<p>Sorry for the long post, but I am in a dilemna. I was planning to do business and something related to marketing or international business, but this quickly changed when a college friend of mine was discussing this. He majored in electrical engineering and now works for NASA in Orlando. He makes about 55k to 60k and he went to UCF. Now I got accepted to UF and he told me constantly in our convo DO NOT DO UNDERGRADUATE BUSINESS. He said that every other major looks down on them. He told me to pick another field and then get a MBA if I plan to do business. So the question is should I major in business ugrad or engineering. I am interested in numbers and the world of electronics such as new computers, new cellphones, and just new technology. I am fascinated by technology. Also he told me that he works 40hrs a week and his hrs daily are flexible. That sounds like the job for me I do not want to work 100hrs a week and earn money that I will probably not enjoy. So any advice would be great.</p>
<p>Well as long as you're willing to cope with lots of Math and challenging time-consuming courses for four years, you could get your B.S in Electrical Engineering and then get your MBA. Quite a few electrical engineers do this, and electrical engineers with MBAs are sought after by companies a lot because they know quite a bit about both sides of the playing field.</p>
<p>yeah electrical engineering sounds interesting but I have no idea what it is besides circuits and I never had physics before. Is there a specific type of engineering for new technology such as cellphones, mp3s, and laptops. Also is it true that the engineering job is more work in college but more free time afterwards and business is less work in college and more work at job.</p>
<p>If you go engineering, you can always get a job in business after graduation. The reverse is not true. </p>
<p>I'm at UF myself, the engineering program is solid and yes business is generally looked at as a joke major. If you have an interest in technology and engineering and want to challenge yourself, I'd say go engineering. It is a lot more work in college as opposed to business. My business major friends and roommates go to class 3 times a week and study about 1/2 the time or less than I do, but I think the effort is worth it. Time spent on the job is more of a case by case situation.</p>
<p>engineers look DOWN on business majors? who knew! they also look down on lib. arts majors...nursing majors....teaching majors....bio majors.....geology majors....their pointy haired bosses.....civil engineers.....computer science majors (33 |5 |_3373Я)....chem majors (a chemist is a chemE minus 30 grand ROFLCOPTER)..... basically everyone.</p>
<p>long story short, your friend is incredibly biased. it is not possible for a person to be more biased than your friend is. with that said, the fact that it's Florida...and you wanna do Marketing...that's probably a bad combination if you want to get taken seriously in the business world. there's a big difference between marketing and, say, accounting FWIW.</p>
<p>you should probably at least try engineering though. since it takes 110+ credit hours versus 70ish for business, if you're going to do it, you should start early.</p>
<p>
[quote]
If you go engineering, you can always get a job in business after graduation. The reverse is not true.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>This is generally true, although I go to a semi-target school for investment banks, and its very difficult to get interviews if you're not from the business school (my school is decently ranked in both business and engineering). </p>
<p>Undergrad engineering is pretty strong, but it does have some limitations in the business world, especially since you are going to a non/semi-target school.</p>
<p>If you like business and engineering, check out industrial engineering. That is what i am going into and it is very interesting major too.</p>
<p>"This is generally true, although I go to a semi-target school for investment banks, and its very difficult to get interviews if you're not from the business school (my school is decently ranked in both business and engineering)."</p>
<p>That's a good point, it may be hard to get one of those extremely prestigious business jobs as an engineering major. How many kids at UF business get these jobs anyway? (honest question, I dont know the answer).</p>
<p>And Industrial/Systems Engineering is definitely an interesting major. Gets labeled/made fun of as the easy engineering major (it is generally easier), but there's a lot of high paying and fun opportunities in the field.</p>
<p>I think the only reason Industrial Engineers get made fun of is because the work is a lot more rewarding compared to the engineers. They get payed almost the same amount and the work is easier and probably a lot more fun. I am not in this major yet but i will be in it this September.</p>
<p>Two years ago, when my son was applying to colleges, he was also not sure whether he wanted engineering or business. Ultimately, he decided on engineering and choose an Industrial Engineering major and a Business minor. His plan is to eventually get an MBA also. He seems very happy with his decision and I don't think he cares if other engineering majors make fun of him. He just got offered a co-op position with GE Energy, which they said is a pipeline for entry into their Corporate Leadership Programs.</p>
<p>Well just make sure if you go with engineering you have a reasonable interest in working in the profession and not just as a back-up to preferably work in business directly after college (nothing wrong with that but it’s risky if you don’t manage and get stuck in engineering), because it's easier said than done to just grab an MBA and go into business (if it's finance, consulting or banking at top firms). To get into top firms after undergrad some prerequisite’s would probably be a 3.3 gpa and a demonstrated interest in business (extra-c's, business minor, start-up, business related internships etc). If it's a top MBA after a couple of years of working, your on the job performance would be vital so just make sure you're carrying a certain level of enthusiasm with you. You would also have to explain why you want an MBA.</p>
<p>Also I'm not sure on this one, but I would assume top MBA programs accept more students from business related backgrounds. There may be a majority of engineering students, but who’s to say those engineers where actually working in industry and not at quants at GS? Someone who knows please correct me on this.</p>
<p>LOTS of MBA's at top 10 schools with undergrad engineering degrees. The reason is the training in analytical thinking and problem solving that most other undergrad programs don't require of their students to the same depth and breadth. Also, most engineers work in management and are responsible to the cost effective operation of people, processes and things. Most design and all applied research requires a masters or PhD.</p>
<p>A very large proportion of Fortune 500 execs have engineering degrees.</p>
<p>Engr, is all work experience regarded the same?
For example, someone working in a scientific/engineering field for 3-5 years might not have been given a decent amount of management responsibility. Would a pharmacist who wants to switch careers have a hard time explaining why he/she would want an MBA? Would the engineer be at a disadvantage because he/she had little business related experience to share?</p>
<p>I'm asking because my theory is that most of the engineers who get top 10 schools were actually quants at top firms who are now trying to get a formal education in finance/consulting for career advancement or are senior engineers who want MBA's for career advancement within engineering. I'm not sure what a junior engineer would bring to the business table and I don't know why a senior engineer would get an MBA to get into finance only to start off with less than he earns now.</p>
<p>Am I right? I'm going to try to find statistics on the backgrounds of the students with technical degrees to back up this claim.</p>