Myths about your Major

College Life
1

<p>This is a thread for clearing the air about the myths that persist about your major. A good example would be "Chemical engineering majors hardly do any chemistry," because every chemical engineering major I've met says they never do any chemistry. A BAD example would be "art history majors have great employment prospects," because it ain't true, Ivy League/born-rich/well-connected outliers notwithstanding. Naive optimism belongs in some other thread.</p>

<p>I'll get the ball rolling. I'm an engineering physics major with a computer science concentration, so I'll debunk some myths about those majors...</p>

<p>Myth: CS majors are good at fixing things wrong with computers</p>

<p>Fact: Maybe we are, maybe we aren't. A person could be really into algorithms or data structures or graphics or low-level software design and still not know how to get your wireless printer working or install a new motherboard. Those are separate skill sets. While many CS majors know a lot about fixing problems with hardware or software, that's not what a CS major actually studies (in fact, I run Linux just so I don't have to bother to learn all of the Windows maintenance crap, among other reasons).</p>

<p>Myth: CS majors are tech junkies who always have the latest and greatest smartphone and the most powerful PC/laptop</p>

<p>Fact: Some are, but a lot aren't. I buy cheap PCs, and plenty of other CS guys are the same way. Buy cheap, upgrade RAM/video card, etc. as needed. Money doesn't grow on trees after all. And I don't care about phones, mobile technology isn't even a blip on my radar, it's not something I care about at all (except portable gaming systems, but I'm into them in spite of them being portable, not because of it). And, again, I'm not alone in this. Also, I don't own a laptop, I don't want an e-book reader, I write my code by hand, and I don't have an ipod.</p>

<p>Myth: CS majors/physics majors are a bunch of Urkel-esque nerds with bad personal hygiene, big thick glasses, high nasally voices, and are fanatic about Star Wars and/or Star Trek.</p>

<p>Fact: I've only ever met one (ONE!) person in college who actually fit the Urkel stereotype (nasal voice and everything, he was like an actor doing a nerd character), and he wasn't even a CS or physics major and I go to a HUGE college. Most of the CS and physics majors I've met have been very ordinary, down-to-earth people who actually do have or have had girlfriends and would blend in well with a group of frat boys or "normal people" watching a football game. I'd say CS and physics majors are eclectic in their look/style, rather than nerdy. White guys with huge fros, hipster-esque styling, jocks, fat guys, ex-military types, etc. I've met guys in my CS/physics classes who look like GQ models. And while I'm a Star Trek nut job, and a fan of HHGTTG and Doctor Who, it is rare that I'll make a Star Trek reference to a crowd of classmates and somebody will actually get it. That's right, I've often been THE ONLY STAR TREK FAN IN THE ROOM when among CS or physics classmates. I actually had to explain who Kirk and Picard were to somebody the other day.</p>

<p>Myth: Physics majors all watch The Big Bang Theory and are deep into string theory and exotic astrophysics stuff.</p>

<p>Fact: I, personally, hate the show because it stole viewers from Community. As for string theory and exotic astrophysics stuff, I'd say most physics majors are focused on practical physics (classical, special relativity, electromagnetism, and quantum physics), primarily because that's what you study as an undergrad. We don't have the time let alone the training to competently discuss the latest, most advanced, most complicated theoretical physics. Sure we find it interesting but even most "theoretical physics" in the university research world is focused on down-to-Earth physics, not time travel or parallel universes or faster-than-light travel. 99% of physics on tv focuses on the physics that only 0.1% of physicists actually focus on.</p>

<p>Myth: Physics majors just wind up teaching high school physics</p>

<p>Fact: There is a sharp shortage of high school physics teachers, most physics majors think that teaching basic Mickey Mouse physics to high schoolers is beneath them after all they've endured to earn their degree, for one thing it's their worst-paying option. It's like going through medical school to show people how to apply band aids. Most go into industry or grad school (either for a MS in engineering or a PhD in physics) because physicists have lots of worthwhile skills that pay well (software development, engineering, financial analysis, the list goes on), and most people with a PhD in physics do <em>not</em> become professors. So the old "the only thing you can do with that degree is teach" is, in this case, a demonstrable myth, given the shortage of HS physics teachers.</p>

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<p>Heh, it’s much easier to dispel these myths on CC than to try to explain some of them to your family and friends.</p>

<p>What does a bachelors degree in psychology qualify you to do?
Everyone in my family seems to think I am a qualified psychologist with just a bachelor of arts degree :slight_smile: They think that clinical or counseling psychology is all that you can do with the degree, when you can actually pursue marketing, research, cognitive/neuroscience, teaching, and many other fields, either upon graduation or through graduate study. It is a great option for a second major, or a minor, coupled with a business or pre-med degree, among others. </p>

<p>Why study psychology?
Some people think students study psychology because it is easy. It is - to an extent. I was much more interested in statistics and research methods and chose the field because studying social behavior fascinates me. It was a huge amount of reading and writing, and writing does not come easy to everyone. Other people think students go into psychology to help themselves get through personal problems - I’ve seen this with some students who seemed lost (in terms of what they wanted to do with their lives) and chose psychology partly to help get through their own depression/anxiety/etc., and partly because it was a less challenging and more flexible degree. Others think they’ll make a lot of money in private practice - until they realize it requires additional schooling and is not always a lucrative path.</p>

<p>Do we really analyze everyone?
When I tell strangers that I have a degree in psychology, they immediately joke that I must think they’re crazy, or that I will be able to help those around us that are. I do like studying human behavior, but it is not all mental games and passing judgment. I’m more interested in stereotyping and prejudice than mental disorders, although I do find them fascinating as well. I do fall victim to some social influences even though I know what is going on, and I cannot prevent all of my own implicit stereotypes and behaviors. I am a human, and will make mistakes, too.</p>

3

<p>Myth: Math majors can do any arithmetic problem in their heads instantly.</p>

<p>Fact: Earlier today I thought 4 + 8 + 8 was 16 (since I somehow thought that 8 + 8 = 12), so I was almost going to ask the person who graded my exam why he wrote 20 next to this sum. There’s also the joke about the math professor who was solving a problem during a lecture and got 7 x 9. He asked the students what this was. Half of them said 61 and half of them said 64. Exasperated, he exclaimed, “Come now, it can’t be both!”</p>

<p>(BTW, I would have mentioned some CS myths, but it looks like you’ve covered them very well. :))</p>

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<p>“All STEM majors have better job and career prospects than humanities and social studies majors.” – This common belief is not generally true for biology and chemistry majors. (Biology is the most popular STEM major.)</p>

<p>“Engineering and CS majors do not get a well rounded education.” – This claim is commonly made by humanities and social studies majors, who usually take fewer math and science courses than engineering and CS majors take of humanities and social studies.</p>

<p>“Today’s job market is an accurate predictor of the job market four years from now.” – This belief is apparently common, based on the changes in popularity of some majors. But economic and industry conditions can change in four years – just ask any CS major who started in 1998, or any civil engineering major who started in 2005.</p>

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<p>Your first two CS points are just about verbatim what I was going to say. Extending on the first:</p>

<p>The fact that I am a CS major does not mean I know all about the stuff you are learning in Into to CS or whatever it is you take. In fact, it is likely that I know very little about it, as I probably use alternate open-source software and/or specialized tools to accomplish the same tasks.</p>

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<p>As an electrical engineer, working in the semiconductor sector for the past 30+ years, I’ll add a sentence that any and every working EE needs to be familiar with:
“I am not an electrician.”</p>

<p>Half the people you tell your occupation to will ask if that means you’re an electrician. The other half, that doesn’t ask, will just think to themselves you’re an electrician.</p>

<p>…not that there is anything wrong with being an electrician. ;-)</p>

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<p>Economics: It’s easy.</p>

<p>Answer: No.</p>

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<p>Chinese: It’s hard.</p>

<p>It’s not, at least for the people who actually end up majoring in it. Virtually all of them (at my school) have extensive background with either Chinese itself or a related Asian language. Chinese is hard for most people because they don’t have this base to build on. If you already know Japanese or Korean, it’s like learning Spanish for an English speaker.</p>

9

<p>

Here’s my stereotype. Economics: it would be easy if you understood math, and most economics majors don’t.</p>

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<p>I can understand that. It’s really selective calculus we use, and we do get some kids in my major who haven’t taken calculus before and I’m just like “…” Even then I still find it hard, but yeah math makes it better. Also I would say you have to think in a pretty roundabout way which most people don’t either.</p>

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<p>Philosophy is NOT useless.</p>

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<p>Accounting:</p>

<p>Yes, we do actually have personalities beyond that of rocks.
No, we are not all math nerds (we have Excel).</p>

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<p>Journalism:</p>

<p>Myth: It’s easy. False. Maybe at a small school, not an elite journalism school though. </p>

<p>Prime example: My first assignment this semester was to interview 12 people in the city, 3 of which had to be people of official capacity. I was allowed to do an e-mail interview just for the official ones, so I e-mailed city council. I finished (after legit walking over 20 miles around town over 3 days), typed up all 12 synopses, turned it in. My grade? F. Why? Because the city councilman spelt something the wrong way, one letter off (this was not a dictionary word, it was a title of a local program that I’m not familiar with as an out-of-stater so naturally I figured he was calling it the right name). I used the term once, out of five pages of 12 different interviews. Grade = F. </p>

<p>Yeah, I learned I need to fact-check literally every last thing even if an authority figure put it in print for me, but don’t tell me journalism is an easy 4.0 major. My professor nearly doesn’t even give A’s. Out of 150 past students, 12 have gotten an A. More people have dropped the class than got an A.</p>

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<p>@Hauteclere,</p>

<p>Ditto. Philosophy is so difficult, but incredibly rewarding. </p>

<p>@rattler917,</p>

<p>Yes! I hate it when people see that I’m in the Business school as an Accounting major and they automatically assume that I don’t know how to have fun. Anyone can have fun. Seriously.</p>

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<p>Finance:</p>

<p>We do serve a purpose and aren’t a bunch of greedy gordon gekko wannabes looking for ways to tank the economy. </p>

<p>Also to engineering majors: Just because someone isn’t an engineering major doesn’t mean they have an easy major. I guarantee you some engineers or pre med students would have fits in upper level Accounting courses</p>

16

<p>Biology.
I’m gonna make SO much bank for majoring in a STEM.
Hardly the case for many STEM majors, especially biology and how popular it is.</p>

<p>Hell, I almost switched majors a few times to something with a likelihood of a better bottom line.</p>

17

<p>some people think chemical engineers are the smartest of them all. Well for the most part, they’re right.</p>

18

<p>the idea that all science majors are smart
Definitely not true.</p>

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<p>English</p>

<p>Myth: English is an easy major.
Fact: True, but not entirely. Most people who become English majors do so because they are good at writing or reading critically. English is not a major people go in to get rich, so most students who end up in the major tend to do well. Non-majors who take an elective tend to do poorly in comparison. The amount of writing and reading can be down right exhausting to non-majors. By extension, this fact works for many liberal arts majors. The students who go into are already good at it, and are not struggling to do well for their futures.</p>

20

<p>Add One More CS Myth</p>

<p>Myth: “CS grads are set for life. That guy in your dorm who smells like cheese and wears a John Carmack t-shirt? He’ll be a millionaire before he’s thirty.”</p>

<p>Fact: Except during the dot-com craziness (which was largely the fault of the Federal Reserve for creating the bubble, but that’s economics), if you want to become a millionaire you have to do a few things: a) come up with an actual product or service that lots of people want b) market it effectively c) stand out from your jillions of competitors with similar ideas d) work like a dog relentlessly or be killed by the competition.</p>

<p>With a handful of notable exceptions, easy fortunes are rare in the software industry. For every Harvard drop-out every year with a billion-dollar idea there are about ten thousands CS grads every year who will have respectable middle-class incomes for the rest of their lives. Part of the reason Gates and Zuckerberg are so famous is because they are so atypical, they made such a huge fortune in such a relatively small amount of time with what started as a humble enterprise.</p>