When I was in a position to hire people, before I went out on my own, I always preferred liberal arts majors over candidates who majored in something specific to one career. I got a lot of applicants who were “public relations” majors or “advertising” majors. I wanted people who were intellectually curious and knew a little about a lot of things.
Well, one can easily do both so you should not use your bias to disadvantage individual applicants. Its not like at open curriculum LACs there is a shortage of kids selecting courses with a narrow focus.
Bias is integral to the hiring process. (As long as it’s not bias against a protected class. Last I checked, advertising majors were not a protected class.)
With very few exceptions, companies can train a smart person who learns easily. Hence, people go into different/many other careers than what they studied in college. All knowledge is useful and smart people know that. Even technical knowledge can be learned by someone who has the interest and willingness to learn. While, it’s great that many chose STEM so they will ensure they have a career, it seems completely boring to do the same type of job for 40 years whether it is software engineering or Renaissance art.
@brantly It is legal for sure. However, you may miss out on better candidates.
@CupCakeMuffins So, which college did your son select? May 1!
He just got off of waitlist for another school so discussing numbers with them. Lets see if that works out.
Don’t you have to decide by midnight tonight?
I have two sister-in-laws who both majored in English. One is now is a State Representative and is also working on getting a completely revamped zoning code for her town. The other is involved in various music related activities, mostly unpaid. My younger son the IR major seemed to be mostly desired for his summer job experience running conferences and ended up in the Navy. My older son OTOH (CS major) does indeed program computers.
“Liberal arts graduates learn critical thinking, research, communication skills, etc”
“And why is this discussion focused on liberal arts?”
Because this is the Amherst forum on CC where only LA majors can think critically and engineers, computer scientists, Communications majors or Finance majors are drones who can’t think critically or write or speak. Ugh.
Edited to add - just realized this isn’t even the Amherst forum. Double ugh.
^^^ I believe the overall point of the post and its responses is not to be dismissive to STEM majors / jobs, but rather point out that humanities majors can actually do just fine in the workplace. The stigma with humanities generally has been, “what are you going to do with that Art History, Philosophy, etc. degree?” The point of the thread is to share experiences that suggest one can do many things with those majors, just not the very technical roles that require specific education.
No one is suggesting that engineers and STEM kids don’t think critically or can’t communicate. Most that I know do quite well in both.
The poster asked about humanities and job prospects. No one here that I saw snubbed STEM majors. They’re obviously normally seen as having better job prospects. Saying that people with humanities majors have skills so that they can also get jobs, eat, have roofs over their heads, etc. is not to say that others don’t. It’s not a zero sum game.
Speaking of STEM, how many physics majors are physicists? How many math majors mathematicians? My father was a math major, and he did pretty much exactly what I, his literature major son, do: be a business lawyer.
I have a BA and MA in English Lit. Many of the English majors I know are stay-at-home parents/homemakers like me. I never abandoned the major I loved- -my books are always with me. Every month is poetry month. (But most of us need to be practical. That’s why I’m tutoring math/SAT/ACT. )
STEM and “liberal arts” have several overlap majors so one doesn’t mean “not the other”.
And humanities are taught at LACs but also at pretty much every university, public or private, as well.
Some people seem really touchy about the idea of learning to think, read and write leading to very marketable skills.
No one is saying engineers, nurses, business majors are dumb people with no job prospects.
Are some majors easier than others? I think yes. Do those majors include advertising, marketing, hospitality, sports management, whatever? Maybe - maybe not. Obviously depends on the school, the major and the student (and a philosophy/art history/whatever major may not have had the most rigorous education either - same factors apply).
Not a zero sum game, indeed. But when someone suggests all humanities majors are destined to make pretty shapes in latte foam, a lot of us will speak up and show that premise is false with our experiences.
A great link about the relevance of a liberal arts education to any field:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/30/opinion/robert-e-rubin-philosophy.html
In my opinion, those who think nothing is to be gained – personally or professionally – from a major in philosophy, history, English, art history, and the like, lack imagination and foresight and, by virtue of their position on the matter, are narrow thinkers.
Edited to add: As Stephen Colbert would say, allegedly. Allegedly.
@OHMomof2 --you referenced my phrasing (not a zero sum game), but I was making the same point as you, and countering an early statement about the perceived snub of STEM majors.
@garland I agree with you and was not responding directly to you. I try to actually quote and tag when I am. I was responding to the thread generally.
Most UNDERGRADUATE college majors are not training for specific jobs. Students acquire general skills, general knowledge, and perhaps some hands-on practical experience via internships, summer jobs, etc.
The economy – and the job market – is far more complex and nuanced. Upon graduating, students often go through a series of jobs, building knowledge, reputation, and connections. Sometimes they figure out that they need more training, or more credentials. My daughter, who had a BFA in industrial design, worked at that occupation for several years but decided to go back to school for an MBA. Now she teaches courses in sustainable design at the college level and is an administrator of a university program supporting would-be entrepreneurs. Perfect match for her training, experience, and interests. But it took almost 10 years to build her credentials for it.
Is her job “totally different” from her undergraduate major? Not at all. Her major in industrial design is central to her career. But it isn’t everything. And her job is not to “do industrial design.”