<p>Hello everyone!</p>
<p>As the title implies, I am having a very difficult time deciding between computer science and finance. A little about myself, I live in Utah and am currently in 12 grade. I' received almost all credits I needed for graduation by 11th grade and because of that I have been working full time at a tech start up in my area while I've been finishing up the last few credits. I took a banking class a few years ago and that introduced me to the finance sector. I really enjoyed that class and it motivated me to learn more. I have a few thousand dollars in an account that I have been trading with for about two years now and I know and get along with some pretty successful businessmen in my area that could provide me with decent connections everyone seems to say you need in order to make it in the finance world. However, I think my biggest weakness in this area is while I'm not extremely shy, I don't typically go out of my way to meet new people. In finance it seems many positions are about trying to sell yourself or at least dealing with and trying to find new clients.</p>
<p>I have always had a big interest in computers and technology. While I have not done to much programming outside of basic html. I have spent lots of my time tinkering with tech. Every itouch or cell phone i've ever had I have jail broken and can spend lots of enjoyable hours just flashing new roms, messing around with clock speeds, and fidgeting with kernel settings. The last few computers my family or myself have owned have been built by me. Also as I previously stated I currently work at an IT start up and while I don't absolutely love going to work, it's the first job I've had that I can easily sink 50-60 hours a week into without thinking to much of it. They are starting to open up a programming departments that I would love to be apart of as well so I have been spending my few spare moments trying to find effective ways to learn how to code before school starts. </p>
<p>I am starting college at UVU which is a popular cc in my area. My plan is to get my first two years done here and then transfer to a better uni later on to limit costs. This also gives me a couple years to decide but I would like to have a solid idea of what I want to do in the back of my head going into it. I have honestly gone back and forth between the two for a long time now and after reading some threads here from similar topics and others I can honestly say I love advice that many people on this site give. I'm not asking you to decide for me obviously but maybe sharing some of your experiences or enlightening me on things you have come to learn or think I may not fully understand would really be very helpful and appreciated. </p>
<p>Thanks in advance and sorry about he long post!</p>
<p>Finance majors are fairly rare. I would suggest major in CS (with research if possible) and get a masters in finance. Masters only takes one year (9 months or so). However, your main problem is what do you want to do for your career. Finance can be fun, but there are plenty of finance academias out there, so since you are already experienced and skilled in CS, I say stick to CS. You could self study Finance concepts and do some trading.</p>
<p>“already experienced and skilled in CS, I say stick to CS.”</p>
<p>I don’t know if he is. Basic HTML is NOT the same as programming. While user experience certainly helps, programming is a major part of CS. Have you tried C++/Java/C/Python or anything? I feel that would be a critical part of this decision. While there are certainly CS jobs out there that aren’t huge in programming, at the very least you will encounter a lot in academics.</p>
<p>If you want to test out programming, try Python on codeacademy.com</p>
<p>I’ve spent some time learning javascript in codeacademy.com. Awhile ago I tapped into C++ and enjoyed it but could never find any real good online resources other than a few youtube channels so I didn’t do it for too long. I will definitely spend some time trying out Python to see if I like it though. </p>
<p>Python is a very common starting language due to its syntax simplicity combined with the logical structures of Java/C++. If you find yourself liking Python, particular the more advanced stuff on codeacademy for it, then programming is probably a great option for you.</p>
<p>I can’t speak to the finance side at all really, but if you enjoy and have talent in CS, it is always a good decision IMO to go into it. As Woandering said, you could always self study finance, or even minor / take some classes in it.</p>
<p>@PengPhils
My main point was, plenty of people major in CS, while Finance (or any specifically business related subjects) are left to Grad. Furthermore, unless the OP wants to become purely an investor of some sort, a specified skill set (such as CS) is preferred for a business career. You don’t get management positions straight away. </p>
<p>Even in investing, knowing a specific area can help you with investing in businesses regarding that area (although I’m not so sure this is true for CS). Overall, if investing is a hobby, self study a few useful concepts. If investing becomes a major part of your life, get a minor in it. If you want to be a businessman of some sort, take a MBA or MA in Finance after undergrad. In all situations, I believe taking CS is better.</p>
<p>ONE EXCEPTION. In fact, I am interested in the same areas as you, but my interests and experience lean towards business and finance than CS. While most of my college list is planned for a CS Major and some sort of business minor, my top college has a combined BA/MA Finance program, meaning I get a MA in Finance in 4 years. You should pursue this if you are extremely interested in getting a job in finance after undergrad, because this will help more than CS. (I do want such a job, and I hope to pursue a CS minor at the same time). </p>
<p>I did not mention this before and hesitate to do so now because, as I said, your interests and even if minimal experience leans towards CS rather than finance. If this is a changing point in your life, and you wholeheartedly want to get a job in finance, go for a BA/MA program in Finance. Good luck!</p>
<p>EDIT: Sorry, I just reread your post. It seems you have already been admitted to a college, in which case (unless your college happens to have a BA/MA program) you cannot take such a program. It would be insanely hard to do as a transfer due to the requirements. Final thought: stick with CS. Minor in finance. Best of luck to you.</p>
Was reading through this after a Google search on the same question to provide advice for someone. Wanted to tack on as I think it’s a useful question that more and more people are asking and could be useful to just have this thread. Found a couple of interesting links and having gone into finance myself [worked in investment banking, then consulting, now in Silicon Valley at a start up], my bias is definitely towards CS [which I didn’t study].
Found a cool LinkedIn post today that I thought laid out some of the benefits [and also some benefits for studying finance]: https://■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/pulse/computer-science-vs-finance-saleem-s-khatri?trk=prof-post
This part in particular:
Solving actual, meaningful problems that will impact the world. Advances in computing have allowed humans to perform remarkable feats of technology and create systems that we would have otherwise deemed impossible. This ranges from code breaking (e.g., Alan Turing in WWII) to building the search engine to cryptocurrencies. CS is moving the world forward – that sounds a lot more exciting than building Excel models and pitch books for 100 hours every week.
Innovation is rewarded. If you’re good, that’s all that matters. There isn’t politicking or a never ending rat race to get noticed. It’s all about your code. A small company called ITA software blew the hyper-competitive airfare search industry wide open by writing an incredible piece of code in Lisp. They got bought by Google, for $700 million. Good engineers and computer scientists are compensated extremely well. It’s no coincidence that most of the wealth that has been created over the past 20 years is centered in Silicon Valley.
You’re part of a community. Programmers tend to be thoughtful and kind people. That’s my personal experience at least. It’s programmers who brought you Reddit. It’s programmers who worked together to create Bitcoin. It’s a collaborative community that engages itself in a meaningful way to solve complex problems and is driven by more than just a desire to get wealthy.