I’m an incoming freshman, preapproved for Mendoza. I was wondering if having a single major in Finance would still put me on the level of competitiveness upon graduation that my Notre Dame classmates will be at. Should I add a math major to this, or does the Finance major look good enough to employers on its own?
I think you may need to seriously re-evaluate your major choices if your primary consideration, before even coming to ND, is employment opportunities post-graduation.
It’s worth spending your first year of studies exploring different areas before making a definitive declaration.
Silverdrop, you have no idea why the OP has chosen Finance as a major. OP’s question of the potential to add a second major is perfectly relevant. If the OP has a passion for “Finance”, of course they want to be able to go after the better opportunities that will be available for them upon graduation. The first paragraph of your response came across as judgmental and unnecessarily harsh while the second part of your response was beneficial.
Congrats, Chicagoan819! I agree with Silverdrop that you should explore different areas before deciding on a major(or two!) My son went into Mendoza thinking he wanted to do Finance, and changed to IT management. He also decided to double major with history. Another son studied chemistry with a minor in Medieval Studies (a true alchemist!). Let the Holy Spirit move you - what will give you great post graduation opportunities is being well rounded, and well-educated, which is what a degree at ND will give you! Enjoy your 4 years, and study what interests you, and the rest will fall into place! Try not to be so goal-minded that you miss the journey! Its unlikely you will have another opportunity to explore and study like these next 4 years!
Good luck, and GO IRISH!
I agree. At this point the best thing you can do is get to ND, start taking classes, and see where your interests and aptitudes lie.
You have gotten some good advice to not get “locked in” to what your major/majors will be at ND. You will have some time to figure those things out when you start taking classes.
But to respond to your initial question, I did find an article from June 2014 where the Assistant Dean of Mendoza stated that approximately one-third of the students get a second major outside the College of Business. So I guess the majority of Mendoza students don’t have a double major.
Adding a supplementary major in ACMS will make you extremely competitive. This is actually what a lot of finance & econ students do here. BUT do explore different areas before deciding on a major.
@chicagoan819 Hey there! I just completed my freshman year at ND and would like to mention some things. First, a bit about myself. I entered ND solely as a Finance major and have no problems with that whatsoever. I did end up adding a Supplemental Mathematics major my spring semester but I did that because I have a genuine interest in math and didn’t want to spend all of my time focusing on one field (finance) when there’s so much more to explore and learn!
As a freshman, you’re enrolled in the First Year of Studies (FYS) college. You do not pick your major and, as a business major, the only requirement is that you take Microecon your freshman year. All of your other classes can be whatever you want. I chose to focus on a general education and got most of my pre-requisite classes for university graduation completed. Don’t worry too much about this or that for now. As others have iterated, focus on yourself and what YOU want. It’ll make your life a lot easier as well.
You enroll in Mendoza sophomore year but you don’t officially declare you major until the spring semester as a sophomore. You have plenty of time to explore your interests before declaring your official major. Even as a sophomore, you are required to take at least introductory classes in the various business departments for exposure. E.g. I will be taking Intros to Accounting, Management, IT Mang., Ethics, Finance, etc as will other Mendoza sophomores.
Declaring a supplemental, a secondary, or adding minors and concentrations does happen frequently within business students. Someone else already posted the statistic about a third of the students do such. ACMS, econ, and language are probably the most common to add on too, and for good reason.
At the same time, there are so many factors, I’ve come to realize, when it comes to “competitiveness upon graduation” that looking solely at your major is BS. Yes, it is an integral part. But there’s so much more. Networking, experience, networking, and did I mention networking? I know a lot of upperclassmen and have spoken with Big Four as well as Big Three companies that many times, jobs are secured by the beginning of senior year through internships. Networking during senior year comes into play, too. What you’ve done during your years as an undergrad is not limited to academics. It’s life, after all. Great clubs like SIBC or the Wall Street Club and so on (there’s a lot!) do come into play. One of my friends did a project through SIBC, got flown to Google to present, and got an on-the-spot internship there. Her GPA wasn’t the best and many would consider not competitive enough to even apply to Google (below 3.3). But her character, work ethic, and mindset sold themselves.
Starting out as a Finance Major is a good start. Do not worry about whether you need a second major or what area of study that second major should be. Pursue your interests. Explore new areas. Discover new passions. The distribution requirements are healthy. Never had a public speaking course? Then consider a class in FT&T that forces you to “be on stage”. Be open to changing your emphasis in Mendoza or a move into the Colleges of Engineering or Arts & Letters (Econ Dept. is very good and you may find that a better match for your interests – and lots of Econ grads get good jobs in business and finance roles). I support your thinking about career interests and opportunities post-graduation. At the same time, philosophy, history, theology, or literature classes may spark interests that redefine who you are, what you believe, and how you live. Have a great 4 years plus 40 years.