5 ms·

Christina P: “I graduated with a degree in philosophy only to discover The Philosophy Corporation wasn’t hiring.”

Analemma_ 1y ago
A good point in general but not here specifically: among the various liberal arts degrees, philosophy majors have some of the highest average earnings.
- rayiner 1y ago
  Because they have the highest IQs. Philosophy programs are a sink for smart students who don’t want to do math or engineering. Employers don’t actually value the philosophy degree itself.
  - Bud 1y ago
    [dead]
  - lacy_tinpot 1y ago
    Employers? Philosophy majors are generally unemployable, unless they're going into law. Though they do tend to make decent entrepreneurs or are self-employed in some other way. At least that's my assumption from experience.
- nradov 1y ago
  A large fraction of philosophy majors go on to law school. It's great training for analyzing complex texts and writing logically sound arguments. These are timeless skills that apply to many areas even if the philosophical content itself doesn't have as much practical value in the labor market.
  - NoMoreNicksLeft 1y ago
    I worked at a state university for 8 years writing code, and I was in contact with many of its student facing offices. There is an office that is dedicated to showing that law school students have very positive post-graduation outcomes. Basically, they send them a survey asking them if they had full or part time employment, and if they said "yes" to it, the university counted it as a positive outcome. "96% of our law school graduates find work within 12 months". I am quite confident that not only is philosophy a waste when it comes to finding gainful employment, going to law school to put that philosophy to good use is just doubling down on the same bad gamble. Large fraction? What about the remainder?
    - nradov 1y ago
      It really depends on the school. Most graduates of first and second tier law schools are able to pass the bar exam and find gainful employment as lawyers, or in a related field. But going to a "third tier toilet" law school seldom pays off, at least not financially.
      - NoMoreNicksLeft 1y ago
        >Most graduates of first and second tier law schools are able to pass the bar exam and find gainful employment as lawyers, You believe this to be the case, because you're relying on the statistics provided by the office I described. >But going to a "third tier toilet" law school seldom pays off, at least not financially. This is a solid T2 school. But if you were working at Subway whatever hours they'd give you, they marked you down as employed for the purposes of saying their graduates get jobs.

A good point in general but not here specifically: among the various liberal arts degrees, philosophy majors have some of the highest average earnings.

rayiner 1y ago
Because they have the highest IQs. Philosophy programs are a sink for smart students who don’t want to do math or engineering. Employers don’t actually value the philosophy degree itself.
- Bud 1y ago
  [dead]
- lacy_tinpot 1y ago
  Employers? Philosophy majors are generally unemployable, unless they're going into law. Though they do tend to make decent entrepreneurs or are self-employed in some other way. At least that's my assumption from experience.
nradov 1y ago
A large fraction of philosophy majors go on to law school. It's great training for analyzing complex texts and writing logically sound arguments. These are timeless skills that apply to many areas even if the philosophical content itself doesn't have as much practical value in the labor market.
- NoMoreNicksLeft 1y ago
  I worked at a state university for 8 years writing code, and I was in contact with many of its student facing offices. There is an office that is dedicated to showing that law school students have very positive post-graduation outcomes. Basically, they send them a survey asking them if they had full or part time employment, and if they said "yes" to it, the university counted it as a positive outcome. "96% of our law school graduates find work within 12 months". I am quite confident that not only is philosophy a waste when it comes to finding gainful employment, going to law school to put that philosophy to good use is just doubling down on the same bad gamble. Large fraction? What about the remainder?
  - nradov 1y ago
    It really depends on the school. Most graduates of first and second tier law schools are able to pass the bar exam and find gainful employment as lawyers, or in a related field. But going to a "third tier toilet" law school seldom pays off, at least not financially.
    - NoMoreNicksLeft 1y ago
      >Most graduates of first and second tier law schools are able to pass the bar exam and find gainful employment as lawyers, You believe this to be the case, because you're relying on the statistics provided by the office I described. >But going to a "third tier toilet" law school seldom pays off, at least not financially. This is a solid T2 school. But if you were working at Subway whatever hours they'd give you, they marked you down as employed for the purposes of saying their graduates get jobs.