<p>I was a Computer Science major, but decided to do EE because I thought it is a more 'prestigious' degree to hold than a CS degree. I thought a CS degree was not academically rigorous enough (well not as rigorous as an engineering degree anyway) and not as socially respected. EE is somewhat interesting to me, but I'm not crazy about it. Money is not that important to me, I believe EEs actually make less than CS graduates. So, is it wrong to do what I'm doing? Should I go back while I still have time?</p>
<p>If they make less, why would they have more prestige? In American culture wealth often equals social status. </p>
<p>Because apparently, engineering, law, medicine = prestige and social status</p>
<p>What are you going to do with the prestige? Do what you enjoy - you’ll be happier and more likely to succeed.</p>
<p>Why? Because they make good money! So why go lower?</p>
<p>Let me describe a scenario. I was at a party and one of my dad’s friends asked me what major I was doing. I said Computer Science. He said, “Oh, so you’re a computer guy eh?”. It was as if he didn’t take me seriously or think much of my major. Now, I’m 90% sure if I had said I was an engineering major, he would’ve seen me in a different light. A more respected light, if you will. That’s how it all began.</p>
<p>If you tailor your life to random people’s interests…you will be miserable. lol. </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Too narrow a definition, I think - how about, if you tailor your life to any other person’s interests, you will be miserable. Hat tip to @bodangles for the original sentence.</p>
<p>Now, if you want to help someone out like your kid or spouse, fine. It is possible to do your interests, while helping another person with his. It is very rarely an either / or situation. </p>
<p>
umm… don’t quite understand what you’re trying to say here. Care to elaborate?</p>
<p>@bdboy2567 Immediate family is the one exception of possibly delaying or changing your interests for a while to help them out. Though it does not necessarily mean completely dropping your interests. But, when it comes to random people, then no need to even take their interests into consideration. </p>
<p>For example, my oldest DS wanted to do a certain sport. It required a lot of traveling and being around people that I personally did not care to be around. In a sport, you cannot “choose” your teammates, so no compromise possible. The timeframe also coincided with a project I was doing. I really had zero interest in being part of that sport, as a parent etc. </p>
<p>However, for his sake, I delayed the project for two years and sucked up all the travel and time away from home that I did not want to do. The enjoyment he had was more than worth the tradeoff. His excitement alone was fun to watch. Now, if it was a random person, even if they are paying me $$$$, no way would I have done it. </p>
<p>I should add this relevant piece of info - I did have the concern that my DS would have thought less of me, as a parent, if I did not help him out. So that is a direct example of how what someone thought of me and looked at me influenced my decision. That would have never, ever crossed my mind for a random person or someone outside my immediate family.</p>
<p>I hope this is a clearer explanation. </p>
<p>There is no prestige in engineering. CC can be confused sometimes, on one thread on CCer states engineering is for middleclass and on this one engineering is more prestige. It’s neither middle class nor prestige, </p>
<p>^^ Agreed. But, even if there were prestige in engineering, that is not the fundamental issue that the OP really needs to address. It is how to deal with what others think of him that matters. </p>
<p>If you like CS, do CS… This is a self confidence issue. More than likely that guys off hand comment didn’t even mean what you think it meant. I tell people I am studying Industrial Engineering and they have no clue what the hell I’m talking about. I don’t care. I know I will make good money, and it’s more than likely harder than what they did, so…</p>
<p>And, seriously, you can do so much with CS. A lot of times I honestly wish I would have majored in it. But by the time I figured that out I was too deep in this masters to switch.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Why do you care what your dad’s friend thinks? You can’t go through life always seeking the approval of others. Do you think he cares what you think about his profession?</p>
<p>Get over it. The older friend probably has no clue about CS . It might not have even been a major in his day. </p>
<p>Going back another two generations, my grandmother didn’t understand Engineering. She asked if I was going to drive a train. </p>
<p>Honestly just do the major you love. At the end of the day, it really shouldn’t matter what other people think as long as you’re happy and content with your major that’s what really should matter the most. If anything prestige is a very relative thing anyway. I’m doing civil engineering and you have no clue how many times I’ve been talked down on by fellow electrical and chemical engineers who believed that I choose a major that was least intensive compared to all the other engineering majors. It has never dissuaded me from leaving civil just because I knew I loved civil and didn’t care what they thought. On a flip side, I’ve told my peers from back home as well as a random salesperson once
from a poorer neighborhood I was shopping at and they were wowed I did engineering. First reaction from the sales person was “yeah go bring home the big bucks!”</p>
<p>Is the OP from the Middle East or Asia in general? my wife comes from a country from there and the totem pole order is ‘Civil Engineer > Medicine > Dentistry > Other Engineering > Comp Sci > Basket Weaving > Science > Business > Law > Art’.</p>
<p>Made for some interesting career planning moments with our kids </p>
<p>=)) </p>
<p>It also depends on the school, for D2’s school, Computer Science is within the school of Engineering. So if majoring in Computer Science does not bring any prestige or vow factor, she can also say she is majoring in Engineering. :D</p>
<p>^^ 
</p>
<p>Engineering is not typically a “social climber” type of field. For those who like the idea of solving design problems with math and science as tools, it can be a good way to have an interesting career that pays an upper-middle to upper (but not super-upper) income. But Thomas J. Stanley of The Millionaire Next Door fame has noted that engineers tend to be relatively wealthy for their income level, due to less spending on status symbols. Perhaps it may be because good engineers can produce solid designs under tight constraints (including cost and availability of inputs); they may apply similar optimization principles to their personal spending (i.e. “how can I get the most enjoyment per dollar spent?”).</p>
<p>CS can have similar characteristics in some ways.</p>