<p>Hi CC!
I know this is a cliche question but it exists for a reason I guess.
I am graduating this fall and I am really torn between accounting and engineering. I started off wanting to do engineering because I have great grades in science, and engineering seemed like a rewarding major. However overtime I started to worry that since I am not very enthusiastic about all those science and technology, I may not have enough motivation. I am actually half artsy and half analytical, so that's why I began to consider accounting. I thought my science background would give me an advantage compared to other business students. I have heard that accounting is boring and all that. So clearly each major has its own pros and cons. I need some advice on how to decide my major based on 1)financial reward 2)sense of achievement 3)social life 4)job security
I have an average above 96. I consider myself pretty smart and ambitious and competitive, so I think I can handle the material. I just really don't know what I like to do. ( this actually sounds very sad when I put it out there)</p>
<p>Thanks in advance! I can really use some advice this is driving me nuts!</p>
<p>accounting?!!! seriously dude?
with an engineering degree you will have job opportunities in wherever you want.
for me ,I will be an EE so the job security is great because Basic Engineering degrees like Mech,Chem,Elec will always get you a job.
I don’t think that an accountant can make as much as an engineer,I read a story about a civil engineer who make 2 millions a year.
about the social life ,I think that is the benefit of accounting if you choose it because in Eng you will have to spend more time on studying I guess.
I am a high school senior and I am great with my HS math,physics classes and I thought I will be doing good in college just like now in HS but that is not correct because in college things are different as I have been told so think again about that,I am not saying you will fail in Eng or success but many students drop engineering"you can review few threads about that".</p>
<p>I will come here again to see what Eng students say about this. :)</p>
<p>I applied to environmental and material engineering by the way. I was also wondering what kinds of job do material engineers usually get? Is it possible for a material engineer to work in business sector? And thanks YYaaSSeeRR for your reply:)</p>
<p>My Dad did accounting at a top 3 school and he made a lot as an accountant and gained valuable skills to get jobs that make MUCH more than engineers. Currently he is an executive consultant who primarily deals with the software and technology companies. He makes much much more than any normal engineer and he started consulting and making bank within 10 years of working. So I wouldn’t say that accountants can’t gain better wages than engineers, because I think in general they do AND their college experience isn’t usually as rigorous as an engineers.</p>
<p>I will say that the work accountants do seems pretty dry but if you find that you like it, then it isn’t a bad idea to go with that. If you want to do engineering, don’t do it for the money but for the enjoyment of it. There are plenty of jobs that make more than an engineering job and are “easier” than an engineering degree in college. Just make the choice that will leave you happiest.</p>
<p>there are always exceptions and your dad is one.
starting salary for engineers is higher than accountant and when you graduate from top program you will have starting salary around 60 k a year.
a lot of EE work in finance eventually and they make more than surgeons in some cases.</p>
<p>Well for what it’s worth, many years ago my brother-in-law graduated with an engineering degree (it was either mechanical or electrical, I can never remember which one), easily gained employment upon graduation, and HATED IT. After six months of working, he went back to school and got an accounting degree and has never looked back. It’s a tough choice to pick a career, especially when you’re torn. I wish you the best of luck!</p>
<p>Both Accounting and Finance majors can make much more than engineers…that is a given. Here is the stickler…the Accounting/Finance world is much more “school prestige” influenced than engineering. The competition for jobs is more since there are more folks in those majors and the “school brand” is factored in.</p>
<p>how can some 1 go for engineering and then drop his work because he hate it!!! that seems kind of craziness dude.
I think your brother didn’t know what does he want to do in the first place or Engineering was tough for him.
4 years for BE in engineering + 4 or 2 years for accounting ,I think that was waste of money&time.</p>
<p>@ironvivs:
go to the university,sit with students,talk to advisors,visit the career fair center at the univ, and attend a lecture if you can ! and see what happens.
you can always switch majors in your fresh/sophomore year anyway.
you can get your bachelor degree in engineering and then get your MBA in accounting but you can’t reverse it.
best;</p>
Not really. You need a skill set, not just a degree.</p>
<p>
Proof of this? </p>
<p>Not every EE major is obsessed with money. That’s why they were successful to begin with, because they cared about what they did. Then they became wealthy afterward.</p>
<p>In cubicle #1 is Joe Accountant whose job is to calculate how much a 1 inch length of wire costs on the production board and whether it’s cheaper to reprogram the machine to do it or hire one more factory guy to do it. Lots of Excel, meetings, and reports to the stuffed shirts. Good money.</p>
<p>In cubicle #2 is Turbo, designing the next generation user experience for our company’s 2014 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas as well as other half-billion dollar project type work. Uses latest generation tools to design 3D interfaces, pow-wow’s with industry illuminati from all the good places, and so on. Decent money and lots of fun (and cute interns that follow us like puppies to the cafeteria)</p>
<p>The job prospect for accounting is good in both good or down economy because company need to keep up with paper trails either way. I once had to make this choice, I chose engineering due to the fact that’s it’s about the same amount of education but PetE in particular entry salary is about 70k+ while accounting was around 40k from what I remember researching. It was a no brainer for me.</p>
<p>You need to take couple career assessment/guidance test, just google it. I also heard the CPA exam is hard from my pharmacist 2 years ago when I was in the then acct vs engr predicament. Now I see that CPA exam is the ranked 1st for most hardest professional exam with about 40-45% passing rate. I wanted something guarantee (probably engr), not fail the CPA exam and not have a chance to grow much.</p>
<p>In order to get good salary in accounting world, you need to have CPA (tougher exam than LSAT) and you need to have experience in BIG FIVE or Big ten Accounting Firm then move to another company. If you are only able to get experience at small unknown accounting firm like JoeNobody-Arthur Andershine and Co…then forget about getting big fat check. Oh by the way, last time I checked, the recently graduate engineering kid from our school, he has been able to score 53K rookie-salary while the other kids from accounting grad only make around $32K to 38K for a start. So…who is making bigger pay check? y’all do the math…</p>
<p>It’s silly to make decisions based upon starting salaries without regard to earning potential over a career. For what it’s worth, the salary survey from our local university shows the average starting salary for all engineers as 60K. There are variations of accounting degrees but the median for general accounting is 52k while business information is 60k. Note: the salary survey is based on 2011/2012.</p>
<p>Salaries for accountants can certainly equal those of engineers over time. </p>
<p>To the OP - accounting is very rule-based and mostly logical. Corporate accounting is most similar to law. Cost accounting is closer to industrial engineering. Accountants work as consultants for all types of business issues. Accountants also work in corporate finance IB etc. So, the type of work can vary tremendously. But, I can’t say that anyone has ever referred to it as exciting. The higher the compensation the more sacrifices you have to make in your work-life balance. But that’s true for almost anything.</p>
<p>Just wanna let you know that: BP Petroleum CEO (Tony Hayward) and Ginni Rometty is Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of IBM, both of them have undergraduate degree in Engineering not biz school nor accounting. So, if the starting salary in Engineering is more than accounting AND the high-end position like CEO salary is being held by persons who have engineering degree not accounting THEN who is making more?..y’all figure it out it is Engineering better than Accounting or not and dont forget do the math.</p>
<p>A pharmacist makes 100K while his wife also has a degree for some sort of teaching, can’t remember exactly which subject. She DOESN’T work. Want to know why? It’s because what she would get paid is what would directly go to child care services. So the husband rather have her stay home with the kid than work for nothing and not raise their child. So when picking a degree… salary perhaps shouldn’t be main focus, but it has to be a consideration.</p>
<p>Like I said in some other post, my friend graduated top 10% full ride to University for business, graduated 2010 but never got a job in major related. Work for dish network as installer. I get paid more than him as pharmacy technician from 7 months of trade school. He sees me going to college and he told me he feels like he need to go back to college to help get job.</p>