“Philosophy Projected as Top-Paid Class of 2016 Humanities Major,” National Association of Colleges and Employers
Source: http://www.naceweb.org/s02242016/top-paid-humanities-graduates-2016.aspx
“Surprise: Humanities Degrees Provide Great Return on Investment,” Forbes
“The Earning Power of Philosophy Majors,” The Atlantic
Source: http://www.theatlantic.com/notes/2015/09/philosophy-majors-out-earn-other-humanities/403555/
“Welders make more money than philosophers,” presidential candidate Marco Rubio, during the fourth Republican debate.
In reality:
Philosophy majors develop many skills which transfer to the workplace, including:
- Research and integrate the ideas of experts on a given topic
- Write papers which reflect one’s own ideas while also building on the shared research program of a community
- Gain familiarity with a wide variety of sources, including literary, statistical, and scientific
- Organize complex bodies of information
- Present abstract material simply and succinctly
- Structure long-term research projects into manageable and coherent parts
- Learn the tools of formal and informal logic, as well as how to avoid fallacies of reasoning
- Synthesize empirical data with one’s own insights into a cohesive argument
- Think critically about a variety of practical as well as theoretical issues
- Revise one’s work in light of comments and criticism from peers
- Realistically evaluate what it is that one has accomplished
- Understand how one’s own contributions fit into a broader program of existing work, and which future directions one’s work might take
