Is Economics a good major?

<p>I am attending the University of Minnesota- Twin Cities and plan on graduating with a BA in Economics and POSSIBLY a BA in Psychology (double majoring).. If not, then just a BA in Economics w/minor in Psychology.</p>

<p>But Do you think that I could make a lot of $$ upon graduating? Could earning $60-70,000 be a possibility? UofM is supposed to be a very well known Economics program.</p>

<p>I eventually plan on getting a MBA or going to grad school.</p>

<p>So, what's your opinion? Do you think it's worth being ~$12,000 in debt for the undergrad degree?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>You probably won’t earn that much money from jump, but yeah it’s totally worth it. Great program, one of the best on the planet.</p>

<p>So the short answer is yes, I’d pay $12.000 for a BA in Economics from UMN. Shoot, I’ll owe more than that with my BS in Econ from UW.</p>

<p>okay, this is NOT FAIR.</p>

<p>I am from a poor family that’s the first one to go to college in my generation. They don’t know much about it since they are from foreign country they think anyone who goes to college automatically becomes rich.</p>

<p>I am going to BUST MY A$$ IN COLLEGE AND NOT EVEN BE ABLE TO LIVE COMFORTABLY WITH A NICE CAR, HOUSE, ETC? THIS ISN’T FAIR AT ALL!!! WHAT THE HELL!! I NEED AT LEAST 60-70,000!!! DOES AN ECON MAJOR MAKE THAT MUCH!!! EVERYONE IS SAYING NO.</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/internships-careers-employment/1121619-university-graduate-career-surveys.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/internships-careers-employment/1121619-university-graduate-career-surveys.html&lt;/a&gt; can give some indication of what graduates in various majors find in the job market.</p>

<p>Xavi is saying that if you look for a job that is paying 60-70k fresh out of college, you may not find one. You’ll earn more money within 5 years, kid. But you can’t become the CEO of a company before you work there. That isn’t how it works. </p>

<p>But still, I think whoever is telling you you won’t make that much money is wrong. There are a few Econ majors that make 60k out of college. But because an economics major’s lucrative job doesn’t contain economics in its title, people get confused and don’t understand that it is usually the Econ majors who get that job.</p>

<p>The ONLY way you can be GUARUNTEED that much money after graduation is if you major in certain types of engineering. But honestly, your degree is better than most undergraduate degrees for job prospects. Heck, it’s actually the next best undergraduate degree next to engineering.</p>

<p>Also, that is an incredibly small amount of debt there. Most people will never have that small of a debt over four years.</p>

<p>Kid, calm the entitlement complex down…You have to walk before you can run. If you want to make bank right outta college, try Engineering. Besides you can certainly live off of <60k–especially as a young single college grad.</p>

<p>Whatever you do your gonna have to realize life isn’t fair and your not entitled to anything, so be willing to put in the work if you want to have a nice house, car, etc…</p>

<p>Lesson #1: Life’s not fair.</p>

<p>And mikey, I know a whole lot of people who have been doing their jobs with degrees in accounting and engineering with 10-15-20 years experience on their jobs. Many make less than $60k. Some make up $85 (the IT developers and engineers). Some make more. I know IT managers in large corprations making a base salary of $70K. I know people with 20 years of IT experience who are doing temp jobs for $20/hour.</p>

<p>And that leads to lesson #2: Lose the attitude. If that shows when you interview, you won’t get a job. You shout because you think you are entitlted to something. If I caught even a smidgeon of that, I wouldn’t hire you.</p>

<p>@OP:</p>

<p>Where are you trying to live? I mean here in Seattle $48,000 will get you all of what you described. If ucbalumnus’ stats hold then the average Econ BA will get you about $55,000 and that’s not bad at all. Especially with only $12,000 in debt.</p>

<p>What the hell are you, 5 years old? Cry me a river.
You’re never going to make $60-70k a year fresh out of college. Guess what? You want money, you have to work your way up.</p>

<p>■■■■■.</p>

<p>10char</p>

<p>Few pieces of advice:

  1. Caps lock is extremely off-turning and if you ever use it so excessively in an email with a potential employer, you are ****ed.
  2. A degree in econ gives you lots of options. Many companies will be attracted just from the fact that you have a degree.
  3. Make sure to speak a foreign language, that is becoming increasingly pivotal in the job market.
  4. Calm down.
  5. Like everyone has been saying, you probably aren’t going to make that much out of college. Don’t be greedy. Work hard and you can live comfortably.
  6. Being from a poor family doesn’t make you deserve wealth. But if that’s your motivation, use it, but do so without the attitude or entitlement.</p>

<p>You’ve got it backwards.</p>

<p>College is **** easy compared to just about any high paying job.
I’ve put in near 0 effort for 90% of my college career and I have an exceptional GPA.
I’ve had part time jobs that swamped me in work until I wanted to puke.</p>

<p>If you think that you’ll “bust your ass” in college and that it’s all smooth sailing after graduation, then you’re not going to make a lot of money, no. That’s completely backwards. You can definitely make good money with an econ. degree but you have to view graduation as a humble beginning, not a glorious ticket to wealth.</p>

<p>Also, it is fair. Going to college, which everyone is doing nowadays, can’t guarantee you a high paying job. If you think about it, EVERYONE is going to college. </p>

<p>Also, college outside of the STEM majors, especially engineering, is freaking easy. So getting through something so effortless shouldn’t and wouldn’t guarantee a high paying job, and it’s not unfair that it won’t.</p>

<p>The only thing unfair is the ridiculous prices college charges, but you’re really not even paying that much. If you were, you could start at a community college, work hard for scholarships, and transfer to a school that offers the most aid to you.</p>

<p>I wish life was as easy as answering questions on a sheet of paper, turning it to a professor, do that for four years, and make a living right away. The reality is not like that at all. To some extent, your major may be philosophy or marine science, but what you make of it, what you do in addition to studying, who you know, and what experience you’ve gained (in the workplace, as a researcher, as an intern) all makes a big difference. </p>

<p>To answer your question, economics is a good degree. Studying economics enables you to view the world from a different perspective. The same goes for psychology, sociology and these kind of social sciences. However, economics is more business “related”, which is (probably) why many go into finance, accounting, and so on, which is, in effect, a very reliable career choice.</p>