Are Liberal Arts Degrees Worth It?

[PhuturePriest]

Good news: I attended accepted student day earlier at the aforementioned university I was accepted in. I asked all of my rather important questions, got satisfactory answers, and received an incredibly satisfactory financial aid package that I never could have dreamed of getting at a State school. I'll be paying very little at the end of the day for my schooling, and my debt at the end will not be substantial enough to harm me in any major way financially.

[PhuturePriest]

But a Masters in theology has no advantage to a bachelors. The terminal degree is what you want. 

​What is a "terminal" degree, out of curiosity? Sounds like a real job killer, if you ask me.

But really, what is it?

Edited April 12, 2015 by PhuturePriest

[puellapaschalis]

The last degree you can earn in a field. Normally refers to some sort of doctorate.

[Catlick]

Lots of talk about money here. 

More important is the high price paid by the souls of many students in the humanities. If you let them, these academics completely brainwash you with Satan's lies: feminism, postcolonialism, 'antiracism', 'qwerty theories', etc. etc. 

As a history graduate I'd advice young people to study something more useful during the day (law, chemistry) and serious orthodox theology during the night. 

Edited April 12, 2015 by Catlick

[PhuturePriest]

Lots of talk about money here. 

More important is the high price paid by the souls of many students in the humanities. If you let them, these academics completely brainwash you with Satan's lies: feminism, postcolonialism, 'antiracism', 'qwerty theories', etc. etc. 

As a history graduate I'd advice young people to study something more useful during the day (law, chemistry) and serious orthodox theology during the night. 

​I'm attending a solid Catholic University, not UCLA.

[PhuturePriest]

The last degree you can earn in a field. Normally refers to some sort of doctorate.

​That doesn't sound expensive or time-consuming at all.

[Lilllabettt]

Lots of talk about money here. 

More important is the high price paid by the souls of many students in the humanities. If you let them, these academics completely brainwash you with Satan's lies: feminism, postcolonialism, 'antiracism', 'qwerty theories', etc. etc. 

As a history graduate I'd advice young people to study something more useful during the day (law, chemistry) and serious orthodox theology during the night. 

OK Ayatollah. Generally anything that doesn't correspond with your political ideology is from Satan, correct? 

Let's make a list of Satan's Lies. It will be great for people who have weak minds/faith/formation and are at risk of brainwashing in college. 

Satans Lies

postcolonialism

eleanor roosevelt

pantaloons on women

leggings

....lets keep it going. Add on to the list. 

 

[Gabriela]

Actually, I tend to agree with Catlick on this point. Humanities departments at state universities are really just poorly veiled liberal indoctrination machines these days.

Philosophy departments are typically safe, though, if you have your own solid grounding in religion already (which FP obviously does).

[PhuturePriest]

Actually, I tend to agree with Catlick on this point. Humanities departments at state universities are really just poorly veiled liberal indoctrination machines these days.

Philosophy departments are typically safe, though, if you have your own solid grounding in religion already (which FP obviously does).

​I'm minoring in philosophy, as it so happens. Possibly a double minor in history as well, just because.

[Maggyie]

I dunno. I think anyone who is indoctrinated in college just don't know how to think for themselves or are too accepting of authority. Easily led etc. 

Oh those evil academics with their book larnin besides the Bible and their belief that racism exists. Errrrr. 

[Not The Philosopher]

During my undergraduate days, some of the English classes I took were more or less exercises in liberal smugness. But some were also genuinely good, and taught by people who had a passion for literature. It's really a matter of being able to find the diamonds in the mud.

Because modern anglo-american philosophy likes to pride itself on reason, logic, etc., it tends to resist pretty strongly the sort of pomo theory that saps the life out of other departments (continental philosophy is another story). There really should be more Catholics involved in philosophy these days - most modern philosophers are pretty dogmatically secular, and the ones that aren't tend to be Protestants or other persuasions.

[Maggyie]

​That doesn't sound expensive or time-consuming at all.

Well that's the thing with some of these degrees, it's go big or go home. 

I realize theology is tied to your discernment, but suppose you discern you don't have a religious vocation, which most discerners come to this conclusion btw. What besides teaching will you do with a masters in Catholic theology. Priesthood or teaching is pretty much it. Or there's always military service, which officers require a bachelors in any subject. 

Edited April 12, 2015 by Maggyie

[Sponsa-Christi]

But a Masters in theology has no advantage to a bachelors. The terminal degree is what you want. 

​If it's a solid M.A. theology program, a Master's does make you more hirable within Catholic circles. A theology M.A. makes you qualified to be a parish DRE or to teach religion in a Catholic high school. (My theology M.A. was also one of the things that made me qualified to write a high school religion textbook.) I believe things like campus ministry program also prefer to hire people with Master's degrees.

Actually, I even think that---outside of more strictly academic careers paths---a theology M.A. is almost better than a Ph.D. or other terminal degree, since a doctorate can make you seem overqualified for a lot of jobs.

[Sponsa-Christi]

Overall, I'm really surprised more people didn't pick the "it depends" answer. The are so many variables in determining whether a degree is "worth it": the student's goals, the type of degree, different financial situations, the quality of the program at an institution, how savvy the student is in terms of making long-term plans, whether or not the student is a "go getter" who can creatively envision different career possibilities, etc. 

But speaking in terms of my own field...in my opinion, in general it would NOT be worth it to take on $100,000 worth of debt to earn a B.A. in theology or religious studies just for one's own personal enrichment. I think it's laudable for an undergraduate to want to study theology just for the sake of growing in their own faith, but there are other ways to do this. E.g., taking theology courses as electives or as a minor while earning a more conventionally "useful" degree; taking courses at a local seminary (seminaries in the USA often have very reasonably priced degree programs for lay students); taking advantage of diocesan-sponsored catechist training classes, etc.

If someone wanted to study theology in order to make a "career" of service to the Church, I think it is really important that they get at least a Master's degree. There is a huge advantage to being taught theology as part of a structured degree program. Independent study can be useful for personal enrichment, but if you'll be in a position where you will be teaching the faith to others, it's important that you have the balance that a degree program provides. 

However, you do need to be able to accept the fact that working for the Church will never make you materially wealthy, and plan accordingly (e.g., by going to schools that are affordable or which give you scholarships, even if these aren't your "dream schools.")

[truthfinder]

 

Actually, I even think that---outside of more strictly academic careers paths---a theology M.A. is almost better than a Ph.D. or other terminal degree, since a doctorate can make you seem overqualified for a lot of jobs.

​^This.  I was told at the beginning of my graduate studies that an MA is almost never useless, but to think very carefully before embarking on a PhD.  

And in regards to Satan's lies, just remember, professors are people, and most of them are genuinely sincere in the beliefs they hold.  That doesn't mean you have to agree or like them for it.  I've taken classes with radical feminist professors who can be very biased in their marking - in those cases, you treat it as an academic exercise and write the paper they want.