What is one of the most versatile major?

Hi Alea,

It's definitely a great idea to keep your options open. To be honest with you, any major can be a great opportunity with various career options. The key factor is that you learn more about yourself and about critical thinking so that you can understand your own career preferences as well as adapt to a variety of different situations and environments. Communication skills are also important as most jobs will require that you work and interact with people of various backgrounds.

I can speak from anecdotal evidence as well as personal experience that your undergraduate major does not have to define your future career path. I have friends who have gone on to work in fields very different from what they studied. I know an english major who does programming and user experience design for websites; a biology major who works as a director of merchandising for a large corporation; a computer science major who does human resources management; a civil engineering major who works on web development; and I was a biology major who worked in information technology management before becoming a professional artist.

The great thing about the university experience is that it exposes you to myriad opportunities to learn and grow. And as long as you take advantage of those opportunities to find what interests you then any major can help you to develop the skills necessary to pursue different career paths.

Some jobs and companies may require specific degrees or coursework. But specialized schooling may be done at a post-graduate level if necessary. I earned my Master of Fine Arts degree after graduating with a bachelor's degree in biology.

I know this isn't a specific answer to your question, but I hope that this gives you some hope that even if you get a degree in the "wrong" major it doesn't lock you into one job for the rest of your life and you can still end up in a career that you love.

Hi Alea! I think that deciding on a major is a tough thing for anyone. I went to college for a year to study chemical engineering and then switched my major to nursing after talking to a few nurses and deciding that's what I really wanted to do. Many people can go to college for a year as "un-declared" so that you can just take general courses that are required before you really get into a specialty. I think it's okay to do general courses and then ask some people you know about what they do, or what their parents do for a living-- then find some people to interview. You can find your way! You have some time-- but while you are deciding, you can take some general things like English, Math, Science, History- and talk to a college counselor to go from there. Best of luck!
Teresa

I've found that liberal arts degrees are the most diverse. For example I was a history major and now am a Vice President in a major bank. Liberal arts degrees really help you by exercising your mind in many different ways, and by giving you practice doing research, thinking critically, writing, expanding your vocabulary, and in many other ways. Focusing on a specific discipline doesn't give you that same sort of breadth and I believes almost forces you down a career path. You may have an idea what career you want to pursue but things change and a liberal arts degree gives you the ability to change your path. Good luck!

Hi,
That is a great question, it is good that you are thinking ahead. Here are my suggestions for versatile majors:
Accounting, Business/Management, Psychology or Liberal Arts with an area of emphasis or a minor. I would also suggest taking a minor for any degree you pursue, basically it is just taking a few courses in one area for a minor or emphasis area.
Good luck! :)

I have to say communications. Depending on your university, you are able to do a career focus so you can expose yourself other majors on campus and customize your resume as such. I have a focuses, in ethnic studies, marketing, sociology and sport marketing. By majoring in communications you not only are you taught how to resolve conflict but you learn how important a communications manager is to flow of business whether it's promoting or keeping all staff members knowledgeable of what is happening throughout their organization.

Bump both of these answers. I found nursing in a similar way to Ms Bentley. I was originally a Marketing major and changed my plan quickly when I realized I didn't want a desk job and wanted to interact with people. My roommate was a nursing major and I quickly followed suit because of what he told me about it. Interviewing current majors in fields you are interested in, people who have those jobs (nurses, doctors, etc) and shadowing are incredibly important. You have no idea what it is like to work in a hospital until you do it yourself or at least shadow someone. It's different than you think unless you have a close family member who already does. It is great to look at all these opportunities. There is a huge need in the medical field for nurses and physicians alike. It gives you great opportunity to work in tons of different settings and specialties. If you have anymore questions please let me know

Communications I would say is the most versatile considering there are many positions that you would be qualified for such as radio tv etc...

Hi Alea,

Choosing a major can be a tough decision. I have recently had to choose a major myself and went through all of the choices. I believe a business major is a major that can be used for any career. It teaches you skills of how to run a business and these tips can help you in any career possible!

The most versatile major is business! You can use at any job or possibly start your own business.