<p>Engineering is MUCH, MUCH harder than Stats.</p>
<p>Stats is much, much easier than math.</p>
<p>There’s so much misinformation on this thread. Probability and multivariable calc are not considered upper level classes. But I’ll concede they’re not lower level either.</p>
<p>Upper level classes are classes such as Complex variables, numerical analysis, abstract algebra, real analysis, and topology (at the undergrad level).
A stats major isn’t looked as favorably as a math major because they don’t take those classes.</p>
<p>That being said, I think stats is a great major to do (especially with econ). Just don’t be under the delusion that it’s as difficult or harder than engineering or math.</p>
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. why do you think stats is MUCH MUCH easier than Stats if stats majors take more math than engineering majors do? (stats take all but diff equations, but have to take Proofs) </p>
<p>It seems there is a lot of mixed opinions about the difficulty of stats major. Some people think it is easier than pre-med (which i disagree) and cs majors ( i would say it’s on par). Some think it is on par with engineering ( i think engineering is harder, because of the crazy amount of units, which require you to take many hardcore classes during any given semester. The engineering profs also tend to hold their students to higher students because engineering students would one day make crucial decisions that could mean life or death of potential consumers of their products.). Perhaps this is because it is because so few people major in stats and because the curriculum varies so much from school to school.</p>
<p>Engineering can be a lot of work due to many courses with labs and design projects. CS can be similar with large software projects.</p>
<p>Math and statistics may have less work, but some find them more intellectually difficult than engineering or CS (particularly math with proofs like real analysis). Note that statistics majors considering graduate study may be advised to take advanced math courses in real analysis and linear algebra.</p>
<p>If nothing else, the grading and workload of engineering courses (especially but not only at the intro level) is going to be much harsher.</p>
<p>The learning curve will also be steeper. In stats you can start out fairly gently with stats for social science and work your way up to the more theoretical stuff. In engineering it’s pretty much straight into difficult applied physics problems.</p>
<p>Engineering programs have to be ABET certified, so they’re under outside pressure to be uniformly difficult.</p>
<p>Does your stats major require you to take Real Analysis, Abstract Algebra, Complex Analysis, or Topology? Because if it doesn’t, then you’re not taking more math than math majors. You might be doing more calculation based courses or even more courses overall, but you’re not doing the more theoretical, bread-and-butter courses that are the core of a rigorous math degree.</p>
<p>If the stats curriculum at your school is the exact same as your school’s engineering or math curriculum, then your school is doing one of the two wrong. I would still urge you to do engineering or math in that case just because of the perceived value of that degree outside of your school</p>
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<p>Stats is easier than PreMed and CS is harder. You’re basing your judgement in terms of graduation requirements. That’s not how you do it. You judge it based off of quality of content (not quantity).</p>
<p>I also urge you not to make your judgement off of what people have told you, unless you’ve actually experienced the three paths (I have) or have experience in grad schools or job searching (I just got done with this, so what people want/expect is fresh in my mind).</p>
<p>BTW, that “crucial life or death decisions” statement is just propaganda. Some of them ar doing things like that, but also plenty of engineers are just fixing calendars and stuff to people’s phones for a living. Heck, I’d say that statement applies more to the premed students than the engineering students.</p>
<p>Just for your reference.
A premed, off the top of my head) will be taking a year of physics, bio, chem, orgo, math, english. An engineering student would be doing all of that anyway.</p>
<p>Most say Physics is the most difficult, followed by math, then engineering. Only Economics would be easier than Stats? There are plenty of majors that are easier than Stats (that are non-STEM majors, of course). So if you’re saying that Economics would be the only employable major that is easier than Stats, i guess you would be right. however, economics isn’t that employable though. Neither is Stats. Or anything outside of engineering or CS. :(</p>
<p>Yeah but the premed majors must also go to med school in order to make those crucial decisions. Engineers can enter industry after finishing UG. I’m not talking about which profession has to make more crucial decision; I’m talking about why engineering majors are so tough. Doctors may have to make more life-or-death decisions,but the premed profs leave that kind of training to med school. Engineering profs don’t get that luxury.</p>
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<p>I wasn’t judging the difficulty based on the amount of units. In fact, premed generally has more units than do Stats majors. I think pre-med is easier than stats because i think the difficulty of premed is not in the content of the required courses but the “requirement” to get all A’s or else your degree is useless due to how competitive it is to get into med school. Although premeds have to take calculus too, they often have to take the easier version of calculus than the physics, engineering, stats, and math majors. The premeds only have 2 semesters of calculus while the engineers, stats, math, and physics majors have 3 semesters. Stats majors don’t have to take physics -again, premeds take the easier version of physics than the engineers - or chem, but they do have to take calculus 1-3, linear algebra, programming, proofs, and intro to SAS. Pure stats majors will have to take even more upper div math courses. O chem is probably the hardest class premeds have to take (it depends on if one is better at non-calculus based physics or o chem). So i would say Applied stats is on par with premed in terms of difficulty and Pure stats is harder than premed.</p>
<p>What is hardest depends on the student. Some students in engineering/math/statistics/physics/CS would find majoring in English literature to be very difficult.</p>
<p>Econ from a good school is definitely employable. Stats from anywhere is employable.</p>
<p>I think you’re vastly overblowing the “life and death” decisions. Nobody is entrusting 21 year olds with those kinds of decisions unless they’ve shown they’re ready. Through their job - not academics.</p>
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Well, PreMed is not an actual major (maybe at your school it is. IDK). It’s just a set of requirements for people that major in something. Sure, you need all A’s to get into a good med school, but you can still get in to other places with a 3.4 GPA. That’s like saying a math major is hard because you need a 3.7 to work for Morgan Stanley. You’re discounting all of the other firms you could get into with a 3.2 GPA.
I doubt premeds have to take an easier version of calculus or physics. They probably just have the option. If they do take an easier version, they’re just making their own application for med school weaker. Obviously med schools wont value watered down classes as much as rigorous ones.</p>
<p>As for the requirements you listed, Calc 1-3 are basic classes. Anyone intelligent enough to be a doctor could probably learn them. I’ll concede linear algebra and proofs. Programming depends on how in-depth you go (intro to SAS is a great course, but it’s not in-depth).</p>
<p>OChem is a killer. Much harder than physics without calc. You can take physics in high school. Nobody is learning ochem in high school.</p>
<p>I don’t understand your statement about applied vs pure stats. stats, in itself, is an applied form of math. I didn’t know there was such thing as pure stats vs applied stats.</p>
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Very few students would find English literature difficult. Those classes are like 25% attendance, always curved to a B+ or so, and are rarely built upon each other. Sure, some people might be better at math than English, but I doubt anyone who grew up here and is a math student would be having a “difficult” time with English. How much partying do English majors do compared to Math majors? How much free time do they have? That tells you enough right there.</p>
<p>Medical schools in the United states are regulated; there is a cap on how many students can be medical students in a given year. That way, the supply and demand of doctors matches. On the contrary, pharmacy school is not regulated. That is why there is a glut of pharmacists on the job market now. I doubt you could get into any medical school with a 3.4 without having a stellar MCAT score to compensate.
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That they are given the option means they don’t need the hardcore version of calculus to understand their other core classes, which means that the major is less math-intensive than engineering/stats/math/physics. Less math often means less difficulty for most people.
Calculus 3 (vector analysis) is not easy! In fact, calculus 2 is usually the class that tells if a student would able to hack engineering. I agree anyone with half a brain could hack calculus 1, though.
Ochem may be hard, but the chemical engineers have to take that and Pchem. Also, while premeds can arrange their courses to take Ochem with other fluffy classes to maximize their GPAs, engineers have so many units, they can’t do that. Engineers often take Ochem and Pchem with classes like Thermodynamics. In conclusion, engineer is way harder than premed, which is essential a life science major (biology, biological sciences, etc.). there is just no comparison.
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Well there are. Look at the curriculum at most universities. Many offer degrees in both. The relationship is analogous to a pure math vs applied math degree.</p>
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I agree with you 100%. Literature degrees don’t require much intelligence or work. Its difficulty comes from lack of interest and boredom. I would fail miserably a as literature major not because of the rigor but because i hate literature, which i find really boring. Literature is just horse**** anyways. I won’t feel like I’m learn anything, and really, I wouldn’t be. Have you seen the garbage they publish nowadays? Pure crap! If you don’t believe me check out The Road by McCarthy.</p>
<p>Whoops. You never said pre-med was harder than engineering. College confidential won’t let me edit. Scratch what i said about comparing engineering and premed.</p>
<p>Medical school is not regulated for supply and demand. It’s regulated because people don’t want idiots with no intelligence cutting them open or prescribing them drugs.</p>
<p>Sure, less math means less difficulty. But, if the less math means more chem/orgo/etc, is it still less difficult? I’m arguing no.</p>
<p>Just link me to a curriculum or a website explaining pure stats vs applied stats. Without looking, I will tell you right now that it is not analagous to pure/applied math.</p>
<p>Calc 3 is not easy. I never said it was. It’s still a basic math class. And anyone who could become a doctor can learn it. As I said.</p>
Almost anyone could complete Calc 3 if they tried hard enough, just as anyone could get a degree in physics or engineering if they had the motivation. Any doctor could complete calc 3, yes, but it is still not required of them to get into medical school. However, Stats majors are required to take Calc 3 along with linear algebra and proofs. So pre med (essentially a biology degree) major isn’t more difficult than stats major. That’s all I’m saying.</p>
<p>Because pure math is theory intensive. Applied Math is a bit more computational.</p>
<p>Stats is not theory intensive, pure or not.</p>
<p>I think I understand the difference between the two now. But “pure” stats is not as theoretical as pure math. It can’t be since stats is an applied form of math. You can apply it further and make it computational stats or biostats (which is what it seems like you mean).</p>
<p>Okay, premed isn’t as difficult as stats at your school. I’ll agree with that. But keep in mind that, at some schools (like mine), it would be. (we don’t have a stats major, but I’ve taken the courses that would correspond to it).</p>
<p>At the end of the day, I highly doubt folks in the HR departments are trying to dissect the difficulty between a Math, Applied Math, Statistics, Applied Statistics, Engineering, Physics or Computer Science major.</p>
<p>They are just trying to hire who they think will contribute to their circuit analysis, operating system, database, signal analysis and parallel computation efforts.</p>
<p>Like I said earlier, Econ from a good school is definitely employable. Stats from anywhere is employable. And same is true for any other technical major.</p>
<p>You said (in another topic) that you did not want to go to graduate school, and here in this topic you decided against double major.</p>
<p>[UC</a> Davis General Catalog | Statistics | The Program](<a href=“http://catalog.ucdavis.edu/programs/STA/STAprog.html]UC”>http://catalog.ucdavis.edu/programs/STA/STAprog.html)
“General Option in Statistics (BS) emphasizes statistical theory and is especially recommended as preparation for graduate study in statistics.
Applied Statistics Options (A.B. and B.S.) emphasize statistical applications. These programs are recommended for students who do not plan to pursue graduate studies in statistics and those who are interested in combining the statistics study with a second major or minor program in the social and life sciences.
Computational Statistics Option (B.S.) emphasizes computing. This major is recommended for students interested in the computational and data management aspects of statistical analysis.” </p>
<p>If you don’t want graduate school, general statistics is out. If you don’t want double major applied statistics is out. Computational statistics is a very good degree by itself. Do you absolutely hate programming? Have you ever tried any coding?</p>
<p>About statistics and economics. Several people mentioned actuary (and I am not sure there are many other options with this degree combination). It is a very lucrative sphere, people make a lot of money. The “problem” with this profession is that the degree itself is not enough, you have to take several qualification exams, and your earnings depend on the level of exam.</p>
why do you think stats is MUCH MUCH easier than Stats if stats majors take more math than engineering majors do? (stats take all but diff equations, but have to take Proofs) </p>