B Commerce/Economics or B Commerce (1 Viewer)

[Vicly]

Hi,

I've already enrolled and made my timetables for my 1st semester for Bachelor of Commerce/Economics (essentially the same as Bachelor of Commerce, since first year undergraduates do the same core subjects bar elective) at UNSW. However, my issue is I'm unsure if I should just do Bachelor of Commerce or the double degree of Bachelor of Commerce/Economics.

I have a significant interest/passion for economics (discovered in HSC) but have chosen Commerce over Economics (single degree) because I feel that in case I do not want to purely pursue economics (i.e. allowing some flexibility in terms of my career), I have some safety net to fall on.

I understand that the Bachelor of Commerce/Economics is 4 years but various people I have consulted recommended I just do the Bachelor of Commerce (3 years) and start work/getting experience as soon as possible, rather than spend another year at university. The UNSW Faculty of Business booklet stated doing B Economics qualifies me to be an economist hence why I'm seriously considering B Commerce/Economics.

I plan on majoring in Economics and Finance.

Any suggestions/recommendations?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Jt*]

lol i picked the double degree because i thought it sounded smarter than just the one
i feel sorry for the people that will have to teach me

 

[Casmira]

B Economics = Same as B Economics except you're limited to doing some majors, the entrance mark is slightly lower so those who didn't go so well in the hsc can still go to unsw to do a similar business degree, some whom end up upgrading to commerce anyway.

Look its really upto you, i did commerce/econ then i dropped to commerce, i figured id rather spend that extra year doing honours than economics

 

[Vicly]

B Economics = Same as B Economics except you're limited to doing some majors, the entrance mark is slightly lower so those who didn't go so well in the hsc can still go to unsw to do a similar business degree, some whom end up upgrading to commerce anyway.

Look its really upto you, i did commerce/econ then i dropped to commerce, i figured id rather spend that extra year doing honours than economics

Uh... I'm not sure what you mean by "B Economics = B Economics"? Could you re-phrase that please? Are you trying to say that a major in economics (under B Commerce) is equivalent to B Economics?

Your second paragraph doesn't make sense either... you dropped commerce to do honours rather than economics? If you dropped commerce, doesn't that mean you're doing economics?

I'm thinking long term here, whether it would be beneficial for my career and I'd love to hear from some people who have completed/are completing the B Commerce/Economics double degree.

 

[blakegman]

he said dropped TO commerce. And im pretty sure he meant B commerce = B economics.

other people can't help you on this decision really. if u want to do economics, then do the double, if u want a year less at uni do commerce. Doing a double is never a bad thing.

 

[uhawww]

Uh... I'm not sure what you mean by "B Economics = B Economics"? Could you re-phrase that please? Are you trying to say that a major in economics (under B Commerce) is equivalent to B Economics?

Your second paragraph doesn't make sense either... you dropped commerce to do honours rather than economics? If you dropped commerce, doesn't that mean you're doing economics?

I'm thinking long term here, whether it would be beneficial for my career and I'd love to hear from some people who have completed/are completing the B Commerce/Economics double degree.

He meant B Economics = B Commerce, that was a typo.

His second paragraph states he dropped from B.Comm/B.Eco to just a B.Comm.

He figured the extra year spent doing the double degree would be better spent doing honours with just pure comm.

I also hope you understand you can only major in pure Economics with a B.Eco, under a B.Comm it's titled as Business Economics. To be honest I don't know what the difference is (I haven't looked into it), if there is any, but be sure to check that out before deciding.

 

[tempco]

The way I see it, B Comm/Eco is a degree for people who think three years isn't enough at uni and five years is too much.

If you've already decided to major in two areas, I can't see a reason for you to enrol into B Comm/Eco. If, for example, you also had interest in Accounting or Marketing and you'd want to major in that too, then doing B Comm/Eco would make sense.

As for the difference between Business Economics (B Comm) and Economics (B Eco) majors, the requirements are different in terms of core courses but the course choice is pretty much the same. Have a look here:

B Commerce Eco-related majors
B Economics Eco-related majors

 

[ZabZu]

As for the difference between Business Economics (B Comm) and Economics (B Eco) majors, the requirements are different in terms of core courses but the course choice is pretty much the same. Have a look here:

B Commerce Eco-related majors
B Economics Eco-related majors

Put simply if you major in Economics within B Eco you need to do 6 core subjects. 2 micro subjects, 2 macro and 2 econometrics/statistics subjects.

For a Business Economics major you only need to do Micro 1 and Macro 1 which are both compulsory for all Bcom or Beco students. However, you need to do at least 2 3rd year subjects.

The Business Economics major is more flexible, especially for people like me who hate statistics.

 

[tempco]

But if you do want to work as an economist, I would highly recommend courses on statistics (intro metrics and metric methods at least).

 

[Vicly]

Oh thanks for clearing that out - I kind of guessed anyway.

Well like I said in my original post, I'm unsure if I should do a 4th year of University or attempt to get work immediately because I don't deny the fact that real life work experience (relevant of course) prevails over every education qualification you have.

uhawww: I am aware of that but I'm unsure if it is different to the Economics major under B Economics.

Luckily for me, B Economics and B Commerce students do the same core subjects in first year, so I'll have some time to decide by then.

ZabZu: I think I'm the same as you, I'm interested in economics but not so much statistics (well at least judging from my HSC experiences)... but I'll just have to find out when I do quant/qual methods I guess? Unless I've mistakenly taken them for something else.

tempco: I enjoy economics but am unsure if I'd like to become an economist - heck I'm not even sure what they specifically do.

 

[Conspirocy]

But if you do want to work as an economist, I would highly recommend courses on statistics (intro metrics and metric methods at least).

I think its so silly that those are the only stat subjects that count towards an eco major...oh and they let you do financial econometrics, but not business forecasting...silly...very annoyed...i used up all my options on stupid CA business law subjects

meanwhile, im doing b com / b ec and as someone said I really thought that a 3 year degree is too short. I dont really see it as a double degree, and I dont think the uni sees it that way either, they see it as a 3 major B com or whatever, which makes sense.

The way I see it if you do this degree you can avoid doing an intro masters, and you end up having a lot of flexibility and/or specialisation in your career down the track.

 

[Conspirocy]

Oh thanks for clearing that out - I kind of guessed anyway.

Well like I said in my original post, I'm unsure if I should do a 4th year of University or attempt to get work immediately because I don't deny the fact that real life work experience (relevant of course) prevails over every education qualification you have.

uhawww: I am aware of that but I'm unsure if it is different to the Economics major under B Economics.

Luckily for me, B Economics and B Commerce students do the same core subjects in first year, so I'll have some time to decide by then.

ZabZu: I think I'm the same as you, I'm interested in economics but not so much statistics (well at least judging from my HSC experiences)... but I'll just have to find out when I do quant/qual methods I guess? Unless I've mistakenly taken them for something else.

tempco: I enjoy economics but am unsure if I'd like to become an economist - heck I'm not even sure what they specifically do.

People either do economics because they think it can boost their WAM...which is a big mistake, or because they are trying to do honours in it. I don't really see a middle ground in this major, unsless its with finance and you go become a trader.

You need to do the stats in economics like tempco said that would be intro metrics and metric methods...in the b com eco major you only have to do intro metrics (or u might not have to do it)...in the b ec eco major u have to do both...i was told u dont have to do all the econometrics subjects, just do enough so that when you start work you have an idea ( this is for private sector rather than becoming an academic)

 

[ZabZu]

But if you do want to work as an economist, I would highly recommend courses on statistics (intro metrics and metric methods at least).

I hated QMB so much, im not doing statistics/econometrics again. Im not one of those people who choose majors/subjects based on the amount of money they will earn. I want to work in a job that I will like or one that is tolerable.

 

[Conspirocy]

I hated QMB so much, im not doing statistics/econometrics again. Im not one of those people who choose majors/subjects based on the amount of money they will earn. I want to work in a job that I will like or one that is tolerable.

Maybe I like all that stuff you find boring and I'm just lucky that it might be well paid.

 

[Pace_T]

Maybe I like all that stuff you find boring and I'm just lucky that it might be well paid.

lol great answer
as for me, i think i'll find it more tolerable if the pay is higher. so win win for me too

 

[Vicly]

Conspirocy: what's business law like? Sounds awfully similar to the Commerce/Law degree from my perspective.

When you talk about "intro masters", I'm assuming getting masters for a major in B Commerce?

Also when you mentioned "WAM"... is that supposed to stand for something? I'm new so I have no idea what you're trying to say!

Well like I've said before, I plan on complementing Economics (something I genuinely enjoy) with Finance (which I should have a taste of in FIN1612).

What is intro metrics? What's that like?

But yeah, big thanks to you for all the help/insight.

 

[tempco]

tempco: I enjoy economics but am unsure if I'd like to become an economist - heck I'm not even sure what they specifically do.

Well, I do recommend anyone interested in economics to complete intro metrics and metric methods because it addresses a lot of the fundamental issues with modelling, data diagnosis and the application of theory... even if you don't want to become an economist. Economists analyse data, basically. What you do with your analysis (write a report, present to a board of directors, use analysis to consult a government organisation, etc.) depends on where you are based.

What is intro metrics? What's that like?

Intro metrics is exactly what the course title states - an introduction to econometrics. It covers the underlying assumptions behind a lot of the models used in econometrics (e.g. OLS regression, probit/logit, WLS - if you don't know what these stand for you'll learn them soon), as well as some diagnostic tools used to deal with data issues that you'll come across since not all data samples are perfect. Metric methods is a practical application of what you've learnt in intro metrics, where a major percentage of your course mark is based on writing a report on the analysis of a data set you are given.

 

[Vicly]

Sounds very complex!

What course are you doing tempco?

So far I'm leaning towards doing B Commerce/Economics, as it does give me flexibility in terms of my career (i.e. having an "economics" degree) but I'll have to see.

 

[schmeichung]

dont worry too much about that at this stage, still way too long to go..
you can still decide after 1 year as you will take cores in 1st year

but my personal opinion is not to do BCom/BEc unless you want 3 majors, but whats the point of having 3 majors? It does give you more options but not specialisation. Its much better to do BCom + honours if you are determined to study 4 years.

 

[tempco]

Sounds very complex!

What course are you doing tempco?

So far I'm leaning towards doing B Commerce/Economics, as it does give me flexibility in terms of my career (i.e. having an "economics" degree) but I'll have to see.

I'm in my honours year of B Eco at UNSW.