Business Admin vs. Economics?

College Majors Business Major
1

<p>I am currently through a year of community college as a Business Administration major. I know want to switch to Economics, 1. Because it sounds more interesting, 2. I would be able to keep all my credits so far, 3. It would greatly increase my chances of transferring into my #1 school. (UC Berkeley). According to UCB's website only around 6.5% of transfers are accepted into their Business Administration school. While about 24% of their Economics transfers are accepted. So for me, more than tripling my odds sounds great. But what major is more useful in the long run? Which has a higher starting salary and which can you take further?</p>

<p>Thoughts? Opinions? Insight?</p>

2

<p>If you do well at Berkeley you should be able to find a job with either.</p>

3

<p>These articles may help you in your decision. Good luck!</p>

<p>[What</a> is the difference between a business degree and an economics degree?](<a href=“http://www.top-business-degrees.net/faq/what-is-the-difference-between-a-business-degree-and-an-economics-degree/]What”>What is The Difference Between a Business Degree and An Economics Degree? - The Top Business Schools and Degrees)
[Five</a> degrees employers want the most - Yahoo! Education](<a href=“Yahoo | Mail, Weather, Search, Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos”>Yahoo | Mail, Weather, Search, Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos)</p>

4

<p>Either of those is fine degrees. Economics majors tend to have a little harder time finding a job right out of the gate but tend to excel after that especially if you pair it with an mba in say, supply chain management. Also, you can go to economics grad school with a BA but it is a lot harder and you will have to take classes before you can even get into the school whereas if you had an economics degree you can do both. BTW to the yahoo link above they come out with a new one of those it seems like every single week.</p>

5

<p>Yahoo career articles are trash, they advise people to go into graphic design.</p>

6

<p>Many people say that you can do both with an economics degree. But you can’t really get into fields like accounting or marketing. You might be able to get into finance or business admin, but good jobs at investment banking or management consulting prefer graduates from top business schools. Not just because of the education they receive, but also because of the network they have.</p>

<p>You may also argue that a lot of stuff are on the job training, but ibankers hate stupid questions. So you have to be a self-starter and pick up all the materials by yourself. You may also do an MBA, but you’re doing it because you are transitioning from Economics to Business, while business applicants are doing it for more senior positions or better opportunities.</p>

<p>Of course there are always exceptions, but why go through the troubles if you know what you want to do already. Opening more options to yourselves can also be a good way to kill those options.</p>

<p>You should only think about three things.

  1. which one do you like more? (You say economics is more interesting, but do you know what classes are you going to take as a junior or senior?)
  2. which one are you good at?
  3. which one pays you more? (Are you willing to suck up in the financial industry or get your master and PhD in economics)</p>
7

<p>UCB is probably worth it. You get better exit opportunities as an econ major from UCB, then, for example UC Davis.</p>