Sure, why not? I would try hard not to steer my kid away from something they were passionate about…unless it was acting or dance or art.

My ds was a biochem major with a minor in English. There was initial talk of a double major, but we encouraged him to start with the intention of an English minor and then 'see what happens', but we wouldn't have forbidden him from the English major if that was what he wanted. He's brilliant, so I expect he would have used that major to excel somewhere. If he had been angling for the liberal arts major because he thought it was easier and was struggling, then we would have intervened. (Though an English major at his school was not an easy path, either).

It depends on what your child is studying in liberal arts. If she is studying math and has a plan to be a math teacher, go for it. If she wants to study sociology because she likes sociology, I probably wouldn't be funding something like that. Honestly, college is more about making yourself marketable and checking a box than anything else. Most majors are repetitive (read, write, memorize, test, over and over and over) so you aren't actually learning applicable skills anyway.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What major is he thinking about? And yes you should encourage your children to follow what they are passionate about.

Middle eastern studies at Emory University

If your DC decides to learn Arabic that will be incredibly beneficial later on. Some of my family members have been offered amazing job opportunities bc their fluency in Arabic is very attractive in certain fields.

Yeah but living in Dubai sucks, actually.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What major is he thinking about? And yes you should encourage your children to follow what they are passionate about.

Middle eastern studies at Emory University

If your DC decides to learn Arabic that will be incredibly beneficial later on. Some of my family members have been offered amazing job opportunities bc their fluency in Arabic is very attractive in certain fields.

Sure. But i wouldn't encourage continuing for a PhD like his stupid stubborn parents did.

Op--- you can study STEM related disciplines at a liberal arts college. What is your DC interested in?
A liberal arts education was my ticket to becoming a multi- millionaire by age 40. I would repeat it in a heartbeat.

Anonymous wrote:“Let?”

I just hired a communications major for an $80K job, her first full-time, professional job out of college. She got her degree at a state school.

She had actual writing clips and professional video samples. She had hustled. She didn’t wait around until after her degree to start building her portfolio.

Right - the point is this person developed a portfolio of work (similar to getting serious internships). Didn’t rely on a major.

Anonymous wrote:Smart kids get hired OP, even art history majors. Just make sure he lands some good internships

+1 math and physics are liberal arts majors too. The point should be to develop a skill and internship plan along with a major.

What “you” want is totally irrelevant. It’s not “your” decision.

"Let" ?

No. Force them into STEM whether they have an interest or aptitude in it. I’ve found that always works well with people.

And if they refuse let them take out loans to pay for college. That’ll show them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What major is he thinking about? And yes you should encourage your children to follow what they are passionate about.

Middle eastern studies at Emory University

Lots of practical applications with this degree, OP. Strange that wouldn’t occur to you.

Like what?

My DD goes to Emory. They have an excellent one-credit course called the Liberal Arts Edge (I think course number is ECS 102) that helps students use the university resources to build their resumes, practice interview skills, find research opportunities/internships/jobs, etc.

There is nothing better than a liberal arts education that teaches you how to write and analyze. If you learn that, the rest is easy to get in the job or in grad school.