<p>I was recently accepted to UChicago and am planning on double majoring in economics and biology. I know that the biology major is hard mainly in part due to gen chem, o chem, etc... I have also heard that the economics major is difficult. Would anyone like to elaborate on why the economics major is so difficult? I have searched many threads but have not been able to unearth any specific reasons other then the fact there are lots of graduate students teaching. From what I have seen there are 4 introductory Econ classes, various math and stats classes, and economics electives. Perhaps the math classes are what make the major difficult. Also, does anyone think it would be impossible to double major in Econ and bio? I will be running track and working about 10 hours a week so I would probably already have a busy schedule if I was only majoring in one area.</p>
<p>The Economics major has a reputation for being hard because it’s hard. That was a really bad pun. What I really mean is the undergraduate economics taught at Chicago is harder (in the sense of being more quantitative and academic i.e. the ‘hard’ sciences) that that taught at other top universities. The result is that one not only needs to be good qualitative econ (econ common sense, etc.) but also good with vector calculus, analysis, etc. So, no, the problem isn’t that there are a lot of math classes; the difficulty is that there’s a lot of math in Economics in general :).</p>
<p>But it’s the math that makes it fun! promise!</p>
<p>Thanks for the information! I love math so I feel like I would really enjoy the major 
Do you think it’s even possible for me to major in economics in biology and economics though? I don’t want to be in over my head…</p>
<p>Technically, it’s certainly possible. For example, I’m planning on double-majoring in Economics and Computer Science, two fields which probably have as much in common as Econ and Biology :).</p>
<p>As far as difficulty/ overwhelmingness (lol, yay fake words!), be smart about how you plan out your classes and you should be ok. That means not taking AP5 (Honors) Bio and Econ 200’s at the same time, watching what you’re taking concurrently with Econometrics, etc. I’ve met a lot of Econ/X people (even an Econ/Music major), and they seem to be doing fine, sometimes even better than the pure Econ guys.</p>
<p>Ok thanks for the reassurance :)</p>
<p>One more thing. Would you say getting A’s in Econ classes is doable if one puts the work in?</p>
<p>If you want my honest answer, I don’t know if UChicago is where you will thrive if you are already worried about grades. People do get “As.” Some go to people who are gifted in the subject and don’t have to put much effort into it. Others go to people who put a lot of work into and improve immensely.</p>
<p>I had a friend last quarter who was taking Econ 198 who did all of the reading multiple times, took notes of the readings and in class, did a bunch of practice problems, etc. etc. and did ok while I know others who consistently stated they put less than 2 hours into the class per week and many probably ended up getting “As.”</p>
<p>Your grade will largely depend on exams where you will be expected to do a lot more than simply restate what your professors wrote on the board/what you read for class. This means being able to think critically, logically, and analytically about entirely new ideas (and better than 90% of your class if you want an A).</p>
<p>Thanks for the honest input CS. I will be entering UChicago with two major interests, biology and economics. Eventually I will have to decide whether I intend to go on to med school or take an opposite course and go on to grad school for economics. I just want to keep the opportunity of getting into a great med school by maintaining a high gpa.</p>
<p>Believe me, I am, and always have been, more intrigued by actual learning. I realize that what I get out of the class is more important than the grade I receive. Sadly, med school admissions officers don’t think the same way. In essence, I want to explore both of my interests but don’t want to kill my chances for med school. Sadly, I’ll probably just have to explore both areas and eventually choose to focus on one of them. </p>
<p>Once again, thanks for the honest input. I appreciate it.</p>