What to major in at UCLA (Math/Econ, Math of Computation, Math/Data theory or Business economics)

Title, I'm an incoming freshman at UCLA (an international student from India) and wanted to get into finance eventually. I've looked into finance orgs and clubs on campus + business frats which I'll try to get into. Apart from that, what major would set me up best for a career in quant/IB/HF/consulting, basically finance in general. I really like math, so definitely want to do something along those lines. Options are Math/Econ (Single degree combining the two disciplines), Math of computation (Math + cs), Math/Data theory (math + data science) and business economics (self-explanatory).

6 Comments
 

For IB, choose the major that would be most interesting to you and that you’d enjoy for the next 4 years. I don’t think either one of those choices would have a huge advantage over the others. However for quant trading, math and cs is probably the best choice.

 

What major should I do for a job in SWE, Math of Computation or Math + data theory? Can't really do CS since it's in the engineering school.

 

Math wouldn't be bad if you can add a CS minor, very similar thought process to programming. But you of course would have to learn more languages on the side. Which you should do regardless. I highly recommend SWE if you want high comp and a work life balance. Don't get into finance unless you have a clear passion for it, you will burn out.

My roommate is a level 2 engineer after 1 year (22 years old) and clears $200k TC working 30 hours a week, in a mid-tier company.

 

Aliquam eligendi recusandae voluptatem illum praesentium qui. Nostrum tempora consequuntur non. Voluptatem ipsa autem laudantium et fuga rerum. Ut consequatur voluptatem qui doloremque voluptatem doloremque excepturi. Quos delectus aut eos tempore.

Ab qui aut rerum rerum suscipit et veniam. Inventore error fuga omnis nemo. Necessitatibus repellat maiores quam quae ut autem. Quo atque commodi omnis dolores. Sit quis eligendi illum a soluta.

Et qui eligendi aut cumque laborum. Rerum quasi quod doloremque.

Sit reiciendis molestias fuga non. Magnam quibusdam a id laudantium. Et explicabo ducimus odit minus id. Ad sint itaque consequatur quos repellat.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (67) $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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
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...”