<p>Everyone tells me that Columbia SEAS is a great place to be at if I'm not sure I want to be an engineer, but why is that? If I suddenly realize that I don't like engineering, I could change to some liberal arts or pure science major at a school like Berkeley, but at Columbia SEAS, I am confined to engineering majors, without me doing an internal transfer (which I hear is very hard to do).</p>
<p>the thing with columbia seas is that with a chemE engineering degree you can go into practically every field for example.
actually 70% of chemE bs graduates dont go into chemical engineering. they do whatever they want (law, med, teaching, etc.)
you do have to major in an engineering field at seas.
but you can do whatever you want with that degree!
i dont think a engineering degree from berkeley has that leverage.</p>
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Everyone tells me that Columbia SEAS is a great place to be at if I'm not sure I want to be an engineer, but why is that? If I suddenly realize that I don't like engineering, I could change to some liberal arts or pure science major at a school like Berkeley, but at Columbia SEAS, I am confined to engineering majors, without me doing an internal transfer (which I hear is very hard to do).
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<p>There's two separate things -- 1) do you want to STUDY engineering in college?, and 2) do you want to WORK in engineering for your career. There are a lot of people who choose SEAS because they answer YES to 1) and NO to 2). I'm not really sure what you're asking, though.</p>
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i dont think a engineering degree from berkeley has that leverage.
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<p>Of course it does. The main thing a Cal engineering degree doesn't allow you do do that a Columbia engineering degree provides is easy access to NYC finance/banking jobs. All of the other options you listed are just as available to Cal engineers.</p>
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[quote]
There's two separate things -- 1) do you want to STUDY engineering in college?, and 2) do you want to WORK in engineering for your career. There are a lot of people who choose SEAS because they answer YES to 1) and NO to 2). I'm not really sure what you're asking, though.
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<p>I want to study engineering in college, and do engineering management or business/banking/finance as a career. I'm worried that I'll suddenly learn in college that I really like something like anthropology, and I won't be able to major in it because of the SEAS/CC divide.</p>
<p>do you like writing papers or doing math problems more?</p>
<p>if you dont LOVE writing long papers, dont major in a liberal art. its fine to take classes in it but no reason to change a major or anything...</p>
<p>Your anthro concern is a valid one, but if such is the case, you could either try to transfer to CC or take anthro classes for your non-technical electives.</p>
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do you like writing papers or doing math problems more?
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<p>IMO, this is a little simplistic. OP raises a valid concern -- one of the limitations of SEAS, given the CC/SEAS divide, is that someone who is well-rounded and has diverse interests doesn't have the same range of options that he would have at another school.</p>
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dont think a engineering degree from berkeley has that leverage.
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<p>Well, Columbia already qualified the statement above pretty well. Uh, polandspringg, if one does well at Berkeley in engineering, one can do most things -- law school, med school, business, etc. -- or as a graduate of a top 2 or 3 engineering program, just stay in engineering. Yes, Columbia gives an edge in finance. But Berkeley gives an edge in Silicon Valley and related industries; local markets are what is key.</p>
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I'm not sure I want to be an engineer
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<p>Then don't be one. If you go to Columbia, I gotta believe it's easier to transfer from SEAS to the liberal arts than vice versa there. If you go to Berkeley, I am nearly positive the same kind of move is easy.</p>
<p>DaTurtle, I stuck in the EXACT same position as you. I'm not sure whether to go to Berkeley's L&S undecided or Columbia SEAS because I'm not really sure what I want to do...</p>
<p>which option is better if you find out you want a finance job or something...</p>
<p>SEAS without a question. If you want a finance internship (with the apropo grades), you can have one.</p>
<p>C02 is spot on with one point:
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There's two separate things -- 1) do you want to STUDY engineering in college?, and 2) do you want to WORK in engineering for your career. There are a lot of people who choose SEAS because they answer YES to 1) and NO to 2).
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there are hundreds of SEAS engineers who happen to be GOOD at math/science stuff but don't LOVE it. I'm one of them. Some people enter SEAS with specific plans to go into business/finance or law school/med school afterwards, but most discover along the way that their dreams of being a physicist (or a biomedical engineer) just aren't the right fit. There's nothing wrong with that - that's what college is for in the first place!</p>
<p>But more importantly, that's what makes SEAS such a great option for those who aren't 100% sure that they want to do, say, robotics. If you know right now that you want to study AI for the rest of your life, go to MIT or CMU or Caltech or Berkeley. But what sets Columbia apart is how strong it is across the board. We have a great social sciences education (esp polisci and econ), a great traditional-humanities education (inc history, classics, etc), and great hard sciences - although those may not be the best in the world. Even as an engineer, you will get exposed to, and have the opportunity to take advantage of, world-class options throughout the academic spectrum. Some engineers find that their true calling was psychology (or something) and transfer to CC, something that is much easier once you're in at SEAS. Some find that SEAS gives them a great background and connections for the numerous finance and business opportunities in NYC. It certainly gives you a leg up in grad school and professional school, if you decide you've found your calling. But what makes Columbia stand out in that regard, including SEAS, is how well-rounded your opportunity spectrum is. No option you take is anything but a very good one.</p>
<p>If you really can't hack engineering, I don't see why Columbia wouldn't let you transfer into Columbia College.</p>