<p>I am going to be attending USC Marshall and I plan on double majoring.
I have heard that it is relatively easy to double major and that SC is very encouraging towards students who want to enter that path.</p>
<p>I am considering 3 different paths:</p>
<p>Single major in business administration</p>
<p>Double major in business administration and computer science</p>
<p>Double major in business administration and accounting</p>
<p>I have never considered accounting and do not plan on being an accountant; however, I have heard that business undergrads with an accounting background are valued highly, even if not for accounting. And USC's accounting is pretty well known. </p>
<p>I am interested in computer science because I feel that programming is an essential skill in today's modern world. </p>
<p>Which do you feel would ultimately be the prudent choice?</p>
<p>I've also heard of an accelerated accounting program where you can get a masters degree in 5 years. What are your opinions about this and can I have an emphasis on Business Administration and graduate with a masters in accounting for the accelerated program? Or do I have to single major in accounting?</p>
<p>You should sit down with the university catalogue (probably all online now) and look at the various degree requirements. Yes, USC <em>strongly</em> encourages you to study two or more different fields, whether as a double major or major/minor because it allows you to approach the challenges you’ll face in a professional environment from multiple perspectives. I studied film and psychology and look at storytelling a lot through the lens of the social sciences and actually have friends who, for example, do movies about physics (because that was a double major).</p>
<p>If you’re gung ho over CS but not accounting then you probably shouldn’t do accounting. I would definitely talk to the people in Marshall and Viterbi, if possible over the summer or or at your orientation, so you can start lining up the requisite exploratory classes necessary. The only problem with studying two different disciplines in two different schools is that you only have so much space in your class schedule, especially if you want to graduate in 4 years. One frustration of mine was that they didn’t offer any financial aid (only loans) for summer classes, so I dropped a second minor.</p>
<p>Business admin/Comp Sci is going to make you quite different than everyone you’ll be competing against for internships and such. CS is about much more than programming though, so make sure you are actually committed to learning about it and are actually interested in it, rather than just wanting that piece of paper as a leg up for your business credentials.</p>
<p>Definitely talk to your adviser about your plans.</p>
<p>My son is getting dual degrees in Business & Accounting this May (not a double major since it’s different schools). There’s a lot of duplicity in requirements so it was easy for him to do this in four years. At the end of the day, he didn’t love accounting. But he does have a great job lined up after graduation and the Accounting degree did contribute to his CV. YMMV</p>
<p>There have been changes in the 5 year Accounting Masters/CPA track. You need to talk to your counselor about that. Back in 2009 (entering w/ max AP credits) it was doable in 4 years. May not be the case now.</p>
<p>Have you ever taken a CS class before? Its not exactly fun and games and is more work than you probably expect. I would take the 2 intro classes CSCI 101/102 and see if you truly want to pursue it after. Otherwise, just do the combined buad/accounting as stated above, many requirements overlap.</p>
<p>May I ask what job he has lined up? Did he graduate in 4 years? And how many AP tests did he pass. Was it necessary that he pass as much as possible?</p>
<p>His emphasis at Marshall is Finance, he landed a Finance Management job at a big bank in the LA area. It was also his (well paid) internship last summer. </p>
<p>He did this in four years easily with fun (sports, music, etc.) classes along the way. He came in with 28 AP units. I think USC caps at 32… He did have 8 units of CC credits that he didn’t use. (Long story: college classes taught on HS campuses aren’t allowed. But other students taking the same classes from the same HS did get credit. He didn’t want to throw those students under the bus for something that didn’t really matter at the end of the day so he didn’t contest it.) </p>
<p>In answer to your question, he did pass all his AP tests – allowing him to take the fun classes (about six) that weren’t required by either major.</p>
<p>Did he say it was difficult to maintain a competitive GPA with a double major?
I can assume that accounting is very analytical and math based.</p>
<p>Also, does your son think that his second major in accounting helped him in his job search or did his friends who single majored (Marshall business administration) get jobs of similar caliber?</p>
<p>He did very well grade-wise and had plenty of time for extracurricular activities. He’s strong in math, but found accounting was really more learning rules, regulations and procedures as opposed to actually crunching numbers.</p>
<p>So did it help him land the job? No, that was from the internship. Did it help him land the internship? Maybe. There are multiple leadership/mentorship/case study competition/internship/etc. opportunities at Marshall that can really help build the CV. </p>
<p>Most of his friends do have something nice lined up. (Don’t know who studied what, but they’re all sharp kids who took advantage of the resources available to them.) The ones who don’t either majored in partying or are trust fund babies who don’t really need to work.</p>
<p>Saw your other thread… GLP is a great program. You take a pass/fail 2 unit class each semester freshman year taught by Dean Ellis with guest speakers who are huge movers & shakers in the business community. Spring Break is a trip to Shanghai or Beijing. I think the top 10% of Marshall Freshman are invited to participate. The trip is not inexpensive, but there are need-based scholarships available.</p>
<p>My uncle is a USC alum, class of '08. He double majored in Business Administration and Civil Engineering (but it took him five years). He is now at UCLA law school. He says that it was pretty hard at some times, but that it was super manageable stretched out over five years. He also says that the double major was invaluable.</p>
<p>I’m also planning to double major in economics and English. I plan to eventually go to business school.</p>
<p>I love a lot of subjects and finally decided to major in economics after careful research about the financial compensations of certain majors. The majors that make the most money are majors wherein the student uses high level mathematics in ways that are practically applicable: think: economics, compsci, and all the engineering majors. I think it is much rarer to find someone who can both double major in business and compsci, then someone who can double major in business and accounting (no offense to accounting). It’s simply a more diversified skill set, therefore of lesser supply, and therefore demanding higher compensation in a market that hugely values mathematical abilities. In addition, the technology sector keeps on growing and growing, and a double major in compsci will certainly distinguish you for positions in technology companies should you go that route. Many people can get an accounting degree, but few people can get a computer science degree. If you combine compsci with business, I think you’d be pretty un-defeat-able as far as being a job applicant goes, especially for lucrative business jobs in technology firms. My two cents. Really though, just do whatever makes you happy and you’ll find that money is incidental and far more rewarding with that mindset.</p>