<p>When considering both today's economy, job-scarcity, and future economic prospects (5, 10, 15 years from now) - who is more likely to be happy? A carefree, free-spirited art student? Or a stressed out engineer student?</p>
<p>Same would apply for a photography student as opposed to a finance/accounting major. Or a passionate theater major as opposed to a determined medical student.</p>
<p>The line I'm trying to illustrate is one between passion and financial stability. There are so many reasons why I'd prefer to be an art major over something more quant-focused or skill specific, but in the end, I can't help but feel that I would be wasting both my time as well as my parent's money.</p>
<p>So I ask you, in 15 years from now, considering today's certain hostile economic environment and tomorrow's uncertain economic environment (could be good, good be bad), who would you say will most likely be happier? The care-free art student who can look back and say they passionately enjoyed what they pursued in college (but may not be able to land a relevant, or well-paying job) OR the overwhelmed science/business/medical student who perhaps didn't live it up as much in college but is more likely to find a job that is well-paying, stable (although, maybe not as "autonomous" as one of an art student)?</p>
<p>I'm not biased towards one or the other, both have their advantages and disadvantages. What do you think?</p>
<p>Who’s going to be happier? I don’t know. Most people in engineering/medical/finance majors are passionate about their major, that’s why they chose it. Passion and financial stability aren’t mutually exclusive, there is not a hard line between them.</p>
<p>A person who loved their major is probably going to be better at it and happier than a person who hated their major and just picked it because it was a “better” major. Two people who both loved their majors…well that’s going to be harder to answer.</p>
<p>This is a completely nonsensical question. You’re assuming that all engineering majors are doing their major for future prospects. </p>
<p>I’m an engineering major. I have quite a good social life in school. I’m not all that stressed out. AND I have a huge passion for what I’m going into. Not to mention I have quite a lucrative job offer for a company in an incredibly stable field post graduation.</p>
<p>So I get that you’re clearly insecure about your future prospects, but some of us are in a position to eat our cake and have it too.</p>
<p>Tl;dr: your black & white analysis of engineering vs. art is ridiculous.</p>
<p>(For what it’s worth, I’m sure there are art students who can reply in exactly the opposite way that I just did - that they are going into an art-related field that is quite stable, etc, and are totally fine about the future).</p>
<p>I am slightly confused about the question. Should we compare an average Art major and an average Engineering major? Should we compare a stressed out Engineering student and a carefree free-spirited Art major? Should we compare an average student who could potentially become an Engineering major or an Art major? Your question is vague and inconsistent.</p>
<p>Look at their yearbook picture. There’s research that shows that people who smile in their senior portrait are more likely to be happier 15 years later, and also less likely to be divorced.</p>
<p>Noticed I used the word “more likely” as opposed to “certain”. Of course anything could happen - I’m simply curious as to what other people think. It isn’t entirely uncommon for some people to compensate passion for financial stability/job certainty and vice versa. Johnson, I think you’re taking the question too personally.</p>
<p>I would be a doctor/engineer/businessman over art 10/10 times. Financial stability and job security are very important to me. I want to be able to support a family, send my own kids to college, and retire financially sound. It’s the american dream. In my opinion an art degree will not provide that.</p>
<p>Why would you ever try to compare the two? I am a science/social science person who would be miserable as an artist. My roommate is an artist who would be miserable in science. </p>
<p>Are not/could not engineers be artists as well?</p>
<p>Design is a very important part of engineering nowadays. I’ll bet a lot of the engineering and computer folks working at Apple, Google, Volkswagen, NASA, Xerox, Sony, Nintendo, Bethesda, Honda, and Valve are artists at heart.</p>
<p>What kind of ridiculous presumptuous question is this? Engineers don’t have to be “stressed out”. </p>
<p>Personally, I would be more stressed out if I couldn’t pay back college debt because I didn’t have marketable skills. No money for canvas either.</p>
<p>Anyways, art can always be a hobby. It might even be better that way but thats just my opinion.</p>
<p>I have a good friend who’s an engineering major and he’s pretty god damn happy. He LOVES everything that engineering is about, he’s been getting internships and co-ops involving things like cars and whatnot, his life is pretty great. Of course, I also know engineers who always seem like they’re ready to snap.</p>
<p>Same with art students… many are very happy because they’re doing what they love and are completely passionate about it and committed to it. Some are unhappy because it’s not a strong enough passion for them to overcome the feelings of “aw crap, looks like I’ll be at Starbucks after I graduate.”</p>
<p>I wish I were an engineering student, not for the great job prospects but because it’s really interesting stuff. I’m always kicking myself for not taking high school seriously, because if I had I’d probably be working on cars or planes or guns right now.</p>
<p>Of course, I’d also love being a successful musician.</p>
<p>I used to think differently but…the art student would be happier probably in terms of career.
But…it really depends. For me I base future happiness on things like being happily married and having enjoyable over stressful days everyday, and relaxing.
I don’t know about career. But I think humans are naturally more interested in things like arts, humanities, and it’s more enjoyable.</p>
<p>I’m a stressed out engineering major.
Personally I think art would be more interesting then what we do (in my case programming) in all honesty.
Some people might enjoy engineering majors but the vast majority of people I have met are really stressed out and not completely happy, or they are self absorbed in their own world (the nerds) without friends.</p>
<p>Probably bursting a bunch of people’s bubble but the majority of engineering majors aren’t head over heels passionate about their field. If we didn’t have to worry about money or about success in a limited field many would choose other majors. But I don’t think anyone should criticize that. It’s not wrong for a student to go into engineering when they have an extended family that they would need to help support, or if they have dreams that require money and the ability to get a job more easily. I don’t think any of that is wrong, or that you need to settle for only what your financial means allow for. For some people, the only way up in life is through a lucrative major.</p>
<p>But since you ask about happiness, that’s what I think.
Of course, their life make take some kind of turn so who knows.</p>
<p>it’s really hard to make a living as an artist. The whole industry is kept alive by rich folks who don’t know any better way to spend their money. Nowadays, unless you know people who has connections with those rich folks, it’s really hard to get recognized, even if you’re really talented.</p>
<p>This is kind of hard to measure, but I’ll offer some thoughts.</p>
<p>Two of my closest friends, my girlfriend and my friend B are both art majors. They are also both double majoring in psychology and education, respectively. I asked my girlfriend what she would think if I decided to switch my degree to English. She said that she would hate it because I wouldn’t make any money and would be unhappy. My friend B is currently dating a math major and tells me that any degree would be more marketable than she has. Both these two people have a passion, but I think they are a bit reliant on the people they’re dating. Gladly I’m passionate about math. Both of them just want to stay home and do art all day because they realize they do have talent but they do not possess the type of talent that makes art that can make a living. By all means, if you think you can make a great living off an art degree and have a talent that will carry you into fortune, go for it. But if you don’t…it is harder to say what will happen, but I think you will most likely end up in a slump or with financial troubles. Not everyone can be an artist just like not everyone can be a mathematician, physicist, or engineer. I think people need to separate their hobbies from passions more. I think they can easily mistake them for passions and end up majoring in it and find themselves working at Starbucks unhappy. Although I like to look at telescopes frequently, I’m not going to be an astronomer by any means during my life. If they possess the passion and extreme drive to make something of themselves then I believe these people have a higher chance of being successful despite poor job prospects on average. But I don’t think a lot of people do.</p>
<p>Now almost all of my friends are engineering majors and I have one physics friend. Are they happy? Yeah, I’d say so. It is stressful they tell me, but it is something they enjoy and know it will bring in the money. They all have active social lives too, so they’re not antisocial people who are cooped up in a room all day. My closest friend here with me has two kids two support and contemplated switching to physics, but he needs to keep up with the payments and have a steady job afterwards.</p>
<p>I’d say the engineering student, because they’ll probably get a job doing what they enjoy. An art student has a much lower chance of that happening for them. Same goes for math or science majors - they’re more likely to find a job related to their interests.</p>
<p>But of course, that assumes that science and engineering students are majoring in those fields because they’re super interested in them and not just because of the job prospects.</p>
<p>I think that most people in engineering are happy about their jobs. You have the opportunity to transition between various kinds of jobs within the same company. At that point, it’s not really about the field you’re interested in so much as the office environment and the people you meet. The pay is good, but the hours are usually long, especially for entry level. At least you can be sure you get out what you put in.</p>
<p>Art is about creativity using tools whether paint, paintbrush, canvas, instruments, your own body, your words, etc. Engineering can be the same thing - except you are being creative with different tools. This may not be easy to do in all engineering disciplines though.</p>
<p>I spoke to a teenager (pre-college age) and asked her what she is doing and she told me that she likes art and pottery in particular but she’s taking courses in Python and web-design as she thinks that it will be more useful in finding work. I was having a discussion over science and engineering and the benefits in understanding a lot about the physical world that STEM majors get to see and understand a small piece of it - it’s a wonderous thing to understand - even if it’s just your little part of STEM. The teenager was listening in on the conversation. I don’t think that she knew what we were talking about but I think that she came away feeling that there’s something out there that’s interesting to certain people. She said that she could do math but she doesn’t enjoy it.</p>