College senior with liberal arts degree - are there jobs out there?
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Anonymous
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A BS in engineering from Swarthmore and a BA in art history from McDaniel are both liberal arts degrees but likely have very different job prospects.
OP, what major(s) do you mean? |
Anonymous
| OP, tell your kid to get to career services at her college. This is what they do. |
Anonymous
| Many jobs will open in the spring, slow hiring reason from thanksgiving to new years |
Anonymous
Good to know. Do you also hire paralegals right out of college? My info may be out of date, which is why I’m asking - but when I was in BigLaw two decades ago, in addition to the career paralegals, we hired a rotating cast of smart, driven kids right out of undergrad. They tended to stay 2-3 years before going on to law school or grad school. The money was good (overtime!) but it was the furthest thing from glamorous - the hours were grueling and the training was minimal (sink or swim). Even so, it was a great first job for the right kind of kid. (Independent and low maintenance with exceptional executive function skills and an ability to get along with “difficult people”. 😂) I’m still in touch with a few I worked with back in the day - they’ve gone on to really impressive careers, many not in law. And I can see my DC wanting to do this for a few years after college if law school is still their ultimate goal. It’s a great way to stress-test that plan …. |
Anonymous
| Finding employment is never guaranteed, college degree or not. You have to prove value to an employer via some type of skill set. |
Anonymous
This was me in the 90s. The firm in DC that I worked for still does this - recruits straight out of top SLACs and colleges for a 1-2 year paralegal program. FWIW I graduated from a top SLAC and majored in philosophy with a minor in religious studies. In our cohort, we all left for top law schools or PhD programs. It is true now, as it was back then, that one major advantage of going to a top college is that your major matters less when it comes to getting your foot in the door in your 20s. With few exceptions, primarily in STEM fields, your major doesn't matter as much as your ability to write well, speak clearly, and learn quickly, along with having a positive attitude and good work ethic. |
Anonymous
Science and math are part of the liberal arts. Why does no one seem to know that on this board? Engineering is not. So STM is included (just not the E in STEM). |
Anonymous
I don't think T is included in LA. T is like CS, which is not LA. It's math and science (physics, chem, bio), but not engineering and CS. |
Anonymous
| If you have skills an employer wants, you'll get the job. Increasingly, it is all becomig more competitive, so jobs may pay less or have less benefits or less loyalty. The supply of workers will outpace the demand. |
Anonymous
No. |
Anonymous
Nonetheless, many "liberal arts" colleges have majors in computer science, and some (like Swarthmore) also have engineering. I agree with PP though that there are many parents on this board who confuse the liberal arts with the humanities and social sciences, and they do not realize that the liberal arts includes math and the natural sciences. The origin of the liberal arts was the belief that in order to be fully engaged member of society, one had to learn about multiple disciplines and appreciate how they all inform conceptions of the good life. |