I Need a Sense of Direction

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I'm really unsure about a whole host of things. Here's the deal:</p>

<p>I am interested in Business or Engineering. That's not very focused. I want to have a job where I can give new insight to a company, or at least try to improve it. I'm reasonably good at solving problems and I like to think in unique ways. Here are some majors I'm considering:</p>

<p>Economics
Statistics
Mandarin Chinese (not so much a major, I just want to learn it)
Finance
Operations Research
Computer Science (again, not so much a major)
International Business</p>

<p>The engineering aspect of this really only applies in learning to solve practical problems, and my parents would like to see me major in Engineering (btw, I'm NOT Asian). The idea is to get a job the day after I graduate, with a possible option of going to grad school or business school.</p>

<p>Now let's add some more. I go to a small high school, and I've found that I perform much better in classes where there are less students and I can interact with others more freely. Therefore, I should like liberal arts colleges, but they rarely have Business or Engineering programs.</p>

<p>I'm not finished. Financial issues will be a deciding factor in how I pursue my education. My plan is to apply to several schools, and I will attend the one that gives me the best deal in terms of money. My parents really can't afford an expensive college, as our household income is right around the COA for most elite private schools.</p>

<p>I think that pretty much does it. Disregarding my stats and ECs, what are some colleges I should be looking for?</p>

2

<p>Why do you have to get a job the day you graduate? </p>

<p>YOUR CHOICE OF MAJOR DOES NOT DICTATE WHAT CAREERS YOU'LL BE ABLE TO ENJOY.</p>

<p>There's a 70% chance your first job will be related to your major, but after that, your major will be as important as your middle school classes. You should research what employers really care about when they employ workers. </p>

<p>Most graduates say that if they had to do it over, they'd major in what interested them most. What gets your academic juices flowing? Those are majors you should look at.</p>

<p>Read Major in Success by Patrick Combs. It's wonderful and I hope it'll dispel some of the myths you seem to have.</p>

<p>Since you perform better in smaller classes, find smaller schools! </p>

<p>Have you considered your state university's honors program, if they have one? </p>

<p>What will determine whether you get a job or not is if you have work experience and if you can do the work that the job requires. And a few other smaller things too.</p>

<p>I'd apply to one/two schools that you're confident you can pay for, and then wait to see about the rest and see how the financial aid rolls out. But don't let financial considerations prevent you from applying to a school in the first place. </p>

<p>Maybe you want a school with a study abroad program to China, or you want classes in computer science (a very handy skill to have). The majors you're considering right now don't seem to be your PASSIONS, they seem to be something you want to be good at, because you think that if you major in economics, you'll find a good-paying job easily. </p>

<p>Think about what it is you truly love. This takes time. That's why you want to consider schools where you don't have to declare a major right away. COLLEGE IS A TIME TO DISCOVER WHAT YOU LOVE. That's the beauty of taking a variety of courses--you can discover new subjects that you find very interesting. College is about internal exploration. If you truly love operations research to no end, then think about majoring in it. But don't major in something you aren't truly passionate about, because then you'll fall into a trap that tons of people have fallen into.</p>

<p>So, if I haven't gotten the message across, read MAJOR IN SUCCESS, and think about what's truly important to you in your education.</p>

<p>P.S. It's fine to have experience with those subjects you listed. But this is done by taking courses in a few related subjects and having internships and work experience, not necessarily majoring in them.</p>

<p>You get the skills for the work force in courses and work experiences, major in something you love, and get a job in something you love! That is the way to go about it.</p>

<p>More pressing issues to you now are the size of the school, level of intellectualism, academic/work programs you want (maybe study abroad and plentiful internship opportunities with a good advising system that will assist you in getting a job), conservative/liberal/split, student body. After all, you're going to be stuck with your classmates for quite a while.</p>

<p>Happy trails.</p>

3

<p>Look at Olin and Worchester Polytechnic for hands-on problem solving. Olin has free tuition, and Worchester Poly gives aid. Look at Case Western- great aid and a good school. Other than that- hate to say it, but your wide range of rather practical interests screams out major state university. Your desire for small classes clashes with that, although you could get into an honors program. Olin is small- definitely check it out. Olin for engineering, then a business graduate school could work out well.</p>

4

<p>Olin has small hands-on classes, intense engineering education w/ Babson College next door where you can take business classes. Entrepreneurship is strong at Babson and Olin.</p>

<p>OH. . . yeah--it's the heart of it all you know! :)</p>

5

<p>dchow, your post was very encouraging. Actually, my "passions" major is Economics. If I'm going by passions alone, that would narrow down my list to Economics, Computer Science, and Mandarin Chinese. But for some reason, I was under the impression that an Economics degree really meant nothing. Now that just sounds silly.</p>

<p>OSU does have an honors program, which I've researched a little. Judging from their website, it's basically just a regular college with a few honors courses and the rest regular, run of the mill OSU courses. However, the honors college does have separate housing, and it has about 1200 students. Naturally, these students would be some of Ohio's best, yet they are going to OSU for financial reasons. This would be similar to my situation. I will definitely apply to OSU because it has so much to offer, and I believe its national reputation as an academic university will continue to grow.</p>

<p>I've looked at Olin, but I'm not sure if it's a good fit for me. Babson, however, is a school I'm considering seriously. I'm not sure about its financial aid, but since it's very easy to start investing there, college just could pay for itself much quicker than it would anywhere else.</p>

<p>Actually, I hadn't given Case much thought, but I honestly don't know why. It's less than 3 hours from me (that's a short distance in the Midwest), and I know someone who goes there.</p>

<p>dchow, I have to give you props again. I thought the whole "passion" thing was just for rich kids with no motivation to succeed in life, but you showed me that's not true. </p>

<p>One thing I might add is that co-op programs are nice. I know some students who have done this, and I believe it's a fantastic opportunity that opens many doors for later, since it provides work experience and it's a supplement to a great classroom education. Any university that offers these scores extra points in my book, but it's most certainly not a requirement since I know it's a relatively new concept.</p>