Why is Business such a popular major? What is it about it that makes it so popular. Is it the easy workload, or people just trying to be on the next Apprentice. I mean, there aren't really that many skills besides people skills that you need to be Business Major.

10/27/2005 11:37:54 PM

you sir are the village idiot

10/27/2005 11:47:40 PM

a lot of people don't really have a strong interest in anything else, so they figure they just want to make 'lots of money' and be in bidness. there's also this awesome business frat, alpha kappa psi.

10/28/2005 1:20:07 AM

^how much of that was sarcasm

10/28/2005 1:30:23 AM

business classes are EASY STREET

10/28/2005 1:30:51 AM

there's actually a lot of statisical analysis done behind the scense in business

but yeah, it's way easier than engineering (I personally think), and I'm in it. Plus I like business and so that's just what I went for.

But your post is esentially nonsense b/c you DO need skills to be a "good" business person.

10/28/2005 1:35:42 AM

JOIN US NOW, OR WORK FOR US LATER

10/28/2005 1:44:04 AM

if i woulda came straight into ncsu into business instead of engineering i would be on fucking easy street right now

instead i'm stuck without a major and never getting a gpa requirement to transfer in

prolly gonna go to gay ass wake tech and hope maybe somehow i can get into business

idk i gotta talk to an advisor my shit is fucked i think though

10/28/2005 1:59:36 AM

[Edited on October 28, 2005 at 2:10 AM. Reason : wtf]

10/28/2005 2:10:39 AM

personally, im switching to business because i wanna play golf when im 40 on workdays.


ill save the crappy day jobs in factories/labs for the less attractive people...


i like hitting on flight attendants, eating out, and seeing women in heels way too much to major in anything else

[Edited on October 28, 2005 at 3:01 AM. Reason : a]

10/28/2005 3:01:39 AM

-Its not uncommon to get an undergrad in a technical subject and then get an MBA.
-Its also not uncommon for technical people to end up being a "consultant" of sorts, traveling 50-75% of the time and working with clients.

There are several "skills" you need to be a successful business person, just as there as several "skills" you need to be a successful technical person. Whether or not you learn them in the classroom or by earning a degree is another matter.

10/28/2005 6:29:50 AM

^^I hope that was sarcasm, if so, the point is well taken. Business is a serious academic field just like any other. Many people want it and for various reasons. Some genuinely like it;some don't know what they want to do and they know it is useful in just about any aspect of life (even education is a business); and there is no easy workload.

Widgets don't sell themselves, do the market research, understand economic indicators or trends, package themselves in a way that encourages a customer to buy it them. Widgets need techies and widgets need bidness people

10/28/2005 8:36:55 AM

Oh, and mellocj, I hear ya. I still have some of the old AKPsi Tshirts that you all made and sold with the top 10 reasons to be in Management on the back. You should make those again.

10/28/2005 8:37:56 AM

it's true - engineers may make lots of money, but it's the biz heads that will run the show

I had a ~3.3 in ChE before switching to business.

10/28/2005 9:57:16 AM

engineers frequently rise to the highest ranks in corporations - without MBAs - and they play just as much of a role in the direction of companies as do the business majors

10/28/2005 11:00:40 AM

wolfee - i don't beleive mellocj is in akpsi.

I am though, and I'll pass your suggestion onto the board - nice idea for spring rush t-shirts

I think business is a popular udnergrad major for the simple fact that it opens up a lot of doors for masters degrees. For example, I know many business students that are planning on going to law school after graduation.

10/28/2005 11:06:56 AM

Quote :

"engineers frequently rise to the highest ranks in corporations - without MBAs - and they play just as much of a role in the direction of companies as do the business majors"

But not everyone has an interest in being in engineering for their undergrad years, and many of them who are serious about doing what it takes to climb the ranks in a corporation will do fine without said engineering concentration.

10/28/2005 11:45:26 AM

Used to work for Reynolds Metals in grad school as a diplomatic courier. I got visas and passports for employees with business degrees and engineering degrees- but the Vice Presidents had both degrees

10/28/2005 12:20:10 PM

Quote :

"personally, im switching to business because i wanna play golf when im 40 on workdays. "

Nah, you probably wont make enough money to afford golf on the week days, so you will have to work during the week for the money to play on the weekends. And you're the type of bitch that will go into your first job expecting the time and money for recreation and get canned in the first 3 months.

10/28/2005 2:03:20 PM

Quote :

"engineers frequently rise to the highest ranks in corporations"

maybe ... but most don't. It's a personality thing I think. Those who enjoy the hands-on engineering work don't seem to like the interaction required in marketing, finance, etc.

10/28/2005 6:56:56 PM

business is popular b/c its relatively easy compared to some majors and you can do a lot with the degree. On a side note, ncsu is not known as a business school, but its funny how a lot of engineering majors switch over to business after a few semesters.

10/28/2005 8:29:10 PM

Business has the ability of stealing your soul.

10/29/2005 2:53:11 AM

Quote :

" maybe ... but most don't. It's a personality thing I think. Those who enjoy the hands-on engineering work don't seem to like the interaction required in marketing, finance, etc."

you're thinking about it backwards. How many managers have risen to their position from engineering spots?

10/29/2005 10:45:41 AM

Quote :

"engineers frequently rise to the highest ranks in corporations"

that's not always the case -- look at GE. Most of their executives were engineers at one opoint. Welch had his PhD in CHE before working his way up to the top. Plus, I've talked to a lot of executives at GE Energy (John Rice, et al), and they all started out working as design engineers (mainly aircraft and locomotive).

10/29/2005 11:55:30 AM

i dont get how ncsu works honestly

ok so like if i never get into business and keep taking these classes what degree am i gonna get, i mean i gotta get SOMETHING

10/29/2005 3:00:16 PM

you need to take classes that will go towards a degree you can get into and that will allow you to either a) finish or b) hopefully finish and do something you like. There is more than one way to get to the where you want to go. Business may be hard to get into, but that doesn't mean something else won't lead you there as well.

Sounds like we need to meet and go over your options

10/29/2005 3:59:55 PM

pm sent

[Edited on October 29, 2005 at 4:54 PM. Reason : .]

10/29/2005 4:53:33 PM

^^^^reading comprehension?

10/29/2005 5:01:42 PM

Quote :

" easy workload"

10/29/2005 5:08:35 PM

Quote :

"maybe ... but most don't. It's a personality thing I think. Those who enjoy the hands-on engineering work don't seem to like the interaction required in marketing, finance, etc."

well of course most don't. There are way more total engineering positions out there then there are top exec positions. For that matter, most business majors don't rise to the top ranks of corporations. But that doesn't mean that there isn't a good number of them.

Quote :

"that's not always the case -- look at GE. Most of their executives were engineers at one opoint. Welch had his PhD in CHE before working his way up to the top. Plus, I've talked to a lot of executives at GE Energy (John Rice, et al), and they all started out working as design engineers (mainly aircraft and locomotive)."

your post makes no sense. you say thats not always the case, then your evidence supports exactly what the quote said.

10/30/2005 12:09:58 AM

^yea, I was trying to point that out

10/30/2005 9:36:58 AM

From what I can tell, managers tend to come from disciplines that represent the core competency of the company -- chemical companies tend to have CEOs that are CEs, while banks tend to have CEOs with a Finance background. This makes intituitive sense.
Beyond that, *no one* is going to rise to the the ranks of top management without a *broad* set of skills and abilities, both "hard" and "soft." Many of our MBAs come from technical backgrounds and are looking to pick up the business and managerial skills needed to take them to the next level.

10/30/2005 3:38:10 PM

this might be a stupid question, but can you get and MBA with an undergrad degree in something totally unrelated? Like Biology or underwater basket weaving for example?

10/30/2005 4:31:42 PM

Actually, I would argue it makes *more* sense for someone with a non-business degree to get an MBA, since the material is completely new for them.

10/30/2005 5:16:07 PM

^What he said

10/30/2005 6:06:37 PM

I would argue that it is better to get an undergrad degree in something totally different bc then you have knowledge of the type of business ur going to be in and the knowledge of how a business in general is run. And for that reason, I have never understood why someone could just get an undergraduate business major.

10/30/2005 9:31:22 PM

^ Because I don't give a flying crap about EVER returning to college after I get my B.S.

10/30/2005 9:34:19 PM

^^ Bank of America and Lowe's are two of the biggest and best-known NC companies. For students who wanted to work for one of these companies, just what *other* degree besides business would you suggest one pursue to get "knowledge of the type of business ur going to be in"?

Blanket statements just don't hold here.

10/30/2005 10:49:18 PM

How about majors in finance or economics. I don't know if our particular univeristy offers those but some do.

10/30/2005 10:53:34 PM

well those are business related. I'm asking because I'm a biochem major, and have no idea what I want to do when I get out of school let. I'm considering medical school strongly, but that doesn't work out for people a lot of the time, so I need other options.

I mean this is is TWW, so I'l take everything with a grain of salt, but its just good to hear different opinions.

10/30/2005 11:00:10 PM

For Bank of America: Finance is a business degree, offered in the College of Management since its inception. Economics would be helpful for banking and is an important discipline, but is really a social science and not as directly involved in the *practice* of management.

For Lowe's: You'd do best with marketing (location, pricing, etc.), supply chain management (purchasing, logistics, etc.), or even accounting. All three programs are offered through the College of Management.

See my point?

[Edited on October 30, 2005 at 11:16 PM. Reason : .]

10/30/2005 11:02:14 PM

it is about time the Business school raised its GPA requirement(again) so that engineering rejects cant just transfer in....be like UNC...make it 3.5 for on campus transfers.


just checked, still just a 3.0 to transfer in

[Edited on October 31, 2005 at 1:36 AM. Reason : w]

10/31/2005 1:29:49 AM

^ don't let that number fool you. 3.0 is minimum GPA to be considered for transfer over. It does not guarantee admission anymore. They will take students on a space available basis, meaning if they only have space for the 3.5s and above, they will take them. Those that fall into a competitive (3.0+) but not easy admit area will submit additional information for review. What management is doing behind the scenes that you cannot see is giving more of a full review to those that fall in the minimally competitive range.

10/31/2005 8:23:11 AM

too bad. you guys should of got into business from the beginning. its fun!

10/31/2005 11:48:22 AM

Quote :

"I still have some of the old AKPsi Tshirts that you all made and sold with the top 10 reasons to be in Management on the back."

Somehow I have never seen this shirt around Nelson. Someone please post the top 10 reasons, I am sure they are hilarious. I am guessing that reason #1 must be "free 'college of management' croakies"

10/31/2005 12:56:20 PM

^ no,- do you all have those now? I will have to get my shirt out of the closet and write back. Some of them were (and I can't remember order)

- The only major where Golf is a pre-requisite.
- so you don't have to milk cows for a living (I actually had some Agr people come over and buy some shirts just for that one).

- Where you can enjoy class with 350 of your closest friends (in Nelson 3400)

and more, but I can't recall the exact wording. Will post again tonight. They were a hoot.

10/31/2005 2:01:45 PM

Top Ten Reasons to Be in the College of Management (keep in mind this was when the building was being converted from the old College of Textiles to its current state and it was a mess- mini bulldozers INSIDE the building).

10: You are Business, Business is Commerce, Commerce is Money, therefore YOU are money aby, yeah!

9. You can have class with 349 of your closest friends in Nelson 3400.

8. I like doing all of my computer work in a basement. (wolfeee's edit: it was not pretty at all down there back in the day).

7. I love the sound of hammering and bulldozers while taking exams.

6. What are of work is YOUR boss in? exactly, management.

5. The only major where after graduation, Golf is a pre-requisite.

4. We don't have to milk cows to graduate.

3. A bar is never more than a 2 minute walk away.

2. Spreadsheets, Graphs, and T-accounts, oh my!

1. If you are reading this and you're not in management, you'll work for me someday.

There you go Might need some updating but you get the idea.

11/1/2005 8:54:34 AM