<p>Is it possible to do an engineering major along with an economics major if I'm going into Trinity this fall as a freshman?</p>
<p>If you’re enrolled in trinity, why would you do it that way? If you want the engineering degree you should be in Pratt, and do a double-major with econ. That is how my roommate did it. Otherwise, well I’m not completely sure but you can imagine the Pratt requirements are going to be much stiffer than the trinity requirements. If trinity is your primary “school” then you are making it appear as though the engineering degree is a “side” degree, which it isn’t since it’s going to dominate your workload, guaranteed. I didn’t double major in Econ but I do have my b.s.e. from Duke and that alone it stringent enough, requirements-wise.</p>
<p>To be honest, I don’t really plan on even using the engineering degree ever. I’m planning to go into ibanking/HF down the road but my traditional asian parents want to be able to tell their friends that their son is becoming an engineer (oh the thought itself scares me). But I suppose during OCR and stuff it couldn’t hurt to have a double major.</p>
<p>I was also considering double majoring in econ and math, while doing the MMS minor. Better option?</p>
<p>Engineering + economics is a popular double major and coveted by i-banking and management consulting firms. If one of your majors is in engineering, you MUST be enrolled in Pratt. You don’t have a choice. You cannot major in engineering and be enrolled as a Trinity student, but it’s quite common to double major in a Trinity major while enrolled as a Pratt student.</p>
<p>Having said that, I’d recommend that you do NOT major in engineering if it’s simply to appease your parents. The requirements are way too stringent for you to have to take that many classes in something you’re not even interested in. Note that most Duke engineering graduates, however, do not actually get a career in engineering - consulting and finance are very popular. For Mech Eng, 50% of grads go into those two fields, with the other 50% split between all other sectors and grad school.</p>
<p>Double majoring in econ and math is a marketable combination, especially if you want to be on the quant side of things. But just note that math, like engineering, isn’t for the faint of heart and is nothing like high school math, so I’d take a few courses (which you have to do for econ anyways) before dedicating myself to that. I wouldn’t really recommend the MMS certificate (there is no minor). It’s not really that respected to be completely honest, but I guess if you want some fun business courses, it’s not a bad thing to have. MMS is known as having easy courses. Perhaps a finance minor would be a good addition, which is brand new.</p>
<p>In the end, I’d recommend taking courses in a variety of fields and seeing what interests you. College is about exploration and your interests will probably change a bit. Good luck!</p>
<p>Wow, because your parents want to say you have an engineering degree, that is why you are planning on getting one? I’ll let you right now that you’d drop out of the engineering program in less than a year. That’s also very sad and worrisome to hear. </p>
<p>Math and econ is a much better option, obviously, but again math is a difficult major in itself (clearly). </p>
<p>My advice would be to not get bogged down by the “double major” bandwagon and just start out taking courses that you’re not sure about. You don’t have to double major in anything. That’s just something that might seem marketable, but there are WAY too many other factors that play into an employer’s decision other than what your major is or if your double-majoring. They would probably be more concerned with their own end anyway, and luck/timing plays a big part. </p>
<p>I would just ask you to think to yourself and ponder: why exactly are you double majoring, because it is not easy. You’ll be overloading your semesters at some point, unless your very lucky with scheduling. And if you’re doing it for marketing purposes, then I’ll tell you this: in a 20-minute interview with an employer, they’ll be more interested in your speaking/presentation abilities and your enthusiasm than what your major is. Of course, you need the credentials to begin with, but why oversaturate it for someone you don’t know if it’s not what you want to do? You’d be making it pretty difficult for yourself. </p>
<p>What if you realize something else is your passion? I don’t know what the Trinity first year requirements are, if any, but if you can allow it in your schedule without conflicts and you have the opportunity, you should take something odd or unusual. You may not ever have the opportunity (or the professor) for that again. I took a World Cup and World Politics class and it was honestly more memorable than any other class I’ve taken at Duke. You just don’t know. Neither do we. </p>
<p>MMS: I agree. I took MMS 120 and it was pretty useless. The certificate program is easy and you don’t learn anything. Although G is the man! Coolest professor at Duke.</p>