<p>I'm really torn between finance and comp sci. I enjoy both. Right now I'm a comp sci major and I was wondering if anyone has any knowledge about comp sci degree holders becoming financial analysts. Is it possible, is this a good choice, are comp sci holders in a better position than those who have a finance degree?</p>
<p>Any info is appreciated, thanks guys.</p>
<p>Also, as you may notice I mentioned comp sci / comp eng. This is because I may be transferring and changing my major from comp sci to comp eng. Any additional information regarding the differences between the two (esp starting pay!) would be very helpful. Thanks guys.</p>
<p>I had 4 offers, as a Computer Science senior, to work in the Finance industry, however, as a Technology Analyst.</p>
<p>Financial analysts typically have undergraduate degrees in Finance or Accounting (with extra Finance electives). It’s also possible to pick up finance knowledge in grad school. The requirements to become a CFA are fairly rigorous. A CS or CompEng degree will not prepare you for this career.</p>
<p>I have a B.S. in Economics and I worked in Finance before I decided to go back to school to get a 2nd B.S. in Industrial Engineering. All I can say is that most Financial jobs suck.</p>
<p>I used to work for a small bank, I used to come in every morning and literally do the same crap everyday, pulling the same stupid reports, going over a bunch of paper work, checking off stuff I did not even understand.</p>
<p>One of my favorite duties was going over this list of “terrorist organizations” or some crap the bank received every morning- we had to go over this report every morning and check it against another stupid report, no one ever explained to me what the point of that was, I just knew it had to be done.</p>
<p>I used to reconcile a bunch of crap for this bank- I remember the first week being a bit challenging but once you get the hang of it, it was easy and boring as hell, same crap everyday.</p>
<p>If you watched the movie “Office Space” where Peter pretends to be doing something while zoning out for hours, that was my job in a nutshell, after a few months, I used to do all my duties really slowly, so that I would not finish early and go 2 hours with absolutely nothing to do.</p>
<p>Not to mention that there is a lot of very dumb, stupid people in Finance- My manager was a perfect example, she had a B.A. in Economics but did not know how to do anything, absolutely worthless.</p>
<p>Go for any type of Engineering!</p>
<p>@bschoolwiz - I assumed that the OP was considering a career as a financial analyst rather than an entry level position at a small bank.</p>
<p>"@bschoolwiz - I assumed that the OP was considering a career as a financial analyst rather than an entry level position at a small bank."</p>
<p>I have worked a variety of Financial jobs and they all sucked! </p>
<p>“Financial Analyst” can mean a lot of different things, anything from the guy who pulls meaningless reports at the small bank like I did when I first graduated to the guy who specializes on analyzing a particular segment of the market like being an energy sector analyst for Merryl Lynch.</p>
<p>My experience in the Financial sector was very negative and most of the people that I know that work in Finance either dislike or HATE their jobs.</p>
<p>Anyways, maybe the OP will enjoy doing the same crap everyday or becoming an Excel monkey-I am sure there is people out there who enjoy this type of crap. </p>
<p>If you get into Financial sales, you can make good money, as long as you are willing to sell your soul, your values and your morals.</p>
<p>If you want to become an Investment Banker, you can also be very successful as long as you are willing to sell your soul to the Devil, I mean: corporation. Good luck!</p>