Would like opinions on a potential change in majors.

It's hard for high GPA kids from LSU To get a job in finance.

Bad bad bad move. You would need to get a couple levels of CFA under your belt to legitimize your resume, and if you have trouble making time for studying now, don't even think about the CFA.

ETA: autocorrect butchered that.

I love it... but getting in to the "meat and potatoes" courses, I just don't have the time to study. The basic courses were a breeze.

Ummm... that is over a 3 year span, but preciate your concern in my post history.

yeah it's gonna be tough to suppose wife/kid on an entry level finance job

Are you doing full time classes? I went back to school when my first kid was not even a year old, and I worked full time. I just took 2-3 classes at a time. It was a struggle, but I made it work. If Chem Engineering is what you love, I'd stick with it and just find a way to make it work. If you have an engineering mind, my guess is you'll be bored out of your skull at a finance job. And what's 1-3 more years of school 10 years from now when you're doing a job you enjoy and providing a good life for your family?

You will be a lot better off if you stick it out. If your wife isn't on the same page and doesn't support knuckling down for a few years, then you should switch majors.

I recommend showing the wife some research on what a chem eng major makes straight out of school vs a business major out of school to get her to buy in more if that's an issue.

It will be worth it in the long run financially, but it will suck right now, and I can relate.

I have a small child as well and am studying for the PE and it sucks BAD, but it is worth it to me to tough it out and get it done.

I have a somewhat similar story to you outside of timing, so here is my experience:

I was originally a particle physics major at Arkansas. I still love the material and still read everything I can about CERN and the new happenings with the accelerators. I went to my honors professor freshman year and asked what I could do with a particle physics degree from Arkansas, expecting her to say something along the lines of "Well if you get your PhD and get some great papers published you could go work at CERN or FermiLab if it gets started again". The answer was essentially either 1) teaching or 2) sitting in a cubicle with my thumb up my arse waiting on grant money.

So the same day I switched to finance. I always loved markets but always saw how depressed my dad was about the markets (later realized that's just my dad, not the markets). By a stroke of luck, and I mean MAJOR stroke of luck, same representatives from one of, if not the, top investment firm in the world came to Arkansas for, what I found out later, a meeting with our foundation in which they said they'd interview some kids from our senior portfolio management class. 3 in person, 2 phone, and 1 final 7 hour in person interview later I got an offer years ago and still work for this firm.

I tell you this story as a means of saying that although it is very possible for you get the type of job in finance you're probably envisioning coming from engineering, the deviation in jobs/pay in finance is drastically higher than engineering. The large majority of my colleagues are Ivy leaguers, not because they are more prepared than you are by any means, in fact in my experience most of the kids that make it from "non-target" schools are actually much better as they have chips on their shoulders. They Ivy league situation has a lot of political strings attached I won't go into here.

All in all my opinion would be:
1) frick online classes, what will distinguish you in an interview coming from a non-target school is applicable financial knowledge & experience. Online classes give you none of this.
2) Learn more about what actual degrees people are getting from your university in finance.
3) Take the results of #2 and truly decide if that's what you want to do.
4) Visit #3 over and over again, if you're not happy with what you do you'll leave the profession. Do what you love and money will come.

If I had to say I'd tell you to stick with ChemEng. Finance is a crapshoot, especially now with regulation and the overall industry shrinking. If you want to be guaranteed a job in finance, work towards financial compliance because that is the fastest growing industry BY FAR. You've got responsibility now and ChemEng will suck arse, but pretty much guarantee you a solid career given you finish with a solid GPA. If you were younger and you were very curious about finance, I'd say by all means switch. That isn't your situation.

ChemE by far. Assuming your math, physics, and chems were easy enough to assure you will be successful in ChemE, stay with it.

Either devote the time and suck it up, or drop a few classes and lengthen the degree. Take shite online you can, and summer classes. There's no doubt you can handle 1-2 core classes a semester with a job and baby.

quote:

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I love it... but getting in to the "meat and potatoes" courses, I just don't have the time to study. The basic courses were a breeze.

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I can say from first hand experience that ChemE required me to study my arse off whereas my finance/mgmt/business counterparts didn't have a care in the world. Not sure if that helps you at all tho.

I could probably give better advice if I knew what school you were at and exactly how many credits into it you are.

Obviously on average ChemE's make more money than anything dealing with finance.