Cookies Galore
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Post by Cookies Galore on Jan 11, 2011 14:23:47 GMT -5
I have a journalism degree and, while not a Liberal Arts degree, it's still lumped in with the "dumb ass" degrees. I actually do use it, and I work with a large number of English majors. Food service, it is not. Oh, come on Meg, come clean. You know your job description requires asking if they want fries with that. Nuh-uh. I lean over and they put dollars in my shorts. So there.
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Jan 11, 2011 14:53:44 GMT -5
Sorry, got sucked into meeting land.
I'm going to ignore the last 20 posts or so, and head back to the liberal arts degree thing. In all honesty this is what I think is going on to a certain extent. Way back in the day the job market looked something like this. Roughly 40% of people had a 10th grade education or less. They dropped out early to help work the farm, because they were having kids, they just weren't cut out for school, or whatever. Of the remaining 60% or so, most of them only graduated high school, or maybe had some trade school experience. Only 10% of the total ever actually went to college. It was too expensive for everyone else, wasn't socially acceptable, whatever.
So back in the day no matter what you studied in college, the fact that you went put you in the top 10% of the labor market. Hell, just graduating high school put you ahead of almost half the field. I have to imagine that back then it really didn't matter much what you studied. I mean, you weren't going to be a doctor without studying medicine, or a lawyer without law school, but you know what I mean.
I think to a certain extent our attitude of just go to college, college will help you get ahead, follow your passion, pick whatever major you want, blah, blah, blah. is a throwback to a reality that doesn't exist anymore. Nowadays 90% of people, or something like that, graduate high school. Like half the country has some college or a degree. There's a higher percentage of people with advanced degrees now than there used to be with just undergrad degrees back in the day. With that much higher learning out there, the grades you got, what you studied, etc. matter more.
I don't think any of that means that a liberal arts degree is worthless or stupid, not by any stretch, but it could make getting your career started harder than it would be with a degree that's easier to apply to businesses.
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Peace Of Mind
Senior Associate
[font color="#8f2520"]~ Drinks Well With Others ~[/font]
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Post by Peace Of Mind on Jan 11, 2011 15:26:22 GMT -5
I have a BA in Philosophy, so mull THAT over in a dark corner! So do you, or do you not wear make-up?
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Peace Of Mind
Senior Associate
[font color="#8f2520"]~ Drinks Well With Others ~[/font]
Joined: Dec 17, 2010 16:53:02 GMT -5
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Post by Peace Of Mind on Jan 11, 2011 15:29:23 GMT -5
The stick helps her walk upright... I thought it was there to keep her from falling over drunk.
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Bluerobin
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Post by Bluerobin on Jan 11, 2011 15:30:47 GMT -5
Liberal Arts degrees rank just slightly above and JD.
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Post by kinetickid on Jan 11, 2011 19:49:08 GMT -5
Are they complete or just partial idiots? Discuss. I have two undergraduate degrees. One is a liberal arts degree and one is a physics and math degree (acquired at two different schools). If you're declaring that those with liberal arts degrees are less intelligent than their hard science counterparts, then I clearly stand as an exception to that; after all, my physics GPA was actually higher than my liberal arts GPA.
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Post by kinetickid on Jan 11, 2011 19:53:15 GMT -5
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Post by kinetickid on Jan 11, 2011 19:55:36 GMT -5
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Post by kinetickid on Jan 11, 2011 19:56:10 GMT -5
I wouldn't say idiots, just not very realistic. Don't get me wrong, 18th century french poetry is great, knowing a lot about it is pretty unlikely to pay the bills later though. Hey. I resemble that remark! Seriously, though. I wrote a 40 page term paper on the standardization of the French language since Louis XIV. Yeah, I was partially stupid (not IQ-wise) for studying French. In my case, I had zero guidance from family members or advisors at school. No one ever sat me down and asked me what I was going to do with my degree. At the same time, I had much exposure to the study-what-you-love philosophy towards college. So, it's easy to see how I ended up with a liberal arts degree, even though I was clearly capable of getting a degree in something that required real intelligence and effort.
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Jan 11, 2011 19:57:03 GMT -5
Deja vu.
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Post by hawkeyes2001 on Jan 11, 2011 20:04:04 GMT -5
One of my closest friends has a liberal arts degree and she is not an idiot. She just has commitment problems. After six years of college (and many major changes) she realized she had enough credits to graduate with a liberal arts degree.
Granted after graduation her jobs weren't all that great. She finally figured out what she wanted to do with herself and had to go back to school for a master's degree.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Jan 11, 2011 20:25:17 GMT -5
Are you kidding? The person who graduated with the French major made more money than any of us in the International Dept of a bank. She could speak it, read and write it. She had odd hours because of the time difference but even back in the 80's, being bi-lingual was a huge asset.
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Jan 11, 2011 20:30:37 GMT -5
Are you kidding? The person who graduated with the French major made more money than any of us in the International Dept of a bank. She could speak it, read and write it. She had odd hours because of the time difference but even back in the 80's, being bi-lingual was a huge asset. Was she just a French major or a double major? I had some friends that double majored in international business and a foreign language and they are doing fantastic (or at least they were the last time we talked, which was several years ago)
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Jan 11, 2011 20:50:05 GMT -5
Dang, I don't know for sure. All I know is we made fun of her for her MRS. degree and she blew us all away with job perks and starting salary. But it was a valuable major because it was a foreign language. I always wondered if she intended it to be or just got lucky?
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Post by kinetickid on Jan 11, 2011 21:35:48 GMT -5
Dang, I don't know for sure. All I know is we made fun of her for her MRS. degree and she blew us all away with job perks and starting salary. But it was a valuable major because it was a foreign language. I always wondered if she intended it to be or just got lucky? If she were intelligent--and college major is not always an indicator of intelligence--and driven, then it's likely she would have been successful in any field. Personally, I've had some great jobs in my life and not a single one of them required my specific degrees. But I'm smart (e.g., I learn things quickly and I can easily adapt) and that goes a long way in business.
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jan
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Post by jan on Jan 11, 2011 21:43:41 GMT -5
Swamp, I have a dumb ass degree in Criminal Psychology...and I work with crazy people. Sorry but a degree is a degree, we're all on the short list of stupid on any given day.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Jan 11, 2011 21:45:43 GMT -5
Well, she was bright enough to land a job with a French major so bully for her!!! That was before being bi-lingual was considered an asset. She was also darn pretty so that didn't hurt her, either.
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Cookies Galore
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I don't need no instructions to know how to rock
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Post by Cookies Galore on Jan 11, 2011 21:53:12 GMT -5
Are you kidding? The person who graduated with the French major made more money than any of us in the International Dept of a bank. She could speak it, read and write it. She had odd hours because of the time difference but even back in the 80's, being bi-lingual was a huge asset. Was she just a French major or a double major? I had some friends that double majored in international business and a foreign language and they are doing fantastic (or at least they were the last time we talked, which was several years ago) One thing I should have paid attention to was foreign language skills. My aunt is fluent in French and was a history major in college. She works for an international MBA program and travels all over the world for her job. I pick her up from the air from these trips, mainly because she pays me in wine and spices from the countries she travels! She's a little nutty, but the best person to travel with. ETA: Should have paid attention, because one of my classmates let me cheat on him in HS French class sophomore through senior year. I did place into upper level French in college somehow, but never took language courses. I can identify words and phrases when reading, but I suck at speaking the language. Bummer.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2011 5:35:20 GMT -5
I ended college wanting to go into criminal justice/law enforcement. Any undergrad degree would have been acceptable, but it looked fantastic if you had a major in a foreign language... especially Arabic.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Jan 12, 2011 9:00:18 GMT -5
That's what will probably get DD into pilot school. Foreign languages.
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Kung Fu Panda
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Post by Kung Fu Panda on Jan 12, 2011 9:14:11 GMT -5
Hmmm...My Degree in Economics with Minor in Business Admin is a Liberal Arts degree...So I will just have to disagree
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Cookies Galore
Senior Associate
I don't need no instructions to know how to rock
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Post by Cookies Galore on Jan 12, 2011 9:39:35 GMT -5
Hmmm...My Degree in Economics with Minor in Business Admin is a Liberal Arts degree...So I will just have to disagree Ooh yeah! Just checked my alma mater and the College of Liberal Arts includes majors in Economics, Horticulture, Landscape Architecture, Neuroscience, Mathematical Economics, Community & Regional Planning, Environmental Studies, and Urban Planning. There are liberal arts programs that are science heavy.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2011 9:45:17 GMT -5
man, there are so many different choices I would have made if I could turn back time. I would have loved to go for economics, among other things.
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Bluerobin
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Post by Bluerobin on Jan 12, 2011 9:46:37 GMT -5
Meghan, if you are in a major city, they should have Berlitz - they are heavy on learning to speak the language. I took a Berlitz course once when I was in DC and it helped with my German. Now of course, I have forgotten most of it. It helps if you have someone to speak the language with.
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Cookies Galore
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Post by Cookies Galore on Jan 12, 2011 10:00:59 GMT -5
Meghan, if you are in a major city, they should have Berlitz - they are heavy on learning to speak the language. I took a Berlitz course once when I was in DC and it helped with my German. Now of course, I have forgotten most of it. It helps if you have someone to speak the language with. I'll just have an affair with a foreigner. Cheaper and more fun. There is a Berlitz in Philly, thanks for the tip!
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Jan 12, 2011 10:18:56 GMT -5
I'm serious, people. You can have a degree in fart smelling and if you know a foreign language, you are going to get hired.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2011 10:32:35 GMT -5
I could have gotten a degree in fart smelling?!?!
<<facepalm!>>
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Cookies Galore
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I don't need no instructions to know how to rock
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Post by Cookies Galore on Jan 12, 2011 10:44:21 GMT -5
I could have gotten a degree in fart smelling?!?! <<facepalm!>> BF comes from a line of gassy people, so at this point I have honorary doctorate in fart smelling. You are right, though, zib. Fluency is a sought after trait!
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Jan 12, 2011 10:46:42 GMT -5
Bi-lingual is the way to go. DD has French, Russian, and Arabic. I don't think she will get into pilot school because I think she will be recruited to DC.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2011 11:08:17 GMT -5
Double liberal arts major here: French Literature and Political Science.
Supported my college habit (graduated in 3 years) by selling residential real estate. Paid for my entire college tuition with one sale to some French speaking Lebanese clients. I was never fluent by any means but had a working knowledge of French. Was hired for one job because I did speak French. I hadn't used it much over the last 20 years (actually passed on an opportunity to move to Brussels 15 years ago). But have used it a few times since moving to Germany and oddly enough my French has gotten better since I've started learning German.
Found the Political Science background helpful when I worked for a public agency.
Can't say that they have been terribly practical degrees but it sure has been fun!
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