Advice on Business Major(s)

[impaul4]

Ok, I am currently double majoring in Finance and Information Systems. I have a 4.0 in IST and a 2.7 in Finance. I always thought I wanted to do Finance but once I got in and started taking classes, it is really fucking boring and I don't want it as a major. Yes I struggle a little bit, some due to not understanding the material but mostly because it bores the fuck out of me and I don't care about it.

My question is, being that it is so late in my schooling I can only change the Finance to Business Administration. I have read mixed reviews on this degree and have heard it is worthless, while other websites say it is at the top of business degrees. I can either stick with Finance and will have to push graduation back since I had to drop a few classes because of personal reasons or I can switch the Finance major to a Business Administration major and complete my schooling on time and have both degrees.

The gist is, I know Finance is really good, but is Business Administration worthless like some say? Is it worthless even paired with an IST degree? I just do not see myself in Finance in the future. Yes it can make a lot of money but dear god it is it boring as shit.

thanks

[69Mach351]

Stick with finance, just apply yourself more. You will be glad you did.

A business degree is not worthless, it is just very generic in what it teaches you. You don't focus on one set of skills, you brush over a lot of different areas, and then you have to polish what you need once you get a job.

If you are looking at going into IS then either may or may not help you land an entry level job, but EVERYTHING in business has to do with finances. The higher you go up the ladder, the more you will see it.

[impaul4]

Originally Posted by 69Mach351

Stick with finance, just apply yourself more. You will be glad you did.

A business degree is not worthless, it is just very generic in what it teaches you. You don't focus on one set of skills, you brush over a lot of different areas, and then you have to polish what you need once you get a job.

If you are looking at going into IS then either may or may not help you land an entry level job, but EVERYTHING in business has to do with finances. The higher you go up the ladder, the more you will see it.

You make a good point. I don't know if this helps but I am in the Business school so no matter what degree, it is business, the majors are more area focused. But I get what you're saying and that was my fear was the Business Administration was just a "gen ed" degree. I know Finance has a strong background and would help, but I don't want to fail to obtain something I don't desire, you know?

I'm not looking to take the easy way out, it is just an alternative that fits into my schedule to keep me on track.

[Ju]

Do you know what you want to do?

[impaul4]

Originally Posted by Ju

Do you know what you want to do?

Well I want to be involved with systems control and functions. I would be interested in project management and maybe a consultant type working with clients to design and build a system to fit their needs. The only thing I wanted to do in finance is financial analyst or maybe a bank examiner.

I was scared of thinking whatever degree I choose I will only be employed in that area. But after further discussion and looking online at job wants on KU's BCSC site, for qualifications most business, finance and IT jobs just say business degree. So basically any degree from the business school makes me a candidate just a more "specialized" area (finance, marketing, IT) makes me a better candidate.

[Ryan D]

Whether a business administration degree is worthless depends on where you get it from and what majors they have. When I switched to business at UMKC, your only option was a Bachelor's of Business Administration (not a BS or a BA. Not many schools do it that way).

[69Mach351]

Originally Posted by impaul4

...I would be interested in project management and maybe a consultant type working with clients to design and build a system to fit their needs.

Finance is the only way to go. The only way that consultants get hired and are able to continue on with projects, is to show what they are doing is going to make financial sense for the company. People don't spend $100-$500+/hr on something that sounds like it will make sense, they spend that based on the ROI that you have brought other companies and the ROI that they can expect working with you/the company you are with.

Earlier I said that everything in business deals with finances the higher up you go. Good consultants have a very, very strong financial base behind all of their work. I would venture to say quite a bit better than most business people on the upper level. They have to come in and get a feel (usually in two weeks or less) for the company, and then let the company know what they have to offer.

Anyone can pick a project and run with it. That is not hard. Picking the best project/business decision requires more than a feeling - especially when companies bring people in to do any type of substantial work.

[impaul4]

Originally Posted by 69Mach351

Finance is the only way to go. The only way that consultants get hired and are able to continue on with projects, is to show what they are doing is going to make financial sense for the company. People don't spend $100-$500+/hr on something that sounds like it will make sense, they spend that based on the ROI that you have brought other companies and the ROI that they can expect working with you/the company you are with.

Earlier I said that everything in business deals with finances the higher up you go. Good consultants have a very, very strong financial base behind all of their work. I would venture to say quite a bit better than most business people on the upper level. They have to come in and get a feel (usually in two weeks or less) for the company, and then let the company know what they have to offer.

Anyone can pick a project and run with it. That is not hard. Picking the best project/business decision requires more than a feeling - especially when companies bring people in to do any type of substantial work.

I get what you're saying. But to be honest, I have that Finance knowledge. ROI, ROE, CAPM, WACC, etc is taught at the basic 310 level and 410 level (which I have taken) beyond that, you are looking at personalized portfolios and strategy. It was said (and I agree) that everyone has a general background of business when going through the business school, your major is just saying "this is my master area". I saw Finance as more of a major that would take you to Wall St or investment banking and it is not what I wanted to do. IST allows me to do IST stuff on top of move up in the company ( CIO rather than CFO) even with just my basic courses of finance. I have the finance knowledge most any financial planners/ analysts possess which is why I didn't want it as a major.

I also see it as finance is finance, if I can't figure it out, I can google the equation. You can't google how to build a financial info system or any other system, you have to know and be taught.

Some of my shit doesn't make sense I know, I am on medicine and kind of am out of it. But the gist is, for me to move up the corporate ladder like you said I would need the finance skills, I feel I already have that "need to know knowledge" from my core classes I had to take. I know I can't be an independent consultant for $500hr, but I could be one for the company.

One thing I have observed, depending on the company, your degree "specialty" means shit. The company will show and teach you what they think they want you to know. My friend works for Deloitte as a consultant and her major is MIS. My gf works for Cerner, is no longer a consultant but a systems architect and her degree was Management with conenctration in HR.

[feraldarkness]

My take on it, any business degree or for that matter any analogical degree can be used to do most any job you want, the key is marketing it, keeping an analogical view and presenting your ability's.
I know a person who used a masters in philosophy to land a nice R+D management job. The first question he was asked on the interview was, "I am rather curious why you are applying for a job that I have tons of people with business degrees applying for, what do you think you can offer that they do not?" He had a simple answer. "I can view problems from many different angles, analyze them and solve them, basically, I am your problem solver." He then went on to explain his methods and present some examples.
Sounds dumb but I really think what kind of degree you have just helps you get in the door, they are more likely to interview people with a degree that is specific to the job but having the exact fit far from guarantee you a interview or job. Personally I am going for an MBA, it applies to a wide range of jobs and I can manipulate it into whatever I need.

[ctprelude]

My opinion is that if you want to do IST related work then a business admin degree along with it is probably fine. Experience is really what is king these days as long as you have some type of related degree.

[impaul4]

Update after talking to the counselors. If I were to double major in Finance I would have to not take an internship this summer and I would still push graduation back to December 2013. (I am 26 and ready to just leave, I have put it off long enough). But she suggested I could do a minor in Economics and I could intern this summer + graduate on time. That sounds like a good option, thoughts?

[Law Offices of Jeremiah Johnson, LLC]

Originally Posted by impaul4

Ok, I am currently double majoring in Finance and Information Systems. I have a 4.0 in IST and a 2.7 in Finance. I always thought I wanted to do Finance but once I got in and started taking classes, it is really fucking boring and I don't want it as a major. Yes I struggle a little bit, some due to not understanding the material but mostly because it bores the fuck out of me and I don't care about it.

My question is, being that it is so late in my schooling I can only change the Finance to Business Administration. I have read mixed reviews on this degree and have heard it is worthless, while other websites say it is at the top of business degrees. I can either stick with Finance and will have to push graduation back since I had to drop a few classes because of personal reasons or I can switch the Finance major to a Business Administration major and complete my schooling on time and have both degrees.

The gist is, I know Finance is really good, but is Business Administration worthless like some say? Is it worthless even paired with an IST degree? I just do not see myself in Finance in the future. Yes it can make a lot of money but dear god it is it boring as shit.

thanks

Business administration and marketing are considered "easy" majors by most companies. The Information management is a GREAT degree to have because it indicates you have an understanding of technology, which many over 40 don't.

This is not limited to companies who are hiring. when I applied to law school, most law schools would "curve" GPAs based on majors. An engineering degree was "curved" up, while a marketing degree was "curved" down. They considered my management information systems degree to be a computer engineering degree (it isn't even close) and I received a scholarship as a result.

[shaun y]

i'd do economics over bus admin, but that's just the econ major in me speaking. like has been pointed out already, a huge majority of business school students just major in bus admin so it's nothing special anymore. i think my school graduated like 500 kids in bus admin last year and 15 in economics.

[impaul4]

Originally Posted by shaun y

i'd do economics over bus admin, but that's just the econ major in me speaking. like has been pointed out already, a huge majority of business school students just major in bus admin so it's nothing special anymore. i think my school graduated like 500 kids in bus admin last year and 15 in economics.

Thats what I think I'll do. And to clarify it will only be a minor my main major (and will never change) is Information Systems.

[shaun y]

Originally Posted by impaul4

Thats what I think I'll do. And to clarify it will only be a minor my main major (and will never change) is Information Systems.

then why do you care? the different minors in bus school are only like 2 or 3 classes apart

[impaul4]

The "care" factor is do I take an internship and just get a minor (Econ) or do I skip the internship and pick up a second major (Business Admin)

[Diamond Star]

Internship with a "minor"

[Ryan D]

Originally Posted by shaun y

i'd do economics over bus admin, but that's just the econ major in me speaking. like has been pointed out already, a huge majority of business school students just major in bus admin so it's nothing special anymore. i think my school graduated like 500 kids in bus admin last year and 15 in economics.

Well, there are a few reasons why there aren't very many economy grads. Doesn't make it better in the business world, though.

As far as business administration degrees go, really depends on how the school handles it. If they do a BBA, then you're good. If you get a BS/BA in business administration from a decent school that is AACSB accredited, you're still fine. Otherwise, might not be worth it.

In the real world, the major isn't going to get the job for you. It's only part of the equation.

[impaul4]

Originally Posted by Ryan D

Well, there are a few reasons why there aren't very many economy grads. Doesn't make it better in the business world, though.

As far as business administration degrees go, really depends on how the school handles it. If they do a BBA, then you're good. If you get a BS/BA in business administration from a decent school that is AACSB accredited, you're still fine. Otherwise, might not be worth it.

In the real world, the major isn't going to get the job for you. It's only part of the equation.

And that is what I have been learning lately. For instance, my gf works for Cerner as an architect (not like a building one) and she received her degree in Management.

[Ryan D]

You'll also learn that employers don't treat the "same" major the same depending on what school it came from because of how different the schools treat them. Case in point, my major isn't Business Administration, my degree is literally business administration. So, it wouldn't be the same as a school where business admin was the easy way in to a business degree (a la marketing or similar degree). Now, that has sort of changed at UMKC since they now offer different majors. There is a reason why the school of business has tougher standards than they do in arts & sciences.

[JThompson]

I know I'm late to this party, but I realized I wasn't crazy about Finance going into my Junior year. Had a 3.5 in finance but didn't enjoy it. Rode it out because I think walking into an interview with a finance degree says more about your dedication to challenging yourself than an "easier" degree does like management. I did Finance w/ an Entrepreneurship concentration (something I enjoy). You can teach marketing or management in a week of training, but financial thinking needs to be ingrained in you. (IMO)

Also, a couple of my friends work for Perceptive Software in KC as consultants. They love it - lots of traveling though. Both of them studied IST and one also did Marketing. If you need/want more info about it hit me up. I can pass along any questions you may have.

[Ju]

Originally Posted by JThompson

I know I'm late to this party, but I realized I wasn't crazy about Finance going into my Junior year. Had a 3.5 in finance but didn't enjoy it. Rode it out because I think walking into an interview with a finance degree says more about your dedication to challenging yourself than an "easier" degree does like management. I did Finance w/ an Entrepreneurship concentration (something I enjoy). You can teach marketing or management in a week of training, but financial thinking needs to be ingrained in you. (IMO)

Also, a couple of my friends work for Perceptive Software in KC as consultants. They love it - lots of traveling though. Both of them studied IST and one also did Marketing. If you need/want more info about it hit me up. I can pass along any questions you may have.

I probably had class with all of them lol.

[JThompson]

Originally Posted by Ju

I probably had class with all of them lol.

AJ Mead?

He's a redhead.