Mr Payne

http://bp1.blogger.com/_SOiJkPys9v8/...0407182414.gif

It's a horrible idea to pick philosophy for career opportunities.

RyanMac

Payne, majoring in philosophy almost requires grad school - it teaches you how to think, which isn't going to land a lot of high-paying specialty jobs right off the bat, like engineering. That graph is /starting/ salaries. Is there a 10 or 15 year projection of salaries by major, when philosophy majors are done with grad school?

It's a bit of an aside, but look at art: how many artists are famous under the age of 25? 30? Obviously the starting salary is going to be low; they need time to establish themselves.

crs1909

^Payne, How old is that link?

I really don't think the average starting salary for a business major is only 36k.

kelseyg

36k for a starting salary sounds right to me, and is one of the reasons I always laugh when I hear people bragging about how they're going to make 80-100k+ out of college.

This page has some statistics from 2004 that agree with that range:
Starting Salaries: What to Expect for Ten Popular Majors

Kowloon

Now, that's one good reason for choosing philosophy as an area of study (not necessarily a major, but still =p)

Gil

“I think that subject is really at the core of just about everything we do. If you study humanities or political systems or sciences in general, philosophy is really the mother ship from which all of these disciplines grow.”

Wait a minute, isn't Classics the mother ship from which all of those disciplines grow?

crs1909

Here is a more recent average starting salary report...

Top paying college degrees - Apr. 5, 2007

tetrishead

No? The most well-known classics are philosophy texts. Philosophy is responsible for math, which is in turn responsible for every other science, while philosophy in a fragmented from mathematics form is responsible for every social science discipline.

Mr Payne

Ceteris paribus, virtually any grad school major can be just as good with an engineering degree or business degree or hard science degree as with a philosophy degree.

So, I reiterate, do not choose philosophy for career options - because it's horrible.

afruff23

@crs1909

Hey, I'm going to be doing chemical engineering in the fall. I don't think I'm going to use it in the workplace though (unless I get rejected from med schools).

UCLA, Ph.D.

Philosophy majors do very well on the LSAT, GRE, GMAT and the MCAT. English majors as well.

Mr Payne

I've never found any evidence that that's because of the education. It probably just has to do with the IQ of the students.

UCLA, Ph.D.

I think it has to do with the logical deduction, critical analysis and the vocabulary skills picked up in the majors.

IlikeDice

Let me see if I understand you, Mr. Payne.

You think it's more logical that the reason philosophy majors do better (generally speaking) on grad school exams is solely because of the caliber of the student choosing the major? and not because of the education bundled along with said major?

And if this is indeed your standpoint, wouldn't it stand to reason that if these amazingly intelligent philosophy majors can do so well on grad school exams (without any prior training, mind you), that they wouldn't have any trouble applying their stellar intellectual skills to other fields just as easily?

Sounds illogical to me.

Roger_Dooley

Here's a link to 2007 starting salary data for various majors. Philosophy isn't listed, but English, History, Political Science, Psychology, and Sociology are all clustered in a tight range of $31K-$34K. Business-related majors fall between $40K-$50K, and engineering majors are in the $50K-$60K range.

So, on the face of it, it doesn't look like humanities majors fare very well financially compared to other majors. Before we say "case closed," though, there are a few other factors to consider:

1) These are averages. Most humanities majors may not be planning a career in business and may not prepare themselves for higher salaries by taking business coursework, seeking excellent internships, etc. A philosophy major who has thought just about philosophy for four years will have a tougher go of launching a business career.

2) Many careers for humanities majors require degrees beyond the bachelor level. Those who seek employment straight from undergrad school may find themselves with limited opportunities in their field. (Then again, those with advanced humanities degrees often find their opportunities limited as well... try and find a tenure track prof position with your Ph.D. in English.)

As with many career related topics, one's employability depends more on personal marketing, work experience, and accomplishments than the college name or even major on the degree. (Obviously, some careers and positions DO have very specific degree requirements, but many don't.)