If one looks at salary alone, a college degree pays. People with a bachelor's degree or higher enjoy a below-average unemployment rate and an above-average salary, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. (A hefty student loan payment can eat into that advantage, though.)
No doubt also that one's choice of major can pigeonhole a person in one part of a widely-varying income range. Choice of major shouldn't be taken lightly; it's a large chunk of four years (or more) plus at least the price of a new car — maybe two or three new cars. Although there's nothing wrong with majoring in English if you want, it's best to go into this investment of time and money with eyes wide open to the kinds of jobs for which the graduate will qualify.
English has nothing on some college majors, though. MSN has a slide show displaying eleven highly unusual college majors. (The descriptions are pretty well-crafted. It's worth clicking through to read them for the turns of phrase.) There must be a demand for these majors. It's hard for colleges, even as isolated from the free market as they are, to justify carrying majors for which there are no students.
Here are ten of them. (I'm leaving it as an exercise for the reader which one I left out.)
- Theme Park Engineer. Potential energy meets kinetic energy meets adrenaline. Students no doubt learn the important skill of over-engineering for safety. Depends a lot on the future of big theme parks. How many engineers can these theme parks support?
- Bakery Science. This goes beyond Joe's Carb Shack. Note the “science” part: lots of testing and lab work, which is essential for learning how to create a consistent product for mass distribution. Probably can also make a mean pot of chili afterwards.
- Bowling Management. Bowling is an activity that can be done until late in life, so our aging population could spare it an unfortunate fate. Like theme parks, the vitality of this industry depends on a good economy that has enough breathing room for luxury items.
- Diving Business and Technology. This encompasses not just tourism but also other businesses like property recovery and energy-related areas.
- Comedy. But seriously … really? It seems like people are really funny, or they're not. A degree might make a funny person funnier, but I think funny people already know they're funny without the diploma. At least for the improvisation part, and the speaking part, Toastmasters can help you learn that for far less and you get leadership skills to boot.
- Adventure Education. I'm not the outdoorsy type but lots of people are. Some like the outdoors so much that they want to work outdoors, and this major prepares them for that. There's no shortage of outdoors, I suppose.
- Puppetry. I won't lie: I wouldn't recommend this major as being one that you can apply with no strings attached. Very entertainment-heavy.
- Canadian Studies. This seems to be the least highly unusual major of the bunch. There are a whole bunch of Canadians the last time I checked, and their country is bigger than mine. It's probably about as marketable as any other history degree.
- Nannying. Early childhood education with more of a demand? I've never thought of nannying as high-paying to begin with, but maybe the degree will allow for cushier gigs?
- Beatles Historian. Hmmmm … they're fab and all, but they're a bit yesterday. It does demonstrate that you have what it takes to be an historian.
In general, the weirder the major, the riskier an investment of time and money it can be. You could end up highly qualified in something with no market, and it may not have been the best college major to choose. But, if the market opens up or suddenly becomes very valuable, it could pay off handsomely.
What do you think of these majors? Good deals, or not? Have you heard of any weirder ones?
The problem with college majors is people judge you based on your degree. If you majored in music, people expect you want to be a musician. Musicians are good at math and understand the amount of work required to be good at something through constant practice. It is up to each college graduate to figure out how to turn their major into a career. I think a music major may make a great programmer!
Nannying can be a decent-paying job. I have a good friend who works as a nanny, and seems to be making a living at it. It’s not what she went to college for (if I remember correctly, she was an English major), but it was the best job she could find at the time, and she discovered she was good at it and enjoyed it.