Liberal Arts, or not?
Asked by CJI am considering some colleges that I feel i might like to attend when the time comes. I will want to major in Secondary Education (History). I recently came upon Eastern Connecticut State University, and to me, it seems like a nice school. Then i saw on collegeboard that 100% of undergrads major in liberal arts, yet they still offer the teacher certification that I would want. All of the other colleges i am looking at are not liberal arts colleges. Is there any significant differences between a liberal arts college and a non-liberal arts college and would these differences matter for a prospective teacher?
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Answered by JC
Getting a degree in liberal arts is a good thing but i think that it is easily misunderstood/underestimated by employers. They will not be aware of the science, math, and statistics classes that you will probably have to take. They will assume that all you learned about is history. If you are going into education this is not a problem. But if you later decide to try to get into something else you may have trouble (liberal arts degrees are a one way ticket to grad school for many). It depends on where you live though. If you live in a large city like chicago, no degree is worthless, you could get at least a sales job or something. I double majored in psych and economics and got a 3.6 gpa from a big ten university. I do not have what you would call a good job, i am below the poverty line. But if i were to try getting a decent accounting job somewhere they would hire the girl with a 2 year accounting degree from a community college way before me. Despite the fact that i completed much more difficult math courses, and probably could out perform her. The job market is not a meritocracy, essp. when you are young and inexperienced. Liberal arts can be a really good way to do allot of hard work and not get much for it. If you want a ready made career all laid out before you when you graduate, get a degree in engineering, accounting, nursing, or something tech oriented. Liberal arts will make it MUCH more difficult to get a great job (trust me i know from experience). And when it's all said and done if you pick the wrong major and cant get a job when you graduate, ITS YOUR FAULT. With liberal arts you HAVE TO take advantage of everything your university has to offer (job placement, internships....) I would say go into accounting, if your a math wiz go into engineering. If you want to blaze your own path or get a PHD and end up as a professor somewhere teaching history go into liberal arts. The reason i went on and on about non-teaching professions as they relate to liberal arts is because VERY few people actually stay in teaching.
Getting a degree in liberal arts is a good thing but i think that it is easily misunderstood/underestimated by employers. They will not be aware of the science, math, and statistics classes that you will probably have to take. They will assume that all you learned about is history. If you are going into education this is not a problem. But if you later decide to try to get into something else you may have trouble (liberal arts degrees are a one way ticket to grad school for many). It depends on where you live though. If you live in a large city like chicago, no degree is worthless, you could get at least a sales job or something. I double majored in psych and economics and got a 3.6 gpa from a big ten university. I do not have what you would call a good job, i am below the poverty line. But if i were to try getting a decent accounting job somewhere they would hire the girl with a 2 year accounting degree from a community college way before me. Despite the fact that i completed much more difficult math courses, and probably could out perform her. The job market is not a meritocracy, essp. when you are young and inexperienced. Liberal arts can be a really good way to do allot of hard work and not get much for it. If you want a ready made career all laid out before you when you graduate, get a degree in engineering, accounting, nursing, or something tech oriented. Liberal arts will make it MUCH more difficult to get a great job (trust me i know from experience). And when it's all said and done if you pick the wrong major and cant get a job when you graduate, ITS YOUR FAULT. With liberal arts you HAVE TO take advantage of everything your university has to offer (job placement, internships....) I would say go into accounting, if your a math wiz go into engineering. If you want to blaze your own path or get a PHD and end up as a professor somewhere teaching history go into liberal arts. The reason i went on and on about non-teaching professions as they relate to liberal arts is because VERY few people actually stay in teaching.
