[Baker]

I'm currently a student at a community college that will be transferring to a state school within the next year or so, and I'm having a difficult time deciding which degree would be more valuable, a degree in finance or a degree in economics. I want to work for a hedge fund or land a job at an investment bank and from what I've read, either degrees can do the job. I'm not sure which degree will give me the biggest bang for my buck. Anyone have an opinion on this?

[SIUYA]

personal opinion - go finance for a hedge fund.
it will likely be more practical that straight economics. Study econometrics (statistics), derivatives and credit as a course. Forget things such as "Issues of unemployment and women in 3rd world countries"

you can always do extra courses....and remember a degree might get you knocking on the door and any education is never a waste of time but it wont get you in, nor make you successful.

[Kojak]

Look upon Finance as a derivative of Economics and closer to the operational aspects of a hedge fund. If you are the Strategy kind then go for Economics and Finance if you are the hands on trader types. But this is a lousy answer. No undergraduate degree prepares you for the realities of a profession.

The real answer is that it doesn't really matter. By the time you finish you may decide on a totally different line. That is what a god education is meant to do. Open your mind and realize your potential. Whatever you do, do it well. The real learning will be on the job -if you get one.

Jose Kollamkulam

[Baker]

Alright, thanks guys.

[ratmpower]

if you can have double major you can do both. i would recommend finance.

[Mr_You]

If you are interested in the trading side (strategy development) then just go ahead and dive into paper/sim trading because no school is going to teach you how to trade profitably.

Do what I'm doing and spend very little (if anything) on (supposed) trading "education" and teach yourself using a live data feed or Market Replay data and research/develop/explore your own ideas and others offered freely available online or in books.

The only way to be successful in trading is to put in the time. It could take years. Check into NinjaTrader for a low barrier to entry to getting up and running. Check out Evidence-based Technical Analysis for a primer into statistics-based technical analysis. Check out this and another ("big") forum for very friendly and helpful resources.

[Baker]

Alright, thanks. I've been reading Trading for a Living and I'm currently looking into a decent technical analysis book. My goal is to learn how to trade while I'm still in school, work as a financial advisor once i graduate for a steady income, raise some capital for trading, and move on from there.

[mickro]

As finance, you will learn economics. Remember too that in most schools econ is a Philosophy major, or Arts degree. Finance is a BS. This made it clear for me when I had to decide. It also tells you what they will teach you in school.

The problem with dualling in Arts(econ) and then Science(finance) is all the prereqs. You'll be wasting a lot of time. The industry looks a LOT higher on accounting as a second major and it is in the same school and you will need half the total hours. I like economists, (but I'm a nerd) but most the industry doesn't like them unless you are goining into government.