5 majors you shouldn't have

http://education.yahoo.net/articles/beware_these_five_majors.htm?kid=1O0V3

I think at least 4 of those majors should just be eliminated.

They're just gonna create somebody living in poverty with 100,000 dollars of debt.

I think that's an asshole of an article. As a parent you should want you child to pursue something they love. A man who loves what he does doesn't work a day in his life. Fightingfan

real world.

Those are 5 majors you shouldn't have unless you're good at what you do.

I know people that recently graduated in all of those fields and are gainfully employed (well the philosophy major is in lawschool at the university of virginia, so I'm sure she'll be employeed when she graduates)

Sure if you dive into those majors with no plans and you don't make connections and do internships you're f*cked, but that's true with most majors these days. 

Those are 5 majors you shouldn't have unless you're good at what you do.

I know people that recently graduated in all of those fields and are gainfully employed (well the philosophy major is in lawschool at the university of virginia, so I'm sure she'll be employeed when she graduates)

Sure if you dive into those majors with no plans and you don't make connections and do internships you're f*cked, but that's true with most majors these days. 

Guybrush_3

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"]I think that's an asshole of an article. As a parent you should want you child to pursue something they love. A man who loves what he does doesn't work a day in his life. Person0

[QUOTE="Person0"][QUOTE="Fightingfan"]I think that's an asshole of an article. As a parent you should want you child to pursue something they love. A man who loves what he does doesn't work a day in his life. Fightingfan

What I find funny is that #2 on the most profitable list is education, and at the same time the quality of education is nose-diving.  All the while philosophers have been discussing, among other things, theories of education that have proven worthwhile and yet fail to be implemented in American schools.  Price is not the same thing as value, if it were then high-salaried jobs would be getting better results.

In fact, I think it's a sad fact of our society that every other profession on the most profitable list has to do with finances, nothing really matters anymore except making a buck.  There are plenty of other things that can have value without being monetarily valuable, like art, for instance, or priceless archeological artifacts or nature that's being overrun by this profit-first mentality, but we can't make a direct profit off of that so it's worthless.  Modern philosophy has been passed down since the time of the Greeks, from Thales to Socrates to Cicero to Descartes to Locke to Hume to Kant to Hegel to Nietzsche to Sartre to Russell to Quine, spanning centuries and civilizations, and there's no profit in it so it's worthless.  The alienation of man from his species-being, those words never rang truer.

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"]I think that's an asshole of an article. As a parent you should want you child to pursue something they love. A man who loves what he does doesn't work a day in his life. Person0

I think that speaks more to the outrageous cost of college education than it does to any specific major in itself.  

[QUOTE="Guybrush_3"]

Those are 5 majors you shouldn't have unless you're good at what you do.

I know people that recently graduated in all of those fields and are gainfully employed (well the philosophy major is in lawschool at the university of virginia, so I'm sure she'll be employeed when she graduates)

Sure if you dive into those majors with no plans and you don't make connections and do internships you're f*cked, but that's true with most majors these days. 

MakeMeaSammitch

Work on the logic a little, if getting a B.A in philosophy is good enough for law school, then why is it any different than "a degree in philosophy by itself"? What about people who are at college and don't know what they want to do with their lives? Philosophy can act as a great means to an end if they can apply what they learned in school to find a job they enjoy, or a field they enjoy? You are thinking a little narrow minded.

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"]I think that's an asshole of an article. As a parent you should want you child to pursue something they love. A man who loves what he does doesn't work a day in his life. MakeMeaSammitch

real world.

my cousin is a philospher and psychologist, he works at a children's hospital and writes books.  Right out of college

I'm currently at the end of my second year of college and this is why I'm still undecided on a major. All the office jobs require dealing with finances, accounting, administration, that kind of thing - those classes are so boring I have trouble even staying awake in them. Meanwhile, classes like film or philosophy are MUCH more interesting but just don't seem like a good career choice. 

Ugh, I really hate this. 

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"]I think that's an asshole of an article. As a parent you should want you child to pursue something they love. A man who loves what he does doesn't work a day in his life. wis3boi

real world.

my cousin is a philospher and psychologist, he works at a children's hospital and writes books.  Right out of college

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]

[QUOTE="Guybrush_3"]

Those are 5 majors you shouldn't have unless you're good at what you do.

I know people that recently graduated in all of those fields and are gainfully employed (well the philosophy major is in lawschool at the university of virginia, so I'm sure she'll be employeed when she graduates)

Sure if you dive into those majors with no plans and you don't make connections and do internships you're f*cked, but that's true with most majors these days. 

Zlurodirom

Work on the logic a little, if getting a B.A in philosophy is good enough for law school, then why is it any different than "a degree in philosophy by itself"? What about people who are at college and don't know what they want to do with their lives? Philosophy can act as a great means to an end if they can apply what they learned in school to find a job they enjoy, or a field they enjoy? You are thinking a little narrow minded.

Unless you count fast food.

Elementary education isn't a good one right now. It's largely regional as well, as opposed to a more general degree like Finance. Architecture is major with high-paying career opportunities that currently isn't doing so hot, but I'd rather study that than pretty much any other major on the list.

I'm a Computer Science major though, so finding a potential career post-college won't be too hard. 

[QUOTE="Zlurodirom"]

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]eh, lawschool is one thing, graduating with a degree in philosophy by itself will have you working at mcdonalds.

MakeMeaSammitch

Work on the logic a little, if getting a B.A in philosophy is good enough for law school, then why is it any different than "a degree in philosophy by itself"? What about people who are at college and don't know what they want to do with their lives? Philosophy can act as a great means to an end if they can apply what they learned in school to find a job they enjoy, or a field they enjoy? You are thinking a little narrow minded.

Unless you count fast food.

I realized I know another philosophy major that works as a technical writer. That's certainly better than working at McDonnalds, and UV is the #7 law school in the US with an acceptance rate of 4.3%. It's no joke.

Those are 5 majors you shouldn't have unless you're good at what you do.

I know people that recently graduated in all of those fields and are gainfully employed (well the philosophy major is in lawschool at the university of virginia, so I'm sure she'll be employeed when she graduates)

Sure if you dive into those majors with no plans and you don't make connections and do internships you're f*cked, but that's true with most majors these days. 

Guybrush_3

Im majoring in philosophy when I transfer to a 4 year college. Im gonna go to law school with philosophy. I bet I could make a good living on the major alone. 

Im majoring in philosophy when I transfer to a 4 year college. Im gonna go to law school with philosophy. I bet I could make a good living on the major alone. 

slipknot0129

[QUOTE="Zlurodirom"]

 

Work on the logic a little, if getting a B.A in philosophy is good enough for law school, then why is it any different than "a degree in philosophy by itself"? What about people who are at college and don't know what they want to do with their lives? Philosophy can act as a great means to an end if they can apply what they learned in school to find a job they enjoy, or a field they enjoy? You are thinking a little narrow minded.

MakeMeaSammitch

Unless you count fast food.

I know two people who graduated with a philosophy degree last year, one is going to Law school at Columbia, one is working fast food because he doesn't know what to do with his life. If we're going to generalize like you, I would say a 50% rate of going to law school with a philosophy degree is pretty decent. Are you jealous of these people going to school to learn to think?

I always find these articles ironic considering how many sectors don't give a flying f*ck about your bachelor's degree. Unless you're following a relatively specific career path (and even then you might need to catch a couple of breaks to land a suitable job), a degree in philosophy is going to get you just as far as a degree in something like economics.

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]

[QUOTE="Zlurodirom"]

 

Work on the logic a little, if getting a B.A in philosophy is good enough for law school, then why is it any different than "a degree in philosophy by itself"? What about people who are at college and don't know what they want to do with their lives? Philosophy can act as a great means to an end if they can apply what they learned in school to find a job they enjoy, or a field they enjoy? You are thinking a little narrow minded.

Zlurodirom

Unless you count fast food.

I know two people who graduated with a philosophy degree last year, one is going to Law school at Columbia, one is working fast food because he doesn't know what to do with his life. If we're going to generalize like you, I would say a 50% rate of going to law school with a philosophy degree is pretty decent. Are you jealous of these people going to school to learn to think?

it's one thing to go to grad school with it, but the degree by itself is pretty useless.

All of those are rather subjective, and only truly apply if used in their pure form.

When adapted to the job market they can be quite fruitful.

Examples:

Fine Art => Digital Graphic artist

Film/video => promotional videographer

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"]I think that's an asshole of an article. As a parent you should want you child to pursue something they love. A man who loves what he does doesn't work a day in his life. wis3boi

real world.

my cousin is a philospher and psychologist, he works at a children's hospital and writes books.  Right out of college

Do you mean grad school? Because if he only has a bachelors in psychology, that doesn't make him a psychologist. Also, if he has a degree in philosophy, does that automatically make him a philosopher?

http://education.yahoo.net/articles/beware_these_five_majors.htm?kid=1O0V3

I think at least 4 of those majors should just be eliminated.

They're just gonna create somebody living in poverty with 100,000 dollars of debt.

MakeMeaSammitch

[QUOTE="wis3boi"]

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]neither does somebody with a degree in philosophy.

real world.

StrifeDelivery

my cousin is a philospher and psychologist, he works at a children's hospital and writes books.  Right out of college

Do you mean grad school? Because if he only has a bachelors in psychology, that doesn't make him a psychologist. Also, if he has a degree in philosophy, does that automatically make him a philosopher?

Double majored in psychology and philosphy.  He helps children with autism at a hospital, and at home he writes philosophy/psychology books and sells them on amazon.

It's more important they understand their motivations and abilities, and also understand that no degree can gurantee employment.

A large part of getting a job is how you present yourself and it helps to have connections.

In some of those fields there is no room for anyone to make a living if they are not exceptional or outright gifted.

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"]I think that's an asshole of an article. As a parent you should want you child to pursue something they love. A man who loves what he does doesn't work a day in his life. MakeMeaSammitch

real world.

epic burn

[QUOTE="Guybrush_3"]

Those are 5 majors you shouldn't have unless you're good at what you do.

I know people that recently graduated in all of those fields and are gainfully employed (well the philosophy major is in lawschool at the university of virginia, so I'm sure she'll be employeed when she graduates)

Sure if you dive into those majors with no plans and you don't make connections and do internships you're f*cked, but that's true with most majors these days. 

MakeMeaSammitch

http://www.payscale.com/college-salary-report-2013/majors-that-pay-you-back

In terms of median pay by mid-career Philosophy is firmly in the middle of the pack.  In fact it's slightly above the middle and ahead of other majors like Biology, Business, and Health Sciences.  The whole notion that you can't have a decent living with a philosophy degree is completely overblown.  If you want 200k/yr yeah don't major in philosophy, but otherwise it is a degree you can do fine in life with, provided you're not a complete deadbeat.

[QUOTE="Guybrush_3"]

Those are 5 majors you shouldn't have unless you're good at what you do.

I know people that recently graduated in all of those fields and are gainfully employed (well the philosophy major is in lawschool at the university of virginia, so I'm sure she'll be employeed when she graduates)

Sure if you dive into those majors with no plans and you don't make connections and do internships you're f*cked, but that's true with most majors these days. 

MakeMeaSammitch

Yeah, well it was good enough to get her into UVA's law school.  That's a t14 law school and last year 97% of their graduates had jobs at firms lined up before they even graduated.

In evil communist countries, evil communist State tells you what to study. In the land of the free and the home of the brave, yahoo article tells you what not to study. 

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]

[QUOTE="Guybrush_3"]

Those are 5 majors you shouldn't have unless you're good at what you do.

I know people that recently graduated in all of those fields and are gainfully employed (well the philosophy major is in lawschool at the university of virginia, so I'm sure she'll be employeed when she graduates)

Sure if you dive into those majors with no plans and you don't make connections and do internships you're f*cked, but that's true with most majors these days. 

TacticalDesire

http://www.payscale.com/college-salary-report-2013/majors-that-pay-you-back

In terms of median pay by mid-career Philosophy is firmly in the middle of the pack.  In fact it's slightly above the middle and ahead of other majors like Biology, Business, and Health Sciences.  The whole notion that you can't have a decent living with a philosophy degree is completely overblown.  If you want 200k/yr yeah don't major in philosophy, but otherwise it is a degree you can do fine in life with, provided you're not a complete deadbeat.

That assumes you get a job in your chosen field and maintain promotion through it for your entire career.  That is a big assumption considering the biggest problem for most people is actually getting into their field in the first place, once in it is a simple matter of actually doing their work.

I think that's an asshole of an article. As a parent you should want you child to pursue something they love. A man who loves what he does doesn't work a day in his life.Fightingfan

Especially if you have one of those majors.

If you see universities as job factories, yes.

Learn a skilled trade, lots of employment opportunities.

Those are 5 majors you shouldn't have unless you're good at what you do.

Guybrush_3

[QUOTE="wis3boi"]

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]neither does somebody with a degree in philosophy.

real world.

MakeMeaSammitch

my cousin is a philospher and psychologist, he works at a children's hospital and writes books.  Right out of college

[QUOTE="TacticalDesire"]

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]eh, lawschool is one thing, graduating with a degree in philosophy by itself will have you working at mcdonalds.

Squeets

http://www.payscale.com/college-salary-report-2013/majors-that-pay-you-back

In terms of median pay by mid-career Philosophy is firmly in the middle of the pack.  In fact it's slightly above the middle and ahead of other majors like Biology, Business, and Health Sciences.  The whole notion that you can't have a decent living with a philosophy degree is completely overblown.  If you want 200k/yr yeah don't major in philosophy, but otherwise it is a degree you can do fine in life with, provided you're not a complete deadbeat.

That assumes you get a job in your chosen field and maintain promotion through it for your entire career.  That is a big assumption considering the biggest problem for most people is actually getting into their field in the first place, once in it is a simple matter of actually doing their work.

Philosophy is ranked 23rd in Unemlpoyment http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57325132/25-college-majors-with-the-highest-unemployment-rates/ tied with Neuroscience meaning that they're 22 majors with higher unemployment.  Again, people bash philosophy without any real basis other than the stereotypical jabs.  If you look at the facts it's not any worse than dozens of other majors.  Ofc, if you want to earn high six figures it's probably not the degree for you, but you can have a solid life.  

And then again, based off this thread it is a solid major for getting into top law schools . And grads from law schools like UVA and Columbia have got more earning potential even than STEM fields.

[QUOTE="MakeMeaSammitch"]

http://education.yahoo.net/articles/beware_these_five_majors.htm?kid=1O0V3

I think at least 4 of those majors should just be eliminated.

They're just gonna create somebody living in poverty with 100,000 dollars of debt.

mmwmwmmwmwmm

And I mean, we wouldn't want to have people who understand the history of architecture and can help us appreciate our own society's art and cultural history.  Who needs that?

In evil communist countries, evil communist State tells you what to study. In the land of the free and the home of the brave, yahoo artcile tells you what not to study. 

LordQuorthon

Best post so far.

Philosophy can get you into law school, I guess.