Do you think it really matters what you major in?

[PosterNutbag]

I have a BS degree in Hospitality from a large public state university in the Southeast. I do not want to work in this field at all. Do you think that having a degree in this particular industry "traps" me into working in this field for the rest of my life? Will other career industries/employeers see it as a less desireable or a degree of absolutely no value?

I mean I never understood why the fuck it matters really. It's not like when you graduate that you are some kind of expert in whatever it was that you majored in. Mostly, I don't think that I could recall all that I "learned" in college. Face it....whatever you end up going into is gonna require you to be trained up. You start at the bottom/entry level and get training and then gradually progress through your career, right? So why does your major even matter?

I just don't understand at all.

I CAN understand that it matters what you major in when you want to go into something fairly specific like Engineering, Nursing, Pre-med, Accounting, ect. But what if you major in liberal arts, hospitality, general business admin, marketing, economics.

I guess I just feel like my 4 year degree in Hospitality has no worth outside of this field.

I also know that there are plenty of "Management Training Programs" out there in a variety of industries that mostly do not care what you majored in. I got into a retail Management Training Program after I graduated and then after about 9 months I quit b/c of shitty coworkers and being basically berated b/c of some mistakes that I made.

Anyway, all comments/suggestions are welcome!:)

[and1grad]

Your ability to market yourself for the job in question becomes THAT MUCH more important when its for a job that has nothing to do with what you went to school for. The experience gained while completing your degree crosses over into a lot of different fields. Its up to you to figure out what those fields are and how your degree may or may not apply.

[wordsmith]

Your major is something that you can put to use, ostensibly, should you choose to do so (and many people obviously do), but it doesn't necessarily pigeonhole you, particularly if it's in a broad discipline. Far more important are your capabilities and demonstrated skills, and how they can be put to use in a given position, and how well you can convince an employer of that.

I majored in a humanities discipline, English. I've worked in nonprofit, journalism, law, and education. I've never once been told by anybody when doing job searches that my degree's subject matter disqualified me as a candidate. Partially because it's a very broadly applicable discipline, and also largely because I've been very good at building a case for why I can do X job. The latter is key.

Hospitality is, I presume, fairly interdiscliplinary as majors go, is it not? You probably had to study communications, business, perhaps the arts, maybe economics, etc? Look less at the whole package of your major and focus more on what the various aspects you learned about to get your degree and what they taught you that's marketable. Remember, if YOU don't think you have the skills or relevant background to do a job, why should anybody else think so?

[gemma-dahl]

My perspective is a bit different because I'm employed in a field outside of my major. I did not major in English writing or journalism, but those trades are what make me money. Because I have a liberal arts degree, I am still passed over for writing and editing jobs at larger companies where HR personnel evaluate one's fitness for a particular position based upon the type of degree that's on the resume. (And believe me, it's frustrating to see people with no skill in writing, but who majored in it nonetheless, put out the work that they do. It's not good for the company's public image, either. HR inflexibility is one reason I decided I'd give self-employment a try.)

However, to echo what and1 and words said, it really is all about what you can do. I'd argue that I'm a better candidate to be a writer than many people with j-school degrees because my degree covered so much ground. Engineering client? Yup, I'm good at science. SEO copywriting? I can do the programming, too, if you want. Small-town newspaper election coverage? I'll do it gladly; I'm knowledgeable in history and government. Designing writers' training materials for a corporate communications staff? Yes, absolutely I can; I'm really strong in English grammar.

What did you learn in school? Were there any projects or papers that would showcase the diversity of your skill set to an employer? Any classes you took that really made you marketable? It's all fair game in the "who gets the job" competition.

[wordsmith]

However, to echo what and1 and words said, it really is all about what you can do. I'd argue that I'm a better candidate to be a writer than many people with j-school degrees because my degree covered so much ground. Engineering client? Yup, I'm good at science. SEO copywriting? I can do the programming, too, if you want. Small-town newspaper election coverage? I'll do it gladly; I'm knowledgeable in history and government. Designing writers' training materials for a corporate communications staff? Yes, absolutely I can; I'm really strong in English grammar.

Off topic, but as a matter of interest, the paper I used to work for actually gave English majors preference over journalism majors when filling positions. It was owned by a company that ran mainly community weeklies, which are by nature very feature-heavy, hard news-light. When your paper is mainly human interest features, it's more to your advantage when your writers are comfortable with paying attention to how artfully they can tell a story, not just the where/when/why/how. They also found that j-school grads frequently got frustrated by the non-focus on hard news or investigative tactics, and either left early on, or spent all their time trying to go all Woodward/Bernstein on nonissues, and digging up nonexistent dirt.

[FishOutOfWater]

Your undergraduate major in college doesn't really matter (unless it's a field that requires a very specific degree, like education, nursing, or engineering), especially as you get older and more work experience.

I majored in philosophy and have not had a single job that directly relates to the major. (that would take talent, since the only truly direct career would be to be a philosophy prof.) I haven't found the major has limited me, but as others have said, you have to spend more time (through a cover letter, your interview, and your work history if applicable) proving that you're a good vocational match to the employer. I emphasized skills I developed in philosophy that would make me a good employer, such as excellent critical thinking, logical reasoning, and discipline as a student. I've worked in human services, and I probably had more of a challenge finding work than people who majored in something more directly applicable like psychology. Once I landed that first job, though, the issue went away.

[Depressed11]

It depends. My parents always told me it didn't matter because so many people don't work in their major anyway, so I never worried about it. In retrospect, ehh, I know I'm not the only Economics grad who wishes they had taken more Accounting/Finance stuff. OTOH I have some smart Econ friends who have cool jobs because they were more ambitious and marketed themselves better than I.

[winneythepooh7]

In my field, my Master's degree and especially my working experience is what matters. I'm a social worker though so that's a more specialized field. Also many jobs now within my field are requiring licensure.

[Restless&Lost]

It matters, to a point. It really depends on what job you're going after. Writing skills are very important in my field. So English/Journalism majors could have an edge over, say, an anthropology major. But business skills such as marketing, event planning and accounting also come into play, so business majors with the right classwork, internship or extracurricular experience wouldn't be turned away.

But I honestly think that it all mostly boils down to the things you do outside of the classroom. Good, compatible experience in that regard can outweigh an unrelated major, and even beat out the people with the "right" major that didn't do anything but go to class.

I guess there's no easy answer to this, huh?

[erika36]

I don't think it does personally. I've heard of people who get degrees in one field and end up in another. But then again, I hate it in interviews when one of the questions is "aren't you looking for a job in your field?"

No a-hole, I WANT to be sitting at a desk answering phones instead! :rolleyes: Of course you can't say that. :D

[sam handwich]

I am more concerned about going to graduate school. I am able and quite the competative student, but once i choose an emphasis for my MA, thats it. I will only be able to apply my career towards that one direction, for the most part. Hence you really have to know what you want to do before you go to graduate school, at least when it comes to psychology.

[wordsmith]

What will your focus be in grad school? About half of my coworkers, the ones who aren't ed majors, are psych majors, and the ones with master's degrees typically have them in applied behavioral analysis. That's one route I could go, should I go back to school, but I'm probably leaning more toward a M.Ed. program, likely as a reading specialist.

[callyna81]

It's a hard question to answer, definitively.

I work in career advisory and have worked in HR and employment case management and, really, I think it's just one part of your "profile" to an employer, so to speak. I tend to think previous work experience usually holds more focus for people reading a resume in most cases. Obviously it has an impact straight out of school, after that, not so much.

I think however if you specialise too much, too quickly straight out of school, and then decide to get out of that specialisation, it can be quite hard. It's a lot easier to justify broader career moves when you have a few solid years of general skills-building in, say, marketing, than having spent the last four years specialising in zebra movement analysis.

[sam handwich]

What will your focus be in grad school? About half of my coworkers, the ones who aren't ed majors, are psych majors, and the ones with master's degrees typically have them in applied behavioral analysis. That's one route I could go, should I go back to school, but I'm probably leaning more toward a M.Ed. program, likely as a reading specialist.

I am not sure yet what i want my focus to be, so i am thinking of taking a year off to figure it out. applied behavior analysis is a good field but i believe the job market involves mostly working with children, which i cant stand.

What do your friends do with their behavior analysis degrees?

There are numerous degree types for psychology, from business to mental health... but i just dont know what i want to do.

[wordsmith]

I am not sure yet what i want my focus to be, so i am thinking of taking a year off to figure it out. applied behavior analysis is a good field but i believe the job market involves mostly working with children, which i cant stand.

What do your friends do with their behavior analysis degrees?

There are numerous degree types for psychology, from business to mental health... but i just dont know what i want to do.

We all work as teachers at a private school for severely autistic children and other children with various developmental disorders. We design and implement their behavior plans in addition to handling their academic schooling and life skills/social skills development and adaptations. ABA is most effective as early intervention, so, yeah, it is predominantly used for handling behavior in disabled children.

[sondra_finchley]

I always felt that a Hospitality degree or one such as Gaming Management that was offered at my uni were more or less Mickey Mouse types unless you were hell bent on going into the field and wanted to work in new acquisition or business development/consulting or hotel/gaming management the rest of your life (or a good chunk of it). True that Cornell has one of the top Hospitality depts in the country (and one of the best in the world if you are pursuing an MA in that area), with UNLV stumping up a good chunk of cash into the hotel/gaming program and center they have going on down there- many experienced people do seek out their services or are hired out of those programs. BUT if you arent going into that field then why would you major in it? Was the course load easier? Was it more interesting to you? Many employers in other fields would be unlikely to understand exactly what types of courses the degree contained and so you have to educate them IF you get to the interview. THAT is a major hassle.

I figure you have to hustle that much harder if you go to a) a little known school or b) take a little known degree because people are unwilling to take much of a risk on the unknown in terms of hiring.

[wordsmith]

My younger sister pursued a career in hospitality and went on to work in event and conference planning after she got her degree, but her degree was an interdisciplinary mix of communications and business, not a degree in hospitality itself.

She went to the "other Cornell," Cornell College, which has a fairly unique setup, and features, among other things, what's basically a "design your own major" type option.

[vinsanity]

My senior at work actually got her bachelor's in something like biochemistry, while we both work in the financial sector. Then again, she decided somewhere along the line that she didn't enjoy working in a lab all day so she went and get her MBA, which led her to the job she has now.

So I guess everyone has a different story.

[winneythepooh7]

Another important thing to remember, is that networking, and often just knowing certain people from your work history, is the key to getting a good job.

[moonstar0711]

I've had a hard time finding a job with my art history degree as I've stated in a thread of mine. I thought when I got out of college that I would be able to find a decent job even though I'd be applying for jobs outside of my field. My parents also told me the same thing. I still have hope that because I possess a college degree from a decent university that I'll come across someone that will hire me for having made it through a challenging four years of school. Shouldn't the fact that I had the drive to make it through school with good grades while holding a part-time job, and at one point, two part-time jobs while going to school full-time count for something? I would sure hope so. But the city I live in is notorious for not having any decent jobs and as a result many young people are leaving the area. I am considering grad school in social work, but I'm thinking that just maybe I can get my foot in the door in the field in some way and then maybe I'll go to grad school. I just hope that going to college and earning some kind of degree, regardless of what it is, counts for something.

[winneythepooh7]

My biggest piece of advice is to try to get your foot in the door somewhere before going the MSW route. I know A LOT of people who got their MSW but had little experience in human services work-wise (most employers don't consider internships "work experience"), so they are still up shits-creek in terms of employment.

I browse social work-related job listings daily and most of what I see job-wise are either for people with no experience or for people with years of experience, a Master's, supervisory experience and licensure.

You should be okay getting an entry-level job somewhere. And if you are good at what you do, you should also be able to advance pretty quickly. Most of these jobs too have great benefits, even if the pay is super low.

[Jabberwocky]

IMO a college degree simply means that you are literate. A bachelors degree is far more commonplace today than it was decades ago. Our parents generation may have been able to get into whatever field they wanted to with just a bachelors degree because it was held in much higher esteem back then, but that isn't the case anymore. Bachelors degrees are commonplace and for many jobs, it is a bare minimum.

For you new college grads out there looking for the 1st or 2nd job, my experience has been that having a degree in something that is directly applicable to the job you are applying for tell employers that:
1. You need less training than someone who majored in something else.
2. You knew well in ahead of time that this is the field you wanted to be in. Thus you are more likely to stay longer.

Besides, after spending four years studying any one particular discipline, there has to something that you are better at than before, right?

[wordsmith]

You can be literate without a college degree. So I suppose it doesn't even mean that.