This article is unfair to STEM Majors, quite frankly. The bias is evident and the bias is strong. Not to bash this too heavily, but the article is pointless. STEM Majors make notably more money than liberal arts majors for 20 years out of college. For women, it’s even longer. Liberal Arts majors who go back to school for law degrees or any other advanced degrees will accumulate more debt than STEM Majors. In short, any bonus earnings Liberal Arts Majors make in the 25 years from the time they turn 40 to the time they retire at 65 are irrelevant.
@Jacob Jarrett I completely agree with you. The term “catching up” has zero significance if social sciences/literature related professionals take 15 more years to get to the same financial spot as those in STEM related professions. Taking debt into account is also a valid point, considering Liberal Arts majors normally go back to graduate school to create more financial security.
As upperclassmen begin to explore their career interests, they often overlook the aspect of long-lasting satisfaction from their career choice and focus on the prosperity. This article focuses on the differences between STEM careers and English Majors to better understand the advantages and disadvantages of choosing a career from those areas. Students have this preconception that English majors cannot sustain themselves in their financial needs in the long run. However this article shows that, when compared to STEM careers, English majors outcompete the prosperity of STEM-related careers by age 40 (amongst males). While STEM careers provide an initial boost to one’s career, English majors gain momentum throughout the years, eventually passing the average salary of STEM-related careers, as shown in the article. While Deming in no way discourages those who long to be involved in a STEM-related career, he emphasizes the importance of choosing a career that fulfills one’s ideals, despite the common uncertainty of choosing an English major.
Going into college, we must not only think of what we want to be doing for the rest of our lives, but also, how passionate we are of what we want to major in. Looking at STEM careers versus non-STEM career paths, it’s been found that by the age 40, both fields average salary reaches about the same range of numbers. This is because majors in social sciences and history help in acquiring high paying jobs in management, business, and law, which are equivalent to STEM career salaries. Since STEM jobs require workers to learn new skills every decade or so, they are ever changing, resulting in an environment where older generations are forced to learn new skills and dismiss about some of the older techniques. However non-STEM careers paths tend to lean towards keeping the skills learned from colleges. Careers in law for example require majors in political science and sociology, where analytical and logical reasoning and oral communication skills are used consistently and are never considered out of style or irrelevant.
Stem is the studies of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. People who are studying these subjects or have majored in these subjects, their salary slowly decreases as time goes on. Eventually people with other majors will catch up or even pass them, this is because of two main reasons. One reason is because as time goes on, technology improves and continues making advancements. So as you grow older and you have a job in one of these fields, you have to learn the ways of the new technology while other younger students or employees have already mastered said techniques, giving them more value in the company. Another reason are the skills liberal arts majors inherit. Liberal arts majors gain skills like problem solving and critical thinking. These skills are very important, although one may start off slow for these skills aren’t the best for high paying jobs right away, as time goes on the career path you may take expands. This gives you more job opportunities with higher pay, eventually catching up to STEM majors.
STEM is a growing focus that emphasizes the studies of science, technology, engineering, and math as those are believed to be the lifelines of the future. Revolutions and techniques in the sciences and math seem to always be changing while history and English change in material, but not so much on technique. One of the reasons there is a gap between STEM professions and the social sciences is the education and training that comes before entering the workforce. While an engineer, for example, is learning necessary skills for their profession, they might learn things such as shortcuts that would make the progress of a project faster or other skills that rely on what has already been developed or practiced. In contrast, social science majors, such as aspiring psychologists, learn about past studies and how they affected people then and now. Experience plays just as big of a role in the diminishing wage gap as time goes on. As an engineer gains experience, there are more inventive techniques and there is eventually a new wave of young professionals who know all of the ins and outs of the developing industry. In the case of a psychologist gaining experience, they have gotten to work with client and they have gotten to see things they learned in a classroom in the real world. Experienced psychologists have more background knowledge that is applicable to many situations that they might encounter in their day to day life.
The college course catalogs are a prime example of the continued phasing out skills that are no longer needed. Skills are a must have to make in today’s corporate world were never even thought to exist in the first place a decade ago. This perfectly ties with STEM and graduates eventually attaining the same salary by the time they reach 40. By the time STEM majors graduate, it will have been four years since they last saw what companies were looking for, and due to our very fast and expanding technology based society, a lot can happen within fours years. Once they land a job, it’ll only be a year before the newest graduates will already have had more knowledge and experience than they had, and they will get stuck into one salary and stay there for a bit because they don’t have more experience than the graduates that came after them. They will sprint to the top and stay there, only ever growing out of chance. English majors on the other hand, focus on skills that are constant throughout life and will never get phased out. Problem solving, communication skills and others are something that employers are always looking for, all the time. So by the time they graduate, will have the knowledge to gradually succeed and keep climbing steadily until they reach the STEM majors.
Since new sets of skills are constantly required for STEM careers, they can be very difficult to keep up with, even if they start out with a vastly higher pay. As seen in constantly new college catalogues, STEM professions’ set of skills become obsolete quickly due to new technology being introduced throughout each year. Liberal arts professions, while still demanding and difficult, maintain many of the same sets of skills and talents over long periods of time, making it a less competitive career path that can be more smooth and straightforward, since new techniques are not necessary nearly as often. In the fields of sciences and mathematics, men and women’s starting pay rates were drastically different, where men made as much as double their original salary in a STEM field. Although women on average made less than their male counterparts, women in STEM careers still made more than the women in liberal arts, reflecting the same growth in career as men, while still not as high of a salary. While salary is a large part of the deciding factor when it comes to career paths, one should be able to choose what career they enjoy, rather than what garners the most income. Though this idea is simple and ideal, many are not able to decide what profession they enjoy, relying on what career makes the most money rather than what makes them enjoy their work. While some people may enjoy liberal arts careers more, they may gravitate towards STEM professions in order to have a higher income.
College course catalogs included in STEM fields become evidence that some types of knowledge and skills become out of date because of the change included in the catalogs. This change makes it very hard for the older people to adapt to what is being taught to the younger people, that they have to compete with. Some of the jobs that may pay more require skills included in the newer course catalogs that weren’t included in the catalogs that older people experienced. This dims the advantage that the older people have because they aren’t considered fully educated in the newer professions that offer more money. For example, the Stanford computer science department, CS229, was offered in 2003 with 68 students, which means the jobs needing these skills during the time weren’t popular, so people may not have felt the need to take it. Now, the course includes more than a thousand students, which shows the difference in the demand of skills.
STEM has a wide variety of career choices, most of which are greatly influenced by technology which is always changing. In school, they teach how current technologies work and not how they might work in the future, this means that once one is in the career they will require new training which may set them back. This allows time for social science and history majors to catch up in their careers financially. Although STEM-based careers are more financially reliable in terms of a first job which the technologies one is familiar with, once things change they will be slowed down. This isn’t necessarily discouraging people from taking STEM careers and it is no way a competition between the majors, but if one were debating between the two looking for a career that keeps them financially stable they will find that generally both careers have an equal growth of revenue. Ultimately, it’s all a matter of interest.
The general consensus is that if you want a job right out of college, and one that will pay you well, then a STEM major is best. Now this is true, but only to some extent. Because of the ever changing world we live in, our technology is also ever changing. Skills learned in a STEM major will only last you so long. By majoring in the liberal arts, you receive the essential skills that are sought out in the workplace. Majoring in the liberal arts gives students skills like problem solving, team work, and leadership. Skills that have been required in the work place for ages and will be required for many years to come. These skills will always be present, so come 2028, these skills will be more beneficial to you than those learned a decade ago in a STEM course that are now irrelevant. A more lasting experience is received from a major in the liberal arts that develops the critical skills we use everywhere.
In addressing Question 5, the three skills or attributes, according to the article, that employers considered most important in 2018 were “written communication, problem solving, and the ability to work in a team”. I feel that in both 2008 and 2028 the list would not change. I say this because I believe that written communication, problem solving, and the ability to work in a team are timeless skills needed by everyone in order to succeed. No matter how much technology advances these skills will still be the basis of all careers. Jobs and career paths will change with new technology coming out—and also with the needs of society always changing—but these basic skills will not.
STEM is a category of careers, and the acronym stands for: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Technology is always changing, demanding new skills for new innovations decade after decade. Learning new things for these careers will always be mandatory, but careers in liberal arts usually never change, and this is why English majors endure. Their careers are about something that never changes, but STEM is always innovating, making it hard to keep up. If their career becomes obsolete, they’ll have to learn something new which will take a long time. STEM careers start with higher salaries than English majors, but English majors will catch up in the long run. As said in the article, “The result is slower salary growth and high exit rates from the STEM work force,” (Deming), Engineers and other workers in the fields of STEM will have high exit rates but will not be earning money forever.
As someone who has forever hoped to minor or possibly major in liberal arts, David Deming brings up important ideas that aren’t always thought about. The point of characteristic building is equally as important as skill learning. Although student debt and future bills need to be paid, your college major should truly be something you find interest in. STEM occupations are so rapidly changing, ultimately making it difficult to keep up and adapt. On the other hand, Deming is able to still encourage STEM jobs, while bringing up the positives to choices you may have not considered. Your education now is preparing you for your next 45 years of working, learning technology for today’s world will be outdated in no time. Deming is in no way crushing your engineer dreams, but instead makes you think about other successful opportunities in the long run.
Being the two most common fields in employment, STEM and liberal arts would seem ideal for comparison, and while they do make up the majority of life-long adult occupations, they are very different fields. The basics of liberal arts, whether it be history, literature, law, economics, etc., have remained fairly static, for decades, it seems. History does not change on a whim, Law is very concrete, the same principles can be applied throughout economics; they are subjects which a set amount of knowledge will sustain one’s career for much longer than those of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). That is because STEM is primarily based around modern technology and science. Unlike much of the liberal arts, these factors change and evolve frequently, causing “many of the latest technical skills that are in high demand today [to] become obsolete when technology progresses” (Deming). This makes it difficult for someone of middle age to continue to fuel their career off of the knowledge they learned decades ago. Despite getting a head start in high-paying jobs, of great importance, STEM builds on itself, growing more complex, and evolving to new stages. In sharp contrast, liberal arts can (and will) likely support one’s life-long career. It is this fact that makes comparison between these two subjects null.
The main reason that the gap between jobs salaries from STEM majors and liberal art majors is the value of the skills the students acquire before joining the workplace. While STEM majors may start out with higher salaries they are also forced to quickly adapt as technology starts changing, liberal arts majors learn skills that instead help them become a more developed individual which is why the salary gap tends to close. The three skills mentioned were communication, problem-solving, and collaboration. This list is different from the past because now employers are looking for employees that are more developed instead of ones that are trained only for that type of job. Future employers may look for employees that have STEM background and liberal arts background. Employers always want the best employees they can get.
As a highschool student, I am soon going to be faced with what seems like the biggest decision I will ever make. Where will I go to college, and what am I going to study? Throughout my life I’ve moved from aspiration to aspiration. At one point wanting to be an architect, and then moving away from that to now pushing towards a degree in mathematics, potential attending a liberal arts school and studying business or finance in graduate school. In modern society a college education is simply a necessity. Engineering has always been an option I have considered with my interest is math and science. However, the article stated, “Between the ages of 25 and 40, the share of STEM majors working in STEM jobs falls from 65 percent to 48 percent,” and this truly does make sense. Liberal Arts degrees develop students as people, giving them greater all around skills that are more applicable in high positions. This shed light on to where I could potentially wish to lead my life, and opens the door to great possibilities for college.
@Duncan Knopf Very splendid writing!
College major. A word many seniors hear and they panic. Having to choose a major in college not only adds stress to your college decision, but it adds stress to your future because you are deciding what you want to do for the rest of your life. Many people in this day and age are now choosing their major based off of how much money they’ll make in the future, not what lessons the major has to offer. In the article “ In the Salary Race, Engineers Sprint but English Majors Endure” by Shannon Doyne, the author talks about how many college students are now choosing to major in STEM careers because they believe that they’ll make more money in science and math related careers as opposed to history or English majors. However, in her article Doyne proves that in the future STEM careers and English careers end up making the same money, but English majors seem to learn more valuable lessons throughout their career. While STEM does provide extremely valuable lessons, Doyne seems to favor English careers and she is trying to stand up for that specific career field. Overall in her article, without denouncing the importance of STEM careers, Doyne expresses the importance English careers have, how in the future they’ll have the same benefits as stem careers, and encourages those to pursue what they want to in college based off of passion, not money.
STEM is is the general area of study that involves Scientific fields, Technological fields, Engineering fields, and Mathematical fields of work. There are two reasons why by age 40, the salaries of people who majored in fields such as political science or history catch up with their peers who majored in STEM in regards to salaries. The first reason is that people in STEM fields are in fields that are constantly evolving, thus the skills one learns in universities when one is in their 20’s will surely become outdated by the time they are in their 40’s. Thus it is difficult for them to maintain such a large growing income rate. The second reason is that liberal arts majors are more likely to enter management and business occupations than those who majored in STEM which have the highest midcareer salaries. Despite these trends, either path is still an excellent choice.
While Deming brings up good evidence to support his claim that liberal arts degrees should not be overlooked when seeking wealth, there is a factor in determining a major that is not focused on enough in the article: risk versus reliability. STEM careers offer a much more reliable start for students fresh out of college, whereas it could take many more years to get a full use of a liberal arts degree. Since a STEM career can provide a reliable income, any technological changes over time can be dealt with through continuation in learning. However if someone were to pursue a degree in STEM purely based on reliability, then they would be making a mistake. It is still much more effective to study something one enjoys — or better yet, is passionate about — then it is to study something one finds boring or tedious. Those possibly interested in pursuing liberal arts majors should realize that fact, so that they do not end up studying STEM out of fear.
I personally believe that your college major should be something your interested in, not what is going to make you the most money. Everyone knows that money can’t buy happiness, so why be stuck in a career you’re unhappy in, even if it pays a lot. I think the trends found in this article are great for those who aren’t particularly interested in science or math. This article shows the history or English kid that they too will make money in their career, and that not just STEM people do. I believe that these studies open up more options for people going into college, or those declaring their major, as money no longer has to be a part of it. Before these students knew that liberal arts salaries caught they might have been more likely to choose something they were only moderately interested in that pays more initially. However, now they can see the money that comes with choosing something they are truly passionate about.
I think STEM careers that the article talks about, science and math related, are good choices to major. This is especially because of the good salary you are known to get with the job. Even though the author explains that people with jobs in the liberal arts are going to be getting the same amount of money or more in the future, I disagree. I believe that science or STEM careers, will always be of more important, therefore receiving the most money. This is because there will always be a need for more doctors, scientists, engineers etc. to continue to improve life.
Today in our current society a lot of people tend to lean towards a STEM career, this is usually because once they are out of college they believe they will make a good amount of money. Although English majors may seem like no competition against STEM careers and the amount of people that take them, English majors are capable of teaching you skills that a STEM career could not or rather could not do as well. Some of these skills consist of the capability of having a relationship with other people and being able to relate to them and feel connected to them. These skills often lead to a happier more successful life, rather than STEM careers which are consistently changing and people have to continue to keep up with the changes.
I can clearly see both sides of the argument, as my mom has her English masters degree, while my dad has a master's degree and career that largely focuses on the technology part of STEM.While both job areas have proven to be very beneficial in creating new life skills for both of them, on the money side my dad has, and is still making more than double what my mom does despite what the article says, even though they have the amount of education. In my point of view the tasks both use on a day to day basis and very different, as my mom majorly uses social,and little bits of other skills on personal basis and with small groups of others, while my dad focuses upon his personal, and company wide informational and technological aspects, making the 2 two jobs very hard to compare. Dependent on what a person is looking for causes each area to look more or less attractive. Do they wanted to focus on corporate and even worldwide influence or more personal and small group influence? Therefore, neither job or degree is “better” but either can be more beneficial for a person based on what interests them most.
Since the future of jobs are constantly changing, it is important for students to learn many skills before entering the workforce. High school is designed to prepare students for college, and then college is designed to prepare them for the workforce in the real world. Throughout high school students are encouraged to find subjects that interest them in hopes of the students majoring in that subject in college, which then leads to them obtaining a career in that field. When high school students are deciding on what to major in, salary often is a big factor . It is quite common that most people today believe that a STEM major will take you farther than an English major both academically and financially, but it has been proven that English majors are very successful too. If one decides to pursue a STEM career, the article claims that employees must “learn new skills to keep up”. Even though one may think this is specific to only a STEM career, I believe that any career in the workforce today must have that ability because the world is rapidly changing and every worker can contribute great things to the workforce.
In our society, people tend to favor majors that will allow them to get a job that pays better than others. STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) majors are conventionally known as the ones that provide the best prospects for high-paying jobs. However, according to David Deming, the aforementioned might be initially true, but by age 40, those who major in liberal arts economically catch up to the STEM majors. Deming emphasizes two reasons for this: the latter learn technical skills that become obsolete as technology advances, causing competition with younger graduates; and liberal arts teach “soft skills”—such as adaptability and critical thinking—that are valuable in the long-run. While I do believe that certain majors teach skills that are more likely to provide economic success in a long-term situation, I think it would be more beneficial if colleges focused on incorporating some of the “soft skills” into their curriculum in order to teach students how to adapt to technological progress and to better prepare students for the changing tides of the workforce.
I believe that a liberal arts education is very important, despite majoring in a STEM field. Liberal arts classes allow learners to become well-rounded thinkers. I am planning on going into a career-oriented major, but I still want to take general education classes. This way, I can improve my skills and get more knowledge in other areas. While I think STEM majors are great, I think that all students should be required to have a partial liberal arts education. Liberal arts will prepare you for a surplus of careers and opportunities while a STEM-based curriculum will limit you to only one career.
I think that your college major should be something you're interested in because it is going to be something that controls your career in the future. Going to school for something that isn't of interest to you has never made sense to me. I understand that people pick their majors based on the salaries that they want for themselves in the future, however I don't see how you could spend that much time and money earning a degree in something that you don't even like. That being said, whether you are a liberal arts or STEM major should depend on what you are passionate about because you can find success in your career when you are doing something that you enjoy. There are specific benefits to both but I think in any college education you will be learning the skills crucial for your future, and that you don't necessarily need to pursue a liberal arts major to do so.
@Anna P. I completely agree with you. People should go to college to pursue something they are truly passionate about, not just what will get them the most money. After all, they will most likely be working in the field they chose for the rest of their lives, so I don’t see why someone would spend tons of money on a degree that doesn’t even interest them. As far as the debate on whether STEM or liberal arts majors are more beneficial, I believe both have their pros and cons. Although I do think it is very important for people to have communication, problem-solving and social skills, it shouldn’t be the ultimate decision factor in choosing your career path for the future.
As I read through this article it seemed like Mr. Deming was very confident that the Liberal Arts education was better long run. As someone who is seeking a Liberal Arts education this is something I'd want to here. However looking at the responses from others who have taken the STEM program there is a lot more to take into account.
When someone graduates with a Liberal Arts degree I typically feel like they have plans to go back for more schooling, which means more debt. While this is occuring STEM majors are already in the field making money. Also there is nothing that teaches problem solving like STEM programs. As I did a little more research I found one thing in particular that was very interesting that the article didn't touch on. H1b visas allow STEM major's from other countries to come to the U.S. in search of work, and they typically work for a lower salary than U.S. graduates. The STEM field is constantly changing with new jobs being created every decade that no one thought would exist. If you are passionate with what you want to do with your life in the STEM field I would say go for it. However, in terms of job security that a Liberal Arts education is more effective and flexible. It seems like later in a STEM majors career they are more expendable and easily replaced by newer engineers that are studying the new forms of engineering.
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While I do believe the annual income down the road (40's +) carries importance, I don't know if it's worth the lower salary's that English majors typically have till age 40. Here's what I mean by that. The average American retires at age 65. From the end of college till age 40, we're talking about around 20 years of employment. From age 40 to 65, these expected differences will take place. If one major makes 20,000 more than the other for 20 years before flip-flopping for around 25 years, how significant are those numbers? Don't they end up crossing each other out? Conclusively, the article uses the average compensation males make in their respective majors. This is a flawed statistic because there is a reasonable margin in terms of the average % of males who major in English and the average % of males who major in Engineering and that carries value.
Certainly, living in a world that is always looking to advance technology people are going to have to adapt and learn new skills. And maybe going into liberal arts saves people from having to experience the harsh changes that will undoubtedly happen in the future, allowing them more job opportunities and better salaries. However, I didn't like how the article made it seem as though people getting more technical majors won't be capable of adapting to the new expectations that they will face in the future. I also disagree about how this article assumes people who go into engineering lack other skills like communication and the ability to write. Overall, I believe that it shouldn't matter what people decide to do and what their paychecks look like, as long as they are passionate in their work, let them be happy with it. It doesn't always have to be about money.
@Kara F. I completely agree with you on how the author almost made it seem as if adapting to constant new changes occurring in the stem field are completely unattainable. Sure, the stem field is a field that will forever be evolving, but if we allow those “unapproachable” changes to ward us off then of course more people would consider different degrees—like liberal arts. I think that the part of the stem industry that makes students so intrigued is the fact that they don’t know what to expect. Furthermore, the author makes a claim that those who major in liberal arts will financially be even with those in the stem industry in 40 years. When choosing a degree, I think you should choose what your passionate about and allow that to guide you in your career, not an economic statistic that could very likely change. However, ultimately when choosing a career path making sure you are confident and passionate should hold higher importance than the earnings you make because in the long run as long as your passionate, you will most likely be able to handle change.
I don't think that it's that fair to compare a Liberal Arts education and a STEM education. The article touched on the higher salary often made by those who enter a STEM field, but in my opinion, that doesn't matter. Why should there be any comparison among what each individual wishes to pursue in life? If someone wants to explore concepts that don't fit a job description, that's their call. This article shouldn't be defending one side or the other as every person has the capability to learn the skills of the other side. Each human can be successful, regardless if they're the highest-paid neuroscientist or not. I don't think that it's that fair to compare a Liberal Arts education and a STEM education. The article touched on the higher salary often made by those who enter a STEM field, but in my opinion,that doesn't matter. Why should there be any comparison among what each individual wishes to pursue in life. If someone wants to explore concepts that don't fit a job description, that's their call. This article shouldn't be defending one side or the other as every person has the capability to learn the skills of the other side. Each human can be successful, regardless if they're the highest paid neuroscientist or not.
I've never really felt strongly opposed to certain conflicts or opinions. However, this article made me really mad. I find it quite crazy that people who receive a liberal arts major are the ones that think they're the only ones who receive the "soft" skills. Whether it be a business job, computer science job, or engineering job, these fields of study have the opportunity to cooperate just as much with peers and to obtain the "soft" skills. It seems that there is this unwritten sense of power that people who come from a liberal arts background tend to have and always feel more 'right'. It's all preference. We need computer science jobs just as much as we need historians. I don't need to be worried about what is right or what's wrong as I enter college. I'm passionate about what I want to be passionate about.
People should follow an interest so that once they get a job, they are happy there. Yes, money should be a factor but not the only factor. Students should major in what they are genuinely curious about and not whatever their parents told them will make them the most money. Liberal Arts students tend to be more interested in human communications and often times have pretty good social skills. Employers value communication skills more than intelligence and that's why Liberal Arts students get hired by companies that require social interaction. I've had teachers and other students tell me that the best way to make a living in America is to have a STEM based job but what if I'm not happy at that job. I'd rather get paid less but love what I do than have a huge bank account but dread going into work every day.
Everyone has an opinion about college. There is no other way around it. They will tell you what to write your essay about, what major you should be and which schools to apply to. They will definitely tell you their opinion and encourage you to follow it. You should not listen to them. If you are interested in STEM, be interested in STEM. Don't worry about the statistics or individuals' opinions. The student should be excited and dedicated to their major. As long as the student knows what career they want to be apart of, they will be ok. Money is not everything in life and this is a valuable lesson students need to learn.
I am personally planning on going into an major for Computer Science and I am excited to hear about all the job opportunities and the amount of pay for those types of jobs. Additionally I have heard the rumors of liberal arts degrees not having any money in them and I hope that this article is able to dispel the notion of a deficit in money when it comes to certain fields of study. Since it has become clear the type of salaries each type of profession is able to gain I believe that people should be allowed to choose as they would like, and many of the choices others make does not affect you as a person and we should be able to recognize that and only support those who choose to go different paths especially if it seems like the less fruitful way to go.
This is very interesting, but I feel as though money shouldn't define what career one wishes to enter. Both starting salaries are good and after time they both improve, so I think that one should choose what they like to do rather than what gets them more money, especially when they are so similar. Also, according to Deming he thinks only liberal arts provide the learning of “...‘soft skills’ like problem-solving, critical thinking and adaptivity”. In my opinion, one can learn these skills through any major they take in college.
Many salaries are not based upon the importance of a job, but rather the relevance. On the subject of STEM jobs versus liberal arts based jobs, those working in STEM get paid well, but their liberal arts counterparts do catch up eventually. Looking at two specific jobs in each of these categories, the discussion of engineers and authors, or english majors in general, does get brought up. Engineers are incredibly hardworking and typically perform a lot of physical labor while authors write. Now that is not all that authors do, however it is the basis of their job as a professional writer. In a typical scenario, the engineer should get a much better start in their job life than the author, however, in about 10-20 years, that author could write one best-selling book and make ten times the amount that the engineer does. Now, neither of these jobs are more important than the other (at least it’s impossible to gauge the importance of a job) but on a surface level, it would be an okay assumption to make that the engineer’s products are being used much more often (and for more practical use) than the author’s book. Therefore, the surface level importance of a job does not really seem to have a great impact on the pay that the workers in each field receive, and this is especially evident when used in the STEM versus liberal arts scenario.
I disagree with many of the assumptions made in the article mainly that an engineering or computer science major doesn't provide critical thinking skills. Engineering is a field dedicated almost entirely to problem-solving, and computer science is very similar. I think a lot could be explained by skill obsolesce or the fact that the data is from people who graduated in these fields 20 years ago, before computer science was as lucrative.
I think both are Important for an advancing society. The stem for most kids growing up in the US are shown to be higher paying. So for them to naturally want to go into liberal arts there may be a stigma. However, all of the skills that he talked about can be gained through any area of study.
Living in an area where a common way to decide a major is the idea that it will lead to a high paying career I found the article very interesting, I will be following a more liberal arch approach when choosing my major. I would love to become an Elementary educator, and with some of my schools asking me to double major English is a high possibility for me. I felt as if the writer of the article was more bias, he made bold remarks about how different majors are set up and blanket statements on how someone coming from each major would lack or benefit. Stating that a liberal arts major will form soft skills that a STEM would not is ridiculous, just because someone is building on their passions, even if they are more science or math based, does not mean that they will automatically lack skills. Reading other comments its obvious both sides of the spectrum (Liberal arts vs. STEM) have issues with the remarks being made by the writer.
The problem with careers in STEM is that after about ten years a significant amount of the information that was given to you in college is outdated which means that new skills have to be learned out of school and by yourself which can become a problem. People fresh out of college have learned this new and more relevant knowledge in college giving them a deeper knowledge and higher skill set meaning that these older STEM majors either have to get with the times or they end up getting overtaken by the new people. This can be a vicious cycle and one might wonder if there is a career path that doesn’t require always having to update and learn new information. This solution could come with the liberal arts. Getting an education in English or philosophy may seem like a foolish thing to do, but as we see in the article liberal arts majors make the same or even more than STEM majors. Liberal arts may start off slow as an editor or publicist may take some time to kick off, but as these people endure the slow pace of the career paths they’ve chosen, their salaries gradually catch up to the STEM career paths. This really shows that you shouldn’t get an education because the money in it is good at that moment in time, but rather get an education in something you are truly passionate in because it seems to all even out in the end.
David Deming concludes that STEM majors salary may seem best at first, but liberal arts majors tend to make more money in the long run. Also, according to Deming he thinks only liberal arts provide the learning of “...‘soft skills’ like problem-solving, critical thinking and adaptivity”. In my opinion, one can learn these skills through any major they take in college. Let alone, I know that I have already learned a portion of these skills through high school. It is important to note that one can be just as successful in one major as another. I believe that the success that comes in ones future is not plainly the college major chosen but also the hard work that comes out of it. I think whatever major chosen can teach the skills needed for ones future as long as their interested in the subject and want to get out everything that can be taken from the class. Therefore, it does not matter what major is chosen as long as it is something that will be given a lot of passion and dedication.
Throughout the world today, many future college kids show interest in picking the best major and most successful. Though STEM majors seem to make more money in the beginning, the article explains how later on STEM jobs aren’t the best. The author learned that “workers must constantly learn new skills to keep up”(Deming) and because of this “new technical skills are always in high demand, young college graduates who have them earn a short-run salary premium”(Deming). That’s why it seems more reasonable to instead choose a career that fits you better in the long run than short term and that’s why STEM is not the way to go. Instead, the author suggests how science and social studies careers do better and change is very minimum. However, overall colleges should be more fit and adapting to the new careers so their students can succeed for longer periods of time.
As the future of jobs continues to change, it is important that students have a variety of skills before entering the workforce. College is designed to prepare students for a job that they would be interested in, they choose classes and majors based on what they find fascinating. When choosing a career path they are interested in, students look at what their salary would be in that job and choose majors accordingly. However, employers are looking for people who are well rounded, good problem solvers, and are able to adapt to different situations. The article claims that “STEM jobs change rapidly” (Deming) and that employees need to “learn new skills to keep up” (Deming). I believe this is true, however if STEM majors also take classes that develop leadership and critical thinking skills they will be able to adapt to these changes. While it is true that new skills will be needed in the future to do a lot of these STEM centered jobs, these experienced workers will be able to adjust to these changes if they didn’t just learn technical skills in college but also obtained minors in other subjects or just took other classes they had an interest in. Companies will always look for people who stand out compared to the other applicators and who have more of a variety of skills. When going into any carrier, STEM related or not, it is extremely valuable to take courses that build critical thinking and problem solving skills in order to be able to adapt to changes in the workforce
I really appreciate what the liberal arts provide for us as a whole, even though I tend to lean towards STEM and what it has to offer- in the college perspective. The English majors teach you critical skills that you need in almost all jobs like problem solving and critical thinking, it also never hurts to become a better reader and writer. A lot of people nowadays want as much money straight out of college so they can pay off their student debt the quickest. However, in the long run you will most likely end up making more money if you take a liberal arts major because their mid career salaries tend to be higher. It also may provide you much benefit to become a liberal arts minor even if you are going into a STEM field, just because of the critical thinking skills that it provides. Overall I love the insight into the STEM and liberal arts majors looking at the jobs they provide, and the money that comes with them.
In this article written by Shannon Doyne, it discusses the common idea that people who major in STEM related topics start ahead in their salary, but later those who focused on social science topics quickly catch up and even make more in the long run. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math, basically all aspects of learning that have to do with numbers. Although these career paths are great and provide critical thinking and math skills, social science and English careers give you skills that STEM careers generally don’t provide. These skills -known as soft skills- consists of building relationships with people being able to feel an emotional connection and more people related topics. These will often times get you much further as life is solely based on connections with people.
I understand the point the article is making but I don't think money should decide the career you want. If someone chooses a major that doesn't typically have the highest pay, then that's the decision they choose and that is what they are going to be happy doing. The major you decide guides your life down different paths and it differs from other majors and varies in things like the amount of money you will make. It's important to choose a major that you feel you can succeed in and be satisfied in. This is relevant to my life because for a few years I wanted to be a mathematics major, which falls under stem, but recently I changed my major to international studies, which falls under liberal arts.
@Zena A. I agree that money shouldn't decide the career you want. It may play a factor, but ultimately a person should choose based on their likes and interests. I am planning to go into engineering, and sure the starting salary seems like an added bonus, but I decided to pursue this because I'm more into math and science. I don't like history or english (more the reading and analyzing aspect), so liberal arts majors don't really fit with my interests. But, obviously if they do for someone else, then they should pursue that major.
I want to be a special education teacher. special education teachers are one of the most underfilled teaching positions in America. the reason for this being is because of the pay we receive for this job. in a survey done throughout a school and their special education department, about half of them said that they needed a second job to satisfy their needs in addition to the paycheck they were receiving from the school. the very interesting thing about this major though is that you will see a variety of ages throughout the classroom in the same hierarchy that the are seeing in the STEM. We will see those of older ae being aids and the younger ones being the ones taking data or in charge of the class.
As someone who has always known my whole life that my future job will be working with exotic animals I knew that science classes would be necessary. I specifically want to become a zookeeper and in order to do that I need to have taken multiple science courses throughout all my years of education. I do however have more freedom to choose which science courses I would prefer to take upon reaching college. The salary of a zookeeper isn't as high as most other jobs but it will grow in the years you work. The longer you work the more your salary increases. When presented with the question of "will I be able to make a lot of money?" I completely disregard it. When thinking of zookeeping the first thing in my head isn't the money, as it might be for others. I want to be a zookeeper for the animals and for the lives I'll be able to shape by sharing knowledge about such amazing animals. Some people feel trapped in their job after doing it for so long and only continue because it has a good salary. By becoming a zookeeper I'll be able to do what I love for the rest of my life without ever getting bored. The money is just an added bonus. Regardless of if I were to take a path leading into the world of liberal arts, I know that I don't need to compare my success to anyone. It's my future and my choice to take whichever path I desire.
Whenever I hear about STEM majors, I always think of doctors, engineers, researchers, mathmaticians, Whenever I hear about STEM majors, I always think of doctors, engineers, researchers, mathematicians. They are all innovators, all using numbers and logic to create new technology that we can use as consumers. They are often the ones that receive the most credit for our society's improvements. Because I'm a senior in high school, I often applaud those going into math, engineering, or nursing, as I find myself making the immediate thought that they are going to be more successful than I will be as a hopeful communications major. They are going to get paid more, going to get more credit for new innovations. But after reading this article, I now see that people going into liberal arts majors are those who have more of an advantage, as they learn skills that will help them get that higher salary at age 40. Whether that is communication skills, writing skills, or listening skills, these are the things that will stay with liberal arts students the most and puts the math-obsessed STEM majors at a slight disadvantage.
@Caroline L. I definitely agree with parts of what you're saying. Specifically, the part where we might have a slight advantage later on in our careers. But I don't necessarily think that just because they are going into the STEM fields that they will be more successful than someone with a career in Psychology. A lot of it depends on how said people work and strive for greatness.
I believe that learning and working in a more liberal arts way lets people adventure the world more and see how they can affect the people around them. Working and learning in a STEM way is dealing less with the world around us and I feel like majoring in something that has to do with science or math will not help us open ourselves to the world. I want to major in business which is a STEM job. I heard a lot about how people majoring in business spend a lot of their times sitting in an office. I see how people say that people with STEM jobs are winning in the salary race than people with liberal arts jobs. When I tell people I want to major in business, they go straight to telling me that business salaries are very high. The salary gap between STEM and liberal arts jobs should not be this big.
I don't think it's very logical to compare STEM jobs to Liberal Arts jobs, solely based on how fast each industry is changing. Yes, I do recognize that that is the point of why we see the mean salary in Liberal Arts jobs catch up STEM jobs, but let me explain my thought process. STEM jobs, traditionally, are based around technology, engineering, and science, and Liberal Arts majors normally apply to more personable, managerial jobs (as the article states.) However, STEM industry is changing at a much faster pace than Liberal Arts jobs are, as the only thing they change around is usually a societal occurrance, or a social norm that is changing. STEM jobs are made and designed and are advertised as fields of work that are always changing, always finding newer, better, more COST EFFECTIVE ways of doing the job, where the ladder is more likely to stay consistent in its application to life. As the ways to do a job in STEM becomes cheaper and more efficient, the lower the salary becomes, and in comparison to Liberal Arts's core values staying the same, it'll eventually catch up.
I find this article, while factual, not entirely accurate. In terms of STEM education, many students can end up in careers which although have a larger salary, can have opportunities which are more beneficial than income. Many students will gain the skills necessary to provide some sort of positive contribution to the world. For example, engineers can provide support to foreign countries by providing blueprints for bridges, irrigation systems, and other projects which can better the world. These opportunities although available to everyone, have a large effect on those who need assistance.
This article is extremely relevant to my own life as I want to go into a major which offers a large income. When deciding a career path, I want to ensure that when I leave university, I'll know that I am able to succeed. I want to have a family and to do so, you need to be financially stable. The average age of parents is 26. If you don't have a steady income which can provide for a child, then obviously a child isn't the right.
I think when choosing a major, you need to ensure that the major you pick will allow you to live the life you want to live. No one can decide this for you.
I think it is very important to have an education that will not only prepare you for your career, but for your life ahead of you in all aspects. It's important to have a major that you can build multiple careers out of if something doesn't work out. Although STEM jobs are important, especially with the expanding forms of technology today, other social science careers must be considered as well in having value. A liberal arts education will prepare you for a lifetime in any career, while a STEM job may potentially only prepare you for a few years of work. Many people go into STEM fields for the salaries, but other factors should be considered.
When I am an adult, I plan to pursue Biology or a science field. This will require college and I believe that salary affects this. Although working in a science field, you earn quite a bit of money because of research finds, it is a very rigorous course and requires lots of hard work and patience. When I think of STEM, I think of robots and science. I agree with the author that STEM majors will get there faster by age 40.
I am majoring in Strategic Communications which is within the School of Journalism at University of Missouri. When I was deciding what I wanted to major, obviously money came into play. If I were to be a doctor or go into engineering, I would make more money. However, in the long run I would not enjoy those career paths because I don't have a passion for them as much. This article helped prove that I will be more than okay in the future especially since technology is becoming more and more popular so learning skills to communicating a message to an audience through technology would be extremely helpful. I am excited to tackle the changing world of media and gain knowledge in the field of advertising.
Personally, I am majoring in finance. I am not interested in a career path relating to liberal arts, because I have always been better in mathematics and more interested in it as a result. I believe that there are many potential career paths relating to my major that I would be happy with, and I wouldn't consider making a change to a liberal arts major.
I think a liberal arts education is crucial because it will open my eyes to many different world perspectives, and also make me a well-rounded person. However, I believe that is why many colleges require their undergraduate students to take Gen Ed classes like a math class, even if they don't need it for their majors. For me, I know what I want to be when I grow up and the salary I will make is all up to me. It all depends on what type of law I will go into and if I have my own private firm or not. I think that having a liberal arts education is crucial but this article doesn't really apply to what I personally want to do. I think it makes sense that after a certain age as an engineer they don't make more money but people who are teachers make as much money because they are paid based on how long they are at a certain school, I believe. In my opinion, do what you want to do and it shouldn't' depend on how much money you make.
I thought it was interesting to see that Liberal Arts classes prove to be more successful. Wanting to major in Kinesiology, I would hope that a couple Liberal Arts classes are required. STEM classes are definitely going to be needed because as a Kinesiology major you need to know the body and how to use it correctly. I think that new technology is really going to boost the idea of Kinesiology due to the fact that the body is going to be studies in depth and even closer with new technology. STEM seems like it can help everyone. With STEM and Liberal Arts classes, I think that the future is bright. With the advancement of technology, I think that these STEM and Liberal Arts classes are only going to improve and further our knowledge.
@Matthew G. In reading your response it seems as if you don't prefer one side over the other. I find myself agreeing with most of what you had to say. I don't believe that there is one field of study that is always going to produce a higher salary than another field of study. I think that at the end of the day it comes down to the individual, if you are willing to put in the time you will see results. With that said, I believe that majoring in a field of study that you want to pursue as your professional career will definitely provide you with an advantage. I am not someone who plans on studying anything STEM related but I am deeply grateful of those who do because they are often on the frontlines of innovation and advancement.
While liberal arts majors and STEM majors entry level positions salaries’ differ, according to the article, people who are liberal arts majors catch up to their STEM counterparts by age 40. This illustrates that both sides of the majors can make enough money to live comfortably. Liberal arts majors do not really have to worry about a changing work environment because the job they do never changes. STEM majors on the other hand, have jobs where they need to be able to adapt to new technologies and new more efficient techniques of doing their job. This leaves STEM majors at a disadvantage because if they are unwilling to adapt they could fall behind and lose their jobs. On the liberal arts side there are authors. Authors can make close to no money or if they become well known, they can bring in six figures. On the STEM side there are doctors. Doctors consistently have a very high salary if they get a job right out of residency. As long as you enjoy your job the salary is fairly irrelevant. It is more important to do something that a person loves than if a person hates their job but makes a lot of money. The two majors are almost incomparable because the jobs the people receive are so different in what they actually do. Liberal arts salaries should not be compared to STEM salaries because the actual work they both do, does not correlate with the other, in turn showing that salaries are irrelevant as long as the person enjoys what they’re doing.
@Ellis Stafford, Fair point. I truly appreciate the verve you have brought to this discussion. Thank you for the insight!
I believe that this article has relevance to my career path, broadcast journalism, because liberal arts skills are necessary for presenting news to audiences appropriately, accurately, and concisely. The author did a tremendous job in researching, and I believe that many people can benefit from reading about the benefits of liberal arts education.
Considering my own future, I feel that a liberal arts education is important, although I'm not sure I want to study it in college. As the article mentioned, when leaving school and finding a job, newer skills are important to get your first job. Because of this, I feel that there are ways once you are in your job to develop these skills rather than learn them in the classroom. Real-world experience, in my opinion, not only looks better on resumes but also is where you can learn more and become more skilled at your profession
@MATT S. I do agree with you that real world experiences do have a larger affect on us rather than simply learning it in a classroom. Although I believe both share a common ground and both learning in a classroom and in the real world do help us learn more and have a variety of different experiences.
I would like to major in nursing. This article does not talk about the medical field. But, it does touch upon the idea of developing technology. The healthcare field is constantly searching for answers and uses technology in a variety of ways. For example, doctors use robots to conduct surgeries, and biologists working in laboratories use ground- breaking technology to do things like take stem cells from a fetus’ umbilical cord to use in another persons body to cure them of a disease like cancer. So, healthcare jobs will also need to be adapting to new technology like STEM workers will. This could be a disadvantage but I think that the medical community is such a collaborative environment that it will be easy to learn new technology as it advances. I look forward to my major in the medical field.
As someone who is planning on going into a STEM major myself, I understand the importance of learning the skills needed for a specific job. However, I also agree with the article in the sense that college students should not only be learning the skills necessary for their future job, but should also be learning skills necessary for life. Social skills and basic knowledge are not the focus of many college students' academic load, but in order to succeed in their future job(s), it's important for them to have more than just the skills to do the job, but to succeed outside of their job as well.
@Bella I completely agree. I feel like as long as you are studying something that will help you succeed in your chosen profession, and you think you will benefit from the knowledge you gain, you will be successful in life. I don't think someone can decide that one type of major is so much better than another because it is all up to the person taking those courses. If they are learning skills that will help them succeed in and out of their job, then they have made the right decision.
My major does not relate to this article. Although I find liberal arts important, it doesn't apply to neuroscience. I want to become a doctor which requires rigorous science and math. Although I see the importance of history and social science, to become a doctor I must focus on the basic scientific skills within my undergraduate experience. Liberal arts does come into play when it comes to the communication aspect of medicine. I must learn how to communicate with patients as well as work as a team with colleagues because we all have one clear common goal; to help others. My major does not relate to this article. Although I find liberal arts important, it doesn't apply to neuroscience. I want to become a doctor which requires rigorous science and math. Although I see the importance of history and social science, to become a doctor, I must focus on the basic scientific skills within my undergraduate experience. Liberal arts does come into play when it comes to the communication aspect of medicine. I must learn how to communicate with patients as well as work as a team with colleagues because we all have one clear common goal; to help others.
When I hear people talk about STEM jobs, I think engineering, mathematics, science, and almost anything with numbers. I think of people who are building things with new technology in order to better benefit our world. While these Jobs have high salaries off the bat, due to popularity in technology and the need for science in fields such as medicine, by age 40, the salaries of those who majored in fields like history or English have caught up to those in the STEM field. The STEM field is a very creative field, filled with new technology, and who knows more about new technology than younger generations who have grown up around it? It is our association with technology all our life that makes younger workers more useful in this field, rather than older workers, because they are using their knowledge of technology to create what they want in their future. Another reason the salaries of workers outside of STEM eventually catch up to those who do major in STEM is the amount of middle aged workers who get into law. Most lawyers are middle aged, because they have spent years after college preparing for kind of job, which in the end, all that work pays off. While it may take longer to get there, eventually STEM majors and those in other majors will be earning the same salary, it’s just a matter of when.