Why Your College Major Doesn’t Matter (Much)

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It's not uncommon for college freshmen (and sophomores and juniors, for that matter) to be stressed about their choice of major. Some stress comes from the belief that one's major will lock a person in to a particular career for a lifetime. Stress can also come from parents who insist that a student should major in nuclear engineering when she really wants to pursue psychology.

I recently ran across a short article from the New York Times suggesting that one's choice of college major makes little difference in employability, earning potential, or even career choice. My own experience seems to anecdotally confirm that article's conclusions.

I was a mechanical engineering major in college, but by the time I was a sophomore I knew I didn't want pursue a career in engineering. I finished the program, though, since changing majors would have cost me valuable time. I decided it was better to finish in four years with an engineering degree than in five years with a communications degree. Most seminaries didn't really care about my major too much, anyway.

My younger brother was a psychology major; now he's a software developer.

None of my three college roommates are now working in their field of study.

Most of us change careers several times, and many never even take a job in their chosen field of study. Studies show that employers are much more concerned with your communication skills, experience, and GPA then they are with your major. There are some fields, engineering for example, where a related major gives you a distinct hiring advantage. But even in those fields your major is not always a deal-killer.

So is a college education a waste of time? Is there any importance to your classes and your choices about your major?

What do you gain from your time in college, and how does your major make a difference?

College teaches you to study and to think analytically. Regardless of your major, your classes teach you to find information and to critically evaluate it. These are essential skills in any highly skilled job, whether you're an engineer, architect, or English teacher.

College reveals your work ethic. This is why many employers value your grades above your major choice. You don't have to be the smartest one in the class to get a decent GPA -- you just have to work harder than most people. In fact, GPA is strongly correlated to future earning potential, to a much greater degree than SAT scores or college major choices. I'd rather employ a hard worker with a modest intellect than a brainiac who spends his days playing Halo 17.

College provides a chance to explore what you enjoy and what you excel at doing. The reason many students change their major repeatedly is because they are trying to discern their strengths and weaknesses and their loves and hates. (Of course some switch because they're hoping for an easier road -- see the point above in that case). That process of learning often continues after college. Few people are in the exact same career at 50 as they were at 25, especially in this day and age of rapid technological change.

So what to do? Choose a major that you enjoy and that might lead to a job where you can use your gifts and abilities in God's service (Colossians 3:23). Choose a career path in which you can heartily and joyfully work for the Lord's glory. And don't worry to much about "the rest of your life" right now -- most people in their 30s and 40s don't even know what they will be doing for the rest of their lives. Prayerfully and faithfully pursue the path God has for you now, and trust Him to lead you each step of the way.

[Image via http://idaconcpts.com/2010/10/25/most-popular-college-majors/]