Most Useless College Majors Anything

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Most Useless College Majors

original ranker School Buddy  23,239 views 36 items 14 followers
List of the most pointless university majors and fields of study guaranteed to not lead to gainful post-graduation employment. In April of 2012, the Daily Beast ran their list of 13 pointless college majors; now it's your turn to sound off on the coursework that will most poorly prepare you to enter the job market. Often, when students first enter a community college or four-year university program, they're encouraged to pursue a course of study that most interests them. The idea is that they will first become dedicated to, and excited about, learning something, and then they'll eventually figure out how to apply their interests towards pursuing a career. But as the economy continues to struggle, and jobs for recent grads dry up, this philosophy is being reconsidered (as is studying philosophy in general.) "English majors working as barista" jokes aside, graduating with a degree in a humanities subject deemed as "useless" can be a real detriment to finding work post-graduation, even as newly-minted electrical engineers and computer developers get snatched up quickly by startups and tech companies.

This list provides some insight into the majors seen as "most useless" by the public at large. Vote for the departments you'd be least likely to join on your nearest campus, and if we've missed a major you think is utterly without merit, add it at the bottom of the page.
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    Religious Studies

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    Fine art

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    Bachelor in Cooperative

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    Theater Arts

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    Dance

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    Interior design

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    One Laptop Per Child

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    Fashion design

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    Underwater Basket Weaving

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    No college majors on that yet, but trust me, there will be soon
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    Film

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    Criminal Justice

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    Unfortunately, the number of jobs in the field itself is not growing, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. And Shatkin agrees. "Better than agriculture, but not by much. If you're lucky, you may find some way to apply that to a related business like food processing or production," he says.

    Total Number of Farmers and Ranchers in 2008: 985,900
    Projected Change in Number of Jobs 2008-2018: -79,200
    Percent Change: -8
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    Fine Arts

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    Music

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    Social Work

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    Travel and Tourism

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    Golf Management

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    Archaeology

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    Hotel & Restaurant Management

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    Winemaking

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    Photography

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    Journalism

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    When schools such as the University of Idaho cut their agriculture programs, you know times are tough for this degree. The state has more than 25,000 farms, for cow's sake, according to the most recent U.S. Department of Agriculture census, in 2007.

    Still, if your idea of a good day is getting up with the sun and working till it sets as an agricultural manager, a degree in agriculture might be your calling.

    Just don't expect farms and ranches to be calling you, says Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D., and author of "The 10 Best College Majors for Your Personality." "It's true that farms are becoming more efficient now and so there is less of a need for farm managers," he says. That means less jobs. In fact, the U.S. Department of Labor projects 64,000 fewer jobs in this field over the next seven years.

    Total Number of Agricultural Managers in 2008: 1,234,000
    Projected Change in Number of Jobs 2008-2018: -64,600
    Percent Change: -5
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    comments powered by Disqus
    1. Marlin Rizza
      Most Useless College Majors at 11/14/2012 3:30 PM
      woah, what? Useless College Majors
    2. Dane Asen
      Most Useless College Majors at 11/01/2012 5:30 AM
      oh, that Worst College Majors
    3. HaileyS
      Most Useless College Majors at 5/10/2012 12:22 PM
      Actually ALL Those majors contribute to something in some way!
    4. Reilcan Jones
      Most Useless College Majors at 4/24/2012 1:25 PM
      Every field on this list needs educated professionals for society to move forward... Fail.
      1. StacyWang
        Most Useless College Majors at 4/27/2012 4:22 PM
        Are you saying that with a straight face? Philosophy? Gender studies? No society can possibly move forward without interior design majors? I believe societies have moved forward quite well without most of these stupid majors.
        1. anestiegomez
          Most Useless College Majors at 4/28/2012 2:44 AM
          No society can possibly move forward without Philosophy. It has always been this way, and will still be this way. Sorry to break such news to you dear, but the underlying stone of society/politics/ethics/social conduct is in principle, Philosophy. With that being said, Interior Design cannot coexist in the same list of uselessness as Philosophy or Archaeology. Sure, Philosophy might not get you a job at a bank, but defying usefulness in a major by how profitable it is, it is simply stupid.

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