<p>I want to pursue a major in either in business OR computer science/engineering
AND a major in international relations, specifically east asian studies. </p>
<p>These two majors are undoubtedly far apart from one another. Is it even possible to pursue both major?</p>
<p>It’s always possible, but it’s going to depend on your school, what workload you can handle, and how many credits you came in with.</p>
<p>Engineering tends to be a harder one to double major in since it often has a lot of requirements that have to be taken in a certain sequence. That can make it more difficult with scheduling and will give you less flexibility, but it’s still possible.</p>
<p>I would recommend you map out the courses you would have to take and see if you would still be able to graduate in four years. If you’re willing to take longer to graduate, you will likely be able to fit in both majors in five years or less.</p>
<p>If its really far apart you can just minor in East Asian studies</p>
<p>you can do business with a minor in an east asian language-this would help a lot with job searching b/c you could have a couple of languages</p>
<p>also what baktrax said about course mapping out is a great idea. I did this and it has made my life so much easier!</p>
<p>Yes, it is possible. It will be easier or harder to do, depending on the particular school you attend and majors offered by that school.
Heres how I broke down the different options for your stated interests:
Option 1: Business + International Relations
Option 2: Business + East Asian Studies
Option 3: Computer Science/Engineering + International Relations
Option 4: Computer Science/Engineering + East Asian Studies</p>
<p>Options 1 & 2: This combination involves majors that are located in different constituent schools of a university (e.g. the business school and the college of arts & sciences). Pick a university that makes it easy to take courses across different schools of the university. You also could major in economics, with an emphasis on business aspects, plus an IR major or East Asian Studies, which could keep both of your majors in the college of arts & sciences. For some IR programs, you have to choose a thematic focus, which might be international business (e.g., [The</a> Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business](<a href=“http://huntsman.upenn.edu/page/about.html]The”>http://huntsman.upenn.edu/page/about.html)) . For most IR programs, you also need to pick a regional focus, which could be East Asia. Another alternative is to major in business with a focus on international business. Many business schools require those who study international business to pick a functional specialty (e.g., accounting, marketing, etc.), too. East Asian Studies pograms range from a requirement of 2 or 3 years of language study. If you are serious about acquiring some level of proficiency in an East Asian language, you should opt for least 3 years, preferably with a year in a country where the language is spoken. Depending on the university you attend, it could be difficult to fit in the required business courses if you do a year abroad. You should consider programs such as the Language Flagship program ([The</a> Language Flagship - Korean](<a href=“http://www.thelanguageflagship.org/korean]The”>http://www.thelanguageflagship.org/korean), [The</a> Language Flagship - Chinese](<a href=“http://www.thelanguageflagship.org/chinese]The”>http://www.thelanguageflagship.org/chinese), [Home</a> | The Ohio State University MidWest US-China Flagship Program](<a href=“http://chineseflagship.osu.edu/]Home”>http://chineseflagship.osu.edu/) ) or a business school with special programs that include significant international experience, e.g., [IBCE</a> Track - Darla Moore School of Business](<a href=“404 page not found | University of South Carolina”>404 page not found | University of South Carolina), <a href=“http://www.stern.nyu.edu/portal-partners/current-students/undergraduate/study-away/semester-away/international-business-exchange-program/partner-schools/index.htm[/url]”>http://www.stern.nyu.edu/portal-partners/current-students/undergraduate/study-away/semester-away/international-business-exchange-program/partner-schools/index.htm</a>, [The</a> Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business](<a href=“http://huntsman.upenn.edu/page/about.html]The”>http://huntsman.upenn.edu/page/about.html)</p>
<p>Options 3 & 4: Some of the same considerations noted above apply to these options. In addition, since engineering programs are relatively structured and sequential, it might be difficult to accommodate very many electives outside engineering. It would be easier to combine computer science than engineering with a second major in IR or EAS. For IR programs that require you to pick a thematic focus, some offer a thematic option in science & technology in IR, which might mesh well with your CS or Engineering interests. Quite a few schools have programs in international engineering. See my post in this thread: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/engineering-majors/1201485-should-i-consider-different-major-if-i-want-work-abroad.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/engineering-majors/1201485-should-i-consider-different-major-if-i-want-work-abroad.html</a>
A few engineering schools offer language coursework focused on technical language, e.g., [Technical</a> Japanese Studies Certificate (UW-Madison) | Online Certificate Programs | University of Wisconsin System eCampus - UW Online Education](<a href=“http://ecampus.wisconsin.edu/online-certificate/certificate-in-technical-japanese-studies-uw-madison.aspx]Technical”>http://ecampus.wisconsin.edu/online-certificate/certificate-in-technical-japanese-studies-uw-madison.aspx)</p>
<p>DD started out dual majoring in Japanese and physics. For four or five of her eight semesters, she had conflicts with Japanese classes and math or physics classes. The problem was partially due to classes with labs or recitations. She ended up having to work with professors and missing lectures each semester. She did take her second year of Japanese in a summer program between freshman and sophomore years to loosen her schedule a bit.</p>
<p>It is doable, but very complicated. You will want to look at class schedules offered at the schools you are investigating. At DD’s school, sometimes it seemed as though no one jad ever done it before. And of course professors think their courses are more important than anyone elses’. When you tour schools ( or even before through e-mail), I would ask if students dual major and ask how accommodating the school is with scheduling. In my very limited experience, just scheduling for an engineering major is a trick getting everything to fit. </p>
<p>In the end, DD graduated with a major in applied math, minors in physics and Japanese, and a certificate in Asian Studies. The minor and certificate combined were more than 50 credits, which would be a major at most colleges. Hers was just really complicated and involved for a Japanese major.</p>
<p>Best wishes.</p>
<p>It’s almost impossible to major in engineering and something else since almost all classes are required . it’s different if you major in business - at some schools like south Carolina or Susquehanna it will be very easy - and if you major in economics-management at a lac all majors will be in the same school/college and it will be rather easy. same thing for computer science. some schools like Allegheny will even require this type of combinations . :)</p>
<p>Thank you very much for all the inputs!</p>