What college major do you think is the most useful for the world?

Career Opportunities & Internships
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<p>If you had to pick one that has the greatest potential to help both the student and the people they would help with their skills in turn, what would it be? Some kind of science? Medicine? Philosophy? Finance?</p>

<p>I'm asking this in the Careers forum to get more experienced opinions.</p>

2

<p>There is no “Best” major. The answer depends entirely on what you want to do and where your strengths lie.
Personally, I think that if you’re a hard worker, go to a top school and are reasonably competent, you’ll have the most desirable options with either a math, cs or econ major but your priorities my be different than mine.</p>

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<p>Increasingly, it is computer science. There is no reason to think this will change. </p>

<p>You’re now seeing non-tech businesses looking more for “hybrid” computer scientists – i.e., people who can code and who know a fair amount a given industry. You can run down the list: advertising, consulting, finance, healthcare, automotive industry, etc. </p>

<p>Computer scientists, even from public university degree mills, are displacing traditional candidates from the better schools.</p>

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<p>obviously in angryelf’s post, “desirable” is a relative term. Some people have no interest in certain fields. Doesn’t mean they aren’t desirable or valuable fields.</p>

<p>(I think angryelf made this point at the end of the post, but I just wanted to reiterate it).</p>

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<p>home economics</p>

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<p>I can see where you’re coming from with computer science. I figured it would be some type of engineering, if people actually agreed on any single field of study as managing to edge out its competitors in terms of usefulness…</p>

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<p>Engineering, science, physics, or math. (in no particular order). People who are reasonably competent in these fields typically have no problems succeeding in other areas of study. The inverse is not necessarily “as” true.</p>

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<p>Agree that computer science is arguably one of the best - strong programmers can overcome a lot of challenges in healthcare, technology, manufacturing … really revolutionize whole industries.</p>

<p>Medicine and Engineering are up there too</p>

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<p>I agree with your second and third sentences.</p>

<p>That said, obviously the alternative point is that the people running things at the strategic level almost never have those degrees.</p>

<p>And alternatively again, when is the last time you ate something produced by a computer scientist?</p>