So, What did YOU Major In?

[Raiders Army]

Nuclear Engineering

[ice4277]

Bachelor's in Broadcast and Cinematic Arts, minor in History from Central Michigan University.

As far as coaching goes, many schools offer a program that will help you get into sports coaching/administration, Central had a Sports Studies program that you could major in. But as mentioned before the key is to get out there and get some coaching experience first, or at the same time. One thing I would recommend to you is to check with local high schools in the area surrounding where you will be going to college. I know a few people who did this when they were at Central, got in as assistants with local teams, and a couple ended up getting JV head coaching positions after graduation. Then you need to work your way up the ladder, but at least it would be a start

[sturmie]

spent my entire 5 1/2 yr career at THE Ohio State University:

1993-94
Industrial Design - computer graphics

1994-97
Business - Marketing

1997-98
Business - Marketing
Business - MIS

Spring '99
Received BSBA in Marketing

if i would have not tried the double major route w/ Marketing and MIS, i would have been done Spring '98...instead, i was finished w/ classes (after dropping the MIS major b/c it was too hard to get into the classes - huge student body = waitlists) in December '98 and could have walked then. but alas, i decided to defer to Spring '99 to march b/c that's when all my family was planning on coming.

sturmie

[PilotMan]

Originally posted by Neuqua
Pilotman,
That sounds pretty sweet. I've always loved airplanes. How exactly did you get into it as a career?

You can do so by going to any number of flying schools. Most of them can be pretty pricey, but there are loans available. You need to build some flight time. The minimum that I needed was 1000 hours which isnt all that much. Which can be obtained from flight instructing.

I would recommend the Delta Connection Academy , although similar programs can certainly be found in your area.

[FishFan]

I dabbled in Alcoholism before settling for a BS in Business from the Kelley School at Indiana University.

[cuervo72]

Originally posted by FishFan
I dabbled in Alcoholism before settling for a BS in Business from the Kelley School at Indiana University.

A friend's older brother dabbled with that for 8 years at JHU.

[FishFan]

So does he have a doctorate in that subject now?

[cuervo72]

Actually, he finally left and joined the Marines. I'm not sure what he's up to now.

[VPI97]

Virginia Tech:
Two years in Industrial Engineering
Three years & degree in Management Science & Information Technology (aka Management Science, aka Business Information Technology, aka whatever your school has decided to call it)

[panerd]

Sony:

I beg of you. Please don't major in education if your goal is just to be a coach, and you have no drive to work with children. There are a lot of districts nowadays that allow non-teachers to coach for their athletic teams. Don't misinterrpret either, I work with a couple of coaches who adore education and are some of the best teachers we have. But there are also a few guys who take up space at our middle school just waiting for the PE job to open up at the high school. (That also is my biggest pet peeve. The middle school math teacher who gets off on his kids calling him coach, even though he doesn't coach any of the kids at our school. Should I have the kids start calling me dad?)

[Samdari]

Originally posted by bigjdotcom01
B.S. in Geography after starting out in Aeronautical Engineering.

I am currently working for a startup GIS firm in Rochester and I couldn't be happier!

Wow, I am amazed anyone here has heard of Rochester.

I majored in Optics at the UofR

[Hammer755]

BS, Petroleum Engineering from Marietta (OH) College - 1998

[Fonzie]

I graduated from Northwestern University in 1993 with a B.A. in Psychology. After two years working as a research assistant in neuropsychology laboratory in Chicago I decided to go to graduate school. I earned my M.A. in Psychology in 1998 and my PhD in Psychology (specializing in Clinical Neuropsychology) this spring from the University of Arizona. I'm continuing my work at the UofA as a postdoctoral fellow.

A word to the wise: an undergraduate degree in psychology is all well and good, and for many becomes a "major by default" when they can't find anything else they're interested in, but if you really want to work in the field as anything other than a research assistant you all but need an advanced degree.

Best of luck to those of you beginning your academic careers!

[dawgfan]

BA in Psychology from Washington, 1992
AAA in Computer Animation from Seattle Art Institute, 1998

I didn't pick my major until late in my sophomore year. I had dabbled with the idea of being an art major, but I wasn't as much into the idea of art for art's sake at the time and wasn't really aware of a commercial arts program at UW. I fell easily into psych after taking a couple 100-level courses and really enjoying it, plus I had a couple good buddies in the program. I didn't worry too much about post-school and instead took the courses that most interested me. I had the idea of moving on into education once the psych degree was completed, but at the time in the state of Washington I wouldn't have been able to teach secondary (middle and high school) with psych as my major. Rather than go back and basically get another undergraduate degree and then enter the school of Education I just said screw-it and graduated.

After a few years of working full-time at the paint store I'd worked part-time in during college, I got serious about changing careers. After considering teaching in Japan for the experience and money and briefly considering joining Amazon.com (this was '95, maybe I should've done it) I decided to return to art. Checked out the local schools and after seeing the computer animation courses at the Art Institute I was hooked. Took evening classes there while working in the Pike Place Market a few blocks south of the school (what a great experience!) and finished up in 2.5 years. Got lucky and was offered a job at graduation and have been here since.

My best advice is this: if you don't have a burning desire for a particular field or subject, don't sweat it - get your basic required courses done and pick electives in subjects that interest you. Any of these classes may spark a sharper interest in that subject and you'll find yourself drawn to that as a major.

If you pursue a liberal arts degree, be prepared that you'll have to sell yourself to a company, but don't be intimidated by that either.

Keep this closely in mind as well - you can always go back to school later. For many people, entering the working world early forces them to sharpen their perspective and helps clarify where they want to go in their lives, and when they do return to school they are much more focused, driven and successful.

You might consider going the CC route first to take basic courses where it's not so expensive. Another idea is skip school for the time being and do something to broaden your horizons.

Good luck!

[Ben E Lou]

Mathematics.

[Leonidas]

Started out in Computer Engineering, but when I started dreaming in Pascal it was time to make a change (I seriously had dreams in code, scared the sh!t out of me).

Then I got a simple associates in Business. The Air Force then gave me their associates in radar theory.

I finally got a bachelor's in electrical engineering cause the radar degree gave me a lot of credit towards it and I thought the Air Force wanted me to get that kind of degree. In the end not sure if it mattered or not since I don't do engineering work, but it did give me more credibility when I had a program management position.

Masters in business administration in aviation because it was with a school that gave me less hassle over my work schedule and had decent credit hour rates (Embry-Riddle).

As for the coaching thing, I don't think it really matters that much what your degree is. If you intend to start in high school then you need to have whatever degree you need to teach whatever you'll be teaching when not coaching. In college I think they just like to see a masters and even a PHD of some sort to make you a part of the faculty. The most important thing is actually playing the sport and making good contacts along the way. Someone mentioned the grad assistant route. Excellent idea. It is quite common for a school to hire one good grad assistants into assistant coaching jobs.

In high school coaching frequently all you need to do is express an interest in coaching and demonstrate some background and knowledge in it. I coached high school track for a spell and my only qualifications were that I actually had run track and I wanted to do it. They were glad to have me. I didn't even teach. We once had a cross country coach who's only qualification was his son was on the team. No one on the faculty volunteered so the school was willing to take anyone who wanted to do it.

[MJ4H]

I have a Bachelor's in Music. Plan to get my Master's degree some day.

[Butter]

Political Science

I work in Accounting. That's about right.

[scc27]

Accounting and Finance from Minnesota State University Moorhead with a minor in alcohol consumption and probation. Now I work in IT.

[lcjjdnh]

And don't forget, you can always major in Gameboy as long as you know how to bullshit.

[kiwiLB57]

Completed a Bachelor of Management Studies, majoring in Accounting, at the University of Waikato, Hamilton New Zealand.

1994 - 1997 Studied, drank a lot and ended up managing the biggest bar in town.

1998 Continued to manage the biggest bar in town.

1999 Got a job as a graduate in the external audit (re: Enron) department at KPMG Auckland.

2002 Qualified as a Charted Accountant (or CPA). Seconded to Amsterdam for 4 months as an audit supervisor. Full pay plus 50 euros a day play money. Rover car with fuelcard, cellphone with prepaid cards and apartment provided free of charge. We call this the shiznit. Managed to get off the plane and play for the top (aside from the Admirals) american football club in the country. Started every game I was there and we won the championship.
2002 (still) Upon returning to NZ, left and went to the competition, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu for a 25% pay rise.

2003 Resigned yesterday after exactly one year and one day at DTT. Starting with Fonterra in one month. Fonterra is the largest company in New Zealand and the largest exporter of dairy products in the world. Again for a 25% pay rise. My salary has now tripled since I joined the accounting game.

Can't say that I like accounting though and long to do anything else. I my mum hadn't forced me out, I would probably still be happily working at the bar in Hamilton. Oh well.

kiwiDE57

[TredWel]

Just recently graduated from the University of Scranton with B.S.'s in Computer Science and Mathematics, with a minor in Philosophy tacked on for color. I'm going back this fall to start their two year Masters program in Software Engineering.

[Philliesfan980]

Just graduated with an accounting degree, and now am working as an auditing/tax specialist. Working on the CPA thing (big test in November).

The bottom line is, while accounting isn't the best, it sure does pay well, and there are plenty of jobs out there if you want them. I have plenty of fun OUTSIDE of work (ie. I don't make my job my life).

[Eaglesfan27]

BS in Biology at Univ. of Southern California from 1992-1996.

MD at UMDNJ - Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (formerly Rutgers Medical School before Robert Wood Johnson of Johnson and Johnson donated a LOT of money) from 1996-2000.

[FrogMan]

Originally posted by Eaglesfan27
BS in Biology at Univ. of Southern California from 1992-1996.

MD at UMDNJ - Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (formerly Rutgers Medical School before Robert Wood Johnson of Johnson and Johnson donated a LOT of money) from 1996-2000.

Whenever I see you post now (since I posted that thing about my wife and the baby's heartbeat) I say to myself: "Hey, the doc's in the house"

Wife's fine btw Ultrasound is set for Friday of next week...

FM

[wbonnell]

1991-1994:whimsy (University of Florida)
1995-1998: computer science (Park University)
2000-2002: graduate software engineering (University of Texas, Austin)
present: graduate humanities with concentration in philosophy (California State University, Dominguez Hills)

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally posted by FrogMan
Whenever I see you post now (since I posted that thing about my wife and the baby's heartbeat) I say to myself: "Hey, the doc's in the house"

Wife's fine btw Ultrasound is set for Friday of next week...

FM

I'm really glad to hear all is well Frogman .

By the way, I loved my OB/GYN rotations during medical school as delivering a baby is one of the most awesome feelings in the world. I hated the gynelogical portion of the rotation as vaginal exams all day sort of took the joy out of going home to my wife, if you catch my drift. However, given the joy of delivering babies, I seriously considered doing OB/GYN for my residency and career.
Instead I chose to be a child and adolescent psychiatrist I'm on call right now and just finished seeing a kid in crisis in our local hospital ER. There are a lot of kids that need help and I enjoy what I do.

[Samdari]

Originally posted by wbonnell
1991-1994:whimsy (University of Florida)
1995-1998: computer science (Park University)
2000-2002: graduate software engineering (University of Texas, Austin)
present: graduate humanities with concentration in philosophy (California State University, Dominguez Hills)

I am SO disappointed to learn that I don't have the FOFC "years in education" record. If you are still a student come Labor Day, you will have me.

[CAsterling]

Majored in
Illegal Money Making Schemes
Chasing Women
Alcohol
and Mayhem

Maybe if I had gone to college it might have been different !!!!!!

[Craptacular]

Originally posted by lcjjdnh
And don't forget, you can always major in Gameboy as long as you know how to bullshit.

Don't forget the "Caine - Hackman Theory" for your senior thesis.

For me, B.S. in Civil Engineering, with a focus on Transportation. 4 years of grad school with no degree to show for it. Oh well, a P.E. license is more important than a Masters.

[ISiddiqui]

B.A. in Political Science and Economics from Rutgers University (Rutgers College), with a minor in History.

Now going for my J.D. at Emory Law School.

[Cringer]

i gess this meens use guys all gots outa hi scool?....well laddi dada aren't use alls just soooooooooooooooo speshul.

[T.C.M]

Shard Resistance with a minor in Pipe Blowing

T.C.M

[SteelerFan448]

Originally posted by MattJones4Heisman
I have a Bachelor's in Music. Plan to get my Master's degree some day.

What are you doing with that now? Directing or something else?


I'm in Biology, minor in education.