A recent article in The Chronicle, Students shouldn’t always choose higher-paying majors, caused me to reflect on choosing a school and a major. My focus on the humanities has benefitted me throughout my life, and I believe it will do so for others long into the future.
My study of the humanities
I went to a small liberal arts college, Furman University. It was perfect for me at that stage of my development. More than that, the study of the humanities prepared me for a full, well-rounded life: strong analytical background (both numeric and logical), the ability to read a wide variety of written material, an appreciation of the arts, a smattering of the social sciences, and so much more. I didn’t know any of this then; I just had general education requirements to fulfill that I wasn’t particularly excited about. (Ah, the wisdom of youth.)
I was a math major, but that was almost beside the point. Well over half of my courses were in the humanities proper. My education was preparing me for just about anything that I wanted to do professionally, for a lifetime of learning, and for voting as an informed citizen. Tell me, what job doesn’t require you to write well, speak well, work with others, and learn?
Career preparation
I did have some career preparation during those years. My summer jobs contributed: one at Sears Automotive (“DieHard battery, sir?”) and then at IBM as a glorified “gopher” before my senior year. Acquiring my real estate license and working as an analyst at a small company that invested in real estate gave me some different experiences. I also overcame my debilitating fear of speaking in public during my junior and senior years with more practice in my classes.
I had no idea what I wanted to do with my career, no matter how many presentations I heard about being an actuary or accountant. Still, as I’ve gotten older, I realize the wisdom of not expecting an 18-20-year-old commit (actually: over-commit) to a specific career. It wasn’t until my senior year that I realized the answer to “what do you want to do with your life?” was “something to do with business and computing.” (That was as good as I could do.)
So I got an MBA. It was relatively common back then to go directly from undergraduate to studying for an MBA instead of the current requirement of 3-5 years of work experience. This is where I finally began to explore the world of work.
Conclusion
My undergraduate experience wasn’t perfect, to be sure. But I still believe that 18-20-year-olds are in their formative years and should be exploring as much of the world as possible rather than being forced to specialize too much. The humanities was perfect for me…even if I didn’t realize it at the time. It does make sense to encourage deeper engagement with possibilities when possible; if nothing else, this allows the student to say, “I’m never going to do that again!”
As I coach parents (and now grandparents) of students who are thinking about college and what to major in, I continue to emphasize the benefits of the study of the humanities. The benefits will never go away. Given the complexity and changeability of the world, preparing for a wide range of possible futures makes sense to me.
