There is an infographic floating around the web listing the 10 College Degrees Recruiters Don’t Want to See.
Unsurprisingly, pretty much everything I studied in college* is on that list.
We're living in a world bathed in technology. So, it stands to reason that subjects like the arts, psychology, communications, journalism, social work, etc. are starting to fall under the category of "interesting, but not important," instead of "employable skill."
I think that's a mistake.
Technology is being made by humans, for humans in order to help us do human stuff better. So, understanding how humans think, act and communicate is important. Particularly when it comes to marketing and communications.
Let’s take theatre majors (a species near and dear to my heart) for example**
A lot of what I'm reading about the future of digital communications suggests theatre majors will be very much the kind of people you’re going to want on your MarCom team in the future...
Do you know who can create immersive experiences with visualized speech using things like sound, words, images, body language, lighting and scenery?
Theatre people.
Do you know who can both live in an imaginary world and then report back on that world and explain it to people who don’t live within it?
Theatre people.
Do you know who can dissect and respond to moments in real-time and work within a team to create creative solutions that can shift mood, tone or focus?
Theatre people.
With a brave new world on the horizon (that we can't even fully fathom because technology is moving so fast) we're going to have to accept the uncomfortable reality that we don't exactly know what we're going to need from tomorrow's graduates.
So, perhaps it's more important than ever to invest in people who can invent whatever, whenever for whomever.
Because, in my experience, if you give a business major three sticks, they’ll build you a really nice triangle. But if you give a theatre major three sticks, they’ll build a portal to another dimension and then convince you to jump through it with them.
And, no matter what the future holds, the day will come when you're going to need to jump.
*I officially double majored in Speech Communication Theatre Arts and Humanities and double majored in History and Religion. (I'm basically the definition of "liberal arts education.")
** Theatre majors are skilled in many things -- not just acting, but also design, storytelling, writing, marketing, directing, tech support, costuming, PR, customer service, etc.
I’m a consultant, strategist, author, educator, and speaker with more than 30 years of professional experience. I’m passionately curious, fairly sassy, kinda dorky and seriously good at what I do.
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