I plan to change my major from sociology to economics when I start university in the fall. I enjoy social sciences but feel sociology won’t give me a good paying job which is why I’m changing to economics. However, I don’t enjoy taking math so I plan earn a BA in economics instead of a BS because I’ve heard it’s less math involved. What is it like being an Econ major? Is it hard?
Really, that’s going to depend on the curriculum of the college you attend and what your aptitude is like in the social sciences. But economics is a higher-paying field because of the quantitative core involved. If you get a BA in economics without the strong quantitative background, you won’t be competitive for the highest-paying jobs in economics (which will involve econometric and financial analysis, which involves math). Economics without the quantitative part is just like any other social science - including sociology.
This is the core of what people mean when they say that the major doesn’t matter so much as what you do with it. A sociology major who learns to program and does two summer internships in app development can get a job at a software company doing that. A philosophy major who works part-time at a company and works their way up to junior management can seamlessly move into senior management when they graduate. An art history major who decides to leave the field can work their way into executive assisting at a financial firm. (These are all examples of actual people, btw.)
Consider also that the unemployment rates for recent college graduates with economics majors (10.4%) is actually slightly higher than the unemployment rate for sociology majors (9.9%). The difference is really in the salaries - sociology majors average $30,000 while economics majors average $46,000, and the sociologists never really make up that gap. But again, the difference is because of the kinds of jobs that economics majors tend to take - involving complex quantitative analysis. Without that quant background, you’re going to be competing for the same kinds of jobs as a sociology major.
If I still want to earn a BA in economics but take more math courses will that make me more competitive when I graduate ?
Also I’m from Canada but will be going to university in the states on a scholarship but do plan to move back to Canada after school. Would it be better if I did a minor in accounting as well?
Depends on the math courses you take. The math courses you would have to take in order to be competitive for the high-paying economic quant jobs are intermediate to advanced. Now, that’s not to say that you can’t get a job with the BA and no math! You certainly can, just like you can get a job with a major in sociology. But if you are concerned with making $$$$, the economics jobs that bring in the most bacon are going to be the ones that emphasize heavy quant skills.