What to do with a liberal arts degree?

[Ns1]

wow, I actually looked up liberal arts to find "supporting" data and this is the gem I found

http://www.bls.gov/opub/ooq/2007/winter/art01.pdf

They recommended, for liberal arts majors, as high paying jobs:

- management trainee, entry level
- sales, including associates
- graphic arts
- teaching
- social work


Sorry, if I wanted to do management/sales I would've become a business major; if I wanted to do graphic arts probably something arts related. Which leaves: teaching and social work

 

[ConstipatedVigilante]

Originally posted by: AtlantaBob
Oh Lord... if you do it right--if you go to a good school--and not necessarily a highly ranked school, as those are the ones where Liberal Arts = postcolonial Freudian studies, you'll actually learn something about the human condition. You can always find a good paying job if you use that degree in a useful way. For most people, that will mean professional school, and that means that you'll need to a good undergrad school (or you'll need to be pretty darn smart). Then again, when you get out, you may make considerably more than the engineers around here

To the OP, going to grad school and being able to pay for it is a good thing (or getting a free ride), but, what type of law school are you thinking about going to? Particularly with law school, you want to go to a top-20, and avoid third tier schools.

I haven't put much thought into which law school to attend. From what I know about law, I just find it interesting. I like looking for holes in arguments and structuring my own. Then again, maybe I'll end up going into business. I just know that I like writing, learning history, and learning new languages.

Fuck, maybe I'll just write for Woot.

 

[Farang]

Originally posted by: Ns1
wow, I actually looked up liberal arts to find "supporting" data and this is the gem I found

http://www.bls.gov/opub/ooq/2007/winter/art01.pdf

They recommended, for liberal arts majors, as high paying jobs:

- management trainee, entry level
- sales, including associates
- graphic arts
- teaching
- social work


Sorry, if I wanted to do management/sales I would've become a business major; if I wanted to do graphic arts probably something arts related. Which leaves: teaching and social work

If I wanted to learn a job specifically, I would've went to trade school. University =/= trade school.

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: Farang

Originally posted by: Ns1
wow, I actually looked up liberal arts to find "supporting" data and this is the gem I found

http://www.bls.gov/opub/ooq/2007/winter/art01.pdf

They recommended, for liberal arts majors, as high paying jobs:

- management trainee, entry level
- sales, including associates
- graphic arts
- teaching
- social work


Sorry, if I wanted to do management/sales I would've become a business major; if I wanted to do graphic arts probably something arts related. Which leaves: teaching and social work

If I wanted to learn a job specifically, I would've went to trade school. University =/= trade school.

Never said it was. Anyway, pointless arguing about it. If you're happy with it, more power to yah :beer:

 

[Farang]

Originally posted by: ConstipatedVigilante

Originally posted by: AtlantaBob
Oh Lord... if you do it right--if you go to a good school--and not necessarily a highly ranked school, as those are the ones where Liberal Arts = postcolonial Freudian studies, you'll actually learn something about the human condition. You can always find a good paying job if you use that degree in a useful way. For most people, that will mean professional school, and that means that you'll need to a good undergrad school (or you'll need to be pretty darn smart). Then again, when you get out, you may make considerably more than the engineers around here

To the OP, going to grad school and being able to pay for it is a good thing (or getting a free ride), but, what type of law school are you thinking about going to? Particularly with law school, you want to go to a top-20, and avoid third tier schools.

I haven't put much thought into which law school to attend. From what I know about law, I just find it interesting. I like looking for holes in arguments and structuring my own. Then again, maybe I'll end up going into business. I just know that I like writing, learning history, and learning new languages.

Check to see if your university offers a rhetoric course. I had a very good teacher for mine and took in concurrently with an intro logic course and it was very interesting to study argument and get my arguments ripped apart by the professors for me to put back together again and eventually make solid.

 

[Farang]

Originally posted by: Ns1

Originally posted by: Farang

Originally posted by: Ns1
wow, I actually looked up liberal arts to find "supporting" data and this is the gem I found

http://www.bls.gov/opub/ooq/2007/winter/art01.pdf

They recommended, for liberal arts majors, as high paying jobs:

- management trainee, entry level
- sales, including associates
- graphic arts
- teaching
- social work


Sorry, if I wanted to do management/sales I would've become a business major; if I wanted to do graphic arts probably something arts related. Which leaves: teaching and social work

If I wanted to learn a job specifically, I would've went to trade school. University =/= trade school.

Never said it was. Anyway, pointless arguing about it. If you're happy with it, more power to yah :beer:

But arguing about it let's me grasp at straws trying to make excuses for why that job at Mcdonalds isn't really what is waiting for me after graduation.. it isn't.. I swear.. fuck.

 

[AtlantaBob]

Originally posted by: Farang

Originally posted by: ConstipatedVigilante

Originally posted by: AtlantaBob
Oh Lord... if you do it right--if you go to a good school--and not necessarily a highly ranked school, as those are the ones where Liberal Arts = postcolonial Freudian studies, you'll actually learn something about the human condition. You can always find a good paying job if you use that degree in a useful way. For most people, that will mean professional school, and that means that you'll need to a good undergrad school (or you'll need to be pretty darn smart). Then again, when you get out, you may make considerably more than the engineers around here

To the OP, going to grad school and being able to pay for it is a good thing (or getting a free ride), but, what type of law school are you thinking about going to? Particularly with law school, you want to go to a top-20, and avoid third tier schools.

I haven't put much thought into which law school to attend. From what I know about law, I just find it interesting. I like looking for holes in arguments and structuring my own. Then again, maybe I'll end up going into business. I just know that I like writing, learning history, and learning new languages.

Check to see if your university offers a rhetoric course. I had a very good teacher for mine and took in concurrently with an intro logic course and it was very interesting to study argument and get my arguments ripped apart by the professors for me to put back together again and eventually make solid.

Good point. If you do decide to go into law, being better at rhetoric (and logic!) can't hurt, and can sure help if you decide that you want to go into litigation, rather than, say, corporate law.

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: Farang

Originally posted by: Ns1

Originally posted by: Farang

Originally posted by: Ns1
wow, I actually looked up liberal arts to find "supporting" data and this is the gem I found

http://www.bls.gov/opub/ooq/2007/winter/art01.pdf

They recommended, for liberal arts majors, as high paying jobs:

- management trainee, entry level
- sales, including associates
- graphic arts
- teaching
- social work


Sorry, if I wanted to do management/sales I would've become a business major; if I wanted to do graphic arts probably something arts related. Which leaves: teaching and social work

If I wanted to learn a job specifically, I would've went to trade school. University =/= trade school.

Never said it was. Anyway, pointless arguing about it. If you're happy with it, more power to yah :beer:

But arguing about it let's me grasp at straws trying to make excuses for why that job at Mcdonalds isn't really what is waiting for me after graduation.. it isn't.. I swear.. fuck.

there's always internet porn. I hear it's a booming industry

 

[xSauronx]

Originally posted by: ConstipatedVigilante
I'm a senior in HS right now, graduating in early June. I'm going to University of Wisconsin-Madison in the Fall (with my brothers). Yay! But I'm not sure what I can do career-wise with a liberal arts degree. I'm good at writing/history/language and I like it, but I don't know what sort of job I could get pre-graduate school. What does one do with a language, history, or english degree (besides teaching)?

my friend.....teachers. thats all she wanted to do. ever. she just liked hanging out with english teachers and students, and wanted to get paid to do it. too bad that she cant get her masters now.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

OK, maybe I'm beating a dead horse but, just in case you thought library science was about being a book shelver. Check this out from Wiki. Library science is an interdisciplinary science incorporating the humanities, law and applied science to study topics related to libraries, the collection, organization, preservation and dissemination of information resources, and the political economy of information. Historically, library science has also included archival science.

"The distinction between a library and an archive is relatively modern". This includes how information resources are organized to serve the needs of select user groups, how people interact with classification systems and technology, how information is acquired, evaluated and applied by people in and outside of libraries as well as cross-culturally, how people are trained and educated for careers in libraries, the ethics that guide library service and organization, the legal status of libraries and information resources, and the applied science of computer technology used in documentation and records management.

Academic courses in library science typically include Collection management, Information Systems and Technology, Cataloging and classification, Preservation, Reference, Statistics and Management. Library science is constantly evolving, incorporating new topics like Database Management, Information Architecture and Knowledge Management

Most fortune 500 companies employ library scientists both as information researchers and organizers as well as "Think Tank" members.

 

[lightstar]

work for anandtech & become a moderator

 

[MegaVovaN]

Originally posted by: lightstar
work for anandtech & become a moderator

whats the pay/benefits like?

 

[Mo0o]

Graduate school.

Most UG degrees are worthless in the real world unless its someting like business engineering or cs.

 

[91TTZ]

Originally posted by: MegaVovaN

Originally posted by: lightstar
work for anandtech & become a moderator

whats the pay/benefits like?

I don't know, but at least you don't have to worry about grammar or facts.

 

[BeauJangles]

Originally posted by: Ns1
wow, I actually looked up liberal arts to find "supporting" data and this is the gem I found

http://www.bls.gov/opub/ooq/2007/winter/art01.pdf

They recommended, for liberal arts majors, as high paying jobs:

- management trainee, entry level
- sales, including associates
- graphic arts
- teaching
- social work


Sorry, if I wanted to do management/sales I would've become a business major; if I wanted to do graphic arts probably something arts related. Which leaves: teaching and social work

Sigh, there are plenty of things you can do with a good education, regardless of major. In fact, most companies care that you demonstrated a capability to think, not that you majored in particle physics. A good education, in just about any field, opens doors that are otherwise closed. A good education paired with an intelligent individual means nearly unlimited opportunities.

Sorry, but work experience matters so much more than what your degree was in. Most of my friends are doing nothing related to their degree - including my friends who had non-LA degrees. I know a history student who went to a pre-med program and is now in medical school. I know a BA/MA in biochemistry who is now in law school. I know an English major working for an investment bank. I know an International and Global Studies major who is currently running a study abroad program. I know a math major who is a high-school teacher and I know a biology major who is currently a journalist. I know a film major who is a project manager.

I received a BA/MA a little over a year ago from my university in history. I turned down an offer their phd program and have been working as a project manager at a small software company. I'm leaving that position and I have no idea what I'm going to do next, but I highly doubt that my degrees will inhibit me in any way.

The point is that most people have no idea what they want to do at 18 or even at 22. Most people will change careers numerous times. The idea is to find something you like, work hard at it, and do well. Taking care of that will make you attractive to employers in almost any number of fields.

 

[Reckoner]

Most of the companies out there don't give a shit what your major was, as long as you have a degree.

 

[Bignate603]

Originally posted by: ConstipatedVigilante

Originally posted by: Ns1

Originally posted by: ConstipatedVigilante
I knew you guys would be helpful!

It really doesn't take much to figure this one out.

Pick some other college major out at random: accounting, engineering, computer science etc. Then think to yourself: what can I do with this degree? Odds are you'll have a ton of answers.


Now do the same with liberal arts: What can I do with this degree? *crickets*

That should tell you everything you need to know.

Except that I'm terrible at math. I'm not horrible at programming, but not that good either. Just not something I'd want to study extensively.

@Magnus, I'm not going because my brothers are. I'm going because I want to learn and because it's a great school.

Edit:

To all those saying "professional school", I am planning to attend. I'm thinking of becoming a lawyer. But I'm going to need to get the money to attend, riiiiight?

Anyway, If I become trilingual (almost bilingual in Spanish/English now, just need to spend more time abroad), how hard would it be to become a translator? Hell, maybe I'll go off and teach in the Dominican Republic (actually a possibility).

Translating would actually be an ok job depending on your area. If you want to become a lawyer ideally you could find a job for being a court translator.

 

[GregGreen]

Originally posted by: Farang
I'm a soon-to-be graduate in liberal arts. You are asking the wrong people here, so expect more of the same type of answers you have already got. With that said, if you want to do liberal arts I highly recommend you do a few things:
-Take math courses early and often, as to not close the door on more technical degrees in the future.
-Take all pre-med requirements, as to not close the door on med school or science grad school.
-Get damn good grades, there is no reason not to.

If you are unwilling to do these things, it means you are doing liberal arts because it is easy and you want to avoid the math and science involved in other majors. Recognize, then, that this is a decision borne of laziness.

You can do anything with a liberal arts degree, but you can't have the degree alone. You'll need to join campus organizations that give you experience in some area, as well as do internships. If you have experience working like this, your first job isn't going to care the title of your degree and as you may have heard after your first job your degree doesn't matter.

People knock on liberal arts degrees, but remember they are often the types that define success as a $40k starting salary. It isn't necessarily that they will make more money during their lifetime, or more importantly enjoy their work, but there is more of a clear path to land a decent salary and that is their highest (and I believe short-sighted) priority.

Good post! As a soon to be liberal arts graduate, I do not have anything else to add

 

[ICRS]

Learn the words "Do you want fries with that" if you are a liberal arts graduate.


Seriously though, get a degree in something you will enjoy, not something you hate. If this liberal arts degree is something you enjoy then go for it. Other degrees might offer greater chance at higher pay in the future, but remember more money is meaningless without the happiness to go with it.

 

[dbk]

You can be a liberal. :thumbsup:

 

[Throckmorton]

You need to pick a major based on the career you want, NOT what you're good at.

IMO, the only liberal art worth majoring in unless you have a specific reason is geography. I found a job easily

 

[AnthroAndStargate]

Liberal Arts is everything from Physics to English. You have to subdivide it into Humanities or Natural/Social Sciences.

You can do lots with either but I'd suggest doing something outside of the humanities and in the natural-social sciences. Don't listen to these guys. If you plan to be a professor/researcher and are good at those things go that route. More importantly though, you can make yourself a really good candidate if you do some kind of social science major and get a job with a multi-national corp. or any business needing statistical, ethnographic, or social scientific type research. Had I done it again I probably would have coupled my social science with PreMed but live and learn. Good luck!

(Edit) Also with liberal arts/social science there is a lot of good fellowships out there. I just got done writing a thesis and got a free trip to China to do some ethnographic research, and I'm just an undergrad (well graduate in a few days). So make sure to explore all your options. And whoever said take math/science as well - that sounds like a smart idea! Can't hurt to diversify.

 

[Throckmorton]

Originally posted by: AnthroAndStargate
Liberal Arts is everything from Physics to English. You have to subdivide it into Humanities or Natural/Social Sciences.

You can do lots with either but I'd suggest doing something outside of the humanities and in the natural-social sciences. Don't listen to these guys. If you plan to be a professor/researcher and are good at those things go that route. More importantly though, you can make yourself a really good candidate if you do some kind of social science major and get a job with a multi-national corp. or any business needing statistical, ethnographic, or social scientific type research. Had I done it again I probably would have coupled my social science with PreMed but live and learn. Good luck!

The common understanding of "liberal arts" is social science type stuff, and that is obviously the meaning in this thread. He's not asking about majoring in physics.

And most people aren't going to be professors, so they need to major in something they can actually use. You are going to use your anthro degree, but the average anthro major probably goes to work at a generic desk job, or Whole Foods.

 

[Mide]

Originally posted by: SacrosanctFiend
Starbucks, Krogers, Harris Teeter, Publix, McDonald's, Arby's, Wendy's, Burger King, Krystal, Jersey Mikes, Jimmy Johns, Firehouse, Red Lobster, O'Charley's, Macaroni Grill, Charlie Pepper, Dan McGrew, Texas Roadhouse....the possibilities are endless.

ROTFL. Wow, that was entertaining.

 

[meltdown75]

hope for a decent paying job is about all you can do. somewhere down the line, your degree might get you ahead, because with a degree like that it is likely that you will be working somewhere where most of the staff doesn't have a degree. it's not a bad thing to have, no matter what the discipline. it shows that you had the wherewithal to see something through to completion. the world needs people versed in all disciplines. in a utopian society where getting ahead and making money didn't matter as much, perhaps we would see more people enrolling in artsy-type programs and following their creative dreams instead of financial aspirations.

 

[Throckmorton]

BTW, there is a decent number of government jobs for liberal arts degree holders. Search on here http://usajobs.opm.gov/

For example, I searched for sociologist and got 5668 results

199 for anthropology

1062 geography