Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Which U.S. College Major is the Worst for Finding a Job?
Visual Capitalist ^ | 04/01/2024 | Marcus Lu

Posted on 04/01/2024 10:17:48 PM PDT by SeekAndFind

Finding a job can often be a Sisyphean task in this rapidly changing modern economy. Highly sought after skills come and go, following the greater tides of technology change, marketplace behavior, and shifting consumer patterns.

After all, take a look at what’s happening in the tech world.

Education plays an important role in this job hunting business of course. And some skill sets are losing their sheen, with their practitioners having a harder time than others in securing gainful employment.

But which ones are the worst right now?

We visualize the top 10 U.S. college majors, ranked by their unemployment rate, including their underemployment rate for additional context. These figures are of recent college graduates (those aged 22–27 with a bachelor’s degree or higher) and are sourced from the New York Federal Reserve, current up to February 2024.

ℹ️ Underemployment is when workers are working less than full-time or in insufficient jobs for their training.

Ranked: U.S. Majors with the Highest Unemployment Rates

Heading the first three spots on this list are all the majors with “art” in their name.

Nearly 8% of recent Art History, Liberal Arts, and Fine Arts graduates are unemployed, with more than 50% of them underemployed.

At fourth place, 7.8% of recent Aerospace Engineering majors have not found a job—a surprising statistic since engineering is regarded as one of the more stable majors to study.

In fact from same data source, Industrial and Mechanical engineers have some of the lowest unemployment rates in the country.

However, aerospace engineering jobs tend to be clustered around the big companies in an otherwise small industry, with additional requirements for security clearances. Tellingly, the underemployment rate for aerospace engineering graduates is less than 20%, which is the best out of this list.

At fifth, sixth, and seventh place are History (7.5%), English (6.6%), and Mass Media (6.3%) of which the former two have also seen a rapid decline in undergraduates in the last decade.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Education; Society
KEYWORDS: career; collegemajor; education; empolyment; jobs; labor
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-53 last
To: irishjuggler

Art History/Husband shopping. 😆


41 posted on 04/02/2024 8:00:24 AM PDT by Georgia Girl 2 (The only purpose of a pistol is to fight your way back to the rifle you should never have dropped)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: dfwgator

42 posted on 04/02/2024 8:00:31 AM PDT by shotgun
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 40 | View Replies]

To: rexthecat
I cringe whenever I hear a college student say that they are majoring in journalism.

When I went to college (1980s), the two majors that did not require any math above freshman level algebra were education (school teaching) and journalism. The joke among math majors was journalism majors were dumb and didn't want to deal with children.

43 posted on 04/02/2024 9:05:22 AM PDT by Salman (It's not a slippery slope if it was part of the program all along. )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind

I got a liberal arts degree (BA, Musicology). I thoroughly enjoy the knowledge I gained, but it would have been basically a ticket to graduate school. After struggling for a few years I took a career counseling course and learned that musicians make good programmers, so I went into IT. Eventually got an MBA in the field.


44 posted on 04/02/2024 9:33:09 AM PDT by COBOL2Java ("Life without liberty is like a body without spirit." - Kahlil Gibran)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Reily

Thanks! I got it from Bing CoPilot which rounded up a bunch of sites for me. The list I presented wasn’t from the first link.

I just did it again and it gave me a whole new list.

https://www.bing.com/search?q=Which+U.S.+College+Major+is+the+best+for+Finding+a+Job%3F&qs=n&form=QBRE&sp=-1&lq=0&pq=which+u.s.+college+major+is+the+best+for+finding+a+job%3F&sc=1-55&sk=&cvid=8269717354134755AA97011B3B493F97&ghsh=0&ghacc=0&ghpl=&showconv=1

My query was: 10 best college degrees for jobs

Copilot
Certainly! Choosing the right college major is a crucial decision that significantly impacts your career trajectory and financial future. Let’s explore some of the best college majors that align with high salary potential and strong job growth:

1. Computer Science: A computer science degree opens doors to in-demand careers such as software development. The median salary for computer science professionals is around $90,000 per year.
2. Healthcare Administration: With a major in healthcare administration, you can pursue roles in medical health services management. This field offers both financial advantages and stability.
3. Business Administration: Business administration majors gain essential skills for managing organizations. Career paths include roles in management, finance, and marketing.
4. Logistics and Supply Chain Management: This major prepares students for careers in supply chain operations, distribution, and procurement.
5. Economics: Economics graduates can work in areas such as finance, consulting, and policy analysis.
6. Management Information Systems: This major combines business and technology, leading to roles in IT management and data analysis.
7. Accounting: Accountants play a critical role in financial management. The median salary for accountants is competitive.
8. Education: Pursuing a degree in education can lead to fulfilling careers as teachers, administrators, or counselors.
9. Construction Management: Construction managers oversee building projects, ensuring they are completed on time and within budget.
10. Public Administration: Public administration majors work in government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and public services.

(what happened to nursing? The returned data depends on the exact words of the query. My earlier query was worded slightly differently, but I don’t remember it exactly.)


45 posted on 04/02/2024 10:39:13 AM PDT by Alas Babylon! (Repeal the Patriot Act; Abolish the DHS; reform FBI top to bottom!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 24 | View Replies]

To: alexander_busek

Thanks.


46 posted on 04/02/2024 2:47:00 PM PDT by frank ballenger (There's a battle outside and it's raging. It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: Governor Dinwiddie

Someone just corrected me. It was Bananas.

Hate to admit I’m having memory imperfections.
Even .00000001% of Biden’s is upsetting.


47 posted on 04/02/2024 3:18:13 PM PDT by frank ballenger (There's a battle outside and it's raging. It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: LouAvul

Thanks Karen.


48 posted on 04/02/2024 4:44:11 PM PDT by KC_Conspirator
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: ModelBreaker

You are correct about that.


49 posted on 04/02/2024 5:00:10 PM PDT by KC_Conspirator
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 14 | View Replies]

To: rexthecat
We are all journalists now, including everyone on Free Republic.

That's true. Plus everyone on TikTok and X.

Facebook and Instagram? Not really. That's the media controlled by the regime.

Now you see why they're going after TikTok?

50 posted on 04/02/2024 5:01:57 PM PDT by MinorityRepublican
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: SeekAndFind

I don’t understand why physics isn’t hiring, plus I think Americans need more English teachers. People have forgotten punctuation and spelling. Other than what autocorrect tells them.


51 posted on 04/07/2024 6:19:24 PM PDT by NetAddicted (MAGA2024)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: shotgun

Is that Junior Walker?


52 posted on 04/07/2024 6:36:42 PM PDT by ladyjane
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 39 | View Replies]

To: shotgun

“OTIS, MY MAN!”


53 posted on 04/07/2024 6:37:24 PM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 39 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-53 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson