Help with picking my major.

[TheKwas]

Thread is half personal and half science related.

I'm currently an University double majoring in Economics and Public Administration, but I'm thinking of droping the Public Adm and taking something else. The main field that I'm really interested in is Biology (evolutionary biology and ecology to be exact), but I'm not really sure if the two fields have enough overlap or relevance to each other to really justify taking them both. I know concepts like Bioeconomics, Evolutionary Economics and Ecological model of competition exist, but they seem fairly fringe and require only a very basic understanding of biology.

Are they too different? Is it a smart move, or am I just throwing away one major in the end? Are people going to think I'm an idiot? Am I an idiot? Do English and Rocket Science make a better pair?

[Lagmonster]

Do you have any idea what you want to do with your life?

For example, anyone who studies the sciences can learn how to write well en route, but the reverse is not true of someone who studies, say, literature. So if you wanted to be a writer for a scientific interest magazine, you'd want to become a scientist, not a journalist.

[brianeyci]

It depends on how much time, money and how much you really hate public administration.

I hate to say it, but studying science and mathematics is an all or nothing deal. You need a good school, good grades, and a will of steel. Economics major is math heavy, true, but there's people coming out with biology and doing nothing. Meanwhile, the meme of the business world seems to be possess some kind of degree related to business. Witness MBA's and bullshit certifications. If you take engineering at say a bad school, better not to take it at all because you compete with the graduates coming from a good school. And some school where you can switch majors halfway through without serious repercussions like staying an extra two years sounds like a bad school. And if there are serious repercussions, are you willing to pay them?

In other words it's not just a matter of what you like. You can come out with science in your degree and be jaded because you worked so hard and got nothing, especially with a major and not a specialist. If I were you I'd think long and hard before switching, because the world's a fucking piece of shit and a degree in "public administration" combined with economics can get you into government and business jobs and they even sound related, while economics and biology is half science and half business. I have found that in life, half of one is zero in most cases. Unless you find some niche with half and half people will just assume that you suck at both and couldn't do a specialist in one or the other.

Although this is not exactly true on the low end since they dont' even look at your majors on the low end, but you're not gunning for the low end.

[TheKwas]

Do you have any idea what you want to do with your life?

Not really. Professor would be cool.

I hate to say it, but studying science and mathematics is an all or nothing deal. You need a good school, good grades, and a will of steel. Economics major is math heavy, true, but there's people coming out with biology and doing nothing. Meanwhile, the meme of the business world seems to be possess some kind of degree related to business. Witness MBA's and bullshit certifications.

I really don't want to work in the Buisness world, so half of my options with my eco degree are already out the window (indeed, the reason by I added the Public Adm major was so that I would be more likely to get a government-related eco job).

And some school where you can switch majors halfway through without serious repercussions like staying an extra two years sounds like a bad school. And if there are serious repercussions, are you willing to pay them?

I'm only done 1 year (I'm in my 3rd semster), so the repercussions would be there, but nothing too serious. I think I could fit everything in with only one extra semster.
Some of the math classes overlap, and you have to take general bullshit classes in First year anyways (like English). I'll be lacking all electives, but there are few electives I even want to take in the first place.

As for my school: I'm at the University of Ottawa. Mid-range quality.

[aerius]

Do you have any idea what you want to do with your life?

Not really. Professor would be cool.

Just remember, you'll be in school till you have a PhD if you go that route.

I really don't want to work in the Buisness world, so half of my options with my eco degree are already out the window (indeed, the reason by I added the Public Adm major was so that I would be more likely to get a government-related eco job).

Work for one of the major banks or other financial institution, or maybe Revenue Canada. All good solid jobs with nice benefits.

As for my school: I'm at the University of Ottawa. Mid-range quality.

That was my university, I thought it was pretty good. Not exactly the most well known institution though, most of my acquaintances don't even know it exists.

[TheKwas]

I'd love to be in school for as long as possible. I'm afraid of the real world.

[Lagmonster]

I'd love to be in school for as long as possible. I'm afraid of the real world.

That would strike me as a monumental personal problem. The kind that you can fake bravado for by admitting to a deep and stunning admission of, but which you can safely have no plan for getting out of.