<p>I had a couple questions in mind which i was hoping to be answered.
1. If i major in a certain criteria does that limit my options for the future, in other words the difference between majoring or minoring in something and how to effects my Graduate school choices
2. I am planning to go to med school but I was to also hoping to have some sort of backup or plan to fall back upon. For example I was told that instead of majoring in Pre-Med, it might be better to major in business and minor in something like biology which allows me to go on to med school after college. So how practical or is it even possible to major in business and then be able to go onto med school, if so what exactly needs to be done in order for that to happen.</p>
<p>It depends on where you go to college. Some undergraduate business schools or departments will not have the flexibility for taking the full pre-medical curriculum along with the major requirements. It makes more sense to choose a major like Math or Economics at a regular undergraduate college, while fulfilling your Science requirements. Many corporations will love a candidate with a scientific background. “Pre-med” is not a major. Medical schools all require some fundamental courses (ie. Biology, Organic & Inorganic Chemistry, Calculus, et al), but pre-med students can major in anything. Psychology, Anthropology, Economics, Environmental Science, and even some interdepartmental programs like Gender Studies are popular among pre-meds. </p>
<p>No specific major is required to do pre-med, although a well known set of pre-med courses is typically required.</p>
<p>So if i were to major in economics and take all required prerequisite courses for med school, what types of careers paths would i have if i were to leave medicine and continue with economics.
Also, do any of you guys have any suggestions on a graduation plan where i can successfully complete required med courses and have a reliable and safe major to fall back on?
Thank you for all the help</p>
<p>Common career directions for economics majors are business and finance type careers. Economics departments commonly offer some finance elective courses, though other business type courses like marketing, accounting, and management tend to be less common, especially if there is a separate business major. Some finance jobs prefer greater math and statistics skills. PhD study in economics requires a lot more math and statistics than most economics departments require for their majors.</p>
<p>Pardon me for all these idiotic questions but would an economic major be a safe and reliable major to fall back on?</p>
<p>are you an international student, OP? where do you plan to work or go to school after your undergraduate education is complete?</p>
<p>I plan to go undergraduate and graduate in texas</p>
<p>It’s not so much about the major as it is what you DO with the major. You could, say, major in psychology, be pre-med, but also develop an interest in finance - taking higher-level math classes and doing two summer internships at finance firms. Then you could have a good shot of “falling back” on finance should you not get into med school, because you have that experience despite being a psychology major. Or you could major in economics and do nothing of any note - mediocre GPA, very few leadership opportunities, and no internships. The major itself is not necessarily going to get you a job.</p>
<p>[url=<a href=“https://georgetown.app.box.com/s/9t0p5tm0qhejyy8t8hub]Here[/url”>Box]Here[/url</a>] are unemployment rates of recent college grads, experienced grads, and grad degree holders. Economics majors with less than 5 years of work experience have an unemployment rate of 10.4% and an average salary of $46,000. Biology majors had unemployment rate of 7.8% and an average salary of $30,000. The psychology major unemployment rate was 9.2%, with an average salary of $30,000. English majors had unemployment rate of 9.8% and an average salary at $31,000, and math majors had unemployment rate of 5.9% with an average starting salary of $41,000.</p>
<p>So actually, recent economics graduates had one of the highest unemployment rates in this 2013 survey - higher than English majors, higher than French majors, higher than the oft-repeated “useless” psychology, biology, and sociology majors (although not by a whole lot, in the case of psych and soc). It’s not the promise of the job. It can lay the foundation for one, but it’s not a guarantee.</p>
<p>You should major in something you like and then make an effort to pick up useful skills that you can parlay into any job. Programming is always a useful skill, for example, and you can take those classes as electives. Quantitative analysis is a useful skill, too - you can minor in math or statistics regardless of whether you major in econ or art history. Writing and presentation skills are also important skills to develop. Pursue internships and part-time work to experience.</p>
<p>So considering universities in Texas( UT, UH, A&M), do any of you guys have any recommendations of a route to take for college. 1) finding a program and college to be able to major in business administration and take premed requisites. 2) major in economics and continue with a masters or something with it if medicine does not work out. 3) I was also considering a political science major but I just dont have enough knowledge about how it branches out and how it’s outlook is.
Again thank you for all of your responses. </p>
<p>“Pardon me for all these idiotic questions but would an economic major be a safe and reliable major to fall back on?”</p>
<p>I knew a guy once who earned a PhD in economics, taught it at college level for a couple of years, moved to France to study cooking, opened a restaurant. As I don’t think anyone posting here actually knows you or has a crystal ball, I don’t think your question(s) as to a plan B can be accurately answered. At best you’ll tend to get generalized responses. </p>
<p>However with hope of med school hovering, all grades are critical. If you take courses/material that you are interested in, I think you’ll do better grade wise which will be especially important should you continue on premed pathway. What are you interested in??? Why??? You don’t need to provide an answer. It’s a question you need to answer yourself, and even then, whether it translates into something “safe and reliable” is unknown. Talk to academic advisor. Don’t limit course variety with minor, take a broader range of courses. Good luck.</p>
<p>you really don’t need a route right now. go to college, take some courses you’re interested in, esp. econ, bio, and chem I your first semester, and figure out what you enjoy. if you still enjoy those courses, take II the second semester, and take the first polisci and business management course at your school (if you can do so without declaring a business major). how are your math skills? this is going to work out. it does for tens of thousands of students each year who are far from as planning-oriented as you but who still manage to graduate in four years and go on to med school.</p>
<p>Don’t have a backup plan think of it as “If I need to succeed, I will succeed”. If you are already thinking of a backup plan and you aren’t even in college then that shows you are not passionate enough for the career field.</p>
<p>Thank you everyone for all the response. It was very helpful and I really appreciate it.
Thank You. </p>