The world of Academics with society as an accomplice, have single-handedly changed the perception of what higher education really is. Going to college has only one real purpose now, and it is to train you into a profession so you can be thrown into the workforce and stimulate the economy. Whereas in the times of the Renaissance, higher level of learning is only eligible to the small group of fortunate Aristocrats. Often times men, they are sent for a Tour around Europe to study subjects that will reinforce their personal enlightment. Nowadays, when one decides to enter an institution of higher learning, especially right after high school, CEGEP or its equivalence, the decision of what to study and what to do is such a fundamental question that it may haunt so many of us students. Some choose an already-established and thought-out academic path for the next four years, while others just simply acquire a general set of philosophical and scientific knowledge to enhance their personal intellectual wealth, which usually means that a post-undergraduate degree will ensue in the near future. And others, are simply clueless as to what their purpose is at college/university, other than deliberately spending thousands of dollars into something that supposedly will shape their life existence. Everyone falls into either of these categories.
As for I, my studies and my goals have become even more ambiguous as my undergraduate studies progress. I'm currently enrolled in the Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) program, which is essentially a business degree in Canada, and I have switched major three times in a span of half a year. I've come to major in International Business and then switched into Operations and Production Management, to finally "settle" for Accounting. My first thought of pursuing a business degree isn't so that I could slave myself into the routine-imposed, 9 to 5 office career for eternity. I initially wanted to get a well-rounded business education so that I can pursue different career paths in different fields, while at the same time fall back on a "legit" and "safe" degree if things go sour. But I've come to realized, and now I'm starting to believe, that a business degree has become essentially a "cover-up" degree where it makes people think that it is worth something; but in the end, especially in our new time of economic, social, and technological change, it has completely lost its meaningfulness. The endless list of annual top Chief Executive Officers of today's leading multinationals that leaks out every year through different media types have, in general, never been through an undergraduate in business. Case in point, here's a few of the world's top innovative and successful CEOs:
Jeff Besos (Amazon.com) - Computer Science & Electronical Engineering
Jaimie Dimon (JPMorgan Chase) - BA Economics/Psychology, MBA
Howard Levine (Family Dollar) - Undergraduate dropout
Chase Carey (DirectTV) - BS Mathematics & Economics
Rex W. Tillerson (Exxon Coporation) - BEng Civil Engineering
Jim Skinner (McDonald's) - No higher education
Some of them have gone and obtained an MBA, while others simply maintained their BS or BA degrees. I cannot deny that business programs enable the future citizens of the Corporate World to develop some analytical skills, as well as entrepreneurial quality to make effective and efficient decisions once out on the market, but I'm simply questionning whether with that only, is a marketable attribute that will entice employers to seek business undergraduate instead of engineering (computer, electronics), physics, mathematics or economics graduates to fulfill available positions. These area of specialization are highly valued because they are considered to prep the individuals with very analytical skills that can directly apply to business problems. In a way, it just simply put even more fierce competition on the job market. Maybe what is thought in business schools is not as relevent and the same as the real business outside of school. I'm not disgusted with what business degrees have become, far from that or else I would have gave it up and transfered into liberal arts to study English, History, Political Science, and Art, all things I have interests in. I am merely playing the Devils's advocate and seeing what the outside world beyond university perimeters really is like.
I'm hoping to be wrong about what I'm saying and that I am simply scaring myself with the thought of becoming an unemployed burden to society in the future. I'm always so fascinated about what other people are studying and their life pursuits. I'm fascinated by the overachieving pre-med students who, upon successfully graduating, will lead a fulfilling and productive life. I'm fascinating by the Arts students who, despite knowing that without a meaningful Philosophical Doctorate degree will not dedicate their life to their crafts, still get to enjoy the feeling that they've learned about human evolution, thoughts, ideas, the answers to the present and the questions of tomorows. I'm fascinated by those who are willing to spend significant portions of their time deriving and anti-deriving numbers so that they can in turn build bridges and buildings that sustain civil society. Maybe I'm too curious, and the idea that I must spend 3 years studying one main specific topic that may or may not get me a job is not satisfying enough.
If anything, there is always Law school (not that the world needs yet another lawyer :P )
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