STEM vs Business Degrees

I go to a competitive Canadian public high school with an extremely high socioeconomic demographic and it seems like everyone around me is going to business school (NYU Stern, USC Marshall, UPenn Wharton M&T, Michigan Ross etc.)

After graduation, I want to go into a quant firm/HF but still have a shot at IB/PE in the US. I want to be able to make as much money as a business school graduate, but don't know if I made a mistake in high school choosing to study maths at university. I have committed to study Maths & Statistics at Oxford, but I was also accepted to study Applied Math / Economics at Brown. 

I'm currently taking a financial accounting course at my local state university (As a dual enrolment student) and there is a LOT of content that business majors learn that I will be missing out on for 4 years. (e.g. intro corporate finance, advanced accounting, derivatives, macroeconomics, money and banking, international finance, etc.). I'm planning on doing my CFA L1 to make up for this 1st year summer (I can do this since Oxford is a 3 year program). 

I know that STEM graduates still have a shot at business roles, but seems like everyone on reddit is exaggerating how good a STEM degree really is and craps on business degrees. My dad is also like this (was in S&T at JP) and told me that majoring in business is not a good idea (he himself is a business grad). 

I feel like my degree will be too technical and I won't be able to build enough soft skills... Any suggestions / advice? 

 



 

1 Comments
 

Ut repellendus voluptas deleniti. Omnis natus voluptas sit. Repellat in est fugiat.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan No 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (45) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”