<p>I came into college with 27 credits, and my university is VERY flexible with double majors/minors and so I decided to at first double major in Accounting (Professional CPA Track) and Finance. With so many credits coming in and loving to also learn about economics I decided to triple major in the three subjects mentioned. I try to tell my friends that I only have to take 5 classes each semester (the norm at my school) and I can easily triple major. In fact, I'll have free electives left over even after completing the three majors.</p>
<p>But most people just think I'm crazy and don't believe me.</p>
<p>What's your perception/opinion on triple majors in general?</p>
<p>Other notes:
I'm very involved in certain activities in my school, have leadership positions, and GPA is around 3.65, and have a great social life, so it's not like I do nothing but study. But when I tell people I'm a triple major they think I'm nuts.</p>
<p>Haha, I’d think you were nuts too, but if you can do it, all the more power to you. Though since you’re majoring in related fields (and still taking the same number of credits per semester), it’s not as crazy as it could be. In fact, there’s really no reason for you not to be triple majoring, given what you’ve said. </p>
<p>The closest person to triple majoring that I know of is double majoring in economics and physics with a minor in math.</p>
<p>It depends on how related these majors are…I don’t think you are crazy as accounting/finance/economics share a lot of the core business curriculum so it is not that big of a deal. My friend is triple majoring in german, western european studies, and international relations. I’m double majoring in international relations & economics with 3 specializations. If you are able to find that your social/extracurricular life doesn’t suffer, why not? An extra major in a related field only makes you seem more specialized and capable of doing a larger range of jobs/opportunities. I think if your triple majors were in something like physics, criminal justice, and art (completely unrelated fields) then that would be physically impossible to complete in 4 years (and would actually be crazy).</p>
<p>It depends on what the three majors are. First hearing that someone is triple majoring, I tend to assume that they’re a jackass. Why, I don’t know. But finance, accounting, and economics are really related. I’m sure a lot of the required classes overlap. But there are a lot of really annoying people who triple major just to say they are. For example, a guy who went to my high school is triple majoring in Math, Biology, and Philosophy. What you’re doing seems perfectly logical to me though.</p>
<p>My perception is that they’re naive freshmen who think they’re going to major in physics+computer science+math. In reality, they’ll pick one and take normal course loads.</p>
<p>I’m never really impressed with triple majoring or double majoring especially if the majors are very similar.</p>
<p>I met a grad student who majored in physics,econ, and math i think, and it had a negative impact on him. Employers looked at his resume and had a “triple major? lacking focus?” attitude.</p>
<p>I don’t see the problem as lack of focus really, more like you’ll likely have to take 20+ credits each semester and even if you can still pull off getting mostly As in your classes, you won’t understand the stuff as well as if you only have 2-3 relevant classes to your major each semester.</p>
<p>I just think it’s very unnecessary, especially when the three majors are very related. It also does the opposite of making you seem more specialized: instead, it seems like you can’t decide what you want to study, so you just pick three things that seem interesting.</p>
<p>I could see double majoring in finance/economics or accounting/economics or even finance/accounting. But I think minors are also very useful. I think the best combination here would be a major in accounting and economics with a minor in finance. I also think that a lot of times triple majoring leaves with virtually no time to take free electives that you’re just interested in.</p>
<p>Somebody in one of my classes was triple majoring in Molecular & MicroBiology, Mathematics, and Physics…or something close to that. WOW!</p>
<p>I don’t know if he was early in the process, but I don’t see how you get through college with those 3 majors taking up the majority of your time. I guess he didn’t sleep very much.</p>
<p>All very good insights here. But first I wanted to note that despite how most people perceive so…economics is really not a business type of study. Rather, it’s more like a social science. Also, I mentioned that even after completing my triple majors’ requirements I’ll still have free electives left over, so not being able to take some free electives isnt rly a concern</p>
<p>Frankly, I wouldn’t really care; I’m sure most people wouldn’t care either.
If anything, I would think that all three majors are somehow interrelated, or you’re just that pretentious.</p>
<p>Since you have the room in your schedule, do a triple major. However, talk to your advisor and see if your university has a program that would allow you to earn a master’s degree at the same time as your bachelors. My university has a program like this which ends up only requiring 12 extra credits because many of the classes can also count towards a bachelor’s degree.</p>
<p>My analogy is that a double major is like strapping a lawnmower engine to a scramjet, so I guess a triple major would be the equivalent of shoving a V4 somewhere in that mess.</p>
<p>Take the classes you want that you think will benefit you in whatever it is you want to do. If those happen to form a second (or third…) major then great. If not then great.</p>
<p>i would have loved to do Journalism, Computer Science, and a foreign language as a triple major. I was doing a double major, but work brought me down, so I cut it down to a single major.</p>
<p>But I also didn’t come in with any credits. If you can come into college with all of your lower level electives out of the way, there really isn’t any reason not to go for a double major at least, and a triple major isn’t really out of the question. I know I would have liked to go more in depth into some subjects than I was able to do.</p>
<p>I think the accounting and econ combo gives you a nice micro view of firms plus a macro view of their environment. Adding finance to that is fluff.</p>
<p>Personally, I’d find the accounting/econ major who minors in math or stats more interesting and marketable than the accounting/econ/finance major.</p>
<p>As a b-school prof, I think its not going to make an ounce of difference. No one will care. Do it because you can and enjoy it- fill your boots!- but please don’t boast about it because it will backfire. It won’t impress, it will just come across as inane because they are so close together and merely an artifact of your particular school’s requirements. Now double major in finance and anthropology, or accounting and biology, and you’d get the impression you are clamoring for.</p>
<p>I agree with the above. Additionally, if you really do have the time to do 3 majors, I think as an employer I’d be more impressed with someone who took the time to build up their resume while in college. Instead of doing 3 majors why not just do one major and 2 minors or simply double major.</p>
<p>thanks everyone for all the insights and feedback. In the end I believe I will end up triple majoring but the constructive criticism has given me something to think about. I guess the only post I disagree with here is the one above me, but that’s just my opinion.</p>
<p>Actually the one above you is right most of the time. The classes you take in route to the extra major may be very beneficial, but getting the actual extra major usually isn’t.</p>