Should I double major in Stat or minor in CS?

Hi, I was just a reader in this website but I finally came to sign in to ask few questions that are extremely important for me. I have never known any website or any source that is filled with knowledgeable people so I am just posting this question.

I certainly felt that this might be a stupid question or a redundant question but I thought I should post this and get an answer since my case is quite unique.

Currently, I am a junior in university. I decided to major in Economics and I think I can graduate in a year (so that would be totally 3 years). However, since I really wanted to go to graduate school and attend financial engineering programs, I felt that I have to show that I am highly adept (or, at least, interested) in mathematical, and computational study.

There are basically three ways for me.

  1. Just major in Econ and graduate with fairly better GPA.
  2. Double major in Econ and Stat
  3. Major in Econ and minor in CS

I thought of doing both Econ and CS as major but that would cost me about 3 more years so I decided not to consider it. My university is not a top ivy school so I was quite worried if I might end up with Econ major and without admission to graduate school. Also, the "farily better GPA" means approximately... 3.8 or so...

The thing is, I rarely see the people who go to MFE with only Econ major... so I feel really obsessed with doing more mathematical or computational things to prove my self. Is it really needed anyways? I actually am interested in those materials so I took several courses. And I thought that any person who reviews my transcript would know that I am quite prepared with mathematical backgrounds...

Anyways, I really really hope the readers may understand my question and answer it
Any comment will be really really appreciated. Thank you all very much and have a nice day!

Thanks!

 

Hey there, I've rarely seen anyone from an Econ background get accepted into a MFE programme, even with CS or stats as minors. Undertandably they want hard sciences (theoretical physics), engineering or simply maths (applied more than pure).

I don't want to deter you but from what I've seen my econ friends study, the mathematics is not far above pre-university courses.

Most courses will have a short test available online that requires the absolute basic level of mathematical understanding you need to be accepted on the course.

Why do you feel the nede to prove yourself? I think the best way for you to find out what you need for MFE courses is to email the administrative secretaries on the courses outlining your situation.

Just Do It
 
maximumlikelihood:
I don't want to deter you but from what I've seen my econ friends study, the mathematics is not far above pre-university courses.

I guess, if your high school math covered three stage least squares, martingales, ARFIMA and GARCH models, just to name a few topics covered in econometrics. Yes, it's probably possible to finish an econ major without taking anything past linear algebra, but higher level math is there for people who are interested as well as anyone taking graduate level courses.

 
FreezePops:
maximumlikelihood:
I don't want to deter you but from what I've seen my econ friends study, the mathematics is not far above pre-university courses.

I guess, if your high school math covered three stage least squares, martingales, ARFIMA and GARCH models, just to name a few topics covered in econometrics. Yes, it's probably possible to finish an econ major without taking anything past linear algebra, but higher level math is there for people who are interested as well as anyone taking graduate level courses.

In terms of difficulty (and possibly applicability to MFE programs), undergraduate level 'metircs cannot hold a candle to classes such as real analysis and stochastic processes.

 
Best Response

Forget the CS minor and just teach yourself to code in your spare time. I'm in the IT world and I think a CS degree is a waste of time for 90% of what is done in the real world.

Here's the bottom line: for any CS-related positions you may want, they're ALWAYS going to give you a tech test or coding test of some kind. No one will hire you based on the strength of your CS degree alone. If you pass the coding test, no one gives a crap what you majored in. I've had IT positions for more than 15 years and I have a business degree, never took a CS class in my life. I just happen to understand code and write a lot of it. So focus on learning one or two languages and get your Econ and Stat degrees and you'll be just fine.

 
GentlemanJack:
Forget the CS minor and just teach yourself to code in your spare time. I'm in the IT world and I think a CS degree is a waste of time for 90% of what is done in the real world.

Here's the bottom line: for any CS-related positions you may want, they're ALWAYS going to give you a tech test or coding test of some kind. No one will hire you based on the strength of your CS degree alone. If you pass the coding test, no one gives a crap what you majored in. I've had IT positions for more than 15 years and I have a business degree, never took a CS class in my life. I just happen to understand code and write a lot of it. So focus on learning one or two languages and get your Econ and Stat degrees and you'll be just fine.

Can't you say that about every major when it comes to the jobs that people on this site want? haha

If your dreams don't scare you, then they are not big enough. "There are two types of people in this world: People who say they pee in the shower, and dirty fucking liars."-Louis C.K.
 
scottj19x89:
GentlemanJack:
Forget the CS minor and just teach yourself to code in your spare time. I'm in the IT world and I think a CS degree is a waste of time for 90% of what is done in the real world.

Here's the bottom line: for any CS-related positions you may want, they're ALWAYS going to give you a tech test or coding test of some kind. No one will hire you based on the strength of your CS degree alone. If you pass the coding test, no one gives a crap what you majored in. I've had IT positions for more than 15 years and I have a business degree, never took a CS class in my life. I just happen to understand code and write a lot of it. So focus on learning one or two languages and get your Econ and Stat degrees and you'll be just fine.

Can't you say that about every major when it comes to the jobs that people on this site want? haha

I don't know about every major but you could certainly say that for a lot of them
 
GentlemanJack:
Forget the CS minor and just teach yourself to code in your spare time. I'm in the IT world and I think a CS degree is a waste of time for 90% of what is done in the real world.

Here's the bottom line: for any CS-related positions you may want, they're ALWAYS going to give you a tech test or coding test of some kind. No one will hire you based on the strength of your CS degree alone. If you pass the coding test, no one gives a crap what you majored in. I've had IT positions for more than 15 years and I have a business degree, never took a CS class in my life. I just happen to understand code and write a lot of it. So focus on learning one or two languages and get your Econ and Stat degrees and you'll be just fine.

No disrespect but CS does not necessary equal IT. IT is very much back office work, if you had to crudely categorise people in IT, they are simply the folks that are called when the cluster isn't responding or the linux server is down. Quants (those that come out of MFE programmes) on the other hand are quite different. You'll be optimising algorithms, solving conic programming problems, carrying out Monte Carlo simulations for options pricing etc etc. You'll also know that O(n.logn) is hard to beat. Not the case with IT.

So if you want to purely code, or are bright enough to be able to bridge between your ARIMA(p,q) and the code for it (most economists I know use software that simply have an ARIMA function) then teach yourself. MFEs are really to learn the mathematical and computational methods in-depth, at least that's how I see it.

But I agree that the CS degree is not useful. A friend completed his 7-year EECS PhD at a west coast target. He's working in Microsoft Seattle now - When I asked him if the PhD helped him get the job he simply said that if you know how to code, you can be a dropout they dont care.

Just Do It
 
maximumlikelihood:
But I agree that the CS degree is not useful. A friend completed his 7-year EECS PhD at a west coast target. He's working in Microsoft Seattle now - When I asked him if the PhD helped him get the job he simply said that if you know how to code, you can be a dropout they dont care.
I think you took a long diversion there, but yes, this is the point I made previously. No one will say, "Oh, Phd? You don't need to take this tech test!" They will ALWAYS test you. If you pass that, you could have graduated last in your class at Tijuana Tech and they will hire you.
 

Nisi ipsam enim nulla et accusantium vel id. Quia exercitationem error dolor facilis neque itaque. Et rerum aut ullam commodi omnis qui. Facere aliquid nobis voluptatem quia id. Corporis iusto eum ipsum facilis est omnis. Recusandae modi est esse possimus eum fuga aut reprehenderit. Repellendus ad non at enim sunt sint.

Molestiae in enim sit ut. Dolore aut id ullam. Sit animi quis consequatur consequatur officiis molestias.

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. (++) 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (13) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (202) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (144) $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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
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...”