I am getting to that stage of life where younger people occasionally ask for advice. They are generally people who don’t know me.too well but I will take what I can get! Anyway, it got me thinking-what would be the best four-year degree in terms of a stable, decently-paying post-college job? Let’s assume our prospective student has no intention of going to grad school, law school or med school-this degree will be it for them. Also assume they are open to science, business, social work-whatever is likely to get them the highest-paying job when they graduate. Some degrees, such as computer science, have been touted as a good investment but there may be a glut of people with those qualifications. Others, such as psychology, may be too “generic” or may require an additional degree to command the larger salaries. So what would you advise our fictional student?
My recommendation was analytical chemistry. It’s seen as hard and not one of the more popular fields of study. But a lot of fields, from research labs to manufacturing to sales, need people with chemistry knowledge. It’s a surprisingly versatile degree that can give you a wide variety of career options.
My biggest recommendation would be to take a co-op program that gives you work terms to build up job experience. Bachelor of financial mathematics, engineering, not sure which field would be the best – but the co-op experience is very valuable.
Whatever field the student finds most interesting stimulating, for two reasons. First, people tend to perform better in academics they find interesting, at least IME, and honor students usually are able to find meaningful work in their field. Second, they will more likely enjoy and succeed in their career if they actually enjoy the work.
Putting that aside, I’d recommend computer science, engineering, or a related STEM field. OP’s point about supply is well taken; however, demand remains high for those skill sets and likely will remain that way indefinitely.
Alternatively, medical fields are also highly employable. I believe a bachelor in nursing is sufficient to seek an RN, which pays well and is always in demand. Similarly, while psychology may be somewhat general, a bachelor’s in psychology, social work or several adjacent fields is enough in many states to obtain a clinical licensure and practice as a therapist or counselor; there is a high demand for behavioral health services.
One last thought is any major that is compatible with ROTC and commission as an officer in the military. That not only effectively guarantees post-college employment but often pays tuition and a stipend as well.
Ditto engineering. I don’t know many people with engineering degrees who don’t work in the field in one aspect or another. They may not work in the exact discipline their major was in (ie.aerospace) but they did end up applying for and working in something like mechanical or industrial.
I also haven’t run across any engineering majors who never found a job in their field, gave up looking, and now work in something else.
IMO the most “useful” degree is likely to be the topic and career path that you feel most enthusiastic about. If you’re struggling financially and studying art is your dream…I’d still recommend art over any other topic. Although, invest the time to find particular specializations that maybe aren’t so over-subscribed and therefore can put food on the table, while still being something you’re excited about.
Of course, knowing what you’re enthusiastic about is not an easy thing. There are lots of jobs that I would have ruled out, or not known about, at 16* that would have been great options in hindsight. How to find out what’s out there is a big topic in itself, but I’ll stop here for now.
* This is about the age where in the UK you start needing to have some idea of what kind of career you want to do, as you need to pick a small number of ‘A’ Levels to study.
My niece got a BS in Occupational Safety, and she was hired right out of college. There are some niche disciplines that are in high demand, but most people aren’t aware of them.
I have a degree in engineering, and have worked with hundreds of other people who have degrees in engineering. I have noticed there are two types:
They got a degree in engineering because they have a genuine interest in it, perhaps even a “passion” for it. They enjoy doing technical work at home (fixing things, building things, etc.) Not only are these the best engineers, but they seem happy at work.
They got a degree in engineering because they heard it pays well and offers job security. They have no passion for it, they hate their job, and are pretty miserable at work. Their performance is mediocre at best.
Please, please, please… do not push someone into engineering because it “pays well,” else they will fall into group #2.
Pharmacists in the US need to do far more than a bachelor’s degree to become registered and employable.
… Three to four years of undergraduate pre-professional (prerequisite) coursework, followed by four academic years in the professional program. Most students need four years to complete their prerequisite courses. Thus, it usually takes eight years of college study to earn a Pharm.…
Da nada. I heartily support your encouraging people to consider becoming pharmacists. They are often the most unsung heroes in healthcare and we need lots more of them, so thank you!
Excellent point nicely expressed. But I’ll expand it past engineering.
If someone’s approach to their work life (all 40 hours times 50 weeks times 40 years of it) is just 'I’ll do whatever for money, and more money is the only thing that matters", well that person is going to be miserable in any and every job they ever have, regardless of salary.
The attitude is the core problem, not the choice of occupation or the salary it commands.
I’m not quite a fan of “Do what you love, the money will come”. That’s not what usually happens; instead you learn to live, resentfully, on not enough money to actually have a life.
So temper your desire to be a beach bum teaching surfing to college women with a touch of practicality.
There’s no one-size-fits-all answer. As a few people said above, the student’s level of interest and enthusiasm matters; I’d also add that preparation and ability matter, perhaps even more. The most useful degree program, in career terms, is the one that you’re motivated to complete and good enough at for faculty and potential employers to notice you’re good. Opportunities like internships and research assistantships tend to flow to the students who stand out from the crowd in their program, and those opportunities will look good on a resume and provide the student with a range of marketable skills regardless of whether it’s a “practical” major or not.
And those programs are highly competitive and difficult to get into. I used to work for a company that handled the common application that covered many of the Pharmacy programs in the US, and it wasn’t uncommon to see applications that applied to 20 different schools at once.
I’d go with engineering also. The branch that you like. Social work may be useful to society but doesn’t pay. If you’re lucky, like I was, you’ll wind up with a degree in a field you love and which also pays well.
Not to repeat everyone else, but engineering. The problem is, it’s not just enough for a degree to be useful. It has to actually be a field you want or like. Otherwise, engineering will be brutal and destroy your mind, no matter how much $$ you make.
You will never be jobless, the pay is decent enough, and once you get a couple years experience under your hat you can pretty much veer off into any of a great number of fulfilling and attractive directions.
Thanks, all for the replies! Seems I am in a minority with chemistry, but in my world it’s a sought-after skill. Certainly no argument about the utility and flexibility of nursing and engineering.