Is a liberal arts degree even worth the effort?
I have a choice to either get an associates in science or liberal arts. Ultimately I want to get into the field of art conservation.
All kidding aside (since you hear so many cracks on liberal arts) what real value is there in having a degree in Liberal Arts?
The few, the proud, the unemployed!
No, just kidding. It’s what a roommate of mine used to say. The short answer is, yes. A liberal arts degree shows that you are a well rounded person, capable of learning and communicating that knowledge. Not everyone is meant to be an engineer. How boring would that make the world!
any education is “worth the effort”. talk to your counselor about your concerns.
Art conservation? Is that like preserving and restoring artwork from corrosion? You might actually get a B.S. for that which might look better on a resume than a B.A.
A degree in anything is better than a degree in nothing. Unfortunately, an associates degree is not worth a whole lot in the job market…no matter what field you are in. Academic inflation is taking its course and hence the lowly associates degree is generally considered a stepping stone towards a higher degree…not a job.
My advice would be to get your associates in anything you want, then transfer to a 4-year to earn a bachelors specializing in the field that really interests you.
Hi Cat,
Regards.
Years ago public schools provided tracks for high school students. The college track required higher level math & science, a foreign language, four years of English, and a variety of other courses designed to prepare students for college. The kids who didn’t aspire to college took vocational/technical courses like shop, office machines like typing.. [I said it was a long time ago, didn't I?], home economics [for the girls.. yep, a LONG time ago], etc. Colleges followed a similar pattern, except the vocational track included nursing, teaching, and various applied sciences. The liberal arts were designed for those who didn’t really need a credential to get a job. They came from wealthy families who looked down on applied areas like business, engineering, and medicine. A life of genteel leisure for those who were to the manor born required studying precisely those things which had no immediate practical value. A degree in philosophy was often cited as a degree that teaches you how to live without the job it prevents you from getting. One can think of a college degree as a kind of union card which provides entry into the world of work or a badge of upper class status. In the past few decades we’ve tried to combine these two functions by requiring general education requirements and upper division courses for a major with some practical value. Some have argued that we’ve thereby failed to accomplish either objective. It’s also been said that if one has to ask the value of a degree in liberal arts they wouldn’t understand.
HORATIO: Is it a custom?
HAMLET: Ay, marry, is’t:
But to my mind, though I am native here
And to the manner born, it is a custom
More honour’d in the breach than the observance.