At this point, is undergrad B-School worthless?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Most of my friends have decided that they'll be business majors (Kelley at Indiana, Farmer at Miami OH, Sch. of Bus. at Illinois, etc.), but I fear for their job prospects. Especially considering the effects of the recession on job prospects, isn't an undergraduate business degree worthless at this point?</p>

2

<p>No it is not. However, many people do favor STEM subjects for degrees which may have broader application.</p>

3

<p>Not worthless - but IMO, not as valuable as a degree in a subject that requires one to develop critical thinking ability and to communicate effectively, which are what you really need in business.</p>

<p>A smart person who knows how to analyze complex problems and deal with ambiguity can pick up the technical skills that you learn in an undergrad business program in a matter of months; conversely, somebody who only knows the technical side of things is unlikely to pick up critical thinking capability on the job. And most sophisticated employers know this.</p>

<p>I think I know whereof I speak: I have an undergrad business degree (and an MBA) and 35 years of experience in business, both as an employee and a business owner; were I hiring college grads today, I’d take the English or history or political science or math major over the management or finance or marketing major without thinking twice about it. The one exception would be the accounting major for a job that required that kind of specialized knowledge.</p>

<p>So my advice would be: pick a field that really interests you and that will stretch your mind. Take the most challenging courses available to you. Seek out electives that expand your horizons. Make sure you have a solid math background and top-notch communication skills. There are no guarantees, of course, but you’ll be well-positioned for that first job - and, more importantly, prepared to succeed throughout life at a high level.</p>

4

<p>there are some cases like stern at nyu where what school you’re in matters for banking recruiting</p>

<p>and annasdad, hiring a political science major over a finance major (assuming all else is equal) for a business role is kind of stupid. it’s not like finance majors only take finance classes for 4 years. and plenty of kids ARE passionate about finance. some of the finance cases i’ve done take plenty of critical thinking well beyond knowing how to do a DCF. </p>

<p>just sayin’</p>

5

<p>Yes, but unlike poli sci, finance is not a real major, sorry to say :(</p>

6

<p>

According to the most recent National Association of Colleges and Employers survey, the majors with the best job prospects include accounting, business, and marketing. Other good ones are computer science, engineering, and nursing/health care.</p>

<p>It’s interesting that supply is so high (~20% major in business), yet demand is high as well.</p>

7

<p>sure it is</p>

<p>[Undergraduate</a> Program - The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania](<a href=“http://fnce.wharton.upenn.edu/programs/undergrad_program.cfm]Undergraduate”>http://fnce.wharton.upenn.edu/programs/undergrad_program.cfm)
<a href=“http://www.stern.nyu.edu/UC/CurrentStudents/Academics/MajorsAndMinors/CON_021958[/url]”>http://www.stern.nyu.edu/UC/CurrentStudents/Academics/MajorsAndMinors/CON_021958&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

8

<p>[8</a> Reasons Not to Get a Business Degree - CBS MoneyWatch.com](<a href=“MoneyWatch: Financial news, world finance and market news, your money, product recalls updated daily - CBS News”>MoneyWatch: Financial news, world finance and market news, your money, product recalls updated daily - CBS News)</p>

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</p>

<p>And it goes on.</p>

<p>And it exactly tracks what I’ve concluded after 35 years in business (and two business degrees).</p>

9

<p>Yes, if you’re one of the very, very tiny group who can get into (and pay for) Wharton, Sloan, or Stern, or another b-school of that caliber, then the general information in post 8 may not apply to you. But for 98% of business majors, the likelihood is that at 40, you’re going to be working for a philosophy or English major.</p>

10

<p>Compare the RECENT placement of business and non-business grads from the same schools. What was maybe true over the last 35 years means NOTHING going forward. Business grads are getting 25% more and up to start over most L&S grads–even if they can find a real job–and most cannot. B school placement at schools like Kelly is still much better than at the other IU schools. And Payscale ain’t worth crap. For one it lumps every crappy business program from places like Southeast Nowhere State with the good ones like Kelly and Farmer. The average grad this year from any Top 25 b school is getting over $50k to start plus bonus. Finance people over $60k. Look to see what Starbucks is paying to the average L&S grads. About $9/hr. I can provide real numbers from the schools too unlike annasdad.</p>

<p>Unless you get into an Ivy these days liberal arts degrees are worth crap. MOST larger companies are still doing most recruiting at B schools. Not to mention nearly all accounting firms–which are hiring lots of people even today.
The idea that the average poli sci major has a tougher program is absurd.</p>

11

<p>Annsadad–we have been through this before and you continue to post BS. Most S&P or Fortune 500 ceos were NEVER liberal arts majors except for those that majored in economics (which is often the substitute/proxy for a business major at highly competitive private schools) . For their large numbers L&S majors barely even show up in the data.</p>

<p><a href=“http://content.spencerstuart.com/sswebsite/pdf/lib/2008_RTTT_Final_summary.pdf#page=8[/url]”>http://content.spencerstuart.com/sswebsite/pdf/lib/2008_RTTT_Final_summary.pdf#page=8&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

12

<p>Ivies besides penn: all liberal arts anyway. you can’t major in finance at harvard and every major gets recruited for everything. </p>

<p>Everywhere else: it matters. all on campus recruiting for fortune 500’s i’ve seen SPECIFICALLY requires finance/accounting majors. you can’t even apply otherwise unless you’re a superstar econ major/chinese minor with a 3.9 and you convince the recruiter to give you a shot. there’s only 10-20 spots for on campus interviews. why would a recruiter take a shot on someone with a completely different skillset? they’d rather just take the top 20 marketing majors if the job is a marketing job.</p>

<p>kids coming out of undergrad b schools that are being recruited for big firms have a major leg up on their counterparts in the humanities. to say otherwise is absurd. i’m sorry your two business degrees weren’t fulfilling but perhaps you should have gone somewhere else or studied what you were actually passionate about. there is no reason to knock all finance majors.</p>

13

<p>Wiz:</p>

<p>On the contrary, I think an undergraduate business degree is a smart course of action. It may even obviate the need to go to graduate school.</p>

<p>My brother’s kid got a BBA from a top college, and is now making $250,000 a year, five years out of school. Don’t expect that, of course.</p>

14

<p>OP, you can give credence to surveys from the National Association of Colleges and Employers and the Association of American Colleges and Universities - or to anecdotal nonsense from anonymous posters on the Internet.</p>

<p>Your choice.</p>

15

<p>Or you can look at real results from a range of schools</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.bus.umich.edu/pdf/EmploymentData2011.pdf[/url]”>http://www.bus.umich.edu/pdf/EmploymentData2011.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“http://www.commerce.virginia.edu/career_services/stats/Documents/2011FinalStats.pdf[/url]”>http://www.commerce.virginia.edu/career_services/stats/Documents/2011FinalStats.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“Undergraduate Career Services | Undergraduate Career Services | Indiana Kelley”>Undergraduate Career Services | Undergraduate Career Services | Indiana Kelley;

<p><a href=“http://www.bus.wisc.edu/career/common/yir/YIR_10_11.pdf[/url]”>http://www.bus.wisc.edu/career/common/yir/YIR_10_11.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“http://business.illinois.edu/bcs/_shared/pdf/Employment-Profile.pdf[/url]”>http://business.illinois.edu/bcs/_shared/pdf/Employment-Profile.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“http://www.carlsonschool.umn.edu/publications/employmentreport/[/url]”>http://www.carlsonschool.umn.edu/publications/employmentreport/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“http://fisher.osu.edu/mag/2011/careerreport/pageflip.html[/url]”>http://fisher.osu.edu/mag/2011/careerreport/pageflip.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

16

<p>Accounting is hot. Unless they torch the tax code and go to a flat tax. </p>

<p>Another hot area is a Masters in Health Administration, MHA. Hospital management. The big post war baby boom is graying and spending more time there.</p>

17

<p>if you come out of a top school then you should be fine</p>