<p>I'm currently in a major called Technology Management, which apparently is a mix between technical skills, business skills, and management skills, but this wasn't what I was actually aiming for. I was going to computer engineering, but it's more complicated than that... In high school, I did very well in every subject so I have no idea what my strengths and weaknesses are. I honestly feel like I could really just become anything if I really wanted to. :/ I actually accidentally landed in Technology Management in hopes that I could work my way towards getting into a Computer Engineering degree, but now I'm starting to rethink what I want to be. Technology Management at the uni I'm attending is quite new and is in the college of education, though, many people say it belongs in the college of business. I'm not sure what to do right now! I pretty much have a full ride to college, but I don' t want to waste it! I can't afford to waste the money that was given to me. I've been so stressed out about this lately and have been exploring different majors, while also reading on the one I'm in. I decided that my goal is going to be landing a job where I make a six figure (at least 100,000+ a year), while being a field dealing with technology. I know it's probably a hard thing to go after, but I'm willing to work my arse off to get there. Can anyone give me some advice on reaching this goal? Is Tech Management a good major to be in for the future? I'm a first generation college student, so this is overwhelming for me.</p>
Not really, because "something in tech that will make me $100k is too vague a goal to get specific advice. What do you want to do in “tech”, be an engineer, an entrepreneur, a manager, what? And when do you want to be making $100k? Immediately, with a BS? 5 years after getting a masters? Those are all very, very different routes!</p>
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I think that is a better question for the engineering forums, but let me assure you that any real kind of management job will require years of experience. This sounds to me like just another Business Administration degree with a bit of a tech focus. I would nor ordinarily recommend it.</p>
<p>I would transfer out of the Tech Management program and get into Computer Engineering, if that is the field of engineering that you are interested in. </p>
<p>There are many posts (many from me, as well as others) discussing the fact that to “manage” technology, you first need to know the technology well. Going directly from college into some kind of role where you are managing a technology or managing engineers working in the field is highly unlikely. You may find some kind of position in a tech company where you are using the business side of the Tech Management degree, but it would be (IMHO) more of a straight business job. No company I know of would risk having someone who is new to the technology managing that technology. It would be a recipe for disaster.</p>
<p>Most people enter into management within engineering after a number of years of engineering work. That should be your goal. </p>
<p>It is great to have a salary goal, but be realistic. If the market says the position pays 100K then fine, you’ll get it. Otherwise, if you ask for 100k and the market for that skill is 60K, you get 0K. Focus on being the best at what you do and the money will follow. </p>
<p>Thanks for the replies so far! Yeah, I guess my goal is quite vague. The sad honest truth is, I don’t really know what I want to do with my life. That’s why I’m kind of panicking. I feel like I could be anything, and there are just so many options. All I know is I want a good salary to be able to uphold a family really well, not have to travel too much, and something that will deal with technology… I’m just really stressed out because the second year is usually the last year you have before you decide what major you want to stick and run with… My parents don’t really know too much about college, and I’m trying to research as best as I can. I kind of feel like I have no one else to turn to…</p>
<p>I thought they teach me the technological skills I need in the degree program? Isn’t it a mix between business and technology courses? </p>
<p>If I go through with this major, I’m planning on getting a job after getting a BS degree, then using accumulated money to get a master’s in it.</p>
<p>From what I can gather, the average for the Tech Management is you start off with around 60K right off the bat, but then it grows into 100K if you can go up the ladders.</p>
<p>I’m meant to have a 100K after some time and experience, not immediately. I just don’t know where to start in figuring what I want to do… Is it too late for me to decide?</p>
“Technology Management” is not the kind of field where you can expect consistency between programs. You really need to look at the courses at your school to see what they are teaching.</p>
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I am curious where you are getting those numbers - that starting salary sounds a little high for that kind of degree, that number might be less “expect this” and more “one guy got this starting salary so we are using it to draw people in”. Regardless, $60k to start and $100k after a 5-10 years is not unreasonable for engineers, if that helps.</p>
<p>In the mean time, let’s clear up a few things: </p>
<p>Although one can inform the other, business and engineering are completely different disciplines. It is generally easier to start in engineering or the hard sciences and then move to business than it is to go the other way round. For that reason, it is often better to start in engineering (if there is genuine interest) and look at the business side as something to tackle later.</p>
<p>Colleges ultimately create programs to attract students, not fill jobs. They want you to get jobs, but they want you in school even more. So the fact that a degree exists does not mean that there is automatically a corresponding job.</p>
<p>Management requires at least one of experience, nepotism, or owner stupidity, and only one of those is under your control. Any degree program titled “management” that doesn’t require experience is either using a very loose definition of the word, or is counting on your stupidity.</p>
<p>Your ability to make money in a particular field (and enjoy your life) is very much dependent on your interest and ability in that field. That is even more true in fields like business, where enthusiasm and drive are almost job requirements.</p>
<p>Okay… So… Going into a field of business management isn’t a good idea?.. </p>
<p>I feel like I’ve really just got one shot at this. Another issue is that I’ve taken an eng. math course and failed it my first semester. So if I’m seeing that I can’t handle the math in an engineering field, would it still be bad to go through with a business degree like this one? </p>
<p>All the issues and ambiguity is so frustrating. I wish I knew what to do with my life…</p>
<p>For engineering you need a lot of Calculus (about 2 years worth) and Calculus-based Physics (about 1 year). If you are not comfortable with the level of mathematics that this involves, then you are likely in the right major already. If you can handle the math, then engineering certainly gives you the greatest flexibility in career options.</p>
<p>There is also the question of whether you like the field of Computer Engineering which is a mixture of programming and electrical engineering and focuses on computer hardware. Spend a bit of time looking into the curricula at your university and see if the change appeals to you. If you decide to make the switch, then you might have an extra year ahead of you because you need to get the Calculus out of the way first.</p>
That depends on your aspirations. Understand that “business management” in college does not lead to “management” jobs in industry. These kinds of degrees prepare you for general business operations, and since they are general not specialized they seem to push you towards small to medium sized companies that prize versatility over specialization. You can make a good living doing this, but $100k becomes a bit of a reach, and requires those real management jobs that take 5-10 years (or more!) to get into.</p>
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That depends a lot on why you failed the course - I failed an engineering math course because I didn’t go to class, didn’t study, didn’t do the homework, and generally didn’t put in any effort. I retook it later and got an A, by taking it seriously. If that sounds like your experience, then don’t rule out engineering yet. If, on the other hand, you were working hard all the way through and still failed… then perhaps engineering is not so much for you.</p>
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Baby steps. Don’t talk about being a manager yet, talk about being a professional, and put management ambitions on a shelf until you are actually in a position to reach for them. As to IT, it generally requires less math than engineering, and you certainly do not need a CompE degree to work in IT - you might want to see if your school (or another to which you can transfer) offers an IT program. CompE is going to give you a skill set that does not completely overlap with IT, so a focused degree would be a better choice.</p>
<p>Either way, IT is not usually a big $$$ field (regardless of your degree), so if this is where you go, understand that your $100k aspirations may take a long time to come true.</p>
<p>Thank you so much for the replies again! Yeah, that does sound like my experience. I guess I fear, and my parents as well, that if I retook it and tried my hard, I might fail. The is way more stressful than just making a grade I didn’t want to make, it’s more like I’m lucky to have the scholarships and grants to almost have a full ride in college and don’t want to waste the opportunity that’s been given to me. I’m pretty grateful I got, but not I feel like I’m trying to juggle around what major I want, you know? If I screw up, waste money, my family can’t pay for me to retake it, so I’'ll have to take out loans I guess.</p>
<p>If you don’t mind, may I ask the the steps you took into realizing what major you wanted to aim for? I just need to get my major done and focus on that as my goal, the work, perseverance, and discipline are things I can handle. It’s the goal I’m having issues with atm… Any advice would be much appreciated.</p>
Well, I went through my university’s program bulletin and made a list of every major I had interest in studying - everything from engineering to philosophy and everything in between. Then I started crossing things off the list until I had a few (5? 10?) in which I had a serious interest. Next I looked long and hard at careers in those fields (which is why I am NOT a philosopher!) and crossed out those in which I did not see myself actually working. That left me with a few, all engineering majors. I hemmed and hawed for a little while, and chose aerospace.</p>
<p>Big mistake.</p>
<p>So after a year in aerospace I switched over to electrical (in which I had some practical experience anyway), and have been there ever since.</p>
<p>What University are you attending? It sounds very odd to me that a Technology Management degree would be int the school of education. What other classes did you take during your freshman year? What classes did you enjoy most? How were your grades, apart from the engineering math class that you failed? Do you have need-based financial aid or merit aid? If merit, are you a risk of losing your merit scholarship due to GPA? What was your math background in high school - i.e. what is the highest math class you took, what was your math SAT score?</p>
<p>It’s hard to advise you without a little bit more information.</p>
<p>Fall 2013:
Learning Communication and Leadership: S
Planet Earth: B
History of the US: C
Engineering Math 1: Q
Intro to Psychology: B</p>
<p>Spring 2014:
Basic Astronomy: B
History of the US: C
Health and Fitness Strength Training: A
Business Math 1: B
State and Local Government: C</p>
<p>I enjoy Planet Earth, Astronomy, and Psychology, but I didn’t enjoy History of the U.S. courses and State and Local Government. I do have financial aid, a small loan taken out, but a lot of grant and scholarship money. I almost have a full ride in college. I took College credit courses in high school. I had 16 credits come in from high school into my current university. The lowest I can go without losing anything is a 2.0 GPA. My current GPA after this first year is a 2.652. In high school, I made straight A’s or the first 2 years, but the last two years I made 89’s on one course each of those years. (bummer, I know) I got up to college credit Pre-Cal in high school. I took the SAT once. Scores: Reading-500 Math-540 Writing-520.</p>
<p>I don’t really want to give out my location, or university name. I’m sorry. </p>
<p>Looking at those grades I am nor sure what to recommend… but it would not be engineering. A lot of people see their performance suffer when they get to college, it is so unlike high school that success is one does not always indicate success in the other. Your science/math grades are all B’s, which suggests you should not be looking at harder science/math courses, and your overall GPA does not suggest you are ready for a harder overall curriculum, and that is why I am not recommending engineering at this time.</p>
<p>I would consider an IT major still, if that is available at your school. Otherwise, I would suggest something on the business side. I would also strongly consider taking some steps to up your overall academic performance - exactly what steps I cannot say, as it depends on info you have not provided. But look at your performance and schedule and seriously consider what steps you need to take to bring that GPA up. Remember that a 2.01 will keep you in school but it sure as heck won’t get you a job!</p>
<p>OK, this gives some more perspective. Your SAT math score alone would suggest that engineering probably doesn’t make sense for you. Failing the engineering math class seems to confirm that. Lack of a strong background in math is the most common reason why people drop out of engineering. Your GPA is probably not strong enough to transfer to the engineering school at your University, even if you wanted to. </p>
<p>Your good grades in high school show that you are willing to work hard, but the disconnect between your HS grades and your SAT scores suggests that your high schools was probably not particularly rigorous, which puts you at a disadvantage vs. other students who had more rigorous classes in high school. However, a strong work ethic can go a very long way. Why do you think your college grades are so much lower than your HS grades? How selective is your college? </p>
<p>My suggestions are similar to those of cosmicfish: look into IT and business. Possibly stick with technology management, but not as a path to computer engineering. You should research the outcomes of students at your University (or other Universities that offer a similar degree because the program is new at your U) in technology management, and see what kinds of jobs that graduates get, and try to figure out if that work would interest you. There was another recent thread talking about engineering management, where it was suggested that those degrees don’t lead to actual management of engineers, but low-level management-type work such as filing paperwork and doing statistical tests, or project management. </p>
<p>If making money is really a priority for you, you might want to go into sales. </p>
<p>As the prior post says, you really need to concentrate on bringing up your GPA. Many employers have a 3.0 GPA floor, below which they won’t even look at a resume. Don’t be too unhappy that you haven’t figured out a major yet - college is a time for exploration and many students change their majors. Look at all of the majors offered by your school, and what courses are required, and see what interests you. Good luck to you - if you are willing to work hard, you still have a lot of good options. </p>
<p>What classes are you scheduled to take in the fall? Could you still make changes if you wanted to? </p>
<p>I feel like the reason I wasn’t doing so hot my first and second semester was not only the stress and thoughts of maybe wasting my life because I don’t know what I want day to day, but also because I was socializing way too much. A lot of people I’ve talked to struggled their first semester (with some of them going near the 2.0 GPA range). Isn’t it normal for freshman college students to struggle their first semester? It’s kind of an overwhelming, yet nice experience of freedom, independence, and also trying to get a better sense of managing your time more wisely.</p>
<p>I’m not sure how to gauge this yet, but how hard would it be to get my GPA to a 3.5 or higher from where I’m at? </p>
<p>As for my courses, class starts the 1st of next month for me, so I think changing a good portion of my courses to something else all of sudden this late would make it extremely hard to get into the courses I would need for some other major, right? (well, it would also depend on what major that would be, of course)</p>
<p>Course this coming semester:</p>
<p>Public Speaking
Special Topics in(…? It just cuts off there on my schedule, but I know it’s a course specific to my major)
Design Process
Business Info System Concept
Intro to Philosophy</p>