ideas for schools?

I don't know much, but 89 - 91 for a LHP should bring some attention.  Is something missing from the equation?  3.0 in HS is not bad, and 3.8 in College should help to.  I cannot help but feel that we haven't been given the whole story.

Well a degree in business probably will be tough to find a decent paying job. 

We use to call engineers majors who flunked out, business majors.  

That is why it is good to go after the school that pay 100% of your education.  

I would encourage your son to major in Math, Science or Engineering.  

http://www.boston.com/jobs/gal...est_degrees_to_100k/

How condescending Baseballmania. Its too bad we can't all be as smart as you. My son is in a school of management. He has  3.7 gpa. He'll be interning with one of the major consulting firms in NYC next summer. He was told these internships often lead to full time jobs. I have an MBA. I was very successful in the corporate world before starting my own company, ultimately selling it and starting another. 

We called engineering majors nerds who spend their lives working for other people. Often they end up working for the intelligent business people who have good ideas.

I thought it was generally common knowledge that majors in Science, Tech, Engineering, and Math have recently been noted as leading to the highest paying jobs, at least at entry-level. Here are just two citations, I am sure there are many more.

http://www.businessinsider.com...jors-payscale-2013-9

http://www.forbes.com/sites/me...ss-isnt-one-of-them/

I am certain that the anecdote about the successful business major must be true. (I also note that the discussion is about undergraduate degrees, not MBAs.) But it does not follow, for me, that the plural of anecdote=data.

Well good luck to your son.  He is beating the odds according to the latest news on the job market.  And unless you own your own company you will always work for someone. 

My son will graduate with a degree in Electrical Engineering and will be almost guaranteed a job when he graduates even in this tough job market.  If he get his Masters in Integrated Circuit design his starting salary increases by 50%. 

Engineering also doesn't depend upon graduating from a prestigious school to help land those well sought after jobs. 

Engineering is like the Marines in that only the few and the proud can make it.  

Be careful.  The school's reputation will not get your kid a job.  Your kid's reputation and performance will get him a job. 

And a business degree will be fine.  He'll have many options.  While certainly engineering and other technical grads can get good paying jobs right out of school they can find themselves replaced as they get older and more expensive. 

LHPmom 2012, I think your son will create his own success at whatever school he decides to attend. A high academic school with a great reputation might be the most sure route to be noticed but I think a sterling academic record at a school with a good reputation might get him to the same means and if he decides to throw in a grad degree he can choose that high academic school for that.  

I remember during one engineering boom a friend's father, a former MIT grad being outraged kids from lesser colleges being hired for what he was making in his 50s. He was more outraged when his project ended and he was laid off.

You're an intellectual snob and feel the need to condescend to people YOU feel have lesser degrees? Or is it like many engineers you lack social interactive skills? Your statements condescend to most of the posters and their kids on this site. 

LHPmom, let me start off by saying what a special boy you have, not that I'm partial to southpaws  He desires to compete on the field and in the real world after college.  Is he open to any level of baseball or does it have to be D!?  If so, there are excellent business schools that offer baseball at the DII/DIII/NAIA level. 

As for getting a job, he should think about continuing his education by pursuing an MBA.  That along with volunteering for company should set him up for success.  Also, I would definitely consider the Army Reserves, branching into quartermaster, ordnance, transportation, or aviation logistics..  Army logistics officers with an MBA and solid record are highly desired.  I know, I used to be one.  

Hope this helps 

Now who is being condescending?  

Let's encourage kids while they are in high school to pursue science and math (and even health related) fields instead of being intellectually dishonest and encourage someone to get a degree that statistically will be difficult to find a job.  Engineering is just the best.  

Graduating with little to no debt should be #1, and #2 should be graduating with a degree that will land a job that has a salary one can live on.  

My older son is in the military as a combat medic and will use the G.I. Bill to complete a degree in nursing.  And no debt.  

Nuff said

Truce. Peace. Beer summit. I just don't think any college degree that can be transitioned into a real world job should be degraded. Maybe you're not away of the requirements of some school of management programs. Some are easy. Some are not. But all majors require a required number of math classes. Quantitative methodology is not easy. Advanced QM requires calculus as a prereq. But even a marketing major comes into the real world with workable knowledge. I believe the important thing is to come out of college with a valuable internship. Its why my son is working for a consulting firm in NYC this coming summer. It's also important with college grade inflation to create separation from the pack. It told my kids they need 3.5 or better.

Was this a D1? Can't imagine what school that is big in baseball that doesn't have a good academic program.

Let him use his FL JUCO experience on the field to get into a school in FL.  Maybe not one of the big 3 or a D1, but there are many other good division schools that are very good acadermically.

Of course it all depends upon what he want so major in.

A good lesson, never pick a schoolsolely based upon the baseball program.

JMO.

LHPitchermom,

For what it is worth, this has been a big topic of discussion at our house recently and our son chose to play baseball and graduate with his undergraduate degree with no debt.  Our son plans to be a pre-med major so he had a conversation with an advisor at a big in state school with a competitive med-school program.  What he was told was that they will be looking for a strong academic record (he understands that he needs straight A's or close to it) he will participate in the school's honors program, and he will need to participate in clinic hours and volunteer work to strengthen his application. 

He did have the option to play baseball at a great D3 school known for their academics and baseball, but he would have graduated with about $80,000 of debt for his undergraduate degree and then would have had to go in to debt for med-school.  While I do believe that the high academic school would have helped him with admission to med-school and MCAT scores, we had to balance that with graduating $80,000 in debt in this current ecconomy.  Hopefully we made the right choice.

I just wanted to let you know that while I don't think that it will be easy, it is possible.  Our son was told that this school accepts many students into their program each year that do not come from top academic schools.  He was told that a big part of the application is making the most of the opportunities that they have.

This MBA can tell you follow your heart, not the money.  If you follow your heart, the money will happen.  If you follow the money it may be at the expense of your heart.

What is this grade inflation you speak of?  I wish I had some of that when I went through college. 

What is this grade inflation you speak of?  I wish I had some of that when I went through college. 

It means grades are more expensive than they used to be.

Amen,Bum,Amen.

An older article on the value of an MBA;

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/wh...e-of-time-and-money/

You have to look at the current job climate.  Obviously a math major from West Point and an officer is a great niche'. 

I agree, you have to do what makes you happy, the money will come.

FWIW, one can very easily go play baseball in college and get a degree and not accumulate any debt.

You just got to know how to make it work.

Generally, there is a scale of starting salary vs. ending salary.  Those careers with high starting salaries usually have upper limits to them.  You eventually max out.    Those careers with low starting salaries usually allow the best performers to earn unlimited amounts.  Many times they are commission based. 

Baseballmania, why not tell them to do what they love? Know what we called the kids with 4.0  engineering degrees in college 10 years later?  Employees.  Now that's funny I don't care who you are!  

Baseballmania - Not everyone would do well in engineering or would care to.  It is a difficult major and a narrow choice.  I agree that it likely guarantees a certain lifestyle (cubicle jobs working for others, at a good pay scale right out of school).  Why are you so narrow in your definition of a "good major" - your posts did come across as condescending which is not necessary.  We come here to learn from others by seeing the paths taken, and hear about the lessons learned.  Narrow minds don't help - sharing your experiences in an informative and rational way might.

"Let's encourage kids while they are in high school to pursue science and math (and even health related) fields instead of being intellectually dishonest and encourage someone to get a degree that statistically will be difficult to find a job."

Intellectually dishonest?  What?  Even with a degree that "statistically" has fewer jobs there are many who are gainfully employed.  Let's encourage kids to pursue their dreams, and if they are talented in math and science then great, pursue that - it's a smart and pragmatic choice.  Most likely they know well before high school if engineering is of interest, it's likely too late to encourage that in high school.  If they do not like science or don't want to work in the field of math or engineering, or are not sure what they want, business is an excellent option.  I for one, feel that an engineering degree and a job in that field would be like wearing chains and locking myself in a cell for the rest of my life.  Perhaps you know that opinion exists out there and you're a bit defensive about your preferences because of it, but that's no reason to be so narrow and, yes, snobby, about a field that maybe 3- 5% of all college students are interested in. 

The best documented route to success is through owning your own business, not by getting an engineering degree, FWIW.  The greatest thing to learn in college is what incites your passions, how to think critically, how to communicate effectively, and how to get along with people.  It's four years to mature and decide what you are really interested in.  And maybe to decide what to do when it's time to hang up the cleats - because that time will come.

LHPMom2012 - as you've seen, sometimes what looks good on paper turns out to be wrong.  I read a great article that said to have your kids rank each school they are interested in on five-ish dimensions (and these are up to you) on a one to ten scale for each - academics, location/climate/setting, baseball reputation/coaches/playing time, affordability, distance from home (if that's important).  And then add the last dimension, which is "gut feel" - can you see yourself there and how does this school feel after visiting the campus?  Have them enter in all their rankings for all their schools, and then throw out the first five filters and go with gut feel.  Only.  That should include everything you need to know.

I thought this was incredibly good advice.  I'm guessing the engineers in the room might not.  And that's fine.  The important thing is figuring out what is best for your child, and your family.  You can only do the best with the info you have at the time, and I wish you the best of luck in your journey.

baseballlife,

I agree with your advice.  However your view on engineering is a little suspect IMHO.  Your description of engineering being a "narrow" choice is extremely far from the truth. But you did provide me with a hearty chuckle. 

It is a career path just like any other career path that people are passionate about.  I happen to have two in my house that are very passionate about it in very different fields of engineering.  Just about every business needs engineers just as they need accountants or salespeople.   My kids aren't in it for the money when they graduate, it is part of their makeup and I've known this since they were very young.  However, I would never bet against them being successful.

Man I must be a huge loser because I majored in history education to be a teacher.  Then I really messed up by getting a masters degree in secondary school counseling.  Now I sit in a classroom all day babysitting kids who I need to let them learn from my failures in life by not picking a better career path which makes the most money.  

My son has been struggling with a major ( at least in General) over the last few months. All we have are a few idea's and those idea's are all over the board from Engineering, to Physical Therapy, Athletic Training ( very concerned with job potential with this one), He has even tossed out Astronomy. The latest thought has been Industrial Engineering/Design. He definitely has a creative side and the Industrial path seems to allow for more hands on work. He's a Jr so I guess we still have time but he is faced with making some decisions on Baseball scholarships relatively soon so its hard to compare programs offered not knowing what direction he will take. Any and all comments/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Man those are all over the board.  I think you'll need to look out many years and figure out what will fulfill you needs.  Physical therapy and training could probably keep you in the athletic world.  Industrial engineering/design will give you a lot of options and will likely pay more. 

I would try to keep my options as broad as possible.  Don't pigeon hole yourself.  Many engineers don't do it for life.  They start doing the grunt work at a company and eventually move into more of a running the business role.  If you look at the leadership of many manufacturers, they have a lot of people with engineering backgrounds. 

He'll need to figure out what he loves.  Good luck. 

HS kids many times don't know what they want to do. As BUM pointed out let him find his passion. This will likely take more that 4 years, so one way to help accommodate this is to go to a JC and figure out what he wants to do there, he can play baseball and take classes in different fields without having to be on a certain "track". For engineering you pretty much have a fixed program for all 4 years with little leeway as classes build on each other and if you miss a sequence you have to extend your time another year anyway. Take math and science in parallel and he will figure it out. He may not like that stuff as it is not easy for some kids, some love it. 

I started in business, hated accounting, was taking math and physics and started to go into Geology and hated Chemistry, so I switched to engineering. It took me two additional years to figure this out. Now I run a business, and I spend more time doing accounting than anything else.....so go figure. 

is he getting interest from any 4 yr schools for his baseball right now?    Im not sure what he considers a good academic school,  but there are many state schools with excellent reputations and who do a great job.   noticing the discussion,   I was an engineering major in college but I ended up trading commodities,  currently at a large hedge fund.  Majors are a guide,  but the top Wall Street banks and funds often hire engineers, and math majors as much as they do business majors,  and most want nothing to do with MBA grads.    MBA grads often = undergrads who didnt progress very well at their first job,  but not always.  

Yes he has a few offers currently from rather highly rated 4 yr. Academic schools.

Someone mentioned to us a LAE at least to start. Its 5 years but at least it waters down the Engineering part a little bit which may make it more doable while playing Baseball.

I left my securities position as I realized I didn't want to be a suit. 

my job is pretty laid back,  most days i wear shorts, a golf shirt and flip flops  and i'm out on the ball fields by 4:00 pm working out with my son,  throwing him BP   while at the same time avg  7 fig pay checks.    I dont envy today's kids though,  the job market in this economy is brutal.  

I dont think i've heard of LAE,  what is that short for?

Liberal Arts and Engineering Concurrent Degree

ah, I thought that was a college,  got it.   Kind of like an engineering Mgt degree.  

Are these the same as the 3/2, First 3 at the Liberal arts college and finish up with 2 years at another institution. Son has a couple of players on his team going that route. But their plan is 4/2. They plan on playing all four years at the first college before transferring to complete engineering.

I agree with Bum, I told all my son's study something you are passionate about. That does not mean you necessarily have to make that a life long career. Don't get stuck doing something you hate, or dislike, simply because you think you can do nothing else. I spent a good portion of my life doing that, and I do not want my sons to do the same. My son really likes Chemistry so that is what he is studying. Other son said if he had to decide today he would study Physics.

Clearly they got their smarts from their Mom's side of the family.