Are BAs Useless?

Are BAs Useless?

... the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility - Eleanor Roosevelt

From early on in high school, teenagers hear about the importance of getting a higher (post-secondary) education. Clearly, without finishing high school, people cannot even get a job at McDonalds. While you may argue that flipping burgers does not require the completion of high school, normally, no restaurant of the chain will hire you if you lack this simple prerequisite. But the present short essay centres on a diverse topic altogether, what about all those certificates, diplomas and BAs (Bachelors of Arts), are these conducive to finding gainful employment?

The world is full of controversy. Stories abound of people becoming insanely successful and wealthy without completing high school, and alternatively, most of us know at least one Ph.D. who works as a barista at the local coffee shop. So is higher education useless? The question is quite complex, but from facts and job advertisements, it seems warranted to conclude that which kind of degree you hold greatly influences your marketability to potential employers. The same may be said of certificates, they do not all hold the same value to prospective employers.

Art is subjective. Image: Elena

Clearly, most professors in liberal arts or the social sciences would disagree with higher education being useless. After all, university teaches us how to think critically, how to be more disciplined and better organized, how to prioritize, important team work skills and so on. Many valuable skills, competencies and abilities are first required to enrol in undergraduate programs, then to graduate and eventually to keep educating oneself even after graduation.

In contrast, the job market is a whole other story. Employers want to see experience; they want to be certain you can do the job and do it well. But does a BA guarantee that? Many employers think that it does not. Also, many recent graduates find it difficult to get employed in their field. For example, consider psychology. With an undergraduate psychology degree, options for working in psychology or a related field are few and far between. Still, it appears probable that a degree is a degree, and better than no degree at all.