So few liberal arts majors

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very few kids live in the DCUM bubble and can afford to major in something frivolous knowing that their school’s prestige and parental connections will ensure they do well anyway. Most kids are forced to be practical.

False dichotomy. You can have a rigorous liberal arts education AND major in something “practical”.

+100

I don’t understand why people think they can’t get a good job or meaningful career with a liberal arts education. I would hire a liberal arts graduate over a business degree undergrad any day.

+1
I think it's only here in the weird DCUM bubble where posters seem to be "STEM or bust." In the real world, there are still lots of liberal arts majors. My four kids and the vast majority of their roommates and friends were all liberal arts majors and the graduates are all well-employed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:College has gotten too expensive to justify a liberal arts major. And I say that as someone with a liberal arts BA, MA, and PhD.

We told our kids that we will fully fund their college educations, but they had to pick a major that was going to be employable upon graduation and one that could provide them with financial stability.

My nephew is an English Language & Lit major at Harvard. There is very little chance that he'll find employment after graduation that will justify the $330k-$350k my sister & BIL are paying for his education.

I wouldn't be so sure. I know an English major from Harvard who is a MD at Goldman and another who retired at 45 from venture capital. Most places will hire a Harvard grad, regardless of the major.

How old are these two? Because times have changed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Liberal arts is completely useless in the modern times. One can paint anywhere.

This comment breaks my heart.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Liberal arts is completely useless in the modern times. One can paint anywhere.

This comment breaks my heart.

Don’t worry. Plenty of us are still out here contentedly doing our thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:College has gotten too expensive to justify a liberal arts major. And I say that as someone with a liberal arts BA, MA, and PhD.

We told our kids that we will fully fund their college educations, but they had to pick a major that was going to be employable upon graduation and one that could provide them with financial stability.

My nephew is an English Language & Lit major at Harvard. There is very little chance that he'll find employment after graduation that will justify the $330k-$350k my sister & BIL are paying for his education.

I wouldn't be so sure. I know an English major from Harvard who is a MD at Goldman and another who retired at 45 from venture capital. Most places will hire a Harvard grad, regardless of the major.

How old are these two? Because times have changed.

I’m pretty sure IB firms are actually even more receptive to non-finance majors now

[Anonymous]

In 5-10 years humanities graduates will be the most in demand. The trend has already started.

Want to make bank? Major in philosophy. Just ask Mark Cuban.

[Anonymous]

I have a M.A. in Liberal Studies. Loved getting that degree. Classes were great.

[Anonymous]

I was just trying to read my car manual this weekend because I had a question about something and it was gibberish. Clearly, the world needs more English majors who can write clearly. It was just shockingly bad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was just trying to read my car manual this weekend because I had a question about something and it was gibberish. Clearly, the world needs more English majors who can write clearly. It was just shockingly bad.

That is why someone with a STEM background with very strong communication skills and writing skills can go far. Every company needs a strong marketing team, someone who can write the manuals, etc. But it's hard for an English only major to be strong in the products of many companies . Hence by both skill sets are important

[Anonymous]

English major here who went to med school. I’m able to pivot to a mostly grant writing/ research job that allows me flexibility while seeing patients part time because I can write. Good pay. I’ve spoken to others and they don’t think writing comes as easily so they are stuck with inflexible jobs just grinding. So that’s a win for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:English major here who went to med school. I’m able to pivot to a mostly grant writing/ research job that allows me flexibility while seeing patients part time because I can write. Good pay. I’ve spoken to others and they don’t think writing comes as easily so they are stuck with inflexible jobs just grinding. So that’s a win for me.

bolded is key. Most liberal arts major end up having to go to graduate school to get a decent paying job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very few kids live in the DCUM bubble and can afford to major in something frivolous knowing that their school’s prestige and parental connections will ensure they do well anyway. Most kids are forced to be practical.

False dichotomy. You can have a rigorous liberal arts education AND major in something “practical”.

+100

I don’t understand why people think they can’t get a good job or meaningful career with a liberal arts education. I would hire a liberal arts graduate over a business degree undergrad any day.

depends on what you are hiring them for, no? More than likely, you wouldn't hire an English major for a Financial Analyst position. A business grad would at least have some finance and accounting background. An English major grad wouldn't know what goes into a Balance Sheet vs Income Statement, or what a P&L is. Can they be learned on the job? Sure, but more than likely, companies would prefer that new hires already have some knowledge rather than having to train them from scratch.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very few kids live in the DCUM bubble and can afford to major in something frivolous knowing that their school’s prestige and parental connections will ensure they do well anyway. Most kids are forced to be practical.

Yet many study the sciences...Not to be anti-intellectual, but many scientific pursuits are purely meaningless, require a PhD, and pay $30k-40k

Please give specific examples…

Pure Math, Theoretical Physics, Chemistry, Astronomy, Biology

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very few kids live in the DCUM bubble and can afford to major in something frivolous knowing that their school’s prestige and parental connections will ensure they do well anyway. Most kids are forced to be practical.

False dichotomy. You can have a rigorous liberal arts education AND major in something “practical”.

+100

I don’t understand why people think they can’t get a good job or meaningful career with a liberal arts education. I would hire a liberal arts graduate over a business degree undergrad any day.

depends on what you are hiring them for, no? More than likely, you wouldn't hire an English major for a Financial Analyst position. A business grad would at least have some finance and accounting background. An English major grad wouldn't know what goes into a Balance Sheet vs Income Statement, or what a P&L is. Can they be learned on the job? Sure, but more than likely, companies would prefer that new hires already have some knowledge rather than having to train them from scratch.

Most reputable companies do provide training. A graduate with a strong liberal arts background- balanced in both quantitative and qualitative skills and critical thinking is likely a much more successful job candidate for a financial analyst job than a business major.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:C'mon, pysch is a gut. You don't need to be able to write or to do math. What other majors are like that?

For an undergrad psych degree (at least from a respected school), you need to know how to do academic research, undertake field studies, and know how to interpret your research and other people's research by writing about it in a clear, concise way.

So it does require good writing skills, often at least some math, and a general multidisciplinary way of looking at human behavior from both a biological/cognitive perspective and a cultural/sociological perspective.

I'm not saying every psych grad is a genius — but as with all disciplines, the students who take it seriously and do well can't exactly be slackers.