Did I fuck up by not majoring in Computer Science? STEM Vs. Liberal Arts

Anything to do with the traditional world of get a degree, get a job as well as its alternatives
Scott 2
Posts: 2824
Joined: Sun Feb 12, 2012 10:34 pm

Re: Did I fuck up by not majoring in Computer Science? STEM Vs. Liberal Arts

Post by Scott 2 »

Have you looked at becoming an actuary? They get paid well, great hours, great job prospects. Math required.

James_0011
Posts: 392
Joined: Wed Nov 09, 2016 12:00 am

Re: Did I fuck up by not majoring in Computer Science? STEM Vs. Liberal Arts

Post by James_0011 »

@scott2,

Yes that is looking like it is going to be my plan. I'm attempting to find an internship in product management for a tech company (many of the ads say bachelors in math, cs, economics, or business), but if that doesn't workout I am going to study for the actuarial exams.

Andre900
Posts: 96
Joined: Sun Mar 27, 2011 10:25 pm

Re: Did I fuck up by not majoring in Computer Science? STEM Vs. Liberal Arts

Post by Andre900 »

Others have already said it - olaz, you didn't enjoy the one CS course you took, so that's a very strong indication that you wouldn't enjoy or be successful at a CS career. If you want to earn a higher salary than a regular liberal arts major, you might see if you have the interest and aptitude in one of the several engineering disciplines, or even consider training for a skilled trade.

I was very mechanically inclined as a child and as a teen; worked on cars and had jobs in an auto repair shop and at Radio Shack. Personal computers weren't widespread in the late '70s, and I had no experience w/ computers or programming when I started community college in 1981. I had thought I wanted to be a police officer, but after one year as a criminal justice major (super easy coursework), I realized I could be a police officer w/ any degree and wanted something more marketable and potentially lucrative, and transferred to a more prestigious 4-year college and switched my major to Computer Science.

I excelled in my CS major and graduated at the top of my class, and was quickly hired by a large tech company at an excellent salary ($35K in 1985!). While I enjoyed studying CS and was a top student, I quickly learned that the day-to-day job of a junior software engineer was a bit of a drag and I was outperformed by many of my peers, but still competent enough to get my job done. After thirteen years with two different companies, I went back to school full-time to earn my MBA. While my 720 GMAT wasn't good enough to get me into my first choice, Stanford, it did get me a nearly full tuition scholarship at a top 40 MBA program.

Earning my MBA got me out of the code-monkey business and opened up many opportunities for different kinds of white collar employment across a broad range of industries; and got me some enhanced on-the-job respect. On the other hand, due to the "Great Recession," a couple of layoffs and blown opportunities, and crushing competition, my salary today is exactly what it was before I started the MBA in 1998, well below six-figures. Nonetheless, due to long-term, relatively low cost of living, high savings rate, low-risk investing, and two serendipitous real estate investments (and a lot of sweat equity), my net worth hit $1 million by age 50.

Stahlmann
Posts: 1121
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2016 6:05 pm

Re: Did I fuck up by not majoring in Computer Science? STEM Vs. Liberal Arts

Post by Stahlmann »

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/01/educ ... reers.html

don't get fooled, my polyamorous internet friend :----DDDDD

PS.
Last active:Sun Sep 16, 2018 2:52 am
edit:
ehhh... this viewtopic.php?t=6119 is better location for my post.

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