Currently i am a freshman at an instate university. I was planning to do pharmacy or engineering but switched to supply chain right before school started because it is ranked super high nationally at my university and I heard many good things about it. However, I am having doubts and wonder if I should change back to engineering or even try pharmacy before it is too late. I switched because chemistry and physics was not my strong suit (I took AP in high school but my teachers also didnt really teach well) and math was my strongest suit. Since math is my strongest suit and I like puzzles and technology, I thought supply chain would fit (but I am not sure so any insight is helpful). Overall, one of the main reasons I doubt a career in supply chain is because I feel like most of the engineering students are smart and dedicated and I know theyll be successful whereas most of my business classmates don’t really care about academics and only chose business because it is easy and has little work. (This is some, I know some of the most successful people are in business). Also, I know it is important to know a lot of people in business to get good jobs, but I wont have that luxury because my parents didnt go to college. That is why I am asking because I dont have anyone I can ask about this. Moreover, I also don’t know how much a supply chain major pays. I have read that it is better to get a more broader degree like engineering because you can still do supply chain but I might be behind if i switch. My GPA will be around a 3.7 (what is considered a good GPA?), I am planning to get a masters degree, but I just want to know if staying as a supply chain major and getting a degree in supply chain is good or not. I don’t want to get stuck without a degree i will regret in the future. Thanks
Well, it depends. Do you like it? Are you interested in the coursework?
While you don’t have to go into supply chain management just because you majored in it, supply chain management is one of those professional majors that is designed explicitly to prepare you for that career, so it makes sense to assume that something related is your goal at least initially. Supply chain management majors have good job prospects and salaries. At Arizona State University, supply chain management majors averaged about $56K a year at the undergrad level and around $97K a year at the graduate/MBA level ([source](http://www.scdigest.com/ASSETS/ON_TARGET/13-06-12-1.php?cid=7128)). There aren’t really good national level statistics for that, but I think it’s not out of the realm of reality to assume that a supply chain management grad who goes into the field can probably expect to start at around $50-60K. Employment rates are also high, with the vast majority of majors at a few programs surveyed reporting that they had job offers at or before graduation.
But good job and salary prospects needs to be balanced with your own interests and skills. Do you like your supply chain classes? Learn about the career field - visit the career center and/or your department’s office and find out if there are alumni of your college you can talk to about supply chain management. Join a professional organization for supply chain management or logistics - most professional orgs have student membership categories that cost less money and may have special activities for students, like mentoring circles or trainings. ([url=https://www.scmtalent.com/supply-chain-associations/]Here[/url] is a list; I don’t know the comparative quality of these orgs so you’ll have to ask people in the business.) AS you talk to people about their jobs and career trajectories, start thinking about whether what they say lines up with things you are interested in.
A couple of other things:
-If you are a freshman in college, you don’t know what your GPA will be around. My final cumulative GPA was really different from my GPA in the first semester of my freshman year. But don’t worry about trying to predict final GPA - just do as well as you can in your classes.
Even if this is true…so what? Are you smart and dedicated? Do you you have a drive to succeed? While your classmates’ motivation can have an impact upon your own, really what’s most important is your own drive and ambition. Your classmates’ passion (or lack thereof) doesn’t make the major you’re studying good or bad. It may affect your experience in the department, and that’s a decision you’ll have to make.
While networking and who you know is important and will affect your career, there are LOTS of other ways to do this besides relying on your parents’ connections. You may have to work a little harder than the people around you have wealthy, well-connected parents, but you can do it. First of all, get to know your classmates - they’ll be your future colleagues, and you never know when one of them might pop up elsewhere. Also, if some or many of your classmates’ parents are wealthy and well-connected, you may be able to leverage those connections yourself!
Secondly, like I said before connect with the career services office and see if you can get connected with some alumni working in the field. Alumni connections are a great way to get to know people. Also, joining the professional org for your field can help you meet people too.