Choosing a College Major Using 3 Paths as a Starting Point Guide (Podcast Version)

[LevelUP]

yeah, but saying there are only 3 types of degrees and leaving out paramedic, nursing, dental hygienist, electronic engineering technology, environmental science ...
seems kind of weird                

unless he's saying those are job specific so they don't count as degrees

Those are job specific, they don't count as a "general" degree. They count as a specific degree with specific jobs for that type of degree.

I don’t really understand the point of your post, LevelUP. I am sure there are many students who are victims of “paralysis by analysis”, particularly when choosing between similar degrees. Lumping all of the “liberal arts” together, in particular, seems a bit much. Is it really your position that a person earning a BS with a double major in math and physics has received substantially the same degree as a person receiving a BA in English and Art History?

To be sure, in the United States most bachelor’s degrees have a liberal arts component and the two people that I mentioned should, SHOULD, be able to read, write, do math, and explain natural phenomena scientifically. But the skill sets, knowledge bases, and, yes, employability of the two hypothetical people I mentioned are quite different.

Liberal arts degrees tend to teach theory and a particular way of thinking/viewing the world. Non-liberal arts degrees tend to be more applied and practical degrees which teach a particular skill set. I think that would be the first-order distinction I would make. Within each of these fields, there are disciplines that are and that are not STEM+B. It’s basically a 2x2 matrix.

Examples:
Theory, STEM+B: Math, physics, biology, chemistry

Practice, STEM+B: Engineering, IT, nursing, accounting, finance

Theory, non-STEM+B: history, English, sociology, art history, psychology

Practice, non-STEM+B: public administration, social work, mental health counseling (and related)

To be sure, any of these distinctions are arbitrary and there is overlap. Some schools treat economics as a liberal art, some as a business discipline. Some treat physics as a liberal art, some as an applied/engineering discipline.

Math/Physics may be considered liberal arts to some though employers may view this degree as a technical skills type of degree similar to Computer Science, IT, etc. Should these STEM-type majors be combined in one category of STEM instead of Computer Studies? Maybe. You are right I'm missing some valuable degrees that can stand on their own. 

It is a stretch to throw all these degrees together, but on the flip side of the coin, it's also a stretch to pretend there are all these unique degrees.

So, for example, ASU will say that you could be a police or corrections officer with a criminal justice degree. But couldn't you do the same thing with psychology, history, or any liberal arts degree? With an English degree, they tell you that you could be a writer or communication specialist. Again any liberal arts degree you could do that.

I guess what I'm getting at is when do employers on places such as Indeed.com request employees have certain liberal arts degrees for certain jobs, and when do they pay a premium for those degrees?

Liberal arts teaches valuable skills, which is why every degree has some component of liberal arts. I could go through one-by-one and list the reasons why each course is important on Sophia for example. Though a subject like environmental science may not help you career-wise, it may help you socially to understand the environmental debate.

Anyway, I'm open to criticism. Nothing is set in stone.