<p>Lachata,
I explicitly said that there are areas of business that require specialization i.e. accounting etc. Furthermore, I haven’t become a business man. But, if i wanted to it wouldn’t be that hard. I would either 1. interview positions that didn’t require a specialization or 2. get an MBA to specialize in something which only takes one year instead of the law degree i am currently seeking which takes 3. You don’t have to be a business major in undergrad to get an MBA. I’m not sure I understand the argument you are trying to make here.</p>
<p>And NervousParent,</p>
<p>What exactly are you even doing purusing around on this messageboard. You obviously aren’t affiliated with WM in any capacity. Your first mistake with the picture and article is that the man graduated from a school in the UK, is seeking employment in the UK, and the bottom line is that your reasoning is completely flawed if you are going to argue that it is representative of me, a graduate of a completely different school that is in the U.S. and someone who would be looking for work in the U.S. IF I actually was looking for work. I could just as easily post this: [Unemployed</a> banker stands on NYC street with ‘for hire’ sign - USATODAY.com](<a href=“http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/banking/2008-06-24-for-hire-sign_N.htm]Unemployed”>http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/banking/2008-06-24-for-hire-sign_N.htm)
I’m sure you’ve read about the M.I.T. graduate who worked as an investment banker, your line of work NervousParent, with actual experience on Wall Street. You would hire him right? Well no one else seemed to want to. I could be ignorant and let this limited situation affect my entire outlook to the point where I would say, “look at this one guy, obviously being a business major isn’t worth it…if he can’t find a job how on earth will I” - BUT i’m not ignorant. It’s obvious that the majority disagree with you NervousParent. You might want to go in search of another messageboard where everyone believes that every acadmic decision they made along the way was the best way to do it, because it was THEY who made it. And now their children will be subjected to that limited, narrow-minded outlook as well to their unfortunate detriment.</p>
<p>You should never have started this argument, NervousParent. It was a horrible one at best from the get-go. And it has only gotten worse as you for some reason continue to try to keep it going. You’ve made your isolated viewpoint clear. I’m not sure what else you are trying to achieve here except to aggravate the WM messageboard.</p>
<p>"Traditionally, a liberal arts degree has been associated with careers in education, the clergy, and law. Today it is readily accepted in the business world. A recent Spencer Stuart survey revealed that roughly 20 percent of the top CEOs in the country hold an undergraduate liberal arts-related degree . Only engineering and business administration were more common undergraduate degrees for S&P 500 CEOs. </p>
<p>The top brass at Bristol-Myers Squibb, Liz Claiborne, Coach, Molson Coors Brewing, FedEx, Knight-Ridder, Sara Lee, M&T Bank, Nike and Time Warner all hold Liberal Arts degrees.</p>
<p>It pays to study what interests you. A bachelor’s degree in Medieval History and Philosophy wouldn’t generally seem to forecast success. But Carly Fiorina went on to head Hewlett-Packard for six years, a company of 150,000 employees with $86 billion in revenue. Former Disney head, Michael Eisner, studied Literature and Theater. </p>
<p>employers do value the basics of a solid education. “Good verbal and written communication skills are a must,” says Sheri Ditzel, Client Service Manager for Kelly Services. Its clients seek candidates for temporary and permanent positions in various fields including IT, legal, and engineering, in addition to office support. She adds, “project management skills are also key.”</p>
<p>A liberal arts or humanities program nurtures all of those skills, and that is why employers are willing to invest. "</p>
<p>“That’s fine. My daughter is a freshman at Virginia Tech. No idea what she wants to do. Certain majors that we her parents won’t pay for when she does decide. We as parents will guide her as we see fit and you will with your kids. College is very expensive and we want value and a good outcome for our money.” </p>
<p>Alright, but you said “I said teaching was OK in my previous post.”</p>
<p>Can you explain this? I’m sure you know that teaching isn’t the best paying profession, yet you wouldn’t mind one of your children pursuing a degree in Education.</p>
<p>The benefits of having a liberal arts degree (in history, english, etc) are great, but when it comes down to it, having just a bachelors degree is not enough today. I think you should major in what interests you the most as an undergrad (whether it be anthropology, business administration, biology, etc) and then look to build on those skills to pursue some type of graduate education after that. W&M is an excellent school to create that base of knowledge to build upon throughout your life.</p>
<p>Ideally, your bachelors degree can help you land a job, but I don’t think it should always be seen as an end in itself. If you think that way, you might as well look toward more of a vocational education.</p>
<p>“I tell each of my four kids that I won’t be paying for college if you major in English, history, political science, womens studies, etc. I am paying for you to learn a marketable skill such as science, med school, nursing, teaching, architecture, any kind of business degree, etc. You want history? Go get a loan.”</p>
<p>I tell mine something similar…with a slight twist.</p>
<p>Pick a major (career) that you can make a living immediately following college. No History, English ect unless you are also pursuing a teaching degree. We will pick up the tab (not eligible for need based aid) for all classes that you receive a C or higher. You can get a loan or work to pay for the any Political Science or other majors that will not lead to being employed in your degree choice. Anyone know of any jobs in Political Science that can be had with a BS / BA in that field? </p>
<p>Graduate and decide if you want to pursue a second degree. No problem…we’ll pick up the tab for WHATEVER major (or graduate school) you desire. Always wanted to be an Artist…no problem…we’ll pay for the second degree. At least we’ll know that if push comes to shove you can support yourself while you’re waiting for the world to discover the beauty of your art.</p>
<p>One additional caveat that is tied into our children graduating from college: Weddings
Both son and daughters are aware that our (parents) contribution to their weddings is tied to their graduating from college and making a living. The formula is simple: Graduate from college and we will pay 25% of you and your spouses combined previous years W-4 earnings…up to 50K.</p>
<p>Don’t graduate from college? We will pay 1K per year beginning after high school until either you have your first child or reach 30. Whichever one of those happens first, you will receive what ever you have accrued as a one time gift.</p>
<p>Our children are expected to be responsible for their own actions and decisions. We are not going to pay for college while they “discover” themselves. Just my opinion…</p>
<p>50k for a wedding? wow.</p>
<p>Maximum 50K. You think if one of my children and their future spouse made 200K the previous year that they are going to take 50K of my money? I know my children and I’m thinking NOT.</p>
<p>that just seems like an incredible amount for a wedding.</p>
<p>but… I am not in the market for having a wedding any time soon, so I don’t claim to actually know anything about them =P</p>
<p>Mine costs about 12.5K 25 years ago and we cut a lot of corners (mother-in-law made the wedding dress). God (and probably my wife & daughters) only knows what a big wedding might cost now. Hopefully I won’t find out for at LEAST another 6 years.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>That’s right. A degree in education falls under my rule of a “marketable skill” right out of college (with a teaching certification).</p>
<p>In our public high school here in the suburbs of Philly, 25% of the teachers make over 100K. The starting salary for a new teacher is something like 45K. That can pay the rent and the car payment for them. I explain to my kids about career progression. I use the example of high school teachers. One health and phys-ed teacher they had is now a asst. principal at another local high school. In time, that teacher will be a principal somewhere and probably be making 125-150K. Then, after that, they might be a school district superintendent somewhere and make over 200K, like our local superintendant does. If you teach at the right places in the USA, big bucks can be had.</p>
<p>aglages said…>>>One additional caveat that is tied into our children graduating from college: Weddings
Both son and daughters are aware that our (parents) contribution to their weddings is tied to their graduating from college and making a living. The formula is simple: Graduate from college and we will pay 25% of you and your spouses combined previous years W-4 earnings…up to 50K. Don’t graduate from college? We will pay 1K per year beginning after high school until either you have your first child or reach 30. Whichever one of those happens first, you will receive what ever you have accrued as a one time gift.<<<</p>
<p>Nice twist. I’ll have to remember that one. Thanks.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>Well said. In our opinion, most of the liberal arts majors I previously listed are merely time sinks. In essence, the kid gets an extended 4 year reprieve in deciding what they want to do with their life. I think it is great that a lot, if not all, colleges mandate that you must decide on a major in your sophomore year. At least this helps kick-start the kids motor to some extent.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>An MBA only takes 1 year? Since when? Mine took three semesters and I thought that was a short program back in 1978. I think the vast majority of MBA programs are two years. Looks like your self-proclaimed great research skills via your history major have failed you.</p>
<p>[Master</a> of Business Administration - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mba]Master”>Master of Business Administration - Wikipedia)</p>
<p>“In our opinion, most of the liberal arts majors I previously listed are merely time sinks. In essence, the kid gets an extended 4 year reprieve in deciding what they want to do with their life.”</p>
<p>Like become the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, as John Roberts (history undergrad) did. </p>
<p>You’re free to raise your kids as you see fit. That doesn’t make you right, and it doesn’t make you wrong. Personally, I don’t think any of those discussions are relevant to this thread. Let’s either go back to the original topic or close the thread.</p>
<p>I still want to know if NervousParent would pay for their child’s undergraduate education if the child wanted to go to law school.</p>
<p>"I still want to know if NervousParent would pay for their child’s undergraduate education if the child wanted to go to law school.:</p>
<p>Certainly NervousParent would have to answer this question for himself, but I have a question concerning the above scenario:
Is there only one acceptable undergraduate major that will allow entry in a Law School grad program, or is it possible to graduate with a BS / BA in something that you could make a living in if you were either unable to get into law school or changed your mind after graduation? Just curious…</p>
<p>It doesn’t matter what you major in for law school. The best advice is to major in what you enjoy so the GPA will be high - that is more important than the major. There are a few majors that are looked down upon a bit by law school admissions - pre law is one.</p>
<p>“It doesn’t matter what you major in for law school.”
Yes, I agree. So getting an undergraduate degree in something that you could become gainfully employed without going to law school could only help someone…not hurt them or prevent them from achieving their dream to become a lawyer. It might even be possible to earn a living and go to law school part time if you wanted to get married and start a family. Just speculating…</p>
<p>One thing they say about Law School is that you have to have your head together to do well. You have to have some desired outcome to drive you through the courses, so dreaming of being a chemist then suddenly switching to contract law would require quite the life aspiration change or a strong double focused mind.</p>