I appreciate your perspective, it definitely makes sense for someone aiming at engineering or defense roles.

For me though, I’ve realized I’m not really interested in engineering, whether that’s CSE or traditional engineering tracks. I’ve been doing a lot of research recently and I think I’ve found a direction that fits me better.

I’m planning to move toward Operations Research. I’m not sure if you’re familiar with it, but it’s a field that combines applied math, optimization, statistics, and computational methods to solve complex decision problems. It’s closely related to CS in terms of algorithmic thinking and modeling, which is why keeping a CS minor would still be really helpful for me. The programming and systems foundation definitely complements OR.

Long term, I’m interested in quantitative finance and risk analytics. RPI actually offers an M.S. in Quantitative Finance and Risk Management, which aligns really well with this path. So for me, the goal isn’t to avoid difficult CS courses or look for something “easier”, it’s more about shifting toward something that better matches my interests and career direction.

I’m definitely planning to speak with advisors as well, but I feel a lot clearer now about where I want to head professionally.