{"id":91961,"date":"2023-05-13T18:30:27","date_gmt":"2023-05-13T08:30:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/?p=91961"},"modified":"2023-06-24T12:48:44","modified_gmt":"2023-06-24T02:48:44","slug":"choose-a-practical-major-like-french-yes-really","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theproject.com.au\/myfrenchlife\/2023\/05\/13\/choose-a-practical-major-like-french-yes-really\/","title":{"rendered":"Choose a Practical Major \u2013 like French \u2013 Yes, Really!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"French<\/span><\/div>

We seem to live in a world of STEM<\/em> \u00dcber Alles<\/em>, where if a young person doesn\u2019t learn to write computer code, he or she is condemned to a life as a barista or a dog walker. But are engineers destined to rule the world? Perhaps not.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The ultimate STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) archetype might be Mr. Spock of Star Trek fame, but who is it that commands the Starship Enterprise? Not the ultra-logical Mr. Spock, but rather the clever and quick-thinking Captain Kirk!<\/p>\n

Choosing A ‘Practical’ Major<\/h2>\n

What does this mean for today\u2019s college students faced with choosing a major field of study that will set them on a course for life? Should they pick a ‘practical’ major in the STEM field, or\u2014god forbid\u2014something useless like French?<\/p>\n

\n

One of the finest paths to post-college success is to use those undergraduate years to stretch one’s horizons by immersing in a different language and culture, says author George Anders.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

An Impressive List of French Majors<\/h2>\n

French majors who have scaled the heights include:
\n– A.G. Lafley,<\/strong> who went on to be chief executive of Procter & Gamble, as well as
\n– Bill Richardson<\/strong>, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
\n– And best-selling author J.K. Rowling<\/strong> is on the list, too.<\/p>\n

\n

If she had studied accounting at university, I don’t think we ever would have been graced with the Harry Potter novels, but she majored in French — and that background inspired everything from Beauxbatons to Fleur Delacour. said Anders.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

In his book You Can Do Anything: The Surprising Power of a \u201cUseless\u201d Liberal Arts Education<\/em><\/a>, Anders notes that our turbulent era is constantly creating — and destroying — millions of jobs a year. Such volatility rewards people who can rapidly analyze, improvise, and deal with ambiguity.<\/strong> In other words, those with the skills at the very heart of a\u00a0liberal arts education.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

\"Choose<\/span><\/div>

Sometimes a ‘Practical’ Major\u2026Isn\u2019t<\/h2>\n

Freddie deBoer makes a similar point in his article Pick a Practical Major, Like French<\/em><\/a>. What is a practical major? he asks.<\/p>\n

\n

I have never found a consistent and coherent definition.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

DeBoer points to a number of ‘practical’ majors gone wrong. 20 years ago, for example, young people were encouraged to pursue a pharmaceutical science degree. But the major became so popular, and so many new grads flooded the market, that job pickings became slim.<\/p>\n

And how about once-popular fields like petroleum engineering and aeronautical engineering? The oil patch is notoriously boom and bust, and commercial airline maker Boeing once laid off so many people that a billboard asked Will the Last Person Leaving Seattle Turn Out the Lights?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

But isn\u2019t today\u2019s computer science boom different? Computers are everywhere!<\/p>\n

Well, just ask the thousands of employees of Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and other tech firms who have recently been sent packing. And with artificial intelligence threatening to disrupt ever more professions, it is the nimble who will thrive.<\/p>\n<\/div>