EricTheRed
Member
Social policy. Hence why I'm now doing a nursing degree
-
Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!
What are some pretty much worthless degrees?
- Thread starter Christopher
- Start date
- Status
BudokaiMR2
Member
Yeah I spent time with a local Pre-law group in my area in the summer before Freshman year and one of the first pieces of advice they gave was to just take on whatever bullshit major you could have fun with. Bonus points for anything with a lower workload so you had more time to prep!
Ended up deciding against a law degree mainly because I wanted to get out of school and start building job experience. Was still considering it until I studied abroad though and had already taken their advice and switched from Political science which I hated.
Gully State
Member
One of my co workers ended up going to law school and told me that your LSAT scores are pretty much everything. What blew my mind was that there isn't even an interview process (I guess this hopefully is different for top 10 schools). I mean with medical schools, there's 2 rounds of applications + interviews. I'm surprised this kind of scrutiny doesn't exist with law schools.
Rudimental
Member
I'm doing my PhD in philosophy. It's very hard. I wrote my MA on why doing hard things is worthwhile. My bases are covered.
GeordieMark
Member
A good friend of mine did American Studies at West Sussex Uni. Funnily enough, it hasn't helped her get a job. I'm not really surprised.
What country? From what I recall from graduate applications over ten years ago, a Masters degree in the US is pretty useless unless you're not sure that a PhD is for you and want a test run. I also heard that they can be folded into a PhD at many US institutions.
I think that in Canada and the UK, a Masters is still required for a PhD application, so they have instrumental value.
HerbertBirdsfoot
Member
Not getting work related to your major doesn't mean you've failed in picking a major.
Also the degree isn't worthless just because you aren't doing something directly related to the course of study. There are lots of jobs that explicitly or implicitly require college educated people. It's a ticket to a club in some ways, for better or worse.
I'm 43 and I have a B.S. in Computer Science. I have worked with lots of good developers and business people with degrees all over the map. I've also worked with some top notch developers who didn't get a four year degree.
A college degree is one piece of the puzzle. In many technology and health care fields, it's a foot in the door to get your career started. For people in an uncertain job market that's important. But there are other ways to get your foot in the door, and there are jobs where a degree won't be your way in but will still be needed or make you more attractive. That's where the liberal arts degrees kind of come in.
If you are passionate about History or Philosophy or Asian Studies and don't have some alternate major with a well defined career path you're excited about, you might be better off doing that over something like Marketing or Management just because someone told you it's easy and there's a ready answer to "what are you going to do with that?"
Also the degree isn't worthless just because you aren't doing something directly related to the course of study. There are lots of jobs that explicitly or implicitly require college educated people. It's a ticket to a club in some ways, for better or worse.
I'm 43 and I have a B.S. in Computer Science. I have worked with lots of good developers and business people with degrees all over the map. I've also worked with some top notch developers who didn't get a four year degree.
A college degree is one piece of the puzzle. In many technology and health care fields, it's a foot in the door to get your career started. For people in an uncertain job market that's important. But there are other ways to get your foot in the door, and there are jobs where a degree won't be your way in but will still be needed or make you more attractive. That's where the liberal arts degrees kind of come in.
If you are passionate about History or Philosophy or Asian Studies and don't have some alternate major with a well defined career path you're excited about, you might be better off doing that over something like Marketing or Management just because someone told you it's easy and there's a ready answer to "what are you going to do with that?"
Not true. It really depends. In STEM, a master's degree can sometimes get you certain careers you couldn't get with just a bachelor's. My friend with his MS in Math is treated like a god as an actuary at his firm.
Blood Diamonds
Banned
25 is not old at all mate, I'm 18 and I constantly talk with people in their mid-twenties and some already have children and stuff. Go for it, imo.
OldGangWarily
Member
I had a psych for undergrad and went into software engineering for masters.
Wow, I didn't know I was writing a thesis, not a post on an gaming forum.
Some schools have Pre-Law and Pre-Med but I was more grouping them for majors people do for the sake of getting into law and med school.
Stumpokapow
listen to the mad man
Surprise! Someone crowing about the superiority of STEM degrees doesn't know much about writing theses, but knows a lot about posting on a gaming forum.
Gully State
Member
But you can essentially major in anything as long as you take those pre reqs. Obviously it's easier for a Pre-med to go into Bio/chemistry since it overlaps. But I've seen Pre-meds major in anything from English, Dance, American History to business, Chemical and Electrical Engineering.
What I mean is that you can't graduate with a Bachelor's in pre-med or pre-law (or if you can I've never heard of it- premed pre reqs are essentially 2 years of coursework).
akidnamededdy
Banned
I was 28 when I went back for a master's and I wasn't even the oldest person in my program. Just do it dude.
PdotMichael
Banned
Sucks for the people who want to work in the field of their club ticket.
That's one of the biggest appeal of STEM, engineering and other more useful degrees, you know that you can work in the field of your expertise and it isn't just an episode in your life.
Here's what matters: internships and/or networking. I have so many friends whose degree and job don't match whatsoever. Everyone I ask how they even got the job, they always say they knew someone or had a connection. By far the biggest piece of advice I want to give to college students is to do internships ASAP.
How is a Bio degree useless? Yea it's not as "flexible" as Phycology but flexibility just means your most likely doing a job that you didn't really need education for.
Hilarious coming from a Gaming forum Mod.
I wrote a thesis before actually 2 since I have a dual major. Just didn't expect to be writing one on the same forum where I wascomplaining about getting a lot of Major Fire Orbs in FFRK SSB Orb Fest when I really want Major Summon Orbs to craft R3 Bahamut.
Gully State
Member
Out of all the STEM degrees, it's the shitiest in terms of pay. Starting salaries are lower than business majors (bordering on liberal arts territory) and the field pretty much requires you to get an advanced degree if you want to make good money. That said, your path towards an advanced degree is more flexible...healthcare professions, PhD, masters, lab scientist certifications etc..you just need to supplement a smaller piece to get in...
Not been my experience. My starting job with only internships and unrelated work experience under my belt was 32K. Not huge but better then most entry level jobs with benefits, 401K etc. Its only been uphill since.
Stumpokapow
listen to the mad man
Not even STEM degrees can prepare anyone to deal with the rage caused by an unfavourable RNGesus.
Everyone I know with a masters degree (including me) got them while working full time, on the company's dime (tuition reimbursement).
For me it's a box that's ticked if/when I move to an executive level position. There's an expectation of an MBA at that level, but with an engineering bachelors and masters and years of commercial experience my mentors (executives themselves) have told me I've ticked that box. Hooray
starchild excalibur
Member
As a graduate with an MFA in Film: an MFA in Film.
yeah....
yeah....
You wrote a thesis before you were two years old as a double-majoring undergrad? Impressive.
I don't see how pointing out your inability to spell or spell-check medieval and etc. are somehow indicative of collegiate-thesis level English and not 3rd- or 4th-grade level instead.
Gully State
Member
My business major friends came out of college making 50K doing clerical work while I made the same as you in my first lab job. Of course this was in the early 2000's..I remember reading the average salary coming out of college for a bio bench job was 25K/year for a bio major - I knew cage wash techs in vivariums (no need for a college degree) making that + overtime.
What's even scarier to me is that at my institution, those hiring for my current position (I only have a BS and I get paid peanuts) now are asking for a Ph.D. That's just fuckin absurd
What I find funny is I've got a degree in theatre but I'm doing better than most of the STEM people I know. Its not the degree necessarily but who you know and how much you personally can get out of it. I also acknowledge that most people with a theatre degree don't turn out like me or even continue working in the field. I also dont work in theatre directly anymore but my current job is directly related to many of the same fields I used to work in.
Edit: I also have a degree in Biology but that was because I was studying to be a Doctor for 3 years before jumping over to theater. Crazy I know.
Edit: I also have a degree in Biology but that was because I was studying to be a Doctor for 3 years before jumping over to theater. Crazy I know.
There's plenty of benchwork out there for people with degrees in Biology/Chemistry and some lab experience.
Not even STEM degrees can prepare anyone to deal with the rage caused by an unfavourable RNGesus.
RNGesus is not kind. But I least I got a Wall last Fest so I guess I can't complain.
Are you really gonna double down on being a Grammer Nazi on a video game forum?
I type and hit post, sorry if I'm not as involved as you when posting on a video game forum.
Glass Shark
Banned
No degree is "worthless." As messed up as it is, some places won't even look at your resume unless you have a degree. They don't care where it's from or what field of study, they just want to see that you have one.
I'm trying to pull out my BA in Philosophy right now. I honestly don't know if I can get into a graduate program (my cumulative GPA is hovering around 2.7 right now due to a number of factors, such as me not being able to complete all my schoolwork because of OCD). Hopefully I can go and supplement it with something practical to make it easier to find a job. I have a few years of data entry experience so *shrug*
But... I don't regret it? It's the one field I've actually been interested in. It taught me how to formulate arguments properly and write papers really easily if anything. I feel much more knowledgeable than I did in my dumb high school years, and if anything it has made me want to read classic works for the next few decades in my spare time.
I hope I can get into a graduate program using other factors such as my job and maybe take some more classes on the side.
But... I don't regret it? It's the one field I've actually been interested in. It taught me how to formulate arguments properly and write papers really easily if anything. I feel much more knowledgeable than I did in my dumb high school years, and if anything it has made me want to read classic works for the next few decades in my spare time.
I hope I can get into a graduate program using other factors such as my job and maybe take some more classes on the side.
A lot of pre-law peeps take philosophy.
Nah, I have a PhD and no Masters.
I guess I have a different approach to the subject, in that I know the Masters degree doesn't make an applicant a better applicant, but the people doing the employing do think that. Either because they have a Masters, or because of the false belief that someone with a Masters is better than someone with a Bachelors.
So I am happy to say I'm wrong when it comes to what some people are saying - it can help you get a job. It sure as hell shouldn't though.
davidwhangchoi
Member
Music.
LegendofLex
Member
There's literally no such thing as a useless degree, because you earn the degree through an arduous process of training yourself to either gain specific skills or learn specific things, or both.
It's just that some of them aren't explicitly designed to train you for specific careers.
This means that if you don't have one of the degrees that's career oriented (i.e. that's associated with skills that are in high demand), you need to actually use what you learned to carve out a career for yourself, not expect to use your "degree" to get a job. This might mean that you can't quite have the standard of living that others with the same level of education do.
It's just that some of them aren't explicitly designed to train you for specific careers.
This means that if you don't have one of the degrees that's career oriented (i.e. that's associated with skills that are in high demand), you need to actually use what you learned to carve out a career for yourself, not expect to use your "degree" to get a job. This might mean that you can't quite have the standard of living that others with the same level of education do.
We can triple-or-nothing if you'd like: it's grammar. Plus, spelling isn't grammar, and it's only noteworthy in this/your case because of the subject. And, again, I'm not sure that an English degree is necessary for spellcheck to function.
But it's okay because we're on an internet video game forum, so being wrong is absolutely to be expected.
Philosophy is a multiplier. By itself, it's fairly tepid in earning potentials.
Paired with other degrees it's rather very potent, either as an entrepreneur, an innovator, a leader or just someone that can effectively identify issues and convince others to their point of view.
No useless degrees, only useless people.
I'm going to sound like a cold asshole, but people with degrees working in food service or retail for a long period of time probably are doing something wrong. In my experience, it's usually a lack of trying or focusing too much on one field/industry. I've met all kinds of high up business people with English degrees.
I'm going to sound like a cold asshole, but people with degrees working in food service or retail for a long period of time probably are doing something wrong. In my experience, it's usually a lack of trying or focusing too much on one field/industry. I've met all kinds of high up business people with English degrees.
Fenderputty
Banned
It really depends on why you're getting a degree. If it's for labor, most degress are worthless. If you're going to expand your knowledge base and make yourself a better person, all the degrees are worthwhile.
What sucks is that our current school system and labor system ensures we have useless degrees because going to school for knowledge alone isn't a reality most can have.
What sucks is that our current school system and labor system ensures we have useless degrees because going to school for knowledge alone isn't a reality most can have.
This thread is a pretty good argument for why college should be more accessible to more people.
To be fair, a lot of people here use english as a second or third language, are typing on random shitty phone browsers or are from a rough background. It's not really a great venue to use that as a measure for someone's intelligence or how worthy their opinion is.
To be fair, a lot of people here use english as a second or third language, are typing on random shitty phone browsers or are from a rough background. It's not really a great venue to use that as a measure for someone's intelligence or how worthy their opinion is.
Gully State
Member
Well, it's not so much just his grammar mistakes but rather the humor in his grammar mistakes coupled with his post's elitist tone.
Yes- I think the cost and accessibility of college needs to be thoroughly examined. Also compulsory education needs to really be overhauled. There's a huge disparity in educational quality at the compulsory levels which needs to be addressed. But rather than do that, it seems like we just passed the buck to college expecting an institution that saddles students with tens of thousands of dollars or debt to prepare them for the real world the way HS used to 40-50 years ago for free.
Maybe it is different in the US, but in the UK it is more what institution you go to than what you study. Anecdotally (myself + friends), people that studied anything from French + German to Classics have regularly ended up in what the mainstream would consider good careers (IBD, Big 4, Consulting, Law etc). There's obvious caveats here - you cannot be an engineer without a STEM degree - but well paying careers seem available to anyone. The common links between everyone is that they attended a good institution (i.e mental horsepower), got the grades (2.1 here, apparently 3.0+ GPA) and made the most of career opportunities (internships, networking).
I absolutely agree, especially for whom English is a non-native language, and am not suggesting it measures intelligence or substance.
Also this, but, again, spelling isn't grammar.
No degree is worthless. Most companies just want to know that you can learn, hence requiring a degree.
If you're actually looking to work in the field related to your degree, then that's an entirely different story. Anything dealing with electronics can't steer you wrong. Every company needs some nerd to fix their electronics.
If you're actually looking to work in the field related to your degree, then that's an entirely different story. Anything dealing with electronics can't steer you wrong. Every company needs some nerd to fix their electronics.
Jeronimo Jones
Member
Undergrad degrees can also be useful for getting into somewhat related graduate programs for the advanced degrees that really matter to some employers.
I also have an undergrad biology degree like OP but and ended up with a master's degree in a health related field and a career not exactly related to biology.
I also have an undergrad biology degree like OP but and ended up with a master's degree in a health related field and a career not exactly related to biology.
Ehh, its none of the above. I was just being lazy and basically hit Submit Reply right after I finish typing.
I'm just not that invested in my posts to treat them like some research report.
PeskyToaster
Member
There's more important qualifications to measure usefulness than stuff as mundane as jobs and money. The degrees most commonly called useless are usually the most important to humanity. That said, there are ways to make money from just about any degree. I would say follow your passion first, then follow the money.
God Dayumm
Banned
To be honest, college is pretty bad for expanding knowledge and it is getting worse.Too basic, too diluted in general requirements and less of the branch you want to study, more focused on social dynamics than actual knowledge, too many stresses in homework and exams than actual learning.
diffusionx
Gold Member
- Status