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You can major in Communications, English Lit, Art or anything you want and go to Law School or Med School.
Just see a pre-law counselor at your school, and follow the pre-law curriculum. It isn't a major.
To my knowledge, there is no set pre-MBA curriculum. I have a relative by marriage who was a Theater Arts major and now has an MBA from a well respected university.
It depends on the field you go in but I would say in most cases it is better to get a grad degree in a different area from your BA. It shows you are flexible, can learn new things, and you will have a more broad knowledge base. There are exceptions to this.
MBA is a great example. It was originally designed for Engineers to learn about business. Getting a degree in Business then getting an MBA is just redundant.
I did accounting and econ undergrad. Now im doing Information Systems for grad. This is a hot combo right now. Likewise accounting mixes well with law.
In the job market you want to set yourself apart.
Why is it a hot combo for grad? I have a BA in economics in undergrad and want to go back to school for information technology or computer science. I even contemplated the medical field but I have yet to take a programming course! I took Econ because I thought I wanted to go to law school. What do you suggest I do?
I hear often that graduate programs such as MBA and Law could really care less what you did for your bachelors degree. So it seems like most of these type of master programs just want you to go to a credited school with a good reputation and experience. Is it wise to major in something else in your bachelors that's opposite from your masters or is it safe to alway stay focused on one type of study since your freshman year in college?
Technically, these are professional degrees, not graduate school degrees, but MBAs are on the fence; they are part Master's degrees and part professional degree. Graduate school does not train students to work in a particular career (academia aside)--only to master the material and gain expertise in a particular subject. Professional degrees like MBAs, Law, and MDs, to name a few, is advanced training for a particular career.
For most graduate-level degrees you need to major in something during undergrad that is at least related to your intended study in graduate school. With some programs you only need to have taken a handful of required pre-req's regardless of actual major.
Another difference is that participating in research during undergrad is crucial to graduate school admissions, not so much for professional schools.
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Originally Posted by nycjowww
So pretty much you can literally major in anything other then LAW for bachelors but as long as you maintain a high GPa and do good on your LSAt. Your good to go?
I was a science major (BS) and then into a management masters. I told them, after working in the science, that I wanted to move up within the organization into management and administration. It makes perfect sense.
Now, I did have to take a number of prerequisites I didn't have in undergrad that the liberal arts and some other majors would have had.
I hear often that graduate programs such as MBA and Law could really care less what you did for your bachelors degree. So it seems like most of these type of master programs just want you to go to a credited school with a good reputation and experience. Is it wise to major in something else in your bachelors that's opposite from your masters or is it safe to alway stay focused on one type of study since your freshman year in college?
Depends on what one is doing, doesn't it?
One BS is in Engineering Technology-Telecommunications. The people I went to work for, the Navy, wanted me more because I had an engineering trained mind, able to understand their systems.
The next BS is in Marine Biology. I'm not working for the most part in a biology area but one of the great things is I can walk in on almost any subject and have an instant hand up than many people in our modern world. I'm a Generalist Extraordinare.......I know A LOT about A LOT.
One Master's is in Criminal Justice. If anything, my LE and intelligence experience in the Navy contributed to that. When I signed up for that degree, I was under the opinion that with that and my experience, at the very least, I could get a job in many an administration. May not have been no more glamorous than writing interface code for printers, but at least it would keep me eating.
The second Master's is in Geography. I know water law and GIS. My capstone project had me working with SWAT teams.
A and B
A: There is working with what your degree is about and then there is working your degree to work for you. Sometimes, it helps to be more to the point. Despite my oceanography courses in my geography degree, if they are asking for an oceanographer, I need a degree that says that. Sometimes, you don't need to be as close but in any event, what you do need to be do is sell yourself to who you want to work for.
B: In all fairness, do keep in mind this is coming from someone who doesn't need a $50K/yr job. If you need more money, you may have to be closer to the point.
I hear often that graduate programs such as MBA and Law could really care less what you did for your bachelors degree. So it seems like most of these type of master programs just want you to go to a credited school with a good reputation and experience. Is it wise to major in something else in your bachelors that's opposite from your masters or is it safe to alway stay focused on one type of study since your freshman year in college?
I would say that's generally true for law school. High GPA and LSAT are most important but all things being equal if you're going into corporate law, an accounting background is helpful. An engineering degree is helpful if you're doing patent law or if you want to work in-house for a high tech company. Even if you graduate from law school, you may decide you don't like the actual practice of law and you may need to fall back on your undergrad degree.
I personally don't think a criminal justice degree is useful unless you're 1000% sure you want to practice criminal law. You may have one required criminal law class in law school and if that's not your area of interest, there's no need to take additional classes.
I was a science major (BS) and then into a management masters. I told them, after working in the science, that I wanted to move up within the organization into management and administration. It makes perfect sense.
Now, I did have to take a number of prerequisites I didn't have in undergrad that the liberal arts and some other majors would have had.
Similar experience. My undergraduate degree is in Computer Science. Before I was admitted to the masters program, (Geography - different university), I had to take all of the undergraduate Geography courses which would qualify me for a bachelors degree in the new discipline.
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