<p>From what I hear philosophy is a good major to prep for law school, but if the student who majors in philosophy cannot afford to go straight from undergrad to law school without working, is the philosophy degree marketable for any real jobs or is it a matter of waiting tables until the money accrues? Are there other minors that work well with philosophy to increase the interum marketability? After 4 years of deep thinking is seems a student could face an unhappy reality. I would love to hear otherwise though.</p>
<p>you can go to law school on loans and have 200,000+ debt from it. If you want to get a job right after undergrad work i would suggest majoring in something else and maybe minoring in philosophy. or double majoring.</p>
<p>You could minor in computer science and take extra courses in programming. I know of a few philosophy majors who have done this and now work in the computer industry. Or double major in it. That’d work as well. If you’re good at logic, you also might enjoy a math major (although they’re not one in the same). Or if you like political philosophy, you might like a political science double major. Basically, if philosophy is what you wanna study, then go for it. Just look at what parts of philosophy you like best and attempt to pair it with something more marketable. If you can’t, then I’d go the computer science minor route.</p>
<p>Good luck! Philosophy is a great major.</p>
<p>Your question isn’t specific to philosophy. An econ major, or even more “practical” majors, can’t afford law school. Many people, regardless of majors or careers, can’t afford to pay for law school out of pocket. I believe most end up taking up a large amount of loans.
I don’t know what school you attend or plan on attending, but there are a lot of jobs/internships accessible through your career center(assuming the school has connections and major companies that recruit there, or are located in a major city where various employers seek interns/pt workers from) where you can gain experiences in industries not related to your major. Believe it or not, those types of experiences lead to jobs/careers, that don’t necessarily involve you having to major in X to work in X, or major in Y to work in Y. </p>
<p>I used to date someone who was a Philosophy major, who landed a job straight out of undergrad as a paralegal. </p>
<p>Some of the lower end jobs that I’ve seen employers hire for that don’t require any type of education in the legal field are for file clerks. Depending on the firm, some might pay decently. </p>
<p>There are a lot of resources and discussions throughout this forum,(i’d look into the parents forums), to get an idea of what is possible through non practical majors. I’ve read in some threads, how some employers specifically look for philosophy majors for their ability to think analytically and critically, and for their ability to communicate and write well.</p>
<p>Thank you for 3 contrasting points of view. I’d be interested in hearing others. Liek, do you have any suggestions about key words to use to search the parent’s forum. It is encouraging that employers look for philosophy majors. I have seen philosophy programs indicate that as well. I hope it is true. The school’s resources are probably a good way to find some of these employers.</p>
<p>Since you said that you received three contrasting viewpoints, I just wanna throw out there that I actually agree with liek. You were just asking if there was anything that went well with a philosophy major, and I know of some philosophy majors who have studied other things as well. But liek’s advice is definitely sound; there are plenty of positions you can attain with a philosophy major. Good luck!</p>
<p>Just to follow up on my post, i didn’t necessarily mean it was a bad thing. Philosophy is one of my majors (econ being the other) and i love it. </p>
<p>I just meant that it can be actually be better to take the debt of law school rather than getting a job right away. Most law students will have a good deal of debt upon graduation but if you play your cards right it can pay off.</p>
<p>Here are a few threads. Read through them, you’ll get different perspective/opinions on humanities/liberal arts vs more “practical majors”. I simply made a key word search in the parents forum with “humanities” “liberal arts” “philosophy”. Usually the threads with more posts really provide insights of what some parents have done with their majors, what some employers are doing in regards to hiring certain majors, etc.
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/771581-education-debate-books-washington-post.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/771581-education-debate-books-washington-post.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/658526-tough-times-humanities-must-justify-their-worth.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/658526-tough-times-humanities-must-justify-their-worth.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/293002-whats-fate-liberal-arts-grads.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/293002-whats-fate-liberal-arts-grads.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/468574-liberal-arts-education.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/468574-liberal-arts-education.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/609809-these-times-practical-vs-follow-your-heart.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/609809-these-times-practical-vs-follow-your-heart.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/766584-why-some-people-cannot-see-college-much-more-than-work-training.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/766584-why-some-people-cannot-see-college-much-more-than-work-training.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/902449-case-useless-degree.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/902449-case-useless-degree.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1020416-wsj-grads-technical-majors-earn-more-than-those-liberal-arts-degrees.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1020416-wsj-grads-technical-majors-earn-more-than-those-liberal-arts-degrees.html?highlight=liberal+arts+humanities</a></p>
<p>I know the above isn’t very specific, but look at post #12 in <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/844842-humanities-grad-school-dont-do.html#post1063878737[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/844842-humanities-grad-school-dont-do.html#post1063878737</a></p>
<p>liek: Thanks for the links, yes,post 12 is encouraging. I’ve begun scanning some of the others as well. There is some good news in these links mixed in with comments about how humanities majors are a waste of time. Better to ignor those.</p>
<p>Bos: $200,000 plus undergrad debt is a lot of debt at a time in life when purchasing a first home, marriage and family are on the horizon. It is likely that even if a student is working there will be some debt involved with law school. I have heard that many law students work and go to law school. It would be good to be able to use undergrad education towards a job while or prior to going to law school. But you are right it could be easier to major in something else and minor in philosophy or a double major may compound possibilities.</p>
<p>It does seem that as all three of you have said that considering a second area of interest to double major in or minor in and using the school’s resources to make connections are good sugguestions.</p>
<p>deleted accidental double post</p>