This is anecdotal, but I know of many people who got jobs from big firms during University's career fair. They were doing things like History, or English langua

This is anecdotal, but I know of many people who got jobs from big firms during University's career fair. They were doing things like History, or English language. The reason why the employers were so keen on them was not that they were going to use the subject itself (e.g. History) but the techniques. A history graduate can read _a_lot_ quickly, summarise it, and hand you a report. Those are great skills that are often required in a job (in some jobs more than others). So impractical degrees may still be... practical. :) (that said I personally don't think a degree should be judge on how practical it is. But I agree with the poster above that if you do want to focus on things that give you better job prospects in the short run, then there are colleges (in the Canadian/UK sense of shorter, more focused higher eduction courses).