I'm not a professional anthropologist (present or aspiring), so I can't comment on the usefulness of that degree, but (and you may know better than I) I'm given to understand that Japanese studies in particular is a bit of a flooded market, right now . . . so the "international studies would be better" argument might not apply, unless you'd be just as happy going to, say, Korea. Worth looking into, if that's a major concern for you (which it seems to be
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A good general criterion: if you can pick the subject up pretty much any time of the day and lose yourself in it, I'd say that's a very strong candidate. If it's more "moody," keep it as a hobby. hmmmm I hadn't thought of it that way. That really helps! (I don't know why I hadn't thought to think of it that way before) Thanks!
From what I've seen, all liberal arts majors are equally useless at the BA level. If you want a degree that will lead directly to a career path, do something like nursing or journalism or business. If you want to study anthropology or international studies, though, there are very few jobs in either field that don't require graduate degrees. You can go on to get a graduate degree, or you can get a job outside of your field of study, and anthropology won't hurt you in comparison to international studies in that respect. (Now, "what I've seen" isn't that much, but this has been the experience of most people I know who've graduated from liberal arts schools.)
I totally agree. If you're going for jobs that just require a degree level education, they're interested in things like your ability to manage your time effectively and independently, your writing skills, your analytical skills etc. Anthro as a major will help you work on those skills just as much as Intl Studies will. There's also the plus point that studying something you enjoy probably increases your chances of doing well at school, and definitely increases your chance of having fun while you're doing it.
i'm working on my BA as an anthro major, but only because i intend to go to grad school and continue on to at least a masters, if not a phd in anthro. i can't imagine that you would be able to get a job in the field of anthroplogy with only a BA.
of course, i want to focus on forensic anthro, and i'm not really sure what is out there for the cultural/social side because i'm not into that at all.
i would say though, take anthro classes even if you don't major in them. i LOVE my anthro classes. even though i hate them right now because i should be studying for my midterms =p
Painful but truekenosisOctober 6 2008, 04:46:36 UTC
Anthropology Degree = no jobs International Studies = no jobs
If you're going to double major, respectfully it might be a good idea to pick one of your majors in something that will get you a job. Maybe a Japanese Studies major is a big money-maker; I've never heard that before. (The "I'm going to do consulting work for companies who want to do business with Japanese firms", from what I've heard, seems like a pipe-dream.)
It's really cool to do the "Do what you love in college! Who cares about money?" when you're, say, 20. Whem you're 30 and trying to crawl out of some entry-level position and getting depressed because you can't afford to take a vacation while your friends are socking away money in retirement funds and doing amateur theatre after work, it's more painful.
I hate to be the jerk that has to say this stuff, but if no one else is telling it to you I don't mind being the lightning rod.
Re: Painful but not always truemiss_gotheOctober 6 2008, 14:48:52 UTC
That is not true. In Europe we do have another system though. Meaning my master is in anthropology same as my ba was. As an MA who wants to continue with a PH.D it does open doors: If you wanna teach and do fieldwork that is. So anthropologists who wants to work as that have to work at a uni or a college etc. There are always jobs if you are a anthro nerd and wanna work in a teaching institution of some sort.
If you take a subject in 10 years without loving it... Well give in after a ba then.
This depends. Do you feel that the only reason for study and college is a job? This seems kind of silly. You need to major in something you have interest in.
I majored in Anthropology and I'm happy for it. I think I've gained a lot of knowledge that is useful in understanding the world. I think an Anthropology degree can apply to a lot of knowledge bases and can be explained in a job interview.
That said, most jobs only require that you have a college degree of some sort and very rarely ask for a specific BA. If you want a career IN Anthropology, you need to do a masters, maybe a PhD. That said, I have a BA and work for an archaeological graphics and design company from home at the moment.
My personal belief would be an international studies major would be more useless (and time wasting) than an anthropology major. Do what you like, and the rest will work itself out, especially if its not about the money for you.
Well said. Need to be realistic. Working in the degree, you certainly have to push up to masters (I am in school now, Biology and Anthropology). But! A basic degree in Anthropology may not get you a job DIRECTLY with lots of money. It will, as angelfalling, asserts give you an immense broadening with how people work and what sort of people are out there. This CAN indirectly give you an edge out there in the regular job market or in life, generally speaking
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Well well said. I'm frequently saying that anthropologists should be involved in every decision regarding domestic and foreign issues to adequately weigh the impact its going to have to the people the policy decision has been made for.
That was a typo on my part "Archaeological SURVEY and graphics", not nearly as exciting as it sounds. Just digitizing sketches made on site so the images can be better published.
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hmmmm I hadn't thought of it that way. That really helps! (I don't know why I hadn't thought to think of it that way before)
Thanks!
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There's also the plus point that studying something you enjoy probably increases your chances of doing well at school, and definitely increases your chance of having fun while you're doing it.
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of course, i want to focus on forensic anthro, and i'm not really sure what is out there for the cultural/social side because i'm not into that at all.
i would say though, take anthro classes even if you don't major in them. i LOVE my anthro classes. even though i hate them right now because i should be studying for my midterms =p
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International Studies = no jobs
If you're going to double major, respectfully it might be a good idea to pick one of your majors in something that will get you a job. Maybe a Japanese Studies major is a big money-maker; I've never heard that before. (The "I'm going to do consulting work for companies who want to do business with Japanese firms", from what I've heard, seems like a pipe-dream.)
It's really cool to do the "Do what you love in college! Who cares about money?" when you're, say, 20. Whem you're 30 and trying to crawl out of some entry-level position and getting depressed because you can't afford to take a vacation while your friends are socking away money in retirement funds and doing amateur theatre after work, it's more painful.
I hate to be the jerk that has to say this stuff, but if no one else is telling it to you I don't mind being the lightning rod.
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I know that a BA in Anthropology won't get me far, but do you feel the same for the masters and phDs?
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I'd just hate to go to school for 10 years in something and discover that the hard work comes after the Dr. is added in front of your name, ya know?
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As an MA who wants to continue with a PH.D it does open doors: If you wanna teach and do fieldwork that is. So anthropologists who wants to work as that have to work at a uni or a college etc. There are always jobs if you are a anthro nerd and wanna work in a teaching institution of some sort.
If you take a subject in 10 years without loving it... Well give in after a ba then.
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I majored in Anthropology and I'm happy for it. I think I've gained a lot of knowledge that is useful in understanding the world. I think an Anthropology degree can apply to a lot of knowledge bases and can be explained in a job interview.
That said, most jobs only require that you have a college degree of some sort and very rarely ask for a specific BA. If you want a career IN Anthropology, you need to do a masters, maybe a PhD. That said, I have a BA and work for an archaeological graphics and design company from home at the moment.
My personal belief would be an international studies major would be more useless (and time wasting) than an anthropology major. Do what you like, and the rest will work itself out, especially if its not about the money for you.
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That was a typo on my part "Archaeological SURVEY and graphics", not nearly as exciting as it sounds. Just digitizing sketches made on site so the images can be better published.
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