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The Value of Liberal Arts Majors

 

 

 


It is common for parents to be concerned about their student's choice of major. Will jobs be available? Will the investment in this education have long term career benefits? It can be tempting to make recommendations such as "Be an X major. That's where the jobs are." This, however, can be a source of great anxiety for many students. When mom or dad pushes a major that does not align with the student's passions and interests it can be difficult to successfully navigate the decision-making process.

The truth is a student's undergraduate major is typically not the critical key to success. Major does not equal career. Proof lies within Binghamton 's Alumni Career Network. Students can access the network 24/7 to see exactly what alumni in any given major are doing now. What they'll find are English majors who are bank vice presidents, sociology majors working as consultants, and geography majors employed by diverse organizations such as the US Department of Housing & Urban Development, Atlantic States Legal Foundation, and Credit Suisse. Better yet, students can contact these alums to learn how they managed their own career development.

How is this possible? The key is transferable skills; abilities that can be translated to any career and any employer. Students may gain these skills in the classroom, but many are developed through extracurricular activities, internships, volunteer experiences and other out-of-the-classroom endeavors. Employers and graduate programs are interested in students who not only perform well academically, but who are also well rounded and engaged in their undergraduate experience. In fact, many seek students who come from academic programs outside of their own field and therefore have fresh ideas and new ways of thinking.

Excerpts from:

A Liberal Take on Hiring
Companies increasingly prize liberal arts majors for their communications skills.

April 26, 2006

…recruiters seek the depth and diversity that liberal arts grads bring to the heavily team-oriented business world. They are trained to read critically and extract detail, which is key to being good analysts. Business concepts can be taught. The ability to manipulate them cannot. Students with good grades, networking skills, and strong alumni representation at big companies, can outshine -- and outlast -- even the best business students. That's why they're a hot hire in the corporate world these days.

…Interpersonal and communications skills, as well as a hunger for knowledge, are enormously important" says Jonathan Jones, co-head of U.S. Campus Recruiting at the global investment bank, Goldman Sachs…"None of these things necessarily have to do with a course that the student is studying."

A significant proportion of Goldman Sachs hires come from schools that don't offer any formal business, finance, or general management curriculum. Likewise, about 50% to 60% of the new class at Citigroup, the world's largest financial services company, also enters the industry with no business background.

… students should study what they are truly passionate about because most recruiters say good grades and schools are the key screening factors when deciding who to hire.

 

 

For more information, visit the links below:
Binghamton Career Development Center: Choosing a Major Resources
Transferable Skills Quick Reference Guide
Road to Career Success for Liberal Arts Majors
Choosing a Major

 


The website of the Career Development Center at Binghamton University contains links to other websites as a convenience for its users and is not responsible for the contents of any linked site.