<p>Philosophy and economics is a common pairing, but I wouldn't add the economics unless you are genuinely interested in it as well. As for business, the corporate world is so broad that there is room for individuals trained in just about any discipline. For consulting firms (a significant percentage of the employers in large metropolitan areas) sharp liberal arts majors can be hired right out of college. What those employers are looking for are well-spoken, intelligent individuals, who write well, learn quickly, have some intellectual firepower and energy, and who work well with others. </p>
<p>Check out these two links for a comprehensive discussion of what advantages a philosophy degree may confer in addition to the intrinsic enjoyment of philo-sophia.</p>
<p><a href="http://www2.semo.edu/philosophy/why_major.html%5B/url%5D">http://www2.semo.edu/philosophy/why_major.html</a>
<a href="http://www2.semo.edu/philosophy/whatcani.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www2.semo.edu/philosophy/whatcani.htm</a></p>
<p>As to my career path - I will outline it for you on the chance that some aspect of it may assist you in your decision - I was in a PhD program and finally realized that I didn't want to teach Intro to Philosophy for 10 years while I stuggled to find a tenured position. Wrote a Master's thesis and departed. Had a soul-searching 18 months (teaching horseback riding to support myself) while I tried to figure out what I wanted to do - I applied for and got offers for editorial positions with magazines, but didn't like the salaries. An older friend's husband got me an interview for a position in an IT consulting firm, doing hands-on user training for a loan tracking system developed for Small Business Administration employees. Great job, decent $$$, traveled all over the country for six months.</p>
<p>I graduated to technical writing, then to systems requirements analysis (which I have come to consider as an innate talent for the philosophically trained, just like data modeling) - while gradually coming to understand the enormous variety and scope of work within IT. At this point, about 5 years into the working world, I was exposed to and trained in what was then called Information Systems Planning, a top-down structured methodology for the integration of applications and data throughout an organization. That was the watershed that focused my direction within the profession. Led to a concentration on data modeling, data warehouse design, data management, applications integration, data quality, etc. - all aspects of the seminal principles. </p>
<p>I had a number of opportunities to manage projects and programs along the way - that was rewarding, but I learned that I prefer to concentrate on deepening my knowledge and skills in the areas that are the most creative and rewarding - in short, I wanted to think about what I enjoyed, rather than worry about status reports, actual-to-baseline comparisons, and burn rates on a contract. Spent seven years as an independent consultant, mostly in technical lead positions on new software development projects. When people outside of the profession ask me what I do, I usually say "I make sense out of chaos." </p>
<p>At this point, I have achieved both a broad background in the industry and deep expertise in my selected areas. My areas of interest are by and large technology independent, an advantage in this fast-changing field. I have never written one line of code. Earnings are very comfortable, and steady. What I do cannot really be outsourced, and is great for international work. I put a confidential resume out on Monster recently, just casually fishing, and have received more than 20 interested responses in the past three weeks.</p>
<p>So to answer some 20/20 hindsight questions - </p>
<p>Would I major in Philosophy again? Yes. </p>
<p>Why? Enjoyment of the subject matter. The satisfactions of the examined life (this is the big payoff, career application only en passant). Development of the essential muscles of the rational mind. Reflex to question assumptions across the board - political, religious, personal. Ability to craft a sound and persuasive argument. The pleasure of recalling Aristotle's description of the concept of "place" in the Physics, the lasting amusement afforded by the explanation of God in the Leviathan. Biggest career payoff - confidence!Proof, again and again, that I can thrive by employing previously developed thinking and learning skills, respond effectively to challenges of reasoning, Etc. etc. etc.</p>
<p>Graduate Degree? Yes. Even though Philosophy has no direct relationship to IT, it is an advantage to have the M.A. - employers like it. It is often mentioned in interviews and at many firms, having any advanced degree helps for promotions and raises. I think the effect is like a generic "stamp of intelligence."</p>
<p>Graduate Degree in Philosophy? No, since I changed my mind about being a professor. My mother said "You should go to law school" - as we have mentioned in this thread, a natural fit. Attorneys my age are by and large making more money, in many cases much more money. However, from many observations over the years, I would generalize that they tend to be less 'dimensional' and definitely more cynical.</p>
<p>Change profession if granted a "Do-over?" Probably. I would probably do graduate work in radio communications (Interview Thinkers - Talk Show!) or creative writing (Playwright!). My current profession is rewarding and more than satisfies my left brain, but I also yearn for a right brain balance. As an empty nester as of fall 2005, I will begin to move in both these directions over the next few years.</p>
<p>Would you advise your own child to major in Philosophy? I have thought it very important to encourage exposure to philosophy. I haven't pushed, because his decisions are his own perogative, but he did take a college course in Ethics and a CTY course in Logic and Formal Reasoning, positive experiences. For the Oxford application he selected Philosophy, Psychology, and Physiology as the degree course. He has said that whatever his eventual major, he wants to take lots of courses in Philosophy, because it is the most intellectually rewarding subject thus far in his experience.</p>
<p>Could a student travel a similar path in IT today? I believe you could. Employers in the past decade have become a bit more stringent about what majors they are looking for, but many of the large firms still recruit liberal arts majors. </p>
<p>The key for a philosophy major would be to play to your strengths - target areas early in your IT career that highlight your skills, for example, Business Process Improvement (modeling, breaking down work actitvities and decisions into the smallest components, identifying opportunities for efficiency, and so on) or requirements analysis (working with business users to determine exactly what an information system must do - scope, business logic, features, etc. - and expressing them in atomic, unambiguous fashion, such as "The application must calculate the monthly sales total amount by store for each sales item category group."). The two examples above are skills that are described by the IT job classification "Business Analyst." You need to learn the methodologies so you can apply your thinking skills along structured channels for a specific result - but they can be learned through a skills course or on the job. </p>
<p>Hope this detail is of some use to you. What it does illustrate, I think, is that the direction of one's profession develops over time through a combination of focus, achievement, adaptability, and a bit of serendipity and luck. Very few majors or degrees deliver "The Final Profession" with batteries included, right out of the box. And individuals indeed continue to grow, change, and develop over their entire lifetime - there is rarely a point where you can say "This is it, there will be no more career decisions or major changes of direction in my life." If you're like me, I found that impossible to comprehend in my teens and early 20s. This perspective is tossing a message over the wall from further down the timeline.</p>