What to study?

Not as important a question as you might think Source

I am often struck by the sophistication and maturity of our students; many of them have travelled widely, lived in several countries, and are fluent in multiple languages.  They have an openness to new experience and a thirst for knowledge that I admire.  But for all that, I find they are sometimes a little constrained in their thinking about careers and the world of work.  It’s hardly surprising.  Despite our superb University Advising Centre, with expert staff and a wide of events to help students make choices, the fact is that most students’ ideas are, naturally, shaped by the family backgrounds.  So if we want students to consider a wide range of futures we need to intentionally create opportunities to engage with people who work in a wide range of fields, to hear what they do and to see the world of work is not limited to a few professions. 

The modern world of work is surprisingly unrelated to school and university courses.  This is very poorly understood, and may be a bit of a surprise, but it’s a very welcome one, and it’s beautifully illustrated by mathematician Satyan Devadoss in a wonderful interactive graphic on his website.  He looked at the majors taken by over 15,000 Williams College alumni, and the career destinations, taken in broad groups.  I have shared this link before, but it is well worth re-visiting.  You can see the career destinations from various majors - click on the one you are interested in and you can see where the graduates end up working.  While many Economics graduates, for example end up in Banking/Finance, some move to every single career sector, including Health/Medicine and Arts/Entertainment.  The same is true for every other subject; Literature and the Arts graduates end up in Law, Banking/Finance, Health/Medicine, for example.  The conclusion is inescapable; that all options are possible from all backgrounds.  I might even speculate that taking a less likely route might give one an edge in a competitive market; all other things being equal,  the lawyer with a background in literature, or the writer with a background in economics might have something to make him or her stand out from the crowd.