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Old 02-11-2015, 12:33 AM
 
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I keep hearing that your degree really doesn't matter as long as you have one. So I'm wondering, what was your college major and what is your job now? Do you suspect that you could have still been employed in your current field with any bachelor's or master's degree?
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Old 02-11-2015, 06:31 AM
 
Location: Texas
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Default Does the College Major Matter?

Critically
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Old 02-11-2015, 06:37 AM
 
Location: southwestern PA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DoniDanko View Post
I keep hearing that your degree really doesn't matter as long as you have one.
You have been talking to the wrong people....
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Old 02-11-2015, 06:37 AM
 
Location: Paradise
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It matters...I have a BSCE and I am a licensed professional engineer. While I could probably have been employed in this field without the degree, my advancement would be severely limited.

I think some folks stress too much about this stuff.

Confucius said "choose a job you love and you will never work a day in your life" And yes, that's good advice however there is a caveat. What if what you love won't pay the bills? IMO choose a career path that will provide you with a decent living and that you can TOLERATE! Because even what you love will be just another job to you if you HAVE to do it every day for the next 40 or 50 years. If you can find something that at least keeps your interest and makes a decent salary, you will have your personal/free time to continue to pursue the things you LOVE.
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Old 02-11-2015, 06:42 AM
 
Location: East Coast of the United States
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When it comes to potential lifetime earnings, your choice of college major matters more than anything else about your education.
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Old 02-11-2015, 03:03 PM
 
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Critically.

For some graduate programs like Med-School, Dental School, Law School, etc one can choose from a pool of different but relevant majors.


Ex: For Law School: (History, Political Science, etc)

Other than that, it's pretty damn important.
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Old 02-11-2015, 03:07 PM
 
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Come on now, does this really need to be asked again on this forum?

Everyone and their cousins know if it ain't STEM, it ain't worth.....
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Old 02-11-2015, 03:07 PM
 
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Everything matters.

We can't tell you which major is best for you, however. Only you can decide that.
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Old 02-11-2015, 03:27 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mandalorian View Post
Critically.

For some graduate programs like Med-School, Dental School, Law School, etc one can choose from a pool of different but relevant majors.


Ex: For Law School: (History, Political Science, etc)

Other than that, it's pretty damn important.
You don't need relevant majors. There is no best major for law school unless you go by LSAT scores. In that case, philosophy, economics, and physical science majors would be the best; but, this has more to do with the intelligence of the people who are drawn to these majors. All in all, law schools don't care what you majored in. It also doesn't matter what you major in when planning on attending medical and dental school. You just need the prerequisites.

To the OP, your major is critical in licensed fields. I couldn't get the chemical dependency counselor license I'm working toward by studying mathematics. An aspiring engineering couldn't become licensed by studying computer science. In other fields, there is a strong preference for certain types of degrees depending on the position. Insurance is one of the few industries that has many positions that just require a degree without regard to major.
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Old 02-11-2015, 03:38 PM
 
12,101 posts, read 17,083,796 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DoniDanko View Post
I keep hearing that your degree really doesn't matter as long as you have one. So I'm wondering, what was your college major and what is your job now? Do you suspect that you could have still been employed in your current field with any bachelor's or master's degree?
If you're asking about whether your major restricts you to certain fields, then yes it is obvious that it does. No, you cannot really work in my field as an English major. And I cannot get a job as a social worker. Some degrees are more flexible than others, but meh.

If you are asking whether it makes a difference in terms of salary (which is what 99% of these arguments are about), then not nearly as much as people think.
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