A bright, ambitious student the other day asked what she could do with an econ major. To her, the path to a good career seemed more clear cut with a degree from a professional school.
While there are clear and transparent trajectories from an accounting major, for example, to a career in accounting, other majors provide a great basis for many rewarding career choices, as well. In fact, many majors that fall in the liberal arts tradition, especially the ones that stress rigorous analytical thought and quantitative reasoning, are excellent preparations for many diverse careers in a large variety of fields.
Recently a vice president for marketing of a major U.S. corporation told me they are not hiring for content knowledge — rather, they are hiring for analytical skills, for problem solving ability, for intellectual horsepower. I suspect most major employers will look for similar abilities. So before you choose the seemingly straight path to a career through some professional training, you might consider a major in the College of Arts and Sciences. Perhaps something like economics is just the ticket for you.
Gerhard Glomm
Bloomington
