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So degrees like Philosophy and Economics aside, since rigour is assured no matter the university, my issue with the statement: "How can this be? It’s very simp

So degrees like Philosophy and Economics aside, since rigour is assured no matter the university, my issue with the statement: "How can this be? It’s very simple. A well-rounded liberal arts degree establishes a foundation of critical thinking." Jumps the gun. The brevity of my counter argument may belie it's truth: Selection bias perfectly explains his experiences. Of course I'd rather an English major that has learned to code at the level I require over a Computer Science major. The English major that is able to hustle his or her way into a programming career almost certainly has a greater IQ than the average Computer Science grad. What is not seen is the vast sea of English majors not going down that path, but rather ending up in a career that is far less challenging.

rfrank 10y ago
> What is not seen is the vast sea of English majors not going down that path, but rather ending up in a career that is far less challenging. It's almost like they went to school for something completely different ;) I don't see why selection bias matters though, as it's not terribly relevant to the author's point that humanities students bring a different/valuable perspective to the table and shouldn't be written off as technical hires. To me, the real goal should be encouraging students from both STEM and humanities backgrounds to learn from each other and cross streams a bit. No more Physics for Poets or Shakespeare for sysadmins.