# What do you have a degree in? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 26, 2017, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268 "2017-04-26T09:40:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/21 "2017-04-26T13:00:14Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Degrees are overrated, IMO. Amen! (And this is from a college per’fesser) I have a BS in Biology, but I was a counselor and a youth pastor and have been a Creative Director at a couple of ad agencies. NONE of which cared what my degree was in. I teach Graphic Design now, and tell my students that their scrap of sheepskin won’t get them a job. Their creativity and job skills and work ethic will. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/22 "2017-04-26T13:04:19Z")
B.A. in the Natural Sciences (emphasis in chemistry, especially organic, along with molecular cell biology, with some astrophysics thrown in for the hell of it). M.D. in, well, medical doctoring stuff ---
**Author:** ![SpeedwayRyan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@SpeedwayRyan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpeedwayRyan)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/23 "2017-04-26T13:13:52Z")
Bachelor of Architecture (B. Arch). Haven’t worked a day in the field except for my internship during school, though…all of my professional experience has been graphic designer/art director/etc. Fairly common for architecture grads to end up in other creative fields, though. Architecture school – although difficult – is a good way to learn how to be a designer, and you can take that where you want. ---
**Author:** ![Theodore\_Striker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@Theodore\_Striker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Theodore_Striker)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/24 "2017-04-26T13:25:51Z")
BA in HR Management, MA in Organizational Management, and a couple of industry certs in HR. I could have obtained the same functional knowledge just studying for the certifications, but the papers open a lot more doors than being without them. The most valuable thing I learned in college was how to think critically and look at things from a more circumspect vantage point. I’ve thought about going back and getting my MFA, then progressing on to a doctoral program in Literature so I could teach it at the college level, or getting my PhD in one of the Management fields in order to teach that. Frankly, the day to day mundaneness of HR Management is soul sucking, and often is adult babysitting. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/25 "2017-04-26T13:40:12Z")
Nothing. Grew up in an era when phony degrees were not necessary and you learn on the job in weeks instead of years. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/26 "2017-04-26T13:48:46Z")
A.A. in Liberal Arts, AAS in Nursing, BSN in Nursing. And believe me, you could do it if you wanted to. It’s really not that hard, nor that impressive. It’s mostly just expensive and a waste of time. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/27 "2017-04-26T13:51:02Z")
Bachelor of Fine Arts ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/28 "2017-04-26T13:52:05Z")
My wife and I both have degrees in journalism; like many others with journalism degrees, we haven’t worked as journalists since the mid-90s. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/29 "2017-04-26T13:52:29Z")
A BS in Telecommunications (TV and Radio…not telephones and such like everyone thinks). Once that took me nowhere I got a M.A. in Public Relations. It’s not as impressive as saying I have it, but I was a (HORRIBLE) math class away from having a dual master’s in PR and Journalism. I was a third of the way through the math class before I was told I would have to re-apply to the journalism school, be accepted and go through a couple more hoops to get the other Master’s. It wasn’t worth it to me, so I dropped the class, took my degree and went home. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/30 "2017-04-26T13:54:11Z")
> [@Theodore\_Striker](#): > > I’ve thought about going back and getting my MFA, then progressing on to a doctoral program in Literature so I could teach it at the college level, or getting my PhD in one of the Management fields in order to teach that. Frankly, the day to day mundaneness of HR Management is soul sucking, and often is adult babysitting. I can imagine that HR is soul-sucking. A lot of business is soul-sucking and HR must get the vacuum from both sides. Teaching Lit at college is really hard to break into, and the pay is, um, astonishingly low until you actually get tenure track. I do think you might be onto something with the other option. Something to investigate. More avenues to pursue, more jobs out there (training is needed in many fields, so it needn’t just be academia.) I’d encourage you to check it out. Soul-sucking is bad. (You’ve got a lot on your plate right now - maybe researching this and making plans could be a way for you to have a little me time.) ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/31 "2017-04-26T14:02:20Z")
BA in music theory & composition. But I have worked as a Senior Engineer in the IT hardware/software field, so go figure. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/32 "2017-04-26T14:04:25Z")
Bachelor of Science (BSc Hons) ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/33 "2017-04-26T14:12:23Z")
BA in English. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/34 "2017-04-26T14:27:07Z")
BA in English lit, BS in biology, MA in linguistics, PhD in linguistics, graduate certificate in NLP. ---
**Author:** ![dirty\_hippie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/57b2e6/32.png) [@dirty\_hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirty_hippie)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/35 "2017-04-26T14:31:45Z")
BA in English, MA in English (literature), MLIS (that’s a library science degree). I was and still am to some degree an idealist and hopeless romantic, hence the first two degrees in literature. I apologize if none of my posts reflect how educated I am… 😛 everything I’ve learned and all my high standards fall by the wayside when I’m online. Sent from my C6916 using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/36 "2017-04-26T14:46:37Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > Nothing. Grew up in an era when phony degrees were not necessary and you learn on the job in weeks instead of years. The phony ones are still unnecessary. Nice threadshit, sunshine. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/37 "2017-04-26T14:54:18Z")
Started a Natural Science Area Major BA, but burned out late in the game… and spent 16 years in the workforce before eventually getting myself a BA in Liberal Arts just so it would be behind me AND it would be something so utterly generic that it’s pointless to say I’m “not working in it”. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/38 "2017-04-26T15:08:43Z")
I have an AAS with no specialty, because they weren’t allowed, but heavy on microbiology and chemistry. I have a Diploma in Brewing from the Institute of Brewing and Distilling in London, UK which allows me to use the post nominal “Dipl. Brew” (but I don’t, especially since I’m not in the industry anymore) I have a BA with a double major in Leadership Development and Business, minor in Public Administration, which I finally completed at age 40. It was mostly online and I chose the majors based on how quickly I could obtain a degree. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/39 "2017-04-26T15:10:56Z")
Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in Management Information Systems. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2017, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268/40 "2017-04-26T15:12:36Z")
BS in biochemistry. I decided grad school wasn’t for me. I lack the intellect and work ethic for a PhD (plus many fields are over saturated) but I considered grad work in neuroscience or molecular biology. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-have-a-degree-in/785268.md?page=3)