<p>As college application time is arriving soon, I have been having lots of thoughts on what I want to major in during my college years. Chemistry has always been a fascination of mine, but I have been looking into related fields because it doesn't seem like a sole chemistry major can get a well paying job these days. </p>
<p>Chemical engineering is one of my top choices because it has a great potential job outlook, and I don't necessarily have to go to graduate school to get a well paying job. However, it is an extremely challenging major. On the other hand, I also like biochemistry, which I would follow up with pharmacy school. The idea of being a pharmacologist sounds exciting and fun to me because I would get to make medicine (lots of chem :D) and I'd be helping people as well, which would make me happy. It also seems slightly less intense than engineering.</p>
<p>Which major would be better for someone like me, who is tantalized by the wonders of chemistry?</p>
<p>Honestly, if your going in as a freshman put down “undecided science/pre med” if you don’t already know because you will have 2 years to decide what you want to do.</p>
<p>Wouldn’t it be better to go in knowing what I want to do? Because if I choose biochem and opt to prep for pharmacy school I’d need to fulfill all the prerequisites. And for engineering, wouldn’t that hinder my ability complete all of the degree’s requirements before I graduate and slow my progress?</p>
<p>@hotchair5 actually, I take back what I said to an extent. you do have to get a GIST of what you want to do. because at many schools around me there is a “associate of science with pre engineering” curriculum alongside your standard associates of arts or science. because quite a few people change majors along the way and lose time anyway (I believe the average major change in the US is 3 times…?) At many schools the pre requisites for chemistry and ChemE overlap quite a bit (For example, both have to take up to take calculus 3 at the better schools usually.) though your school may be different. I would suggest looking at the pre reqs for both majors and comparing them. you may have to do an extra semester or 2 for catch up, but I personally would do undecided science, unless of course you KNOW you what you want to do 100%.</p>
<p>Although i will add this… if you want to make great money and can handle it, go into ChemE. but if you have any dream of non engineering grad school, go into non engineering science. there is a reason many consider engineering as a whole to be the GPA killer, and med school could care less about your major, all they care about is GPA and MCAT scores (pharmacy is probably similar though I am not an expert on this matter).</p>
<p>Perhaps go to a school with a chemical engineering program that has you taking organic chemistry your sophomore year. Not all do. It will give you a chance to try engineering and see if that is what you want to do. If you decide it isn’t for you, you are still on your way to another path within chemistry. </p>
<p>Job prospect-wise, chemistry is better than biochemistry by a rather substantial margin, especially if you take more to physical chemistry rather than the more applied experimental work; having strong quantitative skills is a big plus, regardless of where you end up. Most people I know who ended up in biochem are those who convinced themselves that they can’t do math.</p>
<p>Chemical engineering is the best of the bunch for job prospects, but I will tell you that given that you have aspirations for going into professional school, you will be severely disappointed by the kind of work a ChemE degree trains you for.</p>
<p>@NeoDymium What do you mean that I will be severely disappointed by the work ChemE trains me for if I have aspirations for professional school? Can you elaborate?</p>
<p>Also, here’s what I am thinking of doing: Apply to all my schools as a ChemE major and then based on how well I do and how much I enjoy it, I can decide on whether or not I should switch my major. Does that sound like a decent plan?</p>
<p>@hotchair5 I believe what he means is that because chemical engineers do not see that much R&D, you may not like it because you are probably not going to actually be developing new drugs. Engineers run the supply line and make it run as efficiently as possible and work in a cubicle. PhD people develop new drugs with the help of lab techs. And undergraduates are the said lab techs or on the supply line run by the chemical engineer.</p>
<p>Of course, This is a general synopsis and not the golden rule.</p>
What Ultimablade posted is true, but I will go a bit further than he did.</p>
<p>Yes, you will not see much R&D, or chemical synthesis, and you won’t even see all that much chemistry for that matter - you will spend about 2 years on physics for nonreactive substances. Though you will learn a fair bit of chemistry, the focus on that knowledge will be decidedly weak.</p>
<p>More important than that, though, is the fundamental difference between engineering and professional school: engineering is a worker’s degree, similar to that of a welder, technician, etc. Granted, it is a higher quality worker’s degree than that of a welder with more brain work, but the fact remains that you are trained to work in a factory. PhD-level work is more like the kind of work you’d be interested in, but I think that sort of specializing defeats the entire purpose of why you want a ChemE degree. Not to mention the fact that ChemE GPAs are notoriously low, and by giving yourself a backup that I am certain you will come to dislike, you will end up compromising your main plan.</p>
<p>I suggest you go for chemistry (not biochemistry). The job outlook is worse, but if you learn enough of the math-intensive material you will be able to manage, even if your original plan falls through.</p>
<p>So let me summarize what you’ve said. If I major in ChemE and get a bachelor’s degree in the field, the type of work I’d be doing would mainly be industrial management, correct? What kind of work would I be doing if I continued to a master’s degree? How would it be similar or different? Or would I just be managing on a larger scale?</p>
<p>I don’t necessarily need to work directly in R&D to be satisfied, but it would be a plus. In addition, something I probably should have clarified earlier as well is that I intend to go to graduate school, regardless of the bachelor’s degree I obtain. The only difference would be the amount of time spent between undergrad and grad school, and the type of graduate school. </p>
<p>With an engineering degree, I would spend a couple of years in the work force and attempt to gain some experience, along with a moderately reliable job. Then, I could hopefully get the company to assist me with my graduate school tuition. While with a chem degree I could still do research, but I would need to advance straight to professional school in order to get an education that would set me up with a good job, so I would have no financial assistance other than that provided by the school.</p>
<p>Lastly, do you mean I would be disappointed with a degree in pharmacology (as that is my backup plan)? How so?</p>
<p>If you want to do molecular synthesis, Chemistry may be a better way to go. Chem E’s can do molecular synthesis, but in smaller numbers than Chemists. However, you could be that minority and still make that Engineer’s salary. </p>
<p>Masters degree work in ChemE is very similar to bachelors degree work, albeit with a higher pay and more advanced tasks. In either case, you basically monitor a chemical process (i.e. the large-scale production of chemical X from chemicals Y and Z) considering efficiency, safety, etc. Requires chemistry knowledge but not really chemistry work. PhD work is a bit different; in either academia or industry you will focus on developing new processes, usually to satisfy the needs of whatever company is paying your salary or research funding.</p>
<p>On the issue of money: I am far from a proponent of the “do what you love” philosophy, but it is far better to do something you have an interest in than the “mercenary” option of choosing something that pays more with no real regard for how much it interests you. The best option is to pick something that pays reasonably well that won’t force you to take a vow of poverty to do so. </p>
<p>If your main interest in ChemE is the high salary, you’ll find that it’s not all that it’s made out to be. For one, having employers pay for grad school is becoming an increasingly rare trend; employers can afford to be cheap these days. On the other hand, PhD programs in science(and engineering) usually have funding that will pay for your living and tuition as long as you commit the years it takes to actually graduate. Pharmacy school won’t pay for you, but you won’t find an employer who would be willing to pay for it.</p>
<p>Pharmacy school sounds more like your primary goal, in terms of what you want to end up doing. By doing a ChemE degree, you all but lock yourself out of that option. In the long run, I don’t think you’ll find that to be a wise decision. </p>
<p>If you think of ChemE as a path to chemistry work with a higher salary, you’ll find that it isn’t really the case. Most people I know who went into ChemE with that mindset didn’t really enjoy it.</p>
<p>How do you figure? After sophomore year of a ChemE, you have General Chem and Organic Chem, and maybe some thermo and fluids. What is stopping you from saying I want to go into more pharmaceutical science?</p>
More so GPA than classes. But as far as the chemistry itself: the problem is that the chemistry generally stops after OChem, maybe thermo counts as another chemistry class. Seldom do ChemE programs cover all of Quantum mechanics, higher level Thermodynamics, Analytical Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, Biochem, instruments, specialty courses, etc. ChemE the degree only requires a relatively basic chemistry education; the rest is more of the traditional engineering coursework with minimal chemistry.</p>
<p>I have seen programs that do cover all of these subjects on top of the engineering coursework, and even if they don’t, it’s not impossible to cover it all anyways by taking classes outside of the major requirements. But not only would you have to be an exceptional student to be able to cover 1.5x the expected workload, you’d also lose out on the chance to take other coursework that would be useful - more in-depth classes on drug synthesis, maybe a few classes on math or computation, anything else that might be useful. </p>
<p>If what you’re advocating is to try engineering up to the sophomore year then switch from there: that does work class-wise, and that’s not really a bad option. Both spend their first year learning calculus, physics, chemistry, etc, so switching won’t be too difficult. With ChemE specifically though, the coursework more characteristic of the profession as a whole comes in the upper division classes, so it’s best to do your research before then.</p>
<p>The main problem I am seeing here is the GPA. Obviously ChemE is a real killer in that department. However, I know I may be sounding overconfident and naive, but I am positive that I can hold at least a 3.0 GPA, barring any unusual circumstances. Also, I am aware that many pharmacy programs require at least a 3.2 or a 3.5 to even be considered for admission. I would be able to create that extra boost with junior and senior year if I were to decide to change my major.</p>
<p>With that said, I still think the best plan of action would be to apply as a ChemE, as it is a much harder program to be accepted into, and switching out is easier than switching in. It seems like research during my freshman and sophomore years, or an internship, would be the best method of experimenting in the engineering field.</p>
<p>That’s not a bad course of action, although as a rule of thumb I’d say that you shouldn’t spend too much time to make your choice. If you can figure it out in 1-2 years, that won’t be too bad in terms of lost time, but 3 years is pushing it.</p>
<p>If you can’t hold a 3.0 in engineering, then I’m going to say that you’re unlikely to gain much by switching to a marginally easier major. Chemistry may be easier (in terms of receiving grades but probably not in workload), but it’s not easy by any means. You can always load up on GPA-boosting classes if you really do need a point or two more.</p>
<p>I definitely won’t take more than 2 years to decide. Anyways, thanks for all the responses! I’m glad to know I have a viable plan going into college.</p>