Article For Those Picking A College Major

[Anastasia13]

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2011/12/14/tweak-your-major-transform-your-job-prospects/?icid=maing-grid7|main5|dl3|sec1_lnk3|119999

On picking a degree you are passionate about and can get a job with.

[OnlySunshine]

Thanks for posting.

Edited December 15, 2011 by MaterMisericordiae

[LaPetiteSoeur]

Unfortunately, I'm majoring in French.

I love it, I love the language, I'm good at it, and language is important for communication and understanding.

However, the people at my university quickly tell me "You do know you'll never find a job, right?"

Usually they are majoring in Psychology and don't want to go to grad school.

Edited December 15, 2011 by LaPetiteSoeur

[GregorMendel]

[url="http://graphicsweb.wsj.com/documents/NILF1111/#term=Science"]http://graphicsweb.wsj.com/documents/NILF1111/#term=Science[/url]

This report from the Wall Street Journal is the most complete I have come across yet.

Good luck to anyone making this decision, remember to pick a good one!

[Amppax]

Hmmmm... Theology, Philosophy, and History all have wonderful unemployment rates

[MissyP89]

I was lucky enough to get a job offer before graduation thanks to internships and being really persistent ... what I got is part-time. I don't make much.

But I'm doing what makes me happy. *shrug*

[Archaeology cat]

See, I don't think one should necessarily get a degree because of employment opportunities. I know that's a bit idealistic, but I didn't go into archaeology because of the job opportunities, but because I love it.

[penguin31]

I was always given the following advice, and I find it to be rather sound:

"For a college major, choose something that you enjoy, that you can make money doing. Don't just pick something that while you enjoy has *no* practical purpose - you can learn about it online or through books for far cheaper. At the same time, if you pick something profitable that you hate, you'll just wind up miserable and burned out."

Edited December 16, 2011 by penguin31

[MissScripture]

[quote name='penguin31' timestamp='1323999713' post='2351885']
I was always given the following advice, and I find it to be rather sound:

"For a college major, choose something that you enjoy, that you can make money doing. Don't just pick something that while you enjoy has *no* practical purpose - you can learn about it online or through books for far cheaper. At the same time, if you pick something profitable that you hate, you'll just wind up miserable and burned out."
[/quote]
Yes, I think there needs to be a balance between liking what you do and being able to earn enough to live on.

Then you end up with people like me, who get to the end of their schooling and discover they actually hate what they just put in 6-7 years of schooling for. I was blessed enough to get pregnant and have a husband who makes enough that I don't have to get a job, or I would be miserable beyond all reason. I totally thought it was going to be the sort of thing I would love to do when I started. It just didn't turn out that way...

[Little Flower]

So I want to do one of two things: go to Christendom and major in Theology, or go to the local college (or anywhere that can give me scholarship money) and major in computer engineering or some kind of engineering.

you cant make any money period pretty much as a theology major

plus i like programming

so i think im gonna go with the computer engineering major

[arfink]

[quote name='Amppax' timestamp='1323973863' post='2351728']
Hmmmm... Theology, Philosophy, and History all have wonderful unemployment rates
[/quote]

Too bad I went to seminary, and now I got a degree in Philosophy and no money to "do over." And nobody wants to help former seminarians, cuz "he's not going to be a priest now, so dangit we won't give any money to him!"

Edited December 16, 2011 by arfink

[Anastasia13]

[quote name='arfink' timestamp='1324007692' post='2351963']

Too bad I went to seminary, and now I got a degree in Philosophy and no money to "do over." And nobody wants to help former seminarians, cuz "he's not going to be a priest now, so dangit we won't give any money to him!"
[/quote]
If I were you, would look for fellowship/teaching assistantship/research assistantship offering PhD programs in something that is in some way related but also gives more practical knowledge. Otherwise, I would go with community college coursework.

[TheresaThoma]

All I have to say is IDP, individualized degree programs. You can really tailor your degree to meet your needs. I'm officially majoring in Aerospace Physics. I get to take advantage of an amesome Aviation program but mix in a good dose of physics (including some of the really weird stuff). And yes people do get hired with this degree.

Edited December 16, 2011 by TheresaThoma

[Archaeology cat]

[quote name='penguin31' timestamp='1323999713' post='2351885']I was always given the following advice, and I find it to be rather sound:

"For a college major, choose something that you enjoy, that you can make money doing. Don't just pick something that while you enjoy has *no* practical purpose - you can learn about it online or through books for far cheaper. At the same time, if you pick something profitable that you hate, you'll just wind up miserable and burned out."[/quote]Couldn't have studied under Ian Shaw for free, though.

[Nunsense]

A lot of times people choose a major that will get them a good job today but in the future things change. there will be jobs in the future that haven't even been thought of yet, and you might not even know you would love to do that.

When I was young, there were no computers so I became a nurse. As a mature age student I went back to college and studied IT Education because I fell in love with computers. I had no idea that they were going to be invented though when I was young!

Do what you you are good at ...the use transferable skills later if you need to change careers! Be flexible.

[Amppax]

[quote name='arfink' timestamp='1324007692' post='2351963']

Too bad I went to seminary, and now I got a degree in Philosophy and no money to "do over." And nobody wants to help former seminarians, cuz "he's not going to be a priest now, so dangit we won't give any money to him!"
[/quote]

Yeah that's really unfortunate. Personally, I really respect that you tried it out, and decided it wasn't your vocation. I think some sort of scholarship fund should be set up for those leaving seminary, considering they don't have a degree that is easily used, and often don't have money.

I'm actually not THAT worried about it, the plan is to teach, and so I'm planning on Grad school. Meaning I don't have to really buckle down and think about all of this for a couple of years.

[arfink]

[quote name='Light and Truth' timestamp='1324020717' post='2352105']
If I were you, would look for fellowship/teaching assistantship/research assistantship offering PhD programs in something that is in some way related but also gives more practical knowledge. Otherwise, I would go with community college coursework.
[/quote]

Grad school is a "do over" option I don't have money for. Even community college is going to be a massive stretch, given my current level of debt.

[Totus Tuus]

The way I chose Classics over, say, Theology or Business or History or Psychology, is because I knew I would not be able to teach myself Latin and Greek. I can read as many books on those other subjects that I want, including text books, and use online resources or videos to supplement, and learn everything I would have learned by majoring in them. But I would not have been able to do that with Classics, so I decided to take advantage of the Classics department in my school to spend four years on something I otherwise would have had to live without.

[Totus Tuus]

[quote name='Archaeology cat' timestamp='1323998908' post='2351881']
See, I don't think one should necessarily get a degree because of employment opportunities. I know that's a bit idealistic, but I didn't go into archaeology because of the job opportunities, but because I love it.
[/quote]

Agreed. I went into Classics for the same reason. People always ask me (without hiding the disgust on their face), what are you going to do with THAT? You know what? Hardly anyone uses the degree they got in college for the job they work at. I believe a lot of what goes into getting hired for any job is our personality, our resume, our letters of recommendation, and our knowledge about the company and what you will be expected to do. Companies will rarely rule out a candidate for a job because his major is not specifically designed for it unless one is looking to become a doctor, lawyer, economist, etc. I say, do what you love. And ignore the nay-sayers... that's the only thing that's worked for me and so far I've had no lack of job opportunities. Being a trustworthy person in a world with so few of them will get you pretty far these days regardless of your educational background.

[Totus Tuus]

[quote name='penguin31' timestamp='1323999713' post='2351885']
I was always given the following advice, and I find it to be rather sound:

"For a college major, choose something that you enjoy, that you can make money doing. Don't just pick something that while you enjoy has *no* practical purpose - you can learn about it online or through books for far cheaper. At the same time, if you pick something profitable that you hate, you'll just wind up miserable and burned out."
[/quote]
I strongly disagree. As I said, I believe that unless you know you want to pursue a path that is specifically oriented around your education, like medicine, then do what you love. Education is not about money-making- that is a modern phenomenon. Education is about developing the human person. Almost all of our founding fathers were extremely proficient in the Classics, which I study, which are barely taught at all today. And they were some the soundest, most well-rounded people in American history. When education aimed at developing the whole person, I believe people were better equipped to pick up new skills and do more jobs than we are now. Now, you go to school for say, accounting, and you come out of college almost incapable of doing any job but accounting, because you didn't learn literature, history, classics, philosophy, and the things that form you as a person.