EPTCS is a tough field these days, and you'll need to really dedicate yourself to be able to justify being paid a few times what people in developing countries are, but if you do get really good, you can add a ton of value. This is probably true in all of the fields you're considering, though.
Changing majors -> Chemistry/Comp Sci - Page 2
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Polemarch
Canada1564 Posts
CS is a tough field these days, and you'll need to really dedicate yourself to be able to justify being paid a few times what people in developing countries are, but if you do get really good, you can add a ton of value. This is probably true in all of the fields you're considering, though. | ||
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jonnyp
United States415 Posts
Do you prefer CS or math problems? Because while the fields are pretty similar (CS actually branched off from math originally) math generally deals with the abstract and CS doesn't until you get to a certain level. So if you like that sort of thing definitely go math and you can always pick up CS skills along the way; but if you prefer hardcore application of problem solving go CS. Personally I don't think you can go wrong with either of them, they're both great  | ||
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shindigs
United States4795 Posts
Here's one more perspective: Switching over to the Chemistry major would not be a problem at all. The bio pre-reqs are basically the same as the Chemistry ones, so I just have to take a few extra classes (1-2), if any at all. I personally take around 20 units a quarter and the work load isn't too bad for me. I'm personally doing 20 right now and the only thing that takes up the most time is time in the lab. There are lots of overlaps, and if anything I would prefer to pursue BioChem under the School of Chemistry rather than the School of Bio. | ||
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eshlow
United States5210 Posts
It'd probably be best for you to switch to chem if you're not doing too bad right now. You can get more of a variation in upper level classes you want to take... biochem is more a set track because you have to take some of bio and some of chem and most of the upper levels are required. CS can be devastating if you don't have connections, and depending on the courses you need to take the workload can be awful. Lab reports are a pain to do, but most CS programs will dump you with more busy work that than. I'd 100% go with chem instead of CS. | ||
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Rev0lution
United States1805 Posts
One comes from the biology department and the other comes from the chem department. I have friends taking Chem 300 which is biochem and other taking bio 300 which is biological chemistry. Biochem from the biology department is complete bullshit, you will learn nothing but useless enzyme families and subclasses. The biochem from the chem department is usually more rigorous and asks for a good knowledge of calc I and calc II. Some statistics and some physics. I'm in the same boat as you right now. Doing an undergrad in bio. It's boring and totally not interesting at all. Memorizing has not been my strongest quality either. Chemistry is definitely more logical and intuitive than biology. oh and btw how good are you in math? (most ppl think their good, but their not really good at all) CS takes a lot of math, specially linear algebra and the like. I would take an intro course to CS and see how you like it or not. | ||
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teh leet newb
United States1999 Posts
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shindigs
United States4795 Posts
On March 17 2010 17:31 teh leet newb wrote: Just make sure you don't get "computer science" and "programming" mixed up. Programming is simply learning specific languages to solve the broader problems in computer science. Prepare to deal with a lot of theory, math, algorithms, and logic. I used to like math, but now that I'm at CMU studying CS, I hate it. I've always known that I wanted to do CS though, so I I'll stick with it. The bright side with computer science is that pretty much every company needs computer scientists, so you can do a lot with it. There are a lot of different areas you can branch out in besides software development, such as consulting, IT, management, research, and even banking. Thanks for the heads up! I'll keep it in mind. I have been yearning for math lately since I realize how much I miss it after being buried under so much bio. I know the reason why some CS majors drop is because its not what they expected, but I'm into math and theory so I'll approach it with an open mind. I really like Chem and CS because I feel you can apply it to almost anything. | ||
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KOFgokuon
United States14904 Posts
On March 17 2010 17:31 teh leet newb wrote: Just make sure you don't get "computer science" and "programming" mixed up. Programming is simply learning specific languages to solve the broader problems in computer science. Prepare to deal with a lot of theory, math, algorithms, and logic. I used to like math, but now that I'm at CMU studying CS, I hate it. I've always known that I wanted to do CS though, so I I'll stick with it. The bright side with computer science is that pretty much every company needs computer scientists, so you can do a lot with it. There are a lot of different areas you can branch out in besides software development, such as consulting, IT, management, research, and even banking. maybe you hate it because CMU has 70% males =p | ||
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Biochemist
United States1008 Posts
Lots of logic in comp sci, but I'd rather shoot myself in the face than spend the rest of my working career around those guys. Not much math in chemistry beyond basic calculus and algebra, at least in my experience. I was disappointed to find out that after my undergrad major required a year of calculus, I would almost never get to use it again. Should have been a physics major. edit: chemistry is like "take 2x and 3y and make 5z. It's logical, moderately predictable, and generally makes a lot of sense. biology is like "this is a tree, we call it a hububububub." Just to echo (and agree with) others in the thread. | ||
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Rev0lution
United States1805 Posts
The one that is ACS approved requires 300 level physics which means you have to take higher level maths to complete it. If your serious about chemistry then you need a solid math background depending on what you want to do. Industry requires less math than research chemistry. | ||
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zer0das
United States8519 Posts
On March 18 2010 00:41 Rev0lution wrote: True that, it really depends on your chemistry major. The one that is ACS approved requires 300 level physics which means you have to take higher level maths to complete it. If your serious about chemistry then you need a solid math background depending on what you want to do. Industry requires less math than research chemistry. I think that requirement is going to depend on the individual program. The ACS just sets guidelines for their degree, I do not think they require highly specific non-chemistry things (at least, that's the general impression I get from reading their website). I know I didn't have to take a 300 level physics course to get my ACS certified degree. Of course at the end of the day, it's a piece of a paper you get like 3 months after graduation. No one particularly cares whether your degree is ACS certified or not. Having a strong math background helps, but I don't think it is exactly a requirement... unless you want to do PChem. | ||
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Biochemist
United States1008 Posts
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Vivi57
United States6599 Posts
On March 16 2010 22:11 Shengster wrote: It's kind of funny. Our entry-level data structures course at my school has a third of its students drop out during the quarter. A lot of them actually change their majors because of this course. I know this because I dropped the class my first time, and later tutored for it. This is how it works at our school too. Personally, after taking a community college class during the summer, around spring, I was considering switching to cs so I jumped straight into data structures and loved it. It actually made me switch to cs. You seem to like math so cs would definitely be a good option for you, but you should really consider why you want to switch to cs and figure out what your expectations are. Then take an intro level class (while still working on your other stuff) and see if your expectations are met. Like others have said, cs is just a subset of math and you basically love it or you don't. You do project euler on your own so that's definitely a good sign. Just take an intro level cs class and see how it goes. You might find that you like making toy programs to solve a problem, but don't like making more complex programs in which case you'd probably be better off with math. | ||
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Judicator
United States7270 Posts
Whether your school offers it or not though...let's just say the only textbook written on the field is the one by my professors, but its an amazing course imo. | ||
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Disregard
China10252 Posts
And my worse fear and well every major has to do it.... Speech course.  | ||
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