<p>I am a senior and my long awaited college decision is quickly approaching. While I am still awaiting admission decisions from a few colleges, it is likely that I will attend Ohio State. Though I understand finding employment is a product of more than just GPA and what school a degree is from, assuming all other things are even, can I expect to get a good job with a bachelors of science in Economics from Ohio State (assuming a very strong GPA)? If not, what type of programs–UG or grad–at Ohio State will allow me to be competitive in the job market?</p>
<p>You can pursue a degree in Economics at OSU either through the business college or the college of arts and sciences. Have you decided which you would like to do?</p>
<p>I’m a finance major in my senior year, about to graduate, and I have had a job lined up since early fall. I have been very satisfied with the career opportunities Fisher has made possible for me, and I think OSU draws a lot of attention from employers looking to recruit students for internships and full-time work. The business school career fairs are massive, and I was able to get two internships through on-campus recruiting, and then the company I most recently interned with offered me my job. If you have a strong resume, you will have opportunities here.</p>
<p>That said, if you plan on majoring in economics and are considering getting some kind of business-related job after graduating, I highly suggest you focus on getting internships while you are in school, and you build a set of marketable skills beyond what your required classes will give you. A minor in CS or math, for example, would make you a more marketable candidate for a lot of jobs.</p>
<p>I actually had planned on incorporating math either as a minor or additional major. So thank you for reinforcing that. But I had planned on going the B.S. route because I thought it would be more marketable. Open to change on that front. </p>
<p>If you could spare more of your time, I would greatly appreciate if you could break down the Econ vs Finance comparison for me. I have taken some econ courses and have found them enjoyable; but I am more interested in the general business field while hoping to differentiate myself from the masses of people graduating with business degrees every year.</p>
<p>There are tons of people graduating with business degrees every year, but they are still getting jobs, for the most part. Unemployment rates for recent grads are high across the board right now, but the rate for business grads is actually a point or two lower than the rate for all recent grads. There is this idea that business is somehow a slacker major, and one that isn’t going to help you get a decent job, but I have not found that to be true. </p>
<p>Also, the econ major offered in the college of business is a BS (your degree would be a bachelors of science in business administration with a specialization in economics), but the college of arts and sciences offers the choice of a BS or a BA. I agree that a BS is the better choice, but you can do that through either college. </p>
<p>If you are interested in knowing what kind of salary you could expect to make as a business major, here is a link to some salary data collected by the business college: [Fisher</a> College of Business | Salary Data](<a href=“http://fisher.osu.edu/offices/career-management/employer-resources/salary-data/]Fisher”>http://fisher.osu.edu/offices/career-management/employer-resources/salary-data/) </p>
<p>My roommate is an econ major, in the college of arts and sciences, and I’m actually an econ minor, so hopefully I can give an accurate comparison. The main difference between pursuing an econ major (one not in the business college) and a finance major (or an econ major in the business college) is that if you are a business major, you will be required to take several introductory general business management classes, and one class in each of the major specializations- accounting (2 classes here), finance, marketing, HR, international business, logistics, and operations. I think this makes you well-rounded, and if you aren’t certain what you want to major in or do with your career, these classes give you a peek at what each specialization is like. </p>
<p>Another major difference, in terms of courses in your major, is that finance classes focus on real-world technical skills, like how to analyze financial statements, understand financial derivatives, calculate losses and gains from different transactions, time value of money, that kind of stuff. Economics classes teach many similar concepts, but a lot of econ classes focus on theory and modeling, and don’t get down to the nitty gritty level. Econ classes also deal with more than just the financial markets. For example, the econ department offers a capstone course that is all about the underground economy, and the class covers the drug trade, the weapons trade, and human trafficking. You will also be required to take some econometrics courses which cover data analysis and modeling.</p>
<p>The benefit of an econ major over a finance major is that there are some required econ classes that use more higher-level math (mostly calculus) that finance classes don’t use. An economics major also has fewer specific requirements, and more electives, whereas the finance major has a lot of classes you’re required to take, and fewer elective choices. A benefit, however, to doing finance, is that it is easier to take on a double major within the business college, so you could do finance & accounting, or finance & insurance. You could also do the econ degree in the business college and then double major with finance. </p>
<p>I would be happy to provide you with any links to resources if you’re interested, or answer any other questions.</p>
<p>Thank you very much for your help! I have found your information very helpful and thought provoking. I am leaning towards the econ and finance marriage in the business college that you mentioned. I sincerely appreciate your time, and wish you the best of luck in the future.</p>
<p>No problem, and best of luck in your future as well. And remember to intern!</p>
@maybell-Are you still available to answer some questions about BSBA with Econ specialization (that’s my major) at OSU?