/lit/ - Literature

Physics. Doing my Ph.D. now.

Good: Job avenues + Research scope, Interesting

Bad: I can't think why it might be bad.

>>1523647
what kind of job are you looking for?

>>1523647
Molecular simulation for Pharma companies, iff for some reason I did not decide to pursue further research.

Politics and Philosophy

Perks: Interesting, good lecturers
Cons: Not enough lectures for what I am paying, lot of unresponsive people in seminars

I was an English major. Worst mistake I ever made.

Currently a dropout working to pay off student loans so I can go back to school for something worthwhile.

English Lit with a minor in philosphy

Good
>I enjoy it

Bad
>Pedantic, pretentious twits EVERYWHERE
>no future in it
> Die poor

>>1523662
I'm glad to see I'm not the only one that's condemned myself to a life of brilliance and bitter poverty.

Mechanical Engineering with Aeronautics.
Its dull, but I only have year left and I'll have a masters so I'm going to stick it out till the end..

I was an: Art major
But now I am an: English major
Because: I wanted to die in a cardboard box insulated by torn book pages instead of shitty paintings. & art/drawing/painting isn't really something you can teach, so I opted for my other passion that will leave me poor.

Sorry, where is this dying poor attitude coming from?

Most degrees (except in something that everyone knows has no value i.e. David Beckham studies) actually have some value and will get you somewhere in the job market. Having a degree in science, maths or economics is incredibly useful ONLY if you want a career in those fields. For those who don't, then there is a variety of jobs out there that require any degree, pay decently and are stable.

>>1523691
>ONLY if you want a career in those fields
Not true. Those will also be applicable to the jobs that require "any degree".

>>1523691
>Having a degree in science, maths or economics is incredibly useful ONLY if you want a career in those fields.

Not true. Science gives you a LOT of breadth. I can easily get a job in Econometrics related field or even any field that requires some kind of simulation/modeling/programing; which today is almost everything.

>>1523693
>>1523693

True. Science, maths and economics degrees when outside of their beneficial careers have the same importance as an English or history degree. I just don't see a world where those with degrees in politics or psychology are completely penniless. They may not be nearly as wealthy as doctors or lawyers but if they did not intend to follow that career path then it makes no difference.

>>1523699
Alright, let's bring economics into this.

>Marginal benefit of history, psych, and English go down
>Quantity of students go down
>Quantity of workers with those degrees goes down
>Demand for them goes up
>Wages rise
>The majors become more lucrative

>>1523704

Depends in what areas. Art, English, philosophy and other such areas do have a falling intake compared to other fields such as science or economics which is constantly rising. The social sciences waver a little: psychology is always popular but politics and history have fallen too.

Ultimately, the main benefit from university is that it offers students many chances to have work experience or do things that can help their resume. Any person can leave university with the things required to get a good job, few ever make the most of it.

>>1523704
Pretty much. Main issue, though; unclear value, economically. While we can go "This concrete problem will manifest" for science and science related degrees, I can totally see us getting into serious problems that won't be clear until they're very much here.

Poli Sci major with an Econ minor.
Good: interesting, leads me towards what I want to do (foreign affairs)
Bad: I will probably never find work in the private sector.

Philosophy major
English minor, may upgrade to double major soon

I really enjoy the coursework, it's mostly a bunch of reading & discussion, followed up by papers

however, there are the few people who kind of bother me with their pretension
and I still have no idea what I wanna be when I grow up

I'm 23 and I still don't know what the fuck to do.

Don't have a major. My degree is in political science.

good: sometimes, if someone is really dumb, I can tell them I have a degree in political science and then I don't have to argue politics with them anymore because they assume i know more than them.

bad: Mostly useless as a degree. People who actually went to school know that my education doesn't mean shit.

>>1523762
are you taking classes? have you before? or you still don't know what school to go to

English major, history minor, currently working on a high school teaching certificate. I'm one of the lucky ones, because I won a scholarship covering tuition. Think hard about your financial situation if you want a liberal arts degree, OP. Student loan debt can be soul-crushing.

Good:
>I enjoy it
>Reading Shakespeare in a formal academic setting was one of the better experiences I've had
>small classes
>Teaching is an incredibly stable career. You'll probably never have models and bottles, but once you get tenure you're basically at least middle class for life.
>Benefits are ridiculously good
>Once you're in the swing of teaching, you'll have time for other projects, like starting a small business or something to bolster your salary
>Very rewarding when your students succeed

Bad:
>Education majors are idiots, and English majors are lazy
>You'll probably have to suffer through at least one bat-shit insane feminist/Marxist/minority studies professor
>Not very glamorous or prestigious
>You've got to enjoy dealing with people. You're always in the middle of everything
>Insane amount of bureacracy
>Clueless administrators

More than anything, OP, have a game plan. Too many people finish their liberal arts degree with no experience, no contacts, and no idea what to do next.

Creative Writing major here.

Good: I enjoy it.
Bad: Oh shit, gonna be poor forever.

>be a libartfag
>don't go for the English/Philosophy degree
>go for a degree in another field I have interest in
>get a job that degree qualifies you for
>use the experience in my chosen field as a springboard for my writing
>wat

>be a libartfag
>don't go for the English/Philosophy degree
>go for a degree in another field I have interest in
>get a job that degree qualifies me for
>use the experience in my chosen field as a springboard for my writing
>wat

MINOR IN WHAT YOU LOVE, MAJOR IN WHAT YOU CAN DO

>be a libartfag
>don't go for the English/Philosophy degree
>go for a degree in another field I have interest in
>get a job that degree qualifies me for
>use the experience in my chosen field as a springboard for my writing
>wat

MINOR IN WHAT YOU LOVE, MAJOR IN WHAT YOU CAN DO

>>1523803
Me too!

>>1523803

I hope you're at least attending a good school.

CCCCCC-COMMUNITY COLLEGE!

It's so great being the lowest on the totem pole.

>/lit/ what is your major,
Computer Science, minor in Psychology
> and why is it good
Psych is interesting to me and CS is pragmatic (lots of jobs, easy money).

>/bad?
No girls in CS classes (at least without more facial hair than me), but psych is 80% female.

It's a weird combo, but there is a huge overlap between CS and Cognitive Psychology. In fact, the computer is the predominant metaphor in the field of Cognition.

>>1523822

if you're the creative writing guy, just drop out and save your money. learn a trade to support yourself and pursue writing on your own.

there's absolutely no reason to do what you're doing. even your professors would probably agree with me.

>>1523831
Douglas Hofstadter browses /lit/

holy fuck

>>1523834
I strongly agree with this.

You can't teach someone to write. You can't. Going to school for creative writing is a sinful waste of money. Learn something practical like engine repair and just write in your free time.

This is really the best advice you'll ever get.

>>1523822

Community college brofist.

It's my last semester here though, and I'm kinda gonna miss it.

Going on to study English Education.

>>1523845
Is it anything like that shitty show with Chevy Chase?

Majoring in Organizational Communication, minoring in French for the hell of it.

Good:
- It's interesting as hell. Very well-rounded too: we study a lot of sociology, psychology, and philosophy in addition to original research in the orgcom field.
-The job prospects for graduates seem numerous and varied.
-70% of my classmates are fairly attractive (at least until they speak) sorority girls.

Bad:
-Far too much repetition of content from class to class, this could be specific to my school though (Missouri State)
-Majoring in "communication" sounds redundant to many people.
-70% of my classmates are sorority girls.

>>1523855
>calls it shitty
>yet has clearly watched it and taken enough interest to know who's involved

>>1523891
This is me getting trolled

I saw the commercials for it, brustin, and then I watched half of an episode.

>>1523887

You seem like a nice guy, so I don't mean this personally, but "communication" has always seemed like an intellectually vapid alternative to liberal arts or humanities subjects. It's like they remove the tradition and add pseudo-scientific psychological jargon.

I'm an English Language & Lit major, and "communication" has always seemed to me like an Americanized bastardization of my subject designed to impart a similar skill set without exploring any of the complex, philosophical questions or forcing its students to do unholy amounts of reading and writing.

Art History

Good: Excuses to travel, fun opportunities, get to live in the city someday (hopefully), museum trip every semester

Bad: never have a big salary, not that many opportunities, may have to settle for some subject I don't find all that interesting, have to live in the city (might get tiresome after a while), most people find the classes hideously boring (I don't mind), those who can't do teach, etc.

I could go into my creative writing major as well, but that's a whole other textwall.

English lang and lit.
Pros: Studying something I have a real passion for
Cons: No can can be worthwhile against that pro.

>>1523934
It's cool. It's hard to have a long enough attention span to watch something a deep as Community these days.

Artfag here.

>Good/bad
>implying majors can be judged like that, as if there was one better than the other and it wasn't completely personal interest based

I'll play along though.

Good:
>I get to do what I love
>Nice people everywhere
>It is broad, it's not something that can get you to work on one thing, it's something that helps with many fields like design, illustration, gallery art, teaching, editing, film, photography, sculpture, you name it.
>It's easy so you can pass by just being lazy and doing mediocre things, but at the same time, it gives you the chance to be awesome and work hard.
>Weed everywhere

Bad:
>Some people are just too nerdy and traditional, they treat art as a highschool discipline
>Some are the opposite, too shallow and "revolutionary" with no substance. They are the ones that makes people complain about post-modernism.
>Teachers with huge egos.
>Outsiders don't look at it as a serious activity.

Anyone ever pursue a degree in Journalism?
Are there still actual jobs out there for this?

It's the only writing profession that I can think of that could actually hold promise of a career.

Any words of wisdom?

>>1524011
there are no jobs for anything ever

I want to:
>travel
>write
>get paid enough to not be absolutely poor
>meet interesting people, be around cool people

Is there a profession that could satisfy those needs?

>>1524035
>hobo

>>1523973
the reason those teachers have huge egos is probably because there's no good explanation for why they succeeded when others didn't

it's a defense mechanism against an always impending existential crisis

>>1524041
What if I just wanted io travel?

English lit

Good > i love it

Bad >no future in it

>>1524035

Journalist, derp derp.

>>1524063
Then you have to find out some means of productive employment that goes along with it.

>>1524070
Hey. Mr. Smartass.
You're not helping me.

>>1524066
>Journalism
ughhhhhh

>>1524079
What is wrong with journalism?

>>1524079
Being a Journo is alright. As long as you're a bad ass postmodern journo.

>>1524074
Because honestly this is not the right place to ask this wuestion. Listen kid, I AM helping you. Please ask people who actually know these things. Atleast try /adv/ if you want to stick to 4chan. Don't stick to 4chan.

>>1524082
>>1524086
I just don't like it in general, as far as writing goes it just pan handles to the reader, there is nothing of value in it.

>>1523950

No offense taken, I agree with you to an extent. It can appear to be vapid or fluffy, and certainly can be taught that way. The field of communication study places less emphasis on textual analysis (which I imagine is stressed in your major?) and more on the describing the *process* of communication and the implications of it. Consequently, communication students who lack the ability to read and think critically may be able to graduate without developing those skills.

However, a motivated student under good professors will, having read beyond the requirements of their courses, graduate with a multidisciplinary perspective on human thought, motivation, action.

That, and contrary to common belief we aren't born with an innate knack for communication. Most people really *suck* at at it actually, especially in emotionally stressful situations. Studying communication is a life-hack, and if the sole benefit of graduating with this major was the ability to avoid the common and entirely avoidable relationship problems that most people experience regularly, I'd still be happy with my choice.

[also i'm really high]

>>1524094
The majority of it, yeah. They're not trying to be artful in their writing, just substantial and informative.

Being one of those badass journalists that expose problems in foreign countries could be really cool.

Graduated last year. Anthropology and History w/ Religious Studies minor

Good
>Get to study what I love.
>Learn research skills and obtain much knowledge

Bad
>No real jobs outside of academia.
>Nobody appreciates the skills I have learned and the knowledge I have obtained.

Reality
>Currently studying Chinese in China for the fuck of it. Planning on returning to school for marketing.

Anyone here know anything abour marketing / job opportunities?

>Philosophy/ Psychology double major

-I just love the mind and how it works.
-I love logic and debating ethics
-I want to write but my gf has a bachelors in
English lit so I'll just ask her for help if I need it

>Cons- People on 4chan hate on Philosophy (I don't really care but it does make me annoyed when I see it)
-Working on the problems of existence and thought are tiresome but thats why I have video games and books so no worries

>No real cons in my opinion :)

>>1524121
Marketing:
Awesome internships
Way too competitive, need a lot of contacts

>>1524046
You're probably right. A friend of mine once created a game. We should go to the library and find a book by one of our teachers, but the book had to have the title bigger than the author's name on the cover. No one won.

They are preety mediocre shit, apart for one or two.

Ph.D in Economics.

Good : I get to insult Master degrees peasants.
Bad : I have to get creative to insult hard science Ph.Ds.

Sociology major, philosophy minor.

I've pretty much resigned myself to being poor the rest of my life. But if all goes well I'd love to either continue my education at the graduate level, or go into marketing research.

Cultural Anthropology

Good: It's interesting shit, tendency for rad people to be fellow majors, small chance you get to go to some crazy tribe and do drugs with them (or at least just travel).

Bad: Not many jobs out there for it, one becomes part of the academic machine (college, grad school, research assistant, hope to god you become a prof. somewhere), lots of trying to find meaning in things where there might not be all that much.

>>1524134
You have a PhD? Why are you on 4chan?

Also, I'm thinking of majoring in econ-history double major here. ^.^

>>1524110

This precisely what I mean.

Textual analysis, critical thinking and reading--all these things seem undervalued in communications study. Unfortunately, I can't say all English majors graduate with such skills, either, given the current state of "cultural studies"-oriented departments.

But really, these skills are what an education is ABOUT, to me. The introduction of things like communications and cultural studies are symptomatic of undergrad becoming the new high school and a gradual lowering of intellectual standards.

>>1524143
Hey bro. P sure Ima study dat 4 a post-grad thing. Got wasted and ate bugs with some minority bros the other day so I guess it's a good start.

>>1523779
Once you got your tenor you're golden. Reminds me of a story of one high school band director. He got his tenor and became an alcoholic. Being classified a a diseased, he couldn't be fired because of it due to his tenor. So he whenever he felt like taking a break, he would show up to work drunk. He would then be sent to rehab (all expenses paid of course.) He would continue doing this until his retirement.

>>1524228

Yeah, as someone entering teaching I'm obviously okay with tenure, but that's some total horseshit if true. I'd hate working with that guy.

If I were a principal I wouldn't hesitate to take his ass to court, if necessary, to fire him.

English/Philosophy with minors in history, math, and education.

Forensic psychology.
The good: Relatively easy, somewhat interesting, beats gem cutting by a mile.
The bad: my professor is incredibly vague and seems to just be making shit up on the spot half of the time

Major
>Biophysics

Good
>Really interdisciplinary (I'm taking math, physics, biology, biochem, chemistry courses)
>I don't really have to pick a major or one field of science since I find them all interesting
>Hopefully I can cross over to another science in grad school if I find my calling

Bad
>Immensely hard since I suck at physics and math and have a really bad memory
>GPA is so shit, hard work and I don't study and fail
>I'm immensely interested in trying research but can't find a prof who'll allow a RA for a guy with a shitty GPA and no skills
>Probably going to die poor or a hobo
>Probably going to have an insurmountable amount of school loans/debt
>Probably going to live at a university all my life

I'm impressed by you English lit majors /lit/. If I had an ounce of courage (or got a full scholarship) I'd love to do an English major. Keep at it and don't give up guys!

Music composition and theory

The good:
>It is awesome
>I'm very good at it
>I actually learn things about music that none of the performance/education/etc. people do

The bad:
>Writing in an idiom that has practically no audience, so very few career opportunities outside academia (though I'm ok with this)
>I probably won't have time to keep my playing up, so probably won't be able to get gigs on the side (not that there are many anyways)
>Most people in performance hate people in composition

>Major
Jam-making

>Pros
as much jam as I want

>Cons
i fuckin fair hate jam lad

Major: Biological Anthropology

Good: Interesting subject that combines my passion for biology and culture.

Bad: probably will not get a job outside of the academia.

I'm considering of double-majoring in Business Management or marketing.

Geochemistry (German minor, but that's irrelevant)

good: really interesting (to me), everyone I've met in the field has been cool (co-majors, people met while interning, etc), pretty much everything else that you could think of

bad: Environmental Science majors that think I give a fuck

>>1524478
Also,
good: volcanoes

Physics (getting my bachelors)
Good:
-Extremely interesting
-Job and Research opportunities are very broad
-Self-esteem boost when I am the coolest person in most classes

Bad:
-People expect you to be able to answer every question they have about why something happens the way it does

English Writing

The Good:
>It is both what I love and what I can do well.
>Many career paths.
>Possibility of getting above-average pay.
>Incredibly easy to obtain degree.
>Lots of jobs.
>Great faculty.

The Bad:
>Have to work with pretentious faggots.
>Lectures on literature boring as fuck.
>Promotes laziness and procrastination.
>Grad school is mandatory.
>Occasional feminist and Shakespeare whore.
>Have to read Shakespeare.

>>1524496
>take physics courses
>can now explain how magnets work
>juggalos don't know

Applied Math

Good:
-widest selection of people studying different things, all of them coming back because they need more math before grad school
-you feel really, really fucking smart
-can go into just about any field you want
-small and elite math department on campus, almost like a family
-only a few students in the program, divided into aspies and bros

Bad:
-hard as hell
-still have to take Pure Math classes
-too much focus on Physics
-huge competition, everyone else is also super smart
-only the occasional hot asian girl

>>1524522
>Lots of jobs.

like what

>>1524522

This has to be a troll. If you're the kind of person that doesn't enjoy literature, especially someone like Shakespeare, you shouldn't go anywhere near pursuing a college degree in English.

Am I the only one who doesn't have a degree? I work in a factory.

Major: Physics

Good: Everything! It's all so fascinating, and I get to do research with a guy who's part of the LHC.

Bad: Uh... It's a lot of work sometimes? Kind of?

Ah, screw it, there's nothing bad about it.

Hey /lit/.

I'm looking to enter college within a year or so (I'm a few years late in continuing my education. I'm planning on entering my local college to obtain my Diploma in Writing and Publishing.

I've heard on /r9k/, /lit/, /adv/ etc that those who enter their education for writing walk away empty handed. How much of that statement is true? I am extremely stressed out about commuting myself to this course and my sorry lack of funds doesn't help matters.

I've always enjoyed writing and since childhood I have maintained that my future would be spent with it as the centre of my life.

I'd greatly appreciate any advice or comments /lit/ has on that diploma or it's application into the work force / continuing educations.

This is the link to the full course description:
http://webapps-1.okanagan.bc.ca/ok/calendar/calendar.aspx?page=WritingAndPublishingDiploma

Thank you in advance.
Anon.

Starting study in Accountancy shortly. It'll lead to a degree. Man I wish I hadn't taken a huge break to just sit around and drink.

English Major. Graduated with a BA with intent to get my Masters.

Good
>Enjoyed Subject
>Enjoyed classes and classmates for the most part
>The English department at my university has some of the best professors on campus in regards to their passion for teaching

cons
>Everyone assumes I'm going to be a teacher
>Even though I know the possibilities of employment, no one else does, and I must convince possible employers why my degree is relevant
>Feels like I should have taken more advantage during college to get the most out of my degree

Any other Englishfags trying to get careers started?

>>1524662

go talk to real advisers on campus

also, it's probably a bad idea

>>1524672

this is why I'm going back for teaching cert.

Education departments typically build getting experience, networking, and establishing good references into the curriculum. Also, it gave me another year to plan and do resume building stuff on my own time.

However, I was the dude who had undergrad paid for with a scholarship, so paying for another year of school was feasible.

Started out in Computer Science, got tired of that, switched to History to teach, was interesting, but I didn't like the job prospects, so now I'm in a community college instead of Big Ten getting credits to apply for the radiography program. In a few years I'll have the associates and cert so I can make bank, then I'll move onto mri or nuclear medicine. After saving up enough money I'll start a marijuana dispensary in Illinois.

Pros: Only $8000 for two years so it's really cheap. Right now I'm only taking 6 hours because I don't have many classes left before I can apply. I have plenty of time to play guitar and work, theoretically. I've applied everywhere for the past three months for even overnight shifts and no one has called me for an interview. ;_;

>>1524134
Do you have your PhD already, or are you still working on it? Is it worth it if you can't get into the top-tier colleges? What sort of research are you doing?

I really love Math but Physics has never really interested me so I'm doing Economics, but my school's Economics program isn't really Math-Centric. Is graduate school more Math-heavy?

Blue's Clues! I am going to have a BA in English, a MA in Education and I'm going to run the high school I graduated from. Yes, my whole life goal is to seek revenge on my high school.

>>1524851

Already have the Ph.D.

As for school reputation, I wouldn't go below top 15-20 in the U.S., and top five for most other countries like the UK (don't even try below LSE and Oxbridge).

Better get a job and try again later. Only join the last of the top 5 or 15 if you're desperate.

For a Ph.D, you have your thesis supervisor that is important. If my thesis has Paul Krugman on it, I'm basically going to trump any other Ph.D, whatever the job.

>>1524862
>MA in Education

Seriously, man, just my teaching certificate has completely turned my off the subject in an academic setting. It's completely worthless. Man up and get your Master's in Public Administration or something if that's what you want.

>my face when I'm a professor for Economics and I still browse 4chan

Double major in Japanese and English
Minor in Cinema Studies

>>1524869
Cool, thanks for the info. Could you answer a few more questions?

Is a MA really a waste of time? I don't especially want to go into academia (although I don't mind research or teaching I don't think I could handle the drama of it), do you need a PhD for most private-sector analytical positions?

You should be a lama farmer.

I wanna fuck Steve Burns' face.

>>1524872
Thanks, I will look into that advice. I still have 2 years until my BA is completed.

I'd say you have more than 2 years before you can grow any body hair. Puberty is a slow process.