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/sci/ - Science & Math

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3066879 No.3066879 [Reply] [Original]

I like both chemistry and math, and am adept at both. Figuring out which would give me better/cooler job prospects IF I do not go to grad school. I most likely will, but it's best to plan for the worst case scenario.

Chemistry is cool, but I haven't really heard of many people landing decent jobs after graduating. Is biochemistry any different? Can biochemists make any money out of undergrad?

Math majors can become actuaries, correct? That makes decent bank, right?

What does /sci/ think?

>> No.3066884
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3066884

>PhD in mathematics
>an job i want
>300k starting

>> No.3066894

>>3066884
>an job i want
>an job i
>an job
>an

>> No.3066898

>>3066894

He never claimed to be good at English...

OP, if you're good at math the stick with that. Math has a reputation for being hella difficult, and a math degree will open many doors.

>> No.3066904

>>3066898
Not OP but Britfag going to uni next year. Will a Physics BSc be much use?

>> No.3066908
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3066908

>>3066894

...

<<<

>> No.3066912

>>3066904
Depends.

>> No.3066913

>>3066904

No. Not unless you desperately want to be a lab technician.

>> No.3066920

Doesn't really work like that. In my experience, chemists (specially those in pharmaceuticals) can get a very well paid job without a PhD or Master's degree. You'd be crazy to try that as a mathematician or physicist, since both fields are more research oriented and less on the applied side.

On the other hand, if you choose to go into ACTUARIAL mathematics (being an actuary) you can get a very well paid job right off the bat.

You see, it doesn't really matter what actual major you chose, your job options are also determined by the specialty (pharma, financial) you chose to go into in any of these fields (chemistry, math).

All in all, it's not such an easy question to answer, specially in these day and age.

Source: I'm a physicist, who knows a lot of mathematicians and whose best friend is a chemist working for a pharma comp.

>> No.3066921

>>3066913
>:(
What if I do a joint Physics & Computer Science degree?

>> No.3066960

>>3066921
The sad truth of it is you can't really get anywhere in these fields without a PhD, no matter how many BA's or joint BA's you might have, no one cares about that.

On the bright side, fellowships and financial aid for achieving this goal are relatively easy to get in the US (where you at?) and several other developed countries.

>> No.3066967

>>3066921
Doubly no. There are no jobs in computing, unless you're an Indian willing to work for £1 an hour. Also, British degrees are so inflated thru Labour's push to expand higher education that they're practically worthless: You will find that even with a phd you have trouble finding decent work without years of experience, because employers have got wise to the fact that 90% of degree holders are actually morons who should never have been anywhere near a university.

>> No.3066971

>>3066960

He's a Britfag, so a phd would be free.

>> No.3066978

>>3066920
Thanks for the advice. I was thinking about pharmaceuticals. They need actual chemists, not chemical-e's.

>> No.3066979

>>3066960
I'm a Britfag.

I'm not entirely sure if I care all that much; getting a degree in either Physics or Computer Science has been a goal of mine for a while and I think just achieving that is worthwhile in itself. I don't know if I'll be happy working as something shit like Regional Director of Sales while sitting on a BSc though...

>> No.3066984

>>3066967
Thanks for your brutal honesty; I guess I'll just have to see where I end up...

>> No.3066988

>>3066979

Damn right about that. Trust me, you'll have the best time doing your PhD and probably will end up with a more fulfilling job in science, no matter your field.

(Same guy you replied to)

>> No.3066995

>>3066979
>Regional Director of Sales while sitting on a BSc

Not a fucking chance, unless you start at the bottom and work your way up over the course of a decade or so. You should be aiming for a phd, anything else and your best bet will probably be teaching.

>> No.3067024

>>3066879

Actually its probably more beneficial to major in econ/stats and then take some specific econ/stats classes than to major in math if you just want to become an actuary.

Look at the VEE requirements.
http://www.beanactuary.org/college/vee.cfm

>> No.3067035

>>3066995
I am eventually aiming for a PhD, don't get me wrong, I wouldn't stop at a BSc. If there was something higher than a PhD I would aim for that, and if there was something higher than that, I would aim for that, ad infinitum. I was talking in the short term (next 4 years or so).

>>3066988
Thanks for the encouragement :)
I want to know things, to gain knowledge, more than I want a job. And I want to be able to contribute knowledge as well. Teaching would be ok as an interim kind of thing, but I'd much rather be doing research.

>> No.3067042

>>3067024
Sorta second that, but...

In my country, you can get an actuarial mathematics degree as a bachelor. I think this is more common in Europe. So that's not necessarily the case.

In the end, OP needs to do his research.

>> No.3067048

>>3067035
Actually, you may be spected to do more than one postdoc (a degree higher than a PhD) before becoming a real researcher.
(The man with the encouraging words)

>> No.3067060

>>3067048
Well, unless I die before I can achieve that, that is what I will aim towards.