The Purpose of the "Liberal Arts" in modern-day society

[Baron Samedi]

We hear daily that these sorts of college degrees are "worthless" and lead to nowhere, save for scanty teaching jobs at various community colleges/public schools.

I'm confused at this mass-perspective about these things... Are we just all supposed to be business majors/lawyers/IT techs?

Assume that there was an overabundance of the said above... (I'll leave out the medical field, because there shall always be a need for that) Then what?

I spent 4 years on a communications degree (with a PR focus). While technically being a "liberal arts" degree, it still has real-world application (and I held an internship to back that up)..... However I hated the studies, and merely did it with a "vocational" perspective. Hah!

After a year of being unemployed, I'm now considering of going back to school to pursue another degree (I'm debating on English, History or a Foreign Language).

This time, however (assuming I can get the funds), I'm just going back for the hell of it, and to study something I truly care about. I may pursue graduate studies or a teaching focus later on....

Anywho, I'd like to see folks' perspectives on the matter of a "Liberal Arts" education. Is it crap? Does modern society care about these sorts of people anymore, or are we all expected to be materialistic drones?

Addendum: Science majors also have extreme issues in getting their foot in the door nowadays as well.... Found that interesting....

[Baron Samedi]

I guess I'll add another addition to this thread....

If you are the recipient of a liberal arts education..... How are you using it, currently?

Are you at all?

[Electronic God-Man]

And to study something I truly care about.

Are we all expected to be materialistic drones?

If it's something you truly care about who cares about the money?

But seriously, you just have to be creative.


Yes, I studied European History, Philosophy and German. I am currently working in an international Post Office-sorta-place. So, no, I'm not using it*. However, I intend on going back and getting a graduate degree or doctorate. Probably.

*Actually, that's not entirely true. I know what country all the mail should go to even if only the city is listed. Oh yeah.

[Grumpy Cat]

If you are the recipient of a liberal arts education..... How are you using it, currently?

Posting about Acadian history and culture on anthropology forums. haha

Are you at all?

Not in my work. I used to work at museum and made OK money but I didn't like being off all winter. I'd rather work all winter and be off all summer.

[Debaser11]

Being a "materialistic drone" has little to do with whether your earning power is high or low. Many of the people who "get by" staying single who "don't want the burden" of family or children seem pretty damned materialistic to me. So I wouldn't use that term to be synonymous with the earning power regarding one's degree.

I am a liberal arts major myself. I don't think I learned much at a state school in the field I chose that I couldn't have taught myself through independent research and copious amounts of library time. I started to figure this out after my third year of school when it was too late. But that's not to say that all liberal arts studies are the same; but that does seem to be the trend people are noticing. Why would a guy who owns a business want to hire some psych major or some cultural anthropology major? Those degrees tell me nothing about what they can do for me. They're almost like hobbies. Okay, this guy likes to read about Freud and this guy likes culture. It's common knowledge that you have to get a Masters and teach for those degrees to amount to much. It is a bit of a scam. And I don't think it's a coincidence that the girl who gets my coffee at Starbucks today is a liberal arts graduate.

So sure, go back and do what you like. But understand that those liberal arts classes are typically very biased and also be aware that if you have the internet and a public library, you can become just as "enlightened" if not more so from spending your time there instead of in a college classroom. And if that's your goal, why pay money for it? Why not spend your money going to school and learning a skill that will actually translate to something in the real world?

[Grumpy Cat]

Liberal arts is only useful if you want to be a teacher or a professor in those subjects. Otherwise, go for a vocation.

I actually don't like how they push university education now, and that trades or community college are for dumb people.

You're better off taking a trade.

However, I wanted to be a computer programmer since I was a kid, but it was against my family's wishes. This is why I took liberal arts, to become a teacher eventually. However, I realized I hate teenagers (and really most people more than 2 years younger than me) so I decided to pursue my passion: computers. Mother doesn't mind now, she gets good Christmas gifts from me and I live where other people go on vacation.

[alexandra]

my opinion on liberal arts majors reads the same as my opinion about art majors and people with any type of degree...if you want it, you can get it. sure, it's harder for liberal arts, and for art majors. i think if you put in enough work and do better than the average joe that these schools pump out 50 to 1 above the rest every semester, your work will carry you to success.

my brother has a bachelor's degree in philosophy and he makes 60-70 g's a year. does it have anything to do with philosophy? no. but he's doing very well for himself. employers are really are looking for at least a bachelor's degree first, not necessarily what it is in...unless of course you're going into something like teaching, law, medical, or something specialized.

[Debaser11]

my brother has a bachelor's degree in philosophy and he makes 60-70 g's a year. does it have anything to do with philosophy? no. but he's doing very well for himself. employers are really are looking for at least a bachelor's degree first, not necessarily what it is in...unless of course you're going into something like teaching, law, medical, or something specialized.

Exactly. It sounds like your brother got a good job in spite of his choice of a BA (probably because he was smart and industrious anyways) not because of it. Sure, having a BA in any field helps. But having a BA in a pertinent field is certainly preferable.

[alexandra]

Exactly. It sounds like your brother got a good job in spite of his choice of a BA (probably because he was smart and industrious anyways) not because of it. Sure, having BA in any field helps. But having a BA in a pertinent field is certainly preferable.

he certainly is. you either have it or you don't, and i think employers want smart and industrious over average and having a piece of paper in _____, to be honest (although the specialized thing does come into play).

i'm an art major and i know making a living doing art is difficult. but i also have some talent and i chose to go to pursue a bachelor's in fine arts because a) it's a fucking bachelor's, and b) to grow my talents into something better. you don't really need to go to school for art, and so i chose a happy medium and am attending a cheap school to get a big B on my resume. there are some people that just...they don't have any talent to cultivate whatsoever. they will not develop. it's the majority of them, actually. they will always be awash in a sea of mediocrity.

i think this idea applies to all classrooms, regardless of studies. a medical student with confidence that is well-versed in medical terminology would get a job over a quiet one that can't think of the words sometimes, just like two art majors who are making the same exact work will end up in different places; one knows how to sell and network and the other doesn't. i agree there's certainly more to it than just a degree.

[Debaser11]

I just don't see the point in going to school to study most "liberal arts" (not so much fine arts, which is actually a trade) when you can learn that stuff on your own through reading and at the same time give yourself a further leg up by choosing a field of study that will actually get you ready for life after school in a more tangible way.