Which major is probably more highly regarded at Yale? I’m a sophomore majoring in Economics but I wanted to tack on another major. The only major difference I could find was the language requirement. Which program should I pursue?
I’m confused. Last I heard, you were applying to transfer, as a freshman studying Computer Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology, to a bunch of schools as an Art History major. So, are you saying that you were accepted at Yale and are now a rising sophomore majoring in Econ?
I suggest that, if you’re going to “tack on another major,” you give it a year to decide.
I’m writing this with a bit of hesitation because it’s based on generalities, but here goes: My son graduated from Yale in 2015, and every single History, Classics or Arts graduate he knows has to rely on the kindness of their parents to help support them post-college. That’s because many of those graduates – doing what they love – are making less than $30K per year living in NYC, Chicago or LA. I know the sampling is rather small, but it seems many undergraduates going into the workforce having majored in humanities find it difficult to make a living wage. Conversely, not one student my son knows who majored in Math, Statistics, Economics, Engineering, Science or Computer Science needs their parents help post graduation. Just saying . . .
Interesting, I’m a relatively recent grad like gibby’s son and didn’t get that impression from my friends who did those majors. I can count people working at hedge funds, doing PhDs on major scholarships at Harvard, advising the WHO, working in investment banks, being educational consultants in developing countries and studying at top medical and law schools. I had a friend with an art degree who does rely on her extremely wealthy parents, but she had opportunities to pursue a career in finance and wasn’t interested (given she has a comfortable amount of money backing her up already).
Pick the one you like better. Neither is likely to provide an edge over the other for anything other than a doctorate in that discipline.
Not specifically those majors, and I’m not sure I agree with him, but Mark Cuban interviewed on Business Insider
ETA: My experience with DS and his friends more closely matches gibby’s
@exyalie15: Many Yale students who graduate with humanities majors do not pursue a job in their field of study. Instead, they go into investment banking, hedge funds, finance or consulting – and yes, those kind of jobs pay well and don’t require the help of parents post-college to pay the rent. That was not the case with my son’s friends who graduated from Yale with humanities degrees. They are more like your friend who graduated with an art degree – they are pursing the field they love (minus the ultra wealthy parents).
I guess my point is: it doesn’t matter if the OP chooses History or Classics if they will ultimately be going into investment banking, a hedge fund, finance or consulting. However, if they want to pursue a job in the field of History or Classics post-college, they might need their parents help to pay the rent, as those fields are not paying entry level wages that allow a person to support themselves in a large city like NY, Chicago or LA.
I wouldn’t tack on another major for the sake of it unless you really enjoy that major and want to pursue grad school/a career in it. For that purpose, I’d say that both programs are highly regarded at Yale and would prepare you well for the respective field. The courses required for the two majors are almost completely different so you need to decide which ones you like better. Talk to the DUS for both departments, ask upperclassmen at Yale and read course reviews.
I agree with the other posters here that both departments are highly regarded. I would ask though, what is your motivation/end game?
If you are thinking about pursuing grad school in one or more of those fields, or if you are unsure about pursuing Econ further and want to hedge your bets, then do some due diligence as @OrchidBloom suggests, plot possible course selections to see how you would fulfill the major and distributional requirements, “shop” hardcore course requirements like Greek or Latin during the fall shopping period if you are serious about Classics, then go with the subject that interests you the most.
If you are thinking professional schools after graduation, being a double major won’t make much of a difference. It will be about your overall GPA and test scores. Obtaining a double major will give you less opportunities to take courses outside of the two majors. This may or may not matter to you.
If you are thinking about job prospects (excluding jobs directly related to Classics or History, especially the types of higher paying jobs that @exyalie15 listed), a double major of the type you listed (Econ/History or Econ/Classics) won’t make much of a difference between each other or even a simple Econ major. Employers will dig into the courses selected as well as your GPA and professor recommendations. Where a double major would truly be impressive is if someone has a major in one of the hard sciences and a humanities or a social science.
If you are thinking about job prospects related directly to Classics or History, see @gibby and @IxnayBob comments.
Speaking of history . . .
OP has started 3 threads, 2 of which were locked, and none of which OP ever posted to again. OP started this thread and has not returned to the site. OP has a “confusing” narrative based on the facts as presented.
I love the earnest manner in which CC posters reply to every thread. I’m not sure that it’s warranted in this case. Maybe OP won a bar bet.
I guess I should not put my two cents in here since my D is graduating as a Intensive Literature major. But she is finding out that the fact since she is fluent in German and Korean (a State Department designated critical language), her prospects after college are looking just fine. For her job here in DC this summer, she has met alums at hedge funds, the World Bank and the State Department, all of whom had degrees in “soft” majors. They are all doing exciting things. But of course, DC is a different kind of animal.
She intends to go to grad school, after hopefully taking a year off to do a Fulbright in Korea (yet another application process for us to stress over). I know the world is STEM obsessed, but somebody has to do the other things also. The only graduates I know living at home are doing a short stint so that they can save for a home.
Now of course my point of view only applies to kids who go to a school like Yale where they graduate with no loans. I could not see my kid going to a lower rated school and taking out tens of thousands of dollars of loans for a major where the immediate earning potential was low. Those are the kids who get stuck in their parents’ basement.
Advice for anyone reading this, even if the OP is (as seems likely) a fraud:
Don’t ever “tack on” another major. Do your one major really well, and use your electives to take courses that are known to be great courses with great professors and that interest you. If a few of them cluster in a particular area, it’s fine (and effective) to highlight that on your resume if you think it helps. A second major is rarely more useful than that – especially a second major in a generalist area like history or classics.
Further to @JHS’s post, at Yale, if you want to stretch yourself, you also have the option to do an MS/BS or MA/BA. That will, naturally, cut into your electives, but it can be an attractive choice if, for example, you were inclined to take some graduate courses in your major, regardless.