Need advice on my college degree...please help

[Alienwho]

I know the post is kind of long, please read it and help me :frown:

Alright well after a few years of college I need to get myself in gear and start taking things seriously. I've always been mostly on the path to getting a Business Management degree. However all the hoops and crap my University is making me jump through to get into the highly coveted business program is really pissing me off.

Basically I've never really taken a math class in my whole college career, and now in order to get accepted to the school of business I still need to take two math classes, and it doesn't look like they're going to let me take these two math classes in conjunction with the accounting classes and such (because the math classes are pre-reqs to the accounting classes). There is no way in hell I am going to take one math class this semester along with several other lame classes that are not required and then do the same thing NEXT semester with another math class. I have way more general classes and credits than I know what to do with and I'm not going to take anymore.

I should also mention that business management isn't my passion, but I feel with that degree I could be really flexible and end up doing something I want with it anyway.

However the degree that I really want is something related to INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS. My school doesn't seem to have an international business program so the closest thing I saw was "International Studies" which is in the school of humanities. I want to do international business. I lived in brazil for a few years and I speak fluent portuguese, I also speak good spanish (and am in the process of learning it fluently) as well as italian. With the business program pissing me off so much I'm seriously thinking of maybe just going through with the international studies degree with maybe a minor in business management or something?

I'm really at a loss of what to do. I really don't want to get some lame bullsh#@ degree that's not going to help me out in life at all. Can anybody provide me with a little insight? I have an appointment with people from the international studies department, but I know when I ask them "is this degree really going to help me in life" they'll obviously say of course it will because it's what THEY DO. I'd like some opinions from somebody besides them.

 

[habib89]

what math courses are these? would it be possible to take these two classes at the same time at a junior college over the summer? that way you could get it out of the way and continue on.. if not, then at least see if you can take one and transfer the units... then you only have one semester of stupid lameness

 

[Whisper]

Maybe instead of going with an International Studies major and a Business Management minor, you should do the opposite: go for a major in Bus. Mgmt. like you'd originally planned, and spend the next two semesters earning the credits you'll need for the minor in Intl. Studies. I'm not an expert, but I'd imagine that if you're going to be working in the business world, a Business Management major from some type of business school would help you get your foot in a few more doors than would an International Studies major. However, I think I remember hearing at one point that more fortune 500 company CEOs have majors in English than any other stubject, so I might be mistaken.

 

[habib89]

isn't international studies more like cultural studies, and not actually business? i don't actually knwo what international business entails..

 

[handoverfist]

Just take math classes at a community college. This should be ok unless you are nearing X amount of hours for your degree. I know my university requires the last 33 hours to be taken at the university.

 

[aswedc]

Think results!

You don't just do "International Business". Just like no one is going to let you manage a business straight out of college with a Business Management degree.

Find a job title you want, associated with the career path you want, then see what degree people who get that job have.

 

[The Batt?sai]

Originally posted by: Alienwho
:kill me;

Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryu: Kuzu Ryusen!

 

[Alienwho]

Originally posted by: aswedc
Think results!

You don't just do "International Business". Just like no one is going to let you manage a business straight out of college with a Business Management degree.

Find a job title you want, associated with the career path you want, then see what degree people who get that job have.

Heh yeah, that's the problem, I don't even know exactly what the job title is. I imagine myself possibly working for a big company performing international relations with branches in other country, or possibly being sent by a company to start up a branch in another country. Next summer I'm thinking of going back to brazil and just finding a job at some random big company down there. I'm pretty sure I could easily get in a job like that down there, they're always looking for english speakers and people who understand the american lifestyle, who better than an american?

The Battosai - Stay out of my thread. You are quite possibly the most useless poster i've ever seen.

 

[Journer]

i am in MIS and plan to be in the international business field when i graduate >.>

 

[montanafan]

I agree with Whisper. Take the math class you need and fill the rest of the semester with classes toward a minor in International Studies, same thing the next semester. The Business Management major with the IS minor and your experience in another country and language skills should look really good on a resume for the type of employment you're looking for.

 

[aswedc]

Interested in Accounting? I just saw this posting recently:

The IES practice provides tax compliance and advisory services for multinational companies and their employees who are on international assignment. Our IES professionals provide a variety of tax and human resource services for companies and their employees. Our technology and in-depth knowledge of international tax and human resource issues allows us to help meet our clients' various international assignment business needs. As a member of our team, you can serve some of the world's leading corporations and work alongside some of the most highly respected professionals in their chosen fields.

As an intern in the IES practice, you will work as part of a team in providing tax compliance and advisory services to multinational companies and their employees who are working outside their home countries. Projects might include: tax return preparation, review and analysis of IRS/State correspondence, analysis of data received for tax return preparation, correspondence with international assignees (both written and verbal) as well as working directly with tax and human resource professionals with these multinational companies.

 

[Alienwho]

Originally posted by: Journer
i am in MIS and plan to be in the international business field when i graduate >.>

Sorry dude, what's MIS?

Originally posted by: montanafan
I agree with Whisper. Take the math class you need and fill the rest of the semester with classes toward a minor in International Studies, same thing the next semester. The Business Management major with the IS minor and your experience in another country and language skills should look really good on a resume for the type of employment you're looking for.

This isn't a bad idea now that I think about it. I was originally planning on minoring in portuguese because I got all those credits already...but it looks like my school doesn't even offer a portuguese minor or major.

 

[Alienwho]

Originally posted by: aswedc
Interested in Accounting? I just saw this posting recently:

The IES practice provides tax compliance and advisory services for multinational companies and their employees who are on international assignment. Our IES professionals provide a variety of tax and human resource services for companies and their employees. Our technology and in-depth knowledge of international tax and human resource issues allows us to help meet our clients' various international assignment business needs. As a member of our team, you can serve some of the world's leading corporations and work alongside some of the most highly respected professionals in their chosen fields.

As an intern in the IES practice, you will work as part of a team in providing tax compliance and advisory services to multinational companies and their employees who are working outside their home countries. Projects might include: tax return preparation, review and analysis of IRS/State correspondence, analysis of data received for tax return preparation, correspondence with international assignees (both written and verbal) as well as working directly with tax and human resource professionals with these multinational companies.

Yes actually I am interested in that. Could I ask you where you found that and how I could apply for internships like that?

 

[aswedc]

Originally posted by: Alienwho

Yes actually I am interested in that. Could I ask you where you found that and how I could apply for internships like that?

Sent you a PM.

 

[MajinWade]

I got a degree in something I didn't necessarily want, but I couldn't figure out anything else to do. I kept at it because everyone told me to just finish. I don't really want to do what my degree is so I'm not really looking for a major specific job and stuff. I'm not sure I'd even want a job in my major now. It feels kind of like a waste. Instead of working real hard for a EE degree, I could have been taking 20 hours of BS and still had lots of fun.

Bottom line is like everyone says, go with what makes you happy. Go talk to your general college councilors or something. I've heard they are sometimes actually helpful.

 

[Alienwho]

Up for the day crowd for any more thoughts.