Choosing a major for love, or for money

More than 1,500 undergraduates in the College declare their majors every year. But motivations vary -- many students choose their majors because of intellectual curiosity, but just as many are driven by the prospect of lucrative post-graduate careers.

Advisers across the University emphasize that no matter which discipline students choose, they should use their major as a way to develop their individual skills. But with on-campus recruiting in full swing, the additional pressure to pursue a practical major is being felt across many disciplines in the humanities.

And some say that that pressure is particularly pronounced at Penn. With over 3,000 undergraduates enrolled in two pre-professional-oriented under-graduate schools, many in the College sometimes find themselves doubting their choice to pursue a liberal arts education.

"I think all schools have cultures, [and] Penn is particularly pre-professional," Associate Director of Career Services Peggy Curchack said. "I think there is an immense pressure on Penn's students to focus on practical outcomes ... and I think that affects all kinds of choices."

She explained that besides major choices, choice of summer activity, graduate study and application for competitive fellowships are also influenced by the culture.

Some students, like College sophomore Jess Eisner, decided from the beginning to pursue a more practical area of study.

"It was definitely just so it would be easier to get a job when I graduate," Eisner said of her choice to major in economics. "I figured if you major in something like English, then it would probably be a lot harder to get a job ... I don't necessarily love my classes, but I know it will be practical eventually."

But even if it is clear that like economics, some majors yield job offers more immediately after graduation, some advisers recommend having a broader, long-term perspective.

"The most important consideration, as I understand it, is a short-term versus a long-term view of one's career. And I think there is a lot of pressure at Penn to look at the short term," Curchack said, adding that one has to only look at the survey of graduates 10 or 15 years out of college to get the full picture.

She added that even in the short term, students should not worry as employers look for multidimensional students who excel in a variety of activities.

Many, like College sophomore Meghan McHugh, say they take classes for learning's sake rather than using their education as a means to an end.

"Most of my classes have been in English, Spanish, art ... nothing that was driven by [anything] other than intellectual curiosity," said McHugh, who declared her comparative literature major this winter. She added that by choosing to attend the College, she decided to pursue a liberal arts education.

She said she does not think that a major like comparative literature will hurt her career plans, especially if she pursues fields like publishing, which she is considering.

Director of Career Services Patricia Rose said that although pre-professionalism tends to diminish learning for its own sake, a pre-professional environment expands opportunities for humanities students by attracting additional recruiters to the campus.

"Students sometimes feel that their choice of major is a significant determinant in their future. The thing that we most commonly say to students is [that] your major is not your career," Rose said.

The pressure to choose a practical major is sometimes created by students themselves, but advisers say they have seen another common source of pressure -- parents.

College Director of Academic Services Diane Frey said that parents frequently put pressure on their students to pursue majors that are deemed pre-professional. This pressure, she said, is one reason for the proliferation of double majors and dual degrees: "one major for their parents and one for themselves."

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