Philip A. Bean is an associate dean and dean of academic affairs at Haverford College, a private, liberal arts institution near Philadelphia.
Students have been confronted for generations with the question: “What do you expect to do with a degree in that?”
Indeed, particularly since the onset of the Great Recession, many students have encountered increasingly urgent advice — sometimes pressure — to major in something practical in college.
The major issue for many students, however, is that subjects that often appear practical turn out to be completely impractical in the context of what students typically want and ought to accomplish in college.
How, though, does one define practical?
Select a Major That Matches Your Interest
Society has identified certain fields as especially practical, most typically those in the natural sciences, economics and engineering. This is understandable, as we live in a world in which our country’s future economic vitality, and the things that currently grab our attention, pertain most obviously to work in such fields.
Still, this begs a question: Is any major inherently practical for every individual? In my experience, the answer is no.
The world has many very able biologists, computer scientists, and economists — and business majors — for instance, and hardhearted though it may sound, it has little need for those who are unable to attain reasonable mastery as majors in such fields.
Although too many of us sell ourselves short in the pursuit of our dreams, the adage, “you can do anything to which you set your mind” is much better suited to building the confidence of little children than to college students trying to identify a suitable major.
Study a Subject That Sharpens Your Mind
Although grades are undeniably important indicators of an appropriate major, they are not, in themselves, the ultimate measure of the practicality or impracticality of your choice.
Admittedly, there are often regrettable consequences, in the short run, for those whose transcripts do not glitter, and there are opportunities open only to those whose records bedazzle. Nevertheless, the impact of grades generally diminishes over time.
In choosing a potential major or assessing your college achievement, I would instead focus on what strong grades tend to represent rather than on the grades themselves.
If you were held to rigorous standards, solid grades, regardless of major, speak to the most lasting value of a college education: the ability to identify, define, research and offer well-composed analyses for complex problems.
The sharpened mind that has mastered such skills will very often shine through in job interviews and letters of application well before anyone — if anyone — sees your grades.
From this perspective, it is not so much your major that matters as how well you choose and therefore perform in a major and how well your mind consequently matures in college.
Explore Multiple Pathways to Your Career
In addition, there are many debatable assumptions regarding the most practical pathways to certain careers.
Many readers may be surprised to learn, for instance, that humanities and social science majors are at least as likely to be admitted to medical school as natural science majors. In fact, in 2012, the year for which we have the most recent national data, 50 percent of humanities applicants were admitted to medical school, as opposed to 42 percent of biological sciences applicants.
This is not to say that pre-med students should reflexively sign up to major in English or anthropology, but it also suggests that pre-med students should also not, as many do, assume that majoring in the natural sciences paves the way to medical school.
I share the concern that opportunities we once took for granted are receding from the grasp of too many Americans. I would nevertheless argue that any definition of the practical that fails to take into account an individual’s interests, demonstrable aptitude, or current state of personal development will tend to undermine the ability to get the most out of college.
Consequently, such a major is also likely to impede the attainment of success beyond college.
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