I am currently a junior in high school and I am having considerable trouble deciding what to major in- I love theatre and, though I do not want to become a performer per se, I still would love to pursue a career in this field, but, I know that having a steady, reliable income is just not something which exists in the theatre world. On the other hand, I wouldn’t mind either majoring in criminal psychology or becoming a lawyer (I know, I’m all over the place), both of which I have an interest in. I know that, logically, it makes more sense to choose a more practical and financially reliable job, but music/musical theatre is my passion and I do not want to just give it up. Music has always been an extremely important part of my life and, though I can’t act or dance very well, I love singing and am good at it. Most people I speak to tell me to follow what I love and I won’t need to worry about money, but I don’t come from a rich family and I know that the salary of those working in MT is just not enough if I want to have a family and live in a house outside of the City. If anyone is currently in any one of these fields, please help me understand what the career is really like; both the pros and cons. Thanks!
You don’t have to choose yet.
All in all, criminal psychology at the undergraduate level is either just plain psychology or criminology (not to be confused with criminal justice) and you’d have to look into the degree program to make sure it’s employable.
Becoming a lawyer doesn’t prescribe any specific major although philosophy majors do well. Music majors (BA) do well with law schools and med schools.
You could major in psychology and minor in music, participating in as many choirs, shows, productions, ensembles… As you can.
Look into Muhlenberg for instance.
^^what @MYOS1634 said.
You really, really don’t need to be sweating this yet. None of those paths require any serious choices yet (compared to, say, engineering, where it would be a good idea to be taking Calc BC for example).
At most colleges you won’t declare a major until your 2nd year- as much as 3 years from now. Think back to grade 8 and how much you have grown and changed since then- you will do at least that much growing and changing in the next 3 years. Enjoy thinking about the possibilities, do classes / activities / ECs / internships in these areas and see where they take you.
And yes, Muhlenberg may well be a good option for you.
Law schools do not have any specific major or course requirements, although there are some suggested courses that you can include that law schools supposedly like:
http://lawschoolnumbers.com/application-prep/making-undergraduate-courses-count-for-law-school
But you can major in music or anything else and then go to law school (of course, you need good GPA and LSAT score).
Music (and other arts) tends to be a high-Gini or winner-take-all field in terms of earning money. You may want to consider backup career options. Note that law is not a guaranteed living, especially if you attend a law school whose ranking is not in the top range (see https://www.lstreports.com/schools/ ) which requires top end GPA and LSAT score to get into (see http://schools.lawschoolnumbers.com/ ).
Most schools have general ed requirements that include some sort of fine arts/music courses, so you can take voice/choir to fulfill those requirements. That’s what I’m going to do. It’s only a 1-unit course so I can add it on many semesters
“I know that having a steady, reliable income is just not something which exists in the theatre world.”
A few years back I had a chat with someone who had been a singer on Broadway. The pay was not all that good, and NYC is an expensive place to live. After a few years she went back to school, got her PhD, and now is a tenured professor in a very good music program at a very good small university.
I know another person who was a theatre major. She is running a small business (and is very good at it). The business does not seem to have much relationship, if any, to her training in music and theatre. I have absolutely no idea whether the business makes much money (her husband works in high tech).
Working in high tech, there are a lot of people with significant interest and ability in music. One of the best software engineers I know took time off from high tech for a short time in order to tour with his rock band. Another played electric guitar with the band briefly at his own wedding (which was a very nice wedding by the way, for a very nice couple).
I think that there are a lot of possible paths going forward. One of the main points of undergrad education is to give you an opportunity to study a little bit in multiple fields. Many people, particularly high achieving people with interests in multiple areas, take some time to figure out what they are going to do with their lives. In my case I ended up working in a field that didn’t even exist when I was in university (and I play a bit of music on the side, and have in the past occasionally played in public without embarrassing myself).
I think that you will figure this out, but it might take some time.
You can major in theater and then go work in something unrelated to theater, or only tangentially related to theater. Majoring in theater doesn’t mean you are only limited to theater-related jobs. Like the above post says, there are lots of possible paths.
However, this:
is NOT true. Some passions simply aren’t viable careers, and developing skills, getting experience and being pragmatic are key parts of coming away with employment that can give you a middle-class life. It’s just that you could major in theater or music and still do those things.
Your question is such an important one and I think one many of us parents struggle with as we guide our children. I wish it was as simple as “study what you love.” But honestly, in this day an age I think it would be wise to choose a college program that will lead to employment with a good salary. When you described your interest the first thing I thought of was to go to law school and become and Entertainment lawyer. But I’m not sure the world needs another lawyer either. Good luck and this is JMHO but choose smart.
Well, speaking as the parent of a theatre kid (going to be a college senior this fall), I’m more in the do what you love camp. It’s true that not all degrees lead to high paying jobs, but for most jobs having any degree is more important than what the degree is (obviously there are exceptions like engineering, but I’m speaking of jobs in aggregate).
Also consider that not all theatre jobs are in NYC. If you get a BA, rather than the more technical BFA, you can pair that with a lot of other majors. Might especially consider something like arts management. That will add business classes to the theatre classes. You could work front-office jobs in theatre, run a community theatre, coordinate performers for theme parks, all sorts of things. And the law school option could work too.
Two things to consider:
- What major would keep me motivated through 4 years of college. Because school will be tough at times, you need something interesting that will keep you motivated.
- What would keep you motivated through a long adult career? With luck you will be working 20-40 years. Better to do something you can enjoy. Or, if you have a better paying job you don't enjoy that much, can you do something in your non-work time that keeps you going (like community theatre, etc.).
^I was going to suggest the same. Targeting the business side of theater or music is a possibility. Also maybe a future in non-profits related to fundraising for the arts is another option. I have a nephew who loved music (not as a performer, although I think he was in a pretty bad garage band in HS, but going to concerts and knowing the latest bands). He parlayed that into a job as a music talent scout with a major label just out of college, and eventually became the manager of a pretty well known artist – he is still doing that for a living now that he is in his early 40s. He even had his name mentioned by a songwriter in a thank you speech at the Grammys several years ago. 