According to a survey by ZipRecruiter, apparently these are the majors that students regretted going into, after the fact.
2 Likes
I don’t know that I regretted journalism because you have to chase your dream. But yes it’s very low paid with a high failure rate and I’m not surprised to see 9 in 10 regret the choice. Today there is a lot more opportunity with blogs and podcasts. Do those pay the bill - I don’t know.
But anyone pursuing journalism would be wise to double major. And many schools require it or at least a minor for this very reason. This got me into outside sales.
The study shows what we all know - on average, pre professional degrees are better. We can say what we want about learning to write and communicate. But this does not give you specific skills that a pre professional study will and that makes it harder to find success. Put it another way - go to indeed and set up a job search by certain majors. You won’t find Poli sci or sociology etc with 10% of the listings of accounting, engineering, etc. I’m surprised marketing made the list but it is the fluff of b school - why my mba is focused there !!
Surprised criminology is on the don’t regret list. That surprised me.
Yes kids in all majors will find success but on the averages, some majors in the early stages outperform others by a lot and that’s why you get these results.
The flip side is - you are who you are. If someone is adept or in love with studying politics, they may have zero interest or aptitude to chase another field.
1 Like
If this is based on salary, I am surprised to see psychology under least-regretted. I don’t see how a degree in psychology pays more than some of the majors under most-regretted.
My older one went straight to grad school so for her it’s hard to judge, but my other child is working before heading back to school. She was a biology major and would do it again. She makes a decent salary, has great benefits, getting excellent experience, etc.
I agree that you are who you are, and that most people will find their own success and be happy.
1 Like
Times may also have changed. I think journalism was more respected in the past. Had more impact. Was seen as less biased. Less prolific as you had to work for a name brand newspaper or news network.
But I am sure regrets are not only a function of pay. Some of the other considerations also likely play a part. For example medical / clinical assisting is also on the list. I am sure they make some money.
Psychology is very popular. Kids love it.
Yes I agree that they love psychology, but if this list is about salary I am surprised to see it under least-regretted. I don’t see psych majors making more than biology or education majors, coming right out of school.
Of course there are exceptions to all majors.
It is not directly about salary. Simply people are just asked if they regret their field of study. The regret could be for any reason.
1 Like
Ok that makes sense.
I agree that psych majors enjoy their major, but to have a career in psychology you need to go to graduate school. I assume some go this route, while others do not.
1 Like
Source: ZipRecruiter’s monthly survey of 1,500 job seekers published November 2022
If the survey was of 1,500 people, then overall numbers should be ok but subgroups would have huge confidence intervals and thus cannot be compared.
3 Likes
I have never regretted my journalism degree. But I was never a paid journalist (several unpaid reporting internships). After graduating, I went straight into making content for a city guide website during the dotcom boom, moved to advertising and copywriting, landed in corporate communications 20 years ago. I think if you’re willing to follow the opportunities and you’re open-minded, a journalism degree can teach you useful skills that are applicable in many places.
That said, I’ve hired many former journalists throughout my career. It can be a frustrating field, for sure.
3 Likes
30 yr old journalism degree here, too. I like what i do in communications (part time) - always came back to this after trying a few different areas. Not lucrative in any way; but i like the work.
2 Likes
The ZipRecruiter page on the subject is at The Most Regretted and Most Loved College Majors - ZipRecruiter
No surprise that some of the high-regret majors are those where a profession is targeted but the profession’s job and career prospects are poor (e.g. journalism). There may be something similar in other regretted majors (e.g. biology major who did not get into medical school, political science or English major who did not get into a high ranking law school).
1 Like
Anyone going to the ziprecruiter site is looking for a job…i.e. unhappy with what they are currently doing. Hence…not a random sample.
3 Likes
That argument also applies to those that said they were happy – the other list.
The Federal Reserve annual economic well being survey includes a similar question, which weighted to be representative of persons across the full US. Results are generally similar to the Zip Recruiter survey.
2 Likes
Like everything else in life, one’s satisfaction or regret is always relative to one’s own expectation, which may or may not be purely monetary. It isn’t hard to see why these majors underperform relative to expectations. They all produce too many graduates in their respective fields relative to the demands in those fields. The best in those fields (or any field) will still do fine but many others won’t. Who can guarantee that the most regret-free major (Computer & Information Sciences) currently is going to remain so in the not-too-distant future, as students today rush to enter the field?
4 Likes
Yes, if you choose a major with the goal of preparing for a certain profession, but are never able to get into that profession, then your expectations are unmet (even if your pay level in something else is ok), increasing the likelihood of regret.
2 Likes
100%