Your Guide to Majoring in Business

[Hank Scorpio]

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I want to want for the marketing department of local professional and/or minor league sports teams.

Edit: I've got a 4.0 GPA through my junior year, if that makes a difference (not meant to be a brag, I just want to know if that makes me considerably less screwed).

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The most important thing is majoring in what you want to do. Finance might have better oppurtunities down the line, but if you love the aspects surrounding marketing then so be it. You have to realize, though, what the job market for marketing majors is like. A 4.0 is great and will definetely help, but employers will see that you are majoring in a weaker subject than say finance or economics.

If I was in your shoes, I probably would have minored in something else, as a fallback and also as to show employeers that you didn't breeze through college. You shouldn't have trouble finding a job, though, with your grades. On the other hand, I know one kid with a double major, double minor and his GPA is only around 3.4 I wouldn't suggest doing that.

[Hank Scorpio]

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Thank you for this thread, it has been very helpful. I will be finishing up a 2 year AA degree this spring semester. And this fall, I am transhering to a 4 year school into there business program. However I am still undecided what my major in business will be. I like math, so a business degree that is heavy in math is what I am looking for. Here is a link to the majors the school offers, do you have any suggestions? and or also tips? http://bulletin.stcloudstate.edu/ugb/cob.asp

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Whyzee said it himself...what are you interested in. You like business and math, but that doesn't really indicate what you like. The only true way to tell is by taking a course in each subject and seeing for yourself. The problem with this is that intro classes are boring and general, so most likely none will interest you.

If I had to choose for you, I would say finance since it involves a ton of areas that require analytical thinking. Accounting has math involved, but it's basically adding up numbers and basic alegebra. Finance plays more of an analytical role. I would also look into economics, as a lot of the courses like econometrics ties together statistics and finance.


Whyzee, I sent you a PM.

[bb88]

Mostly I'm just worried about getting a job for a couple years that will give me enough experience to get into a good (top-notch, aka Wharton hopefully) business school a couple years down the line. As long as I can find a decent job with some experience and an MBA in Marketing, I'll be happy. I'm also thinking about getting my doctorate and teaching, but we'll see.

[W. Deranged]

In general, my sense from my limited exposure to finance (I'm an investment banking analyst) is that a couple of years working in finance is a very strong credential for basically anything business-related you might want to do. For those of you interested in something like marketing, a reasonable path to take might well be to major in finance, do two years getting your ass handed to you in a finance job, go to business school, and then start focusing on something like marketing. A background in finance gives you skills that are incredibly transferable, it shows a basic level of analytical aptitude, and it proves that you are willing to work hard. For all its pain, it is a great signalling mechanism if you are up to it.

[PokerJans]

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First off, the difficulty of a business degree depends on what you're majoring in. I agree that marketing is a joke. From what I saw, it's basically filled up with hot girls who can't major in anything else and people who want to breeze through their classes.

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As a marketing major I must say something about marketing classes...

They are really has hard or as easy as you want them to be. For example in a Marketing Management class I am taking during my last semester of college I was given a Starbucks case where I need to read some BS and come up with IMC plan and some other stuff related to what we think Stabucks objectives should be. So basically you could easily breeze through it and come up with really basic ideas OR you could decide to actually get involved in your class and your projects and spin your wheels a bit.

And believe it or not there is a TON of analytical analysis involved in marketing...I mean A TON.

Hot chicks are marketing majors. Hot chicks are generally super retarded.

Marketing jobs right out of college are going to suck pretty bad though. I am very well experienced and I have essentially had a part time job throughout my senior at an online marketing agency and I would [censored] myself if I got 40K. I am probably looking at 32.5-37.5 or something around there. If you want to get in at a huge agency you are looking at 28K.

This is compared to some retarded people I know who just run off to EMC and make like 50K for no good reason. Oh well - those jobs are the definition of a 'boring desk job' in my opinion.

[PokerJans]

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You have to realize, though, what the job market for marketing majors is like. A 4.0 is great and will definetely help, but employers will see that you are majoring in a weaker subject than say finance or economics.

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Waaaahhhhat!? You do in fact realize that if you are a marketing major you are going to look for a job related to marketing! Entry level 'Marketing jobs' need marketing majors to fill them - they EXPECT you to have a marketing degree and the skill set that comes along with a marketing degree. Not a finance or economics degree.

Your OP made me skeptical. Now I am honestly convinced you have no iea what you are talking about.

[Hank Scorpio]

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You have to realize, though, what the job market for marketing majors is like. A 4.0 is great and will definetely help, but employers will see that you are majoring in a weaker subject than say finance or economics.

[/ QUOTE ]

Waaaahhhhat!? You do in fact realize that if you are a marketing major you are going to look for a job related to marketing! Entry level 'Marketing jobs' need marketing majors to fill them - they EXPECT you to have a marketing degree and the skill set that comes along with a marketing degree. Not a finance or economics degree.

Your OP made me skeptical. Now I am honestly convinced you have no iea what you are talking about.

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I meant that marketing employers are expecting you to have good grades because the majority of graduating seniors looking for jobs in that field do have good grades. Compare this to engineers where a lower GPA is acceptable and understandable.

Try understanding what you read before you go on bashing a post that took a lot of effort. I thought it was common sense that entry-level marketing jobs need marketing majors to fill them. Guess not...

[Hank Scorpio]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
First off, the difficulty of a business degree depends on what you're majoring in. I agree that marketing is a joke. From what I saw, it's basically filled up with hot girls who can't major in anything else and people who want to breeze through their classes.

[/ QUOTE ]

As a marketing major I must say something about marketing classes...

They are really has hard or as easy as you want them to be. For example in a Marketing Management class I am taking during my last semester of college I was given a Starbucks case where I need to read some BS and come up with IMC plan and some other stuff related to what we think Stabucks objectives should be. So basically you could easily breeze through it and come up with really basic ideas OR you could decide to actually get involved in your class and your projects and spin your wheels a bit.

And believe it or not there is a TON of analytical analysis involved in marketing...I mean A TON.

Hot chicks are marketing majors. Hot chicks are generally super retarded.

Marketing jobs right out of college are going to suck pretty bad though. I am very well experienced and I have essentially had a part time job throughout my senior at an online marketing agency and I would [censored] myself if I got 40K. I am probably looking at 32.5-37.5 or something around there. If you want to get in at a huge agency you are looking at 28K.

This is compared to some retarded people I know who just run off to EMC and make like 50K for no good reason. Oh well - those jobs are the definition of a 'boring desk job' in my opinion.

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Of course you'll get more out of something that you put the effort into. What I was trying to say is that the classes aren't as hard as some of the other business majors out there.