued with a passion for ideas that I've either disagreed with or don't really even give a sh!t about. You're forced to dissect the craziest, most esoteric and analytic arguments. If anyone wants to be good at everything quoted above, become a philosophy major. And that does include being good at being less human/more robot.

[OptionZero]

law school does turn you inside out. sometimes i inadvertantly piss off friends with half conscious argumentative comments.

i can't speak for cali, but generally the cream of the crop do land the big paying $160,000/year first year jobs. that doesn't mean the rest starve. there are mid-size and small firms as well, paying anywhere from like 50k to 100k+ per year. and there's always public service - public prosecutor, public defender, etc. (ew)

the actual work also varies heavily depending on what field of law you choose (or get tossed in) and what your role is in the firm. if you're new at a small firm you might find yourself drafting actual court pleadings or even making appearances in court. if you're at a big firm your role will probably be more limited to writing briefs and memos or doing document review. i do none of the above. i'm trying to get into patent prosecution... where you typically deal with the PTO and draft patent applications for clients. there's alot of variety in the law.

that being said i think there are other fields that are less stressful for the same money, or similarly stressful for alot more money.


My buddy worked for a patent prosecution place. His boss was a solo practitioner, all he did was write patents all day for the most random stuff just so he can nail people for infringement.

good times

[LongGrain]

environmental sciences!

you get to take classes like frisbee throwing, and hacky sack.

yea!

[slow_sr20]

-automotive technology.
-consists of classes about cars:eek3: and some basic computer classes.
-yes i graduated, associates degree, and some "high performance" experience.
-took me 3 years, added on some performance classes at the end of my degree and built a sweet sr20 lol
-yes i am working in the field (car dealership-service advisor bla blah blah)
-pay is decent, but the job is shitty and dealing with people all the time can get really annoying.

i need to go back and get atleast a bachelors degree in something, i don't think the associates will last me forever. on a side note however, dealership experince is great experience for the industry. ultimately i would like to work for a manufactuerer.

[essforteen]

Im a electrical engineer major
has alot of math but freshman year has gone by and not that bad
the only thing that sucked was the teachers with the horrible accents.
math wasnt a problem but i hate HATE english all those damn essays
welll im trying to say is if you want to go for something you enjoy and and get paid horriblely or suffer for 5 years and make upto 80-100k starting out of graduation its all your choice hehe but make sure you dont quit you dont wana waste more time changing your major. good luck!! :)

[g6civcx]

Consider the natures of our respective professions.

[redacted]

When one lawyer wins, another must necessarily lose. Competition and rivalry are built into the system, our adversarial legal system.

[redacted]



I'm going to go ahead and disagree with your general sentiment. I've spent several years in patents so it's not like I speak from no experience.

I really really enjoy what I do. I think most people get turned off from the idea of competition and presenting arguments, but I like it. Given the facts, present your interpretation and draw the legal conclusion. It's the purest form of intellectual exercise.

I believe the difference is that I actually have a technical background whereas most pattent practitioners do not. I double majored in computer and business, and have 5+ years of experience working at the largest health data system in the world.

Most attorneys I work with have no understanding of technology. You can tell by their arguments.


I don't stress out. It's just arguments. I do the best I can and leave it at that. It's no big deal.

As far as pay goes, after I get some more experience (maybe 3-5 more years), I think I can earn $400-500k easily without too much stress and time.

i'm trying to get into patent prosecution... where you typically deal with the PTO and draft patent applications for clients

You give me the word and I will be glad to show you.

[OptionZero]

yes, you like it- and more power to you. I like it as well.

But for many students, they enter law school with no idea of how it will work.

I'm in criminal law, but after doing some of it, I'm not disturbed in the least although I should be pretty freaked out. I would ask a shrink what that says about me, but I fear I already know.

[steve shadows]

Do ME

I did International Affairs with a lot of business courses.

wish I would have done ME with business courses.

at least I have people skills ;)

[g6civcx]

yes, you like it- and more power to you. I like it as well.

But for many students, they enter law school with no idea of how it will work

I will agree with you there. I think the problem is that you have to passionate about what you do without being too ideological because you risk getting jaded.

It's like being a pro athlete. In order for you to "win", someone has to "lose". But really. In the end, everybody who plays wins. What's the difference between athlete A and athlete B in the pros? They make about the same amount of money. If they win games they make more but even if they lose they're not starving.

I look at it just like that. When you play with me, you bring your best game because I'm going to bring mine. Win, lose, or draw, I'm going to do my best and that's all there is to that.

I try to do that every time and the second and third time I come across the same attorneys they know what's going on and would be much more willing to negotiate up front rather than litigate and end up worse than before.

I'm in criminal law, but after doing some of it, I'm not disturbed in the least although I should be pretty freaked out. I would ask a shrink what that says about me, but I fear I already know.

I agree. Intellectual property is much more genteel and that's why I like it. I would not enjoy criminal law at all.

[OptionZero]

It's an odd situation.

Sometimes lawyers fail because they take their job too seriously, unable to separate work from reality (overemotional defense attny); othertimes they fail because they are too far removed from the real world (gung-ho change the world prosecutor, for example). I have seen both and wished I could slap them equally.

If only there were some way to know when to do which...

[eulalia]

honestly i think your just giving yourself excuses!!!!

if you really want the job you will keep at it, and if money is your motivation, this hardwork is where people get over it, or just watch cribs every day, if money is your motivation.. lol

just find out what you love to do

and the work wont be a problem because that puts you that much closer to what you want

i dont know i love to draw so i draw for a living now

[eulalia]

i've started looking into Aviation Mechanics. Sounds like a lot of, working on a big ass 747? And the money is pretty nice. I actually found an ad in the paper for a local school for it so i'm gonna give them a call tuesday and get more info.

been there, lot offff hours!!! of work 60 to 70 hours a week, great money but you really have to love it. oh and if you screw up on anything your liable to any crashes or mistakes, because every time you change a light bulb or do anything you sign your name off. So if your having a rough day and your not paying attention, your career is pretty much over

its a great job, fed ex pays 70 bucks an hour.. not bad

[g6civcx]

It's an odd situation.

Sometimes lawyers fail because they take their job too seriously, unable to separate work from reality (overemotional defense attny); othertimes they fail because they are too far removed from the real world (gung-ho change the world prosecutor, for example). I have seen both and wished I could slap them equally.

If only there were some way to know when to do which...

I don't know how others do it, but I try to be in the moment at work and leave all that when I leave work. I also try to focus more on the facts rather than the legal conclusion. I think that if I do a good job with the factual inquiry, the legal conclusion should be clear.

At least with intellectual property, I have seen very few attorneys who are good with factual inquiries.


Tangent anyhow. Back on track.


Balance money with life outside of work and enjoyment at work. There are usually 5-6 major factors when considering a career, e.g. money, enjoyment, advancement, longevity, whatever. If you don't know what you value then get out and work some different jobs to find what you like.

[EchoOfSilence]

ME + Psych Dual Degree
UC Berkeley

Figuring out what you want to do is the hardest part of your college career. Indeed what it comes down to is realizing what actually makes you HAPPY. There's no other rational way of doing that than getting experience in everything you can, makes sense right? Take classes in multiple fields, talk to professors and ask for advice, attend other lectures, talk to other students. A good way is to get involved in student orgs, or even just start conversations with a few, and get a feel. The hope here is for you to find something that sparks your interest enough for you to want to delve deeper.

Also, don't fall in the 'uniqueness' trap. That makes your decision inherently based upon bragging rights to others, which directly implies your decision not being based on fulfilling YOU. Remember, you're going to school for YOUR education.

and hey, if you get out of engineering to do something else that you find fits you better, then so be it. that's the whole point. But in order to be sure that you want to stay in engineering, you need to find out why and do hella research first.

[golfer17]

-mechanical engineering
-lots of math, lots of work
-graduated last may
-four years
-working in aerospace industry
-pay is alright, unless you go to the oil/gas industry, then it's pretty good.
For the amount of work you go through for the degree though compared to others, you really got to like what you're doing for it to be worth it, and even then the salaries seem to cap off much lower than they should for a lot of jobs. It is a great degree to pair with a law or mba though.

As far as school goes, for me, freshman year was so ridiculously easy, i didn't know what to do with all the free time I had, sophomore year got to be busy enough that I eventually stopped helping out at my church because of time constraints, junior year was something of a shock because school actually got a little difficult and the workload increased so much (plus my part-time job and this is when I started building my car), and then senior year I started putting in a lot of time with the formula sae team on top of everything and even without a job I was busier than I'd ever been. Just to give you an idea, my last month or more of school all the way up to the day before graduation, I was spending about 14 hours at school four days a week and 6 hours/day fri-sun in order to finish up my fsae research and capstone. It was pretty busy and stressful at the time, but now that I look back it, I almost miss it. Since I was also too busy to worry about anything else but school, it kinda seemed to make life quite simple. I actually can't wait to go back since I want to eventually become a professor.

Anyways, I hope some of that helps you in your decision. Just know that if you do decide to go through with an engineering major, you can definitely make it. I know quite a few who are proof of if you just work hard enough and don't mind taking a few extra years to do it, you can make it through (and I strongly believe this applies to any degree at any school for anyone qualified enough to get into that school).

[S13SilviaGirl]

and even then, what can you do with a PhD besides being a philosophy professor.

One of my old pilots had a PhD in Philosophy. I asked hit about this specifically as I enjoy philosophy. A lot of companies are wanting philosophy majors now in order to help balance out their workplace and business sense....at least that is what I was told, and seems pretty legit in the research I have done on it.

[EDz s14]

sorry to bump an old thread but... I will be starting my first year in Cal poly for mechanical engineering and you guys are scaring me. I mean is it that hard? cause im good with math and I never study for it, but it sounds like I will have to study though. thanks for the heads up.

[norcal_black240]

Just take whatever interests you. A college degree is more so a job hunting license. At my dad's work they wont even look at people unless they have a college degree. They have people working for their company that have college degrees nothing to do with the work they do but since they have the college degree they are able to work there.

Another good example is my cousin. He just took japanese and spanish as his major and a minor in economics at Georgetown. Now he makes $300,000 a year in tokyo and he just turned 28 and he has been making that kind of money since he was 26 years old at a headhunting company.

There are a lot of jobs out there, you just gotta do what you like and go search and at some point you will find a job that fits you. If you do a job you hate every day life becomes much more stressful and complicated.

[g6civcx]

Another good example is my cousin. He just took japanese and spanish as his major and a minor in economics at Georgetown. Now he makes $300,000 a year in tokyo and he just turned 28 and he has been making that kind of money since he was 26 years old at a headhunting company.


First, Japan has a very high cost of living so the $300k figured has to be normalized.

Second, your cousin tends to be the exception rather than the rule. For every Bill Gate, I can name 10 unemployed liberal arts students.

Look at the statistics before concluding that the higher data points are representative of the entire population.

[hitman]

actually, the cost of living in japan isnt THAT high. 300k is still a lot for someone to be making a few years out of college. Tokyo is pretty expensive, but thats still more than people here are making.

i was reading something on yahoo that said research has been showing its not the major you choose but the school you graduate from that determines how much money youll make and also what types of jobs youll work.

um, side note. i have 108 units. second semester senior bitches

[A Spec Products]

-Major

Business Administration / Emphasis Entrepreneurship

-What does it consist of?

Awesomeness. Hardest classes were the math related joints, but otherwise entrepreneurship was the most awesome classes ever

-Did you graduate?

Of course, why wouldnt you?

-How long did it take?

4 years there's no point in taking longer

-Are you working in that field now?

I don't own my own business but I work in sales

-How does it pay?

Aftermarket import industry doesn't pay well at all. Its overly saturated, filled with a lot of shops with bad ethics and lack of business expertise...and you have to deal with lowballers who have no respect for the shop. People constantly think you are the enemy and want everything for nothing. I could've gone a different direction out of college (I was interning at a top insurance firm all throughout college), but I couldn't stand corporate at the time anymore, so decided to do something I enjoyed doing. It has its upsides, but definitely a lot of downsides, since personal happiness doesn't pay the rent.

I think if you aren't sure about what degree to get, just get something that looks respectable on paper that is very general, in the sense that it doesn't pigeonhole you into only a small niche of jobs. For example, a degree in "business" or "economics" essentially allows you to take ANY job, since there's not many companies that don't have this apply to what they do.

Now for example if you major in Ancient Mesopotamian Arts...then yeah, you're not setting yourself up very well, assuming you don't know what you want to do. If you don't like your major at all, then why are you doing it? So that's why, if you aren't sure, just do something broad that will give you skills that will apply to as many industries as possible. Also, make sure in college that you work jobs that look good on your resume...i.e try to get an internship with a corporate type company (if your goal is to get a "good" job) rather than taking the pizza delivery route in your neighborhood. Not to say anything bad on pizza delivery, but you know what I mean.

I was never really a guy into school, but I completed it cause I knew without it I'd be super screwed. I'm always more of a realistic learner, in the sense that school is important but you should focus on learning on the job training from interning and other jobs. Don't think that just cause you got straight A's in college it's gonna mean anything in the real world...if you can't relate to people, have common sense, or do your job, no one is gonna want to hire you. Oh, and if mommy and daddy is spoon feeding you, slap that spoon out your mouf! The sooner you take responsibility for yourself and do more things on YOUR OWN, the faster you'll become a true adult. You'll soon realize that once you truly get into REAL LIFE (without Mommy + Daddy), you'll notice how important life skills are. Your parents (if successful) didn't get to where they were by taking it easy or using up their parents money, so take a page out of that book and bust your ass to be a contributor to society.

I know TOO many BOOK SMART people that I have NO idea how they even do what their job title entails. Pay attention to the real world and try to be one step better than the person you were yesterday.

[fly]

-Major- Technically just aviation, but with a heavy concentration in air traffic control as thats what Im going into, but I could just as easily been a pilot or any one of a bunch of aviation related careers based on the coursework.

-What does it consist of?- Bottom line is to get planes from point A to point B without crashing. In between theres a lot of middle men and youre one of them, depending on where you work you could be in a control tower directing planes taxiing and/or clearing takeoffs/landings, you could be in radar where you control planes approaching or departing airports for a certain range around the airports, or you could end up in center which is the cruise phase. Theres all kinds of stuff and how much responsibility you have depends on how large of a facility youre at and how many people youre working with.

-Did you graduate?- Ill be out in May.

-How long did it take?- Itll be 5 years by the time Im done, I transferred and lost a ton of credits but its been worth it.

-Are you working in that field now?- Nope, hoping to be hired within a fairly short time after graduation, Ive heard anywhere from a couple weeks to 6 months, but realistically theres only one employer (the FAA) so youve got to go through them. Theyre also supposedly going to be changing the hiring process before I get out anyway.

-How does it pay?- First 12-13 months is $33,100 atm, thats a flat rate while youre on probation. After that it depends mainly on the airport you work at, but they do add onto that depending on the area you live in...for a local example since youre in socal if you were at LAX from what Ive heard from people at JFK which is a tad busier youll probably be right around 100k a year, maybe 105, plus quite a bit for the socal living cost, not sure exactly where youd end up with that. It also depends on the administration in office, because Ive got friends who work side by side with people making $250k for the same job hes getting paid $110k for.

Myself Im hoping to take advantage of the nice living costs outside the major metro areas in the northeast and not have to work at a huge airport like JFK or LaGuardia or Boston to live quite comfortably.

[OptionZero]

As added advice:

In every job of internship you get (and definitely get some), make sure you are either...
1. Adding a marketable/useful skill
or
2. improving a skill
or
3. making contacts that might get you a job in the future

3-4 stints as office coffee maker won't get you anywhere unless ur learning something or meeting someone

[enjetek]

-Major - Comp Sci
-What does it consist of? Math and High/Low Level Languages.
-Did you graduate? Yes.
-How long did it take? 4.25 (Winter session).
-Are you working in that field now? Yes.
-How does it pay? Starting salary in defense is 60k. Good tihng I am not starting out :)

[mRclARK1]

Unless it's a stepping stone to get into a higher college (IE: Law school etc.)... Majoring in liberal arts is pretty useless unless you want to teach.

Either major in Natural or Social science areas (Social sciences are things like Psychology, Sociology, Criminology etc. Lots of people in law enforcement and corrections have schooling in these areas), or plan on going on to other stuff/school after.

I don't know anyone with just a BA in Art, Music or Literature etc. who work a job they couldn't have just got with a high school diploma or a community college cert.

I know a girl with 6 years schooling and a MA in Music... Works at a CD store. lol

[WanganRunner]

Pay attention to the real world and try to be one step better than the person you were yesterday.


I know this is thread is a few days old, but this is a really great piece of advice. Good way of looking at life.

+REP

[g6civcx]

Honestly, if I were wealthy and don't need to work, I would get a PhD in women's study. Seriously. It's fun :D

[A Spec Products]

Honestly, if I were wealthy and don't need to work, I would get a PhD in women's study. Seriously. It's fun :D

Either that or the Miss Hawaiian Tropic suntan lotion applying guy

Oh, what was that maam, I missed a spot?

Let me get that for you

On the real though guys, work for the passion and for the love!

No sense to be miserable and spend your money in order to make you happy

But be realistic, since you gotta at least be a responsible individual and pay your bills and whatnot

And the more honest you are with yourself, I think the better off you are

i.e if know you don't want to be a lawyer but you want to do it for sake of making money...then maybe reevaluate your situation is all I'm saying

I'm just not one of those people who can fake it to make it

[g6civcx]

I'm working on my master's in women's study.

Are you my massah now?

[Dirty]

I've got an Associate's in Motorsports Management Technology. Obviously it is a two year program and consists of the business side of motorsports/racing. Sponsorship proposals, hospitality, logistics, etc. I am now working on a four year degree in Communications with my concentration in Media Production, as well as a Business minor.

I've worked a little bit with an engine development company, a fabrication company for NASCAR, and a small Honda drag race team. Currently I work for Fountain Powerboats, we make very fast boats...even some of the fastest fishin boats in the world. I hope to get into the broadcasting side of motorsports when I graduate.

[golfer17]

sorry to bump an old thread but... I will be starting my first year in Cal poly for mechanical engineering and you guys are scaring me. I mean is it that hard? cause im good with math and I never study for it, but it sounds like I will have to study though. thanks for the heads up.

i wouldn't be too scared, no matter how hard anything is, if you have the drive, you can adapt to it, and after awhile you'll just get used to it. also, you might not have to study near as much as you think but you will definitely be doing more work at times.