<p>Hi guys, I've been lurking on this board for a while now but just recently decided I'm going to Columbia (college)!</p>
<p>I do however have some questions regarding some concerns I have. I've always been more science/math oriented and I currently attend a math/science magnet HS. All my SAT II's are in the math and sciences as are my AP's and I do biology research at the CU Medical Center. However, this year, I took IB Economics on a whim... and I absolutely love it! I know that Columbia has a very strong Economics program... </p>
<p>But I've heard that Economics is considered a "cheese" major in general at the ivies. And it's something like the largest department @ CU. I'm afraid that if I do take econ classes and do decide to major in it-- i'll be lost in the crowd. On the other hand, if I major in something like Chemistry/physics, i'm under the impression there's a LOT more personal attention. </p>
<p>I guess I could take both economics & chemistry classes at Columbia, but that seems like I'd be taking unneccessary detours trying to find out what I like while risking myself to the hazards of hard science grade-curves (not that I mind, but if in the end I choose econ... why unneccessarily blow my gpa?). I guess it comes down to this. I love academics and all things equal I think I'd choose economics at this point. But I don't want to be attending Columbia on a "cheese major"-- are the hard sciences more respected in terms of future grad school placement, job prospects, college honors? I was reading on a columbia blog that something like 5/6 last valedictorians are all physics/math majors or something. Any advice/insight? Are there opportunities to truly excel in Economics at Columbia? Thanks!</p>
<p>One way to separate yourself from Econ crowd is to major in Economics-Operations Researchs which is a much more quantitative apporach to Econ. It's basically half regular econ courses, and half modeling/engineering couses. It's done through both the top ranked IEOR and Econ departments, two of the top departments at Columbia. It's a bit harder than regular econ since a lot of the classes are SEAS classes, but it's definitely a way to separate yourself.</p>
<p>Besides econ-operations research, you can also major in econ-math, or econ-statistics, especially if you are considering going on to grad work in econ. They are respectable majors. Your assumption that econ classes will be curved better than physics is not necessarily accurate. Depends on the prof.</p>
<p>You don't need to decide right away. Just set yourself up so that you could still go either direction at the end of first year, or even end of second year, when majors are declared. Your analysis of the differences between the departments is right on. Economics is a mob scene. Physics is a much smaller and undergraduate friendy department, as is math. That's an important consideration for your Columbia experience, all other things being equal. On the other hand, if you do want to become an economist, you should major in economics, and choose the most math-heavy classes.</p>
<p>The other 2 posts are good, but I just wanted to respond to this:</p>
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I'm afraid that if I do take econ classes and do decide to major in it-- i'll be lost in the crowd.
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</p>
<p>At Columbia, it's not like being a high school student who needs to stand out from the pack to get into a top college. If you study what you like and do reasonably well, you'll have tons of doors open to you. Unless you're trying to be a Rhodes Scholar or something, you really aren't competing with your peers at Columbia for some ultra-selective opportunity.</p>
<p>Also, does anyone know if it would be possible to go and do graduate economics at a top place (Harvard, Chicago, Stanford, LSE etc.) if you only minored in economics and weren't able to take many electives (seeing as you have the same maths requirement as an economics major)?</p>