<p><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/06/education/06philosophy.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/06/education/06philosophy.html</a>
[quote]
Barry Loewer, the department chairman, said that Rutgers started building its philosophy program in the late 1980s, when the field was branching into new research areas like cognitive science and becoming more interdisciplinary. He said that many students have double-majored in philosophy and, say, psychology or economics, in recent years, and go on to become doctors, lawyers, writers, investment bankers and even commodities traders.
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So perhaps it's not so much a live-in-a-box post-undergraduate if you can market yourself well. What do you think? I'm a history major and the question has worried me a bit - I'm clueless about what I want to do in the future and I figured I could go with follow-your-passion and whatnot. I've spoken to a few companies like Pricewaterhouse-Cooper and am going to a seminar on selling yourself as a humanities major in the business world... I retain some skepticism . . . and then the role of internships come into play . . . but how do you get that when you're at a disadvantage to business and economics majors? Practical majors?</p>
<p>Notice that the article mentions double majors. If you double major in it, that's fine... but the major by itself is a dangerous bet if you're mostly interested in good job opportunities.</p>
<p>You'll most likely have to double major. This is what I'm going to do with my philosophy major--I'm taking one subset of philosophy: philosophy of language, mind, cognition, and using that to go more deeply into cognitive neuroscience. I think it's a better way of marketing myself and opening up more grad school opportunities.</p>
<p>While a double-major would be the best way to hedge your bets, a combination of coursework and internship or work experience would also work. A concentration or minor, or even a number of courses, in a "practical" field would help with the self-marketing process.</p>
<p>The only reason why a major makes a difference is for your first job. After that, employers care much more about your experience. I have hired a lot of students and I don't really care what they major in. I just want to know that they can do the job. My advice is to major in something that you have a passion for and at least minor in business. You can make money doing anything as long as 1) you have a passion for it and 2) you can create a business model for it.</p>
<p>I'll be a philosophy major as of next year, and planning on law school post-grad. In my case, I'm not at all worried about job oppurtunities. Just a B.A. in philosophy alone though would be quite a different story.</p>
<p>law schools love philosophy majors. I personally don't know about business and philosophy, but it would seem as though philosophy majors would be at a disadvantage to business and econ majors.</p>
<p>I'm a philosophy major and I secured a summer offer at a top investment bank. I think that philosophy majors are incredibly beneficial to the business world; the notions of ethical leadership and social responsibility are becoming more and more significant in the corporate realm.</p>
<p>I think philosophy is very useful and I am very interested in the subject. That does not necessarily mean I will pursue a major in it. I think of philosophy as more of a side-interest. It is a key to unlocking true happiness in your life.</p>
<p>I do not foresee any instance where such a major will come to be in demand, since the world is continuously run by more and more corrupt ideals as a "compromise" (e.g. politics). Some jobs off the top of my head:
-think tanks and other non-profit research groups
-teaching jobs
-writing books (this is where the $$$ is)
-starting a website like this guy did: Freedomain</a> Radio - Home
He has no job other than what he makes off donations from people who enjoy his philosophy podcasts and articles.
-graduate school in psychology and become a psychologist (the 2 are very linked together in my opinion)
-therapist (is this the same as a psychologist? does it require any formal education or can you make money based on good references and hearsay?)
-grad school in mathematics (logic and proofs, anyone?)
-law school
-med school (probably an odd choice for a philosophy major)
-speechwriters (create concrete arguments for bigshots)</p>
<p>I want to major in Classics, but I'm trying to think of what else to major in. Classics alone isn't a popular major and I want to also major in something more marketable. =/</p>
<p>
[quote]
I want to major in Classics, but I'm trying to think of what else to major in. Classics alone isn't a popular major and I want to also major in something more marketable. =/
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Same here. I'll probably try my hand at law school after I get my B.A., though, or go for a Ph.D. in something else.</p>
<p>philosophy majors end up being lawyer, doctor, MBA, investment bankers, etc. All other majors can do this too so it's not that exclusive. On the other hand you hardly see philosophy major end up becoming plant engineer, software hacker, etc. so what am I implying hmmm?</p>
<p>I was surprised to learn that the director of my son's large premier soccer program (it's a full time job) was a philosophy major (along with playing soccer in college).</p>
<p>I don't know about "career opportunities", but, as was mentioned before, philosophy is one of the best undergraduate majors to develop the type of analytical skills (for example in formal logic and reasoning) that are valued and highly sought in Law School.</p>
<p>Payne, majoring in philosophy almost requires grad school - it teaches you how to think, which isn't going to land a lot of high-paying specialty jobs right off the bat, like engineering. That graph is /starting/ salaries. Is there a 10 or 15 year projection of salaries by major, when philosophy majors are done with grad school?</p>
<p>It's a bit of an aside, but look at art: how many artists are famous under the age of 25? 30? Obviously the starting salary is going to be low; they need time to establish themselves.</p>
<p>36k for a starting salary sounds right to me, and is one of the reasons I always laugh when I hear people bragging about how they're going to make 80-100k+ out of college.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Jenna Schaal-O’Connor, a 20-year-old sophomore who is majoring in cognitive science and linguistics, said philosophy had other perks. She said she found many male philosophy majors interesting and sensitive. </p>
<p>“That whole deep existential torment,” she said. “It’s good for getting girlfriends.”
[/quote]
Now, that's one good reason for choosing philosophy as an area of study (not necessarily a major, but still =p)</p>
