Why Do College Majors Matter

College majors are one of, if not the most important aspect of college. From young ages we are pressured to think about our future and the possible career paths we would take, leaving little room for our childhoods to simply be enjoyed. In high school, the AP classes we choose to take and the clubs we join should be reflective of the major we intend on having in college. However, with the increasing amount of unconventional careers being created and the necessity of bachelor’s degrees to get well paying jobs, there is more competition in the workforce, which leads college graduates to work in fields that are irrelevant to their major. Thus, the question is posed: Do college majors really matter? Some may say that majors are essential if students are going into specialized fields, while others say that if students are considering majoring in the liberal arts they aren’t. All things considered, college majors do not matter due to the fact that many college graduates end up employed in a field they did not study for, college students’ experience is more important than their major, and their network plays a bigger role in the field they pursue employment in. To start with, college majors do not matter because college graduates are often employed in
The New York Times article “Does the College Major Matter? Not Really” by Jeffery J. Selingo also echoes this assertion by claiming “…many say that the skills they gain in college will be useful on the job no matter what they major in. Majors are also seen as fungible — if you don’t like your field of study, trade it in for another one or add a different major to the one you already have.” Thus, many of the skills that students gain through their majors are more beneficial than the actual