Below is an explanatory list of degrees we would do best to avoid, except in certain circumstances.
Communications
Yes, one of my greatest mistakes in life was getting a comm degree. Everyone told me I needed to get into broadcasting because of my strong voice. I thought a comm degree would put me in a position to do that. As I progressed through college, I eventually realized that starting out in broadcasting was a knock-around life that I didn’t want. Only problem was, I didn’t know what else to do, and didn’t want to end up spending six years as an undergrad. So I ended up graduating with a bachelors that was only worth $20K in 2002 dollars. Really smart, huh?
At one time I thought that a public relations job was the way to go. But soon I realized that A) lots of people are trying to get these limited-quantity jobs, and B) when times are bad for the company, PR folks are the first people they let go.
The best bet if you want to apply your comm degree in the business world is to become a copywriter.
Criminal Justice
Why even offer this degree as a standalone deal? You’d be far better off becoming a police officer or a detective. Criminal investigators are not in high demand. All those C.S.I. TV shows make the job look far more glamorous than it is.
That said, if you pair it with something marketable, you could land a good job. For example, pairing an associates degree in criminal justice with a bachelors in computer science could land you a job in the cybercrimes division of the FBI, or something equivalent.
So be sure to pair with a marketable degree, otherwise it won’t help set you up for success.
Fashion Design
Yes, some people actually go to school to learn to design fashionable clothes. Seriously, this degree can be next to worthless. What it truly takes to be a good fashion designer is natural talent and a good artist’s instinct. If you have those two things, nobody will care if you have a piece of paper saying that you went to school for it.
But even if you’re really good at it, good luck breaking into that industry, as there are few such jobs out there. Yes, I know: stupid, misleading (but entertaining!) Project Runway! The reality is, there are very, very few Michael Korses, Isaac Mizrahis, and Tommy Hilfigers out there.
Actually, it’s worse than ever, as fewer people are willing to buy expensive, designed clothes. Take your design skills and apply them somewhere in industry.
Fine Arts
Here’s one of those degrees that’s based on passion. In case you haven’t read any of my previous articles, when it comes to career choices, following that is a bad idea.
I love art. I love appreciating it, and I love making it. Every Easter season, I churn out keepsake Easter eggs that are always a huge hit, and everyone acknowledges what works of art they are. But I’m realistic enough to know that I’m not making a career out of art. It’s just something for fun: something to enjoy.
Earning a whole degree of fine arts is borderline madness. Starving artists have been a constant in society for a long time. Any jobs related to this degree don’t pay well, either. One is a museum research worker. A fun job, sure, but lots of people want to be one, so there’s a never-ending supply, meaning there’s a buyer’s market for that skill set. Worse yet, there are few of those jobs anyhow.
The job of graphic designer is only slightly more viable. It’s a tough job to break into on account of the competitiveness in the job market. Sure, you may be good, but so is everyone else. Moreover, you need a few years’ full-time experience to be taken seriously, leading to one of those vicious cycles of needing experience without a way of earning any of it. Yes, the job can be loads of fun, but that’s why it’s so competitive in the first place.
Think you’ll become an art teacher at a high school? Many high schools slash art budgets these days – much to my chagrin — and there are only a couple of art teachers per high school, and maybe one per middle school. So, not exactly a growth industry.
Hospitality/Tourism
Here again is one of those lines of work that can be rewarding, but doesn’t pay that well. Entry-level jobs will leave you fairly broke, especially after having to pay back your student loans. Moreover, it takes a long time to climb up the ladder in the hospitality industry, and you’re usually on the hook to work weekends and holidays. Enjoy being broke and have zero work-life balance.
Liberal Arts
As I’ve said time and again previously, I love studying the liberal arts. From history to music to foreign languages, I can elucidate on such subjects all day long. My comm degree allowed me great leeway to get a wonderfully rounded liberal arts education, studying German, Latin, minoring in History, and almost minoring in Political Science.
But big deal. None of those subjects, fun as they were, translated into anything marketable. In hindsight, I could have learned most of those subjects on my own after college anyhow. My undergraduate years are a cautionary tale: use them wisely to earn marketable skills. There will always be time in the years afterward to learn academic subjects that you truly love.
Usually what liberal arts students end up doing is going into real estate or sales just so they can make money. Real Estate is potentially lucrative, but unless you’re constantly on the phone making deals or setting up appointments, or showing clients houses to buy, you’re unemployed. Many if not most sales jobs are commission-based only. Are they potentially lucrative? Yes, but not the kinds of jobs for those who crave security. Also, those of us “on the spectrum” don’t stand a chance making it in sales.
Nutrition
It sounds important, but again, it doesn’t pay well. Lots of education is involved too, so it’s a lose-lose deal in terms of opportunity cost and limited ROI. It’s easy for “foodies” to get suckered into this line of study while in college. It’s another example of the perils of following one’s passion. The job of dietician is typical for those with this sort of degree, but it’s limited in terms of career growth.
Food services manager is a slightly better option, but you’ll need five years of experience in the industry to qualify for this job. The question thus becomes, how to make ends meet in the meantime?
Philosophy
I was basically a liberal arts major (nominally comm), and I never took one single philosophy class. Nobody is going to pay you to be a philosopher. We need welders, electricians, and plumbers; become one of those to pay your mortgage and bills. You can always philosophize on the side for fun if you want.
Psychology
Seriously, what are you going to do with a bachelors degree in Psyche? To meaningfully do anything in that field, you at least need a masters, if not a PhD. Even then, I have a rule of thumb when it comes to Psychologists: if you need your head examined, don’t go to see them. Most of them are hung up themselves, which is why they got into that study in the first place. Yes, there are always exceptions. I would trust a psychological analysis from, say, Dr. Taylor Hartman in a heartbeat, for example.
But if I truly needed to get my melon analyzed, I would go to a Psychiatrist instead. They’re trained medical doctors, and can offer a far more clinical, scientific diagnosis of what’s going on upstairs.
With a bachelors in psyche, you can become a career counselor; essentially, on-campus recruiting support. There are other options, but they typically require more experience.
Sociology
This is one of the “fluffiest” majors out there. No marketable skills here. Granted, some folks eventually find work that is somewhat germane towards this major. They include social worker, chemical dependency counselor, and corrections officer. Not exactly the road to a career that will make you money (though the third mentioned item can sometimes pay decently*).
That being said, the world does need some social workers. I know of some social workers who are super people who are fun to be around. When our newborn son was in the NICU, our social worker was a fun person and was also, more importantly, a huge help. So there are rewarding aspects to the job, obviously. But not everybody can be a social worker, either. We do have bridges that need to be built, after all!
Outside of social work or the like, enjoy working long hours for relatively little pay as a leasing administrator.
*IF you can get into the system. My brother-in-law is a corrections officer in California. The job does pay well, but it took him years just to be allowed into the academy. To be sure, that example is from the Golden State, and such conditions vary from state to state.
Teaching Degree
Did you take notice of the teachers’ strike in Oklahoma during the Spring of 2018? Some teachers have masters degrees and yet only make $36K a year. Makes zero sense to me.
Some teachers eventually make it to a median pay of $52K annually, but that’s after 15 years of experience. It took me far less time to start earning more than that in my line of work. Just sayin’.