Not sure what to do about my major. I probably will major in biochemistry and pursue a science-related career. It’s probably not practical to major in history when I’m not planning on having a career related to it, but I still want to learn about because I just enjoy it. What are some of the pros and cons of double majoring in biochem and history? What are pros and cons in majoring in biochem but minoring in history?
I’m not sure about any pros and cons, because I think they vary per person.
But why don’t you try it? Register as a double major in history and biochem and sign up to take the classes. If you don’t like it for whatever reason, you can always drop down to a minor in history or drop the history altogether.
If you don’t want to use it for a career, you don’t have to major in it, just take some classes.
Are you already in college? if not, consider going to a college with relatively open curriculum (Brown and Vassar are two frequent examples). There is a lot more flexibility on majors and taking courses outside your major.
Even if you don’t want to use it for a career, a person still might want to major in something just because.
http://online.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/info-Degrees_that_Pay_you_Back-sort.html indicates that biology and chemistry are not really significantly better than history in terms of how well graduates in those majors are paid.
With any of these majors, you may have to be ready to seek jobs in the general bachelor’s degree job market, rather than limiting yourself to jobs related to your major.