Every prospective college student has heard it before — “you should pick a major that will make you the most money” — insinuating that not all majors can make a livable wage. It is a phrase so commonly used that it seems to blur the lines between people’s opinions about certain majors and the truth, which is often far less convoluted.
It is true that some majors bring in a much larger salary than others — but this is all due to demand, which is always changing. As of this year, jobs most in demand, according to online job resource Resume Coach, include healthcare workers, AI specialists, software developers and mental health professionals. However, just 10 years ago, the most in-demand jobs included event planners, translators and physical therapists, according to Forbes.
Choosing a major that promises a high-salary career rather than one that best fits you and your personality can not only impact your personal life but the distribution of jobs as well. Within recent years, more and more college students have been aiming for a computer science major in the hopes of raking in a high salary, only to find that the field of computer science is now over-saturated due to a disproportionate ratio between available jobs and the number of graduates, as written in Carleton College newspaper The Carletonian.
The English major is often associated with low-paying salaries, but this doesn’t tell the full story. While it’s true that some career paths associated with English do not pay well, the degree can also open doors to alternative, higher-paying opportunities. One example is a marketing manager, a career where the average salary ranges from $70,000 to $80,000, according to Indeed. This begs the question “Why not just major in marketing then?”
Different majors provide different skill sets and cater to different interests. Not every student is going to enjoy the curriculum for every major. In many cases, a student can land the same job in a major they enjoy as they would after pursuing a major they dislike. Majors are not binding contracts to certain careers. While it is true that some careers require specific degrees — it would be almost impossible to become a surgeon with a journalism degree — most majors are flexible and offer a skill set that allows graduates to explore a variety of career options.
Another forgotten aspect of the college experience is extracurricular work and its influence on a student’s ability to seek a high-paying job. If a journalism major spends their entire college career seeking out internships and uses their developing abilities as a writer in a work environment they could earn a larger salary after graduation compared to a marketing major who has no experience in a work environment. Majoring in a certain area itself is not a ticket to a high salary, but rather what else you accomplish while in college and how you use that major in the end that reflects where it will take you.
It may be a long time before the belief that some majors are inherently destined for low-paying jobs can be weeded out of common discussions among college students. However, adaptations in the way students approach the path each major may lead towards could slowly but surely change how we see each major — and potentially increase the amount of satisfaction each student feels after graduating with their degrees.
