CONNECT YOUR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

In a recent New Republic article, John McWhorter tries (but fails) to convince us that learning French is a waste of time. He wrote an almost identical article back in 2010, which I critiqued in the Humanities+ Blog here: http://humanitiesplus.byu.edu/2011/04/which-languages-should-the-liberal-arts-be-about-in-2011.html Business Insider has also chimed in: http://www.businessinsider.com/why-we-still-need-french-2014-2

17% of job openings in the UK go unfilled due to a lack of language skills. read here: http://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/jan/30/employers-struggle-to-fill-vacancies-languages

“Speaking on a panel at the World Economic Forum, Mr. Rubenstein, the co-chairman of the private equity firm, said American policy makers and educators have put too much of a focus on the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics at the expense of the study of literature, philosophy and other areas in the humanities.”…

Students in science and engineering often feel that required courses in the humanities are a waste of time. They would avoid them if they could. Here is a scientist who explains how deep familiarity with the classic texts in the humanities generates and maintains a healthy skepticism that scientists need in order to avoid self-delusion…

read here: http://www.businessinsider.com/11-reasons-to-major-in-the-humanities-2013-6

A recent study, based on a survey of 50,000 employers, makes two crucial points that every college student be aware of: “An internship is the single most important credential for recent college graduates to have on their résumé.” “Internships present a paradox. While a college degree delivers higher earnings over a lifetime, it is often…

read here: http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2013/11/12/essay-whats-missing-discussion-humanities and here:http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2013/11/12/essay-suggests-liberal-arts-training-relates-skills  

There are many reasons. But this report focuses on the unexpected ones, such as the lack of soft skills like interpersonal communication, office relations, critical thinking – i.e., skills that are likely to be developed and enhanced by studying the humanities. Also missing is the internship experience. Excerpt:“One thing that does appear to make a…

Burning Glass conducted a study of liberal arts majors and employment data. There is good and bad news. The bad news is: the unemployment rate for liberal arts grads is higher than for several other majors. The good news, however, is that the marketplace is looking for a mix of liberal arts and technical skills.…

Have you studied a language? Do you have an additional skill? Chances are that you are more valuable to employers than you think. Read here about the current boom in the hiring of students with foreign language competencies: http://money.cnn.com/2013/10/30/news/economy/job-skills-foreign-language/index.html?iid=s_mpm