Hey all! I am currently thinking about double-majoring in college but would like to know the pros and cons before I do. Any advice you can give me? I am primarily looking at any extra time it would take to complete the double-major and anything else you would like to add. The two majors would be MS in Statistics and MS in Finance.
I’m confused. College or grad school. The title says one thing but the actual post confuses me.
Oh! Sorry. By College, I meant grad school.
You can’t double major in grad school anywhere that I have heard of. Each degree is distinct, and with some rare exceptions may only be applied for and completed one at a time. So you would need to apply for Statistics, get accepted, complete the degree, and then repeat the process for Finance.
Judging from your prior posts you seem to be confused on the difference between college and grad school. It seems you are just applying to college now. Unless you have very specific interests in one field that can be met with a joint BS/MS program, you shouldn’t be thinking about grad school yet. Go to college, get your bachelors, than figure out if you want to continue in one specific field and get a masters in that. If you want another masters in a separate field, that will be an entirely separate degree.
I think you need to put all if your graduate school questions on hold for now and just figure out what you are doing as an undergraduate first. It’s foolish to be working so hard to plan your graduate studies when you haven’t even started your undergraduate work and don’t have the foggiest idea what sort of specialization you’d actually like to do in graduate school anyway.
Graduate school should be used to help you specialize your skills toward a specific career goal. A double major is sort of anathema to that idea in almost any case I can imagine.
@JustAskingAround
I REALLY think you need some clarification and definitions:
Undergraduate=Without a college degree from any university.
This is what you are applying for now.
You take 4 years of classes, with the last two years, focused on your major field of study.
You end up with a “Bachelors” degree. BA, BS, (Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, etc.)
Most students don’t double-major because it can impact their GPA. Weak GPA can mean weak intern and job prospects, and, weak graduate school admission chances.
Graduate=Received a college degree from a respected university and applying for further study in a very specific field.
Requires a strong grade point average- received at the previous university, and generally requires a test called the GRE (Graduate Record examination) and letters of recommendation from the previous university’s professors.
Graduate studies are tough. You spend a lot of time studying, doing research, writing your thesis/dissertation, participating in your internships, and supporting yourself (because it is expensive to go to grad school). Some grad students have to do all of the previous, AND have to teach “undergraduate” students.
So, are you sure- you think- you can do two graduate courses of study? Where would you find the time? I did one field, and my daily schedule was non-stop from 5:30 am to midnight every day.
Forgot to add:
When you get to the point of graduating from Grad school, you present your thesis or dissertation to your committee. If your study is valid, your name is submitted for graduation for a Master of Arts or a Master of Science (MA, MS, or Ph.D.) degree. Of course all of this is based on the specific university program and its requirements. MBA’s are different.
Not all master’s programs require a thesis; some are coursework only, and you don’t necessarily have to present.
There are some dual-degree programs in which you can get two master’s degrees concurrently, more or less, but I don’t know if any exist in finance and statistics. I’m not sure you would even need to do this; if you go to the right university/program, you could get an MS in finance and take plenty of courses in statistics, or vice versa. Many graduate programs allow you a lot of flexibility in the coursework that you take and how you build your curriculum.
I agree, though, that you should focus on planning and finishing undergrad for now. Revisit this in your junior year of college.