Non-Econ/Math Major at the University of Chicago

AirBorneMileHigh:

...but like in terms of the AP Calculus exam I literally got sodomized.

Didn't know Jerry Sandusky taught AP Calc.

Sorry, figuratively*

Could've actually helped in answering the question though.

don't sweat the AP. i did great on that thing, and literally remember nothing about calculus. AP exam scores are more about your high school teacher's ability to prepare you than it is about your abilities. if you want to study economics, study economics. don't default to your second choice, you'll regret it later.

Yeah OP, just buckle up. I don't see the sense in quitting before you start. Your perfect math scored would indicate that you're not dumb so just take a little bit of extra time on the calc if that's a weakness.

OP: PM me -- former UC econ major

Chicandtoughness nailed it. While it is math based, the math you are doing is not terribly difficult.

If you can differentiate and do lagrangians you can do almost all the math with ease (except for econometrics). Also, while a lot of economics majors take analysis, if you would rather focus your time elsewhere Math 151-153 is pretty easy calculus and the rest of the math classes you need for the major are all geared for social scientists, not actual math majors.

PM me with any of your questions...as I am obviously a UChicago econ major lol

well, I wouldn't worry too much about this. If it still bothers you, you can take some online class from UCB or Baruch, NY.

Midatlantica is correct. The math is really not that hard in the econ program beyond the upper level stat/econometrics (which quite frankly was not that bad either). Just to put this in perspective, I did fine in the econ program there after testing into130's math and very little calculus in high school. Just work hard and you will be fine; UC is a great place to learn

Are there econ majors that start out in 131? I only got a 3 on BC and 4 on AB (I had a sub-par calc teacher).

OP: I am not sure, when I went to UC there certainly were a lot of econ people that started in 130's calc. I think you may(Midatlantica may know if current student) be able to though. Like I said, I didn't even take calc in high school and did well in my time there. Don't worry!!

Haha, you should be fine. 3 in Calc BC/4 in Calc AB isn't horrible....

Econometrics, at its roots, is just application of multivariate math (linear algebra) and statistics. And the glorious thing is that at intermediate/adv levels, no one expects you to do the math by hand -- it's all computerized. The things that you'll be tested on will probably focus on experimental setup and interpretation of results. But I guess I'm getting ahead of myself here...

^chic^ you are right. econometrics at UC, at least on test days, was being able to set up advanced models and interpret regression results for beta estimators. p-sets on the other hand were the bane of my existence :/

It's certainly possible to get into finance/consulting without an econ major at UChicago. Anecdotal evidence (but isn't that the best kind of evidence?), but I know at least a couple kids who have gotten these gigs while doing tangentially related majors (as if U of C econ is somehow "more" applicable... it's not.)

Be prepared to network, though, as there will, fairly or unfairly, be a certain stereotype that you don't know math, and you have to have a good answer as to why you weren't econ if you're looking for something down the corporate business path.