<p>Alright so I'm going to be a senior and applying to colleges in the fall. I'm leaning towards a business major. What exactly is the difference between economics and classes in a b-school (finance, management, accounting)? Which major would be more appealing to employers? And, can I just study both? Would I be able to study econ freshman year to get a feel of the field, and then go into the b-school soph year?</p>
<p>THanks for clearing things up for me</p>
<p>Normally, you probably won't declare your business major until your second year anyway and most business schools require you to take macro and micro economics. I found economics to be boring and lacking practical usage. That being said, some people like it. Also, employers certainly recruit economics majors (albeit, how much they are recruited would vary depending on the university).</p>
<p>My 2 cents:</p>
<p>I am an econ major because I think it is a lot more interesting than finance, and way more interesting than accounting and marketing (the three things that make up the bulk of a business program). I was originally a business major, but once I took my first econ class I switched majors. Now dread I find business-related courses dreadfully boring, and only wish they weren't compulsory. </p>
<p>The positive side of this is I've learned a lot more interesting stuff and far more mathematically rigorous analysis techniques than business majors would know. The downside is that my knowledge is less practical, and as a fixed income analyst at a boutique investment bank I feel somewhat disadvantaged to those with finance backgrounds. Ultimately though, I think the strong econ background will be beneficial in the long run. </p>
<p>Still, if you could major in something very practical such as human resources management, would you? Frankly I think that would be awful. Imagine studying something for 4 years to learn what others learn in 6 weeks on the job. Brutal.</p>
<p>I think a business major prepares you very well for entry-level positions, but becomes less relevant with time. An econ major makes you really wish you could start your first job with more responsibility, and becomes more relevant as you progress through your career. (this is just the impression I've got, from my very limited actual working experience)</p>
<p>As for which is more recruited, I don't think your major makes much difference, all else being equal. Between a particularly good econ department though and a so-so business school the econ major would probably get the edge, and vice-versa (all else being equal).</p>
<p>To summarize what has been said, Business School tends to be more focused on the "practical side" and more technical in that sense. Economics is more theoretical (to an extent). You can toss economic ideas around in your head and evaluate them more so than business material (if that makes sense). Business material can be learned on the job more so than economic concepts. At some Universities economics is in the college of arts and sciences. This can mean a different set of requirements (besides the major requirements) to fulfill the requirements of that College. For example, in the business school you are less likely to be required to take humanities courses and will instead be required to take an accounting course (or something of the sort). A separate college of arts and sciences might be the opposite. Again (this is somewhat of a generalization) business = solvency and economics = theory</p>
<p>A fair summary, except for the fact that when business majors are required to take courses in accounting, an econ major would more likely be required to take courses in mathematics, beyond the scope of what any business major would likely be exposed to. Economics has nothing to do with humanities. In virtually all countries in the world except the United States and Canada, the study of economics leads to a Bachelor of Science, not a Bachelor of Arts.</p>
<p>oh alright thanks guys. I'm definitely leaning towards an economics major, since I'm interesting in philosophy as well.</p>
<p>nauru,
For some reason I had the impression that you were doing graduate study in econ. Was that someone else on this board?</p>
<p>Mmm sort of. I was accepted to a number of different pure econ masters programs, but ultimately decided on an msc in development economics to start this fall. This is less quantitative than a masters in pure econ. My undergraduate degree is in pure economics though (with some business courses thrown in because university administrators know best, right? ;)).</p>
<p>Hey nauru where did you get your undergrad econ degree from? </p>
<p>I'm majoring in economics at NYU.</p>
<p>Cory, I think economics and philosophy would be an awesome combination. If you choose your courses wisely you can get a fair bit of philosophy of economics, and philosophy of science into your econ degree curriculum. In my opinion this is the most interesting and most challenging aspect of economics. I had only one course in philosophy of economics, but it was the best course I took as an undergraduate. I continue to read about it on my own time, because as you'll find out, there is a lot happening in this field of thought right now.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, economics and business departments tend to attract more than their share of narrow-minded social climbers who couldn't care less about the philosophy behind what they are learning, or the way their textbook theories fall to pieces if certain assumptions are relaxed or revised. Since studying other approaches to economic though (beyond capitalism vs communism, and classical approach vs keynesian approach) won't help them get them that internship at whatever famous company, most students don't care. Many people study economics simply because they think (wrongly) that it will make them rich, or that it will teach them to become an instant millionaire by gambling on securities markets.</p>
<p>So I commend you for not being one of those annoying people I used to have classes with!</p>
<p>FBI, I went to the University of Amsterdam. Maybe you haven't heard of it, but the econ department there is ranked in the top 10 in Europe (including UK). There is an exchange program with NYU I think, not sure but I know some classmates of mine went there last year. A couple of my profs thought very highly of the econ program at NYU.</p>
<p>"Economics has nothing to do with humanities. In virtually all countries in the world except the United States and Canada, the study of economics leads to a Bachelor of Science, not a Bachelor of Arts."</p>
<p>I know that. I was saying that you may be required to take different courses (to fulfill the requirements of the College, not necessarily the requirements of the major) depending on the college you are in (College of Arts and Sciences vs. Business College).</p>
<p>Which is your school more known for? If you are equally interested in both and think you can do just as well in both, then go for the the more prestiguous major at your school, it'll look better to employers.</p>