<p>It seems phd is usually necessary. M.s. is only 2 yrs but B.S. & M.S. job options & moving up in ranks are limited. pHd is 6 yrs and I am not sure if I want to do research. However, most graduate program the tuition is waived.</p>
<p>I will probably have to do 3 yrs of an engineering b.s. (waiving the 1st yr classes) and i will have to pay off the tuition. Engineering b.s. is useful and the salary is good.</p>
<p>I am not going to pursue medical, dental, veterinary, or other health profession schools, or teacher.</p>
<p>You shouldn’t pursue a PhD program unless you REALLY love the subject and doing research, and it does not seem like you enjoy either of those. If you pursue a biology PhD, the chances are you’ll be doing research, teaching, or a combination of both for the rest of your life. The pay won’t be great and you’ll be working very hard. So no, you definitely should not be pursuing a biology PhD.</p>
<p>As for engineering, have you ever taken any engineering courses? Usually, the math and physics biology majors is algebra based and will not count towards a math/physics degree. I don’t know about engineering, but I would assume they have their own math/physics (calc based) as well. So depending on which prereq’s you took, you might have to start completely over if you wanted an engineering degree. </p>
<p>It seems like you are approaching this from a benefits points of view (how long will I work, how much will I make, etc.), and I don’t think PhD programs will provide you with anything you are looking for. For engineering, I can’t really say what you should do. I would advise you to really think about what you enjoy doing first, and then decide on a plan.</p>
<p>Are you still a high school student? If so, you don’t know yet the scope of your educational opportunities. I suggest you wait until after your first year of college before you decide on a specific career path.</p>
<p>If engineering is a real possibility, then you should begin right away taking those courses since engineering has a rigid curriculum. You can use your electives by taking biology and other courses to explore a little. As Juillet says, you’ll be taking tons of math (calculus I, II, III, at the very least) and several calc-based physics classes if you start in engineering. Biology PhD programs generally require no more than a year of calculus, plus statistics, although you may find yourself interested in, say, computational biology, in which case you can tailor your courses and research toward that. But who knows? Maybe you’ll find out that you want to be a lawyer or a computer programmer or a marine biologist or a public policy consultant or . . . any one of a number of professions you haven’t yet thought of. Even if you start with engineering, you can switch majors as you figure out what you want.</p>
<p>I’ll echo, Juillet: you don’t want to pursue a PhD unless you’re doing it for the love of the subject matter. No one gets a PhD to get rich. Actually, no one becomes an engineer to do that, either, although the entry-level salaries are better than many.</p>
<p>^ MWFN, I’d love to take credit for this great advice but I didn’t post here - MaceVindaloo did.</p>
<p>In any event, I cosign it, but with the added caveat that if you love biology you may be surprised with what you can do with a BS or an MS in biology. A lot of high school and early college students are only familiar with the limited amount of jobs we see on television and in the movies - attorneys, engineers, physicians, teachers, maybe police officers and CEOs. If you’re not yet in college but you really love biology, perhaps speak with Career Services and some of your professors about what career options there are and what graduating biology majors tend to do if they don’t go to graduate or medical school afterwards. MWFN mentioned a public policy consultant, for example; a biology major with an MPP might be able to work on the Hill directing science policy and helping the law keep up with technology and scientific discoveries, for example.</p>