Dream Degree

Someone asked me this earlier and it got me thinking. These days education seems so hard wired to graduate positions that it feels odd to even discuss education for education's sake.

If degrees had no bearing on jobs and you had to get a degree, what would it be?

81 Comments
 

EDIT: Misread question.

If I could do it all over again, I'd go for psych, philosophy, or history of science.

EDIT2: If I could go back to Harvard, I'd go for history of science and not drop out.

 

?? degree, not institution.

Still think Econ is great. Math and physics is awesome.

Poli Sci, Philosophy, and Rhetoric (not real degree, but fascinating to me)

"History doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme."
 

Hustlin & Ballin

oh wait, i already gots a phd from the skool of hard knox

then i got recruited 2 the streetz, exit opped 2 hiphop mogul

fans wanna know whats next for swag? gotta wate & see yall, only time will souljaboytellem

 

If I was able to get a degree I wanted with no bearing on job prospects or anything - I'd get pursue a dual major in Bio-Organic Chemistry and Hospitality (think something like Cornell's School of Hotel Management or Penn State's School of Hospitality Management) and minors in marketing and philosophy. Strange set up but that's what I'd do. If anyone cares to take a stab at why those, I'll gladly hear the list of possible job careers.

 
FriedsIf I was able to get a degree I wanted with no bearing on job prospects or anything - I'd get pursue a dual major in Bio-Organic Chemistry and Hospitality (think something like Cornell's School of Hotel Management or Penn State's School of Hospitality Management) and minors in marketing and philosophy. Strange set up but that's what I'd do. If anyone cares to take a stab at why those, I'll gladly hear the list of possible job careers.

I know someone who's doing a hospitality degree at a top swiss school. He has lived in 4 continents and he s 20 years old.

 
Unforseen
FriedsIf I was able to get a degree I wanted with no bearing on job prospects or anything - I'd get pursue a dual major in Bio-Organic Chemistry and Hospitality (think something like Cornell's School of Hotel Management or Penn State's School of Hospitality Management) and minors in marketing and philosophy. Strange set up but that's what I'd do. If anyone cares to take a stab at why those, I'll gladly hear the list of possible job careers.

I know someone who's doing a hospitality degree at a top swiss school. He has lived in 4 continents and he s 20 years old.

I have ex-colleagues who have done one or the other and they have lived/worked in 3 continents... Hospitality is a cool industry (as far as business can be cool) and Cornell's programme is pretty well known globally.
 
UnforseenI know someone who's doing a hospitality degree at a top swiss school. He has lived in 4 continents and he s 20 years old.
RelinquisI have ex-colleagues who have done one or the other and they have lived/worked in 3 continents... Hospitality is a cool industry (as far as business can be cool) and Cornell's programme is pretty well known globally.

Is this typical? Or are they just lucky? Also, do either of you know how much these types of degrees cost, and whether or not one can break into the industry without the degree? Thanks in advance.

 
FriedsIf I was able to get a degree I wanted with no bearing on job prospects or anything - I'd get pursue a dual major in Bio-Organic Chemistry and Hospitality (think something like Cornell's School of Hotel Management or Penn State's School of Hospitality Management) and minors in marketing and philosophy. Strange set up but that's what I'd do. If anyone cares to take a stab at why those, I'll gladly hear the list of possible job careers.

Pretty sure Cornell's School of Hotel Management looks good in the RE investment/ management area http://www.prei.prudential.com/view/page/pimcenter/6703

GBS
 

I wudda done the medicine route imo. A) more mentally stimulating imo, B) much more transparent career progression imo C) the self-fulfillment of doing a job which tangibly helps others imo....imo

GBS
 
GoldmanBallSachsI wudda done the medicine route imo. A) more mentally stimulating imo, B) much more transparent career progression imo C) the self-fulfillment of doing a job which tangibly helps others imo....imo

Ever considered a one year bridge program?

I hung out with an ex Goldman guy who's in his second year of Med School. He's around 33 with a wife and two young kids. Not sure how far he was up the ladder, but he'd spent at least 3-4 years beyond associate. I think he did a one year bridge program at Penn after he quit.

Safe to say he gave up several million, but he's happy with the decision.

 

If I could do it all over again, I may not go to college at all. Anything really worth learning can probably be taught to oneself.

 
Best Response
IlliniProgrammerAssumption:

We go communist and give everyone a stipend of $100K/year because the US economy has been replaced by computers and machines. College is free everywhere. Life skills are important, but work competencies aren't.

Music (Piano) & Philosophy @ Northwestern.

Did IP just get shat on because he used the word "communist"? Wow. You WSO guys need to educate yourselves a bit more and not be slaves to a previous decade's propaganda.

I'll give IP an SB for mentioning Music. Definitely something I would like to learn more about, but not sure if I'd pursue it at a higher level... I suppose an MFA would be an option. Creative writing, Film-making and Theatre.

 

Anything technically rigorous.

Physics; Applied Mathematics, etc.

Would be cool to have an intuitive understanding of these subjects.

The difference between successful people and others is largely a habit - a controlled habit of doing every task better, faster and more efficiently.
 

I like my business master degrees. However, if I could I'd definitely try doing without that marketing, HR, organizations crap and some of the microeconomics classes I had to take. Would've picked a different school, 'tho.

As regards a completely different degree... would've loved to do something with sport sciences and then TA for kickboxing, grappling, nutrition or lifting classes. Damn that would've been awesome.

 
Relinquis
RGEStrange, no one said...religion or engineering...why is philosophy a more interesting degree over religion?
Isn't religion another form of politics/philosophy?

No. Going by its roots philosophy is "love of wisdom" that is concerned with discussing, knowledge, and debating on principles. Religion involves reverence. Generally religion generally involves a connection or reverence for something greater than humanity or mundane experience. That can be God, gods, spirits, an impersonal supernatural force. Not to say Religion is anti-intellectual because some of the worlds greatest scientist are religious to one degree or another. Also, if your Muslim than maybe your religion can be a political system as well because Islam more closely regulates a Muslim's social and domestic life, legal system and politics i.e. total life than say Judaism or Christianity.

So my question still stands why are people here more interested in philosophy over religion as a field of study?

 

I am religious. I am also an engineer

WHY NOT RELIGION: 1.) Religion would be a graduate degree- typically an MDiv, not an undergrad. 2.) I do enough preaching on the value of thrift, the fact that you find smart folks just about everywhere, and that money and prestige are probably not at the top of life's priorities. I have no further interest in telling people how they ought to live, and I would probably drive everyone around me even crazier than I currently do. 3.) I believe the religion I follow has the power to make peoples' lives better. I don't believe you need a three year degree and an expert knowledge of Koine Greek and Ancient Hebrew to share that with other folks and help them out.

WHY NOT ENGINEERING: 1.) I did engineering because I'm good at it, I wanted a job, and my parents demanded I study something practical. 2.) Engineering is almost as dismal a science as econ. It is about mathematics, physics, and (for us CS and CompE guys) logic. There are no people. People are a lot more interesting than electrons. 3.) It's always fun to understand how things work, but you don't need an engineering degree to do that. Just a few physics and statics courses.

 
IlliniProgrammerEngineering is almost as dismal a science as econ. It is about mathematics, physics, and (for us CS and CompE guys) logic. There are no people. People are a lot more interesting than electrons.

In econ, we treat people like electrons, which is probably even more dismal lol.

 

Joint MBA at Yale with School of Forestry

Also, I've always found the MFE at the University of Hawaii to be rather interesting. "Weather Derivatives" could be a cool class.

"That dude is so haole, he don't even have any breath left."
 

@ RGE

i think philosophy and religion both get at the same point (i.e. why are we here? what is our purpose? etc.) but go about doing so in different ways. I feel like philosophy attempts to answer the questions while religion merely installs stories that do it for you. So like philosophy would be "is there a God", religion would be "God is X". Philosophy would be "how did we get here?", religion would be "We got here by Y". For that reason, I could see why "thinkers" would be more attracted to philosophy.... just my $.02

GBS
 
GoldmanBallSachs@ RGE

i think philosophy and religion both get at the same point (i.e. why are we here? what is our purpose? etc.) but go about doing so in different ways. I feel like philosophy attempts to answer the questions while religion merely installs stories that do it for you. So like philosophy would be "is there a God", religion would be "God is X". Philosophy would be "how did we get here?", religion would be "We got here by Y". For that reason, I could see why "thinkers" would be more attracted to philosophy.... just my $.02

Decent answer, I can dig it.

 

MFA in Dance and Choreography. and maybe a BS in Astrophysics.

Currently: future neurologist, current psychotherapist Previously: investor relations (top consulting firm), M&A consulting (Big 4), M&A banking (MM)
 

muff diving?

"Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid"
 

Still in college doing Engineering and Business but I would love to just do some combination of Philosophy, Psychology and Statistics. I would then use this combination of degrees to become a professional poker player. (Thats my dream job but I feel that finance or engineering is more realistic)

 

Undergrad: Linguistics and architecture

Later, Doctoral in Linguistics and cognitive science

Power and Money do not change men; they only unmask them
 

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