Find your perfect college degree
It’s a popular belief that higher education is key to competing in this rapidly evolving technological and competitive economic conditions with dynamic work requirements. While this is true, it doesn’t apply to all degrees. Not all college degrees are made equal, and, unfortunately, some professions have difficult employment markets.
If you’re aiming for quick and high ROI on your college degree, learning how to navigate the challenging terrain of postsecondary education by knowing what degrees pay more and what pays less is important.
This article explores which college degree programs face a marked lack of demand in the labor market. But before we dive into details, it’s important to understand that these degrees are not “useless.” Instead, these are degrees with complex challenges in finding direct, conventional employment within their respective fields.
While the value of education extends beyond immediate job placement, prospective students must weigh the long-term implications of their chosen path.
The Value of Education in the Workplace
Since education gives people the knowledge and skills they need to reach their full potential and contribute successfully to society, it is essential for both personal success and prosperity. Stability and financial oversight are provided by a quality education, which also serves to impress employers and guarantees that an individual is a good fit for their position.
But education has benefits that go beyond just earning a degree. It includes a path of continuous learning, rising to new challenges, and maintaining relevance in a competitive and dynamic world. Staying ahead of the curve in a volatile employment market, where technology developments are transforming industries, requires ongoing education!
The value of experiential and informal learning, in addition to formal education, cannot be emphasized. Through hands-on projects, workshops, and internships, people can apply their theoretical knowledge to actual scenarios and gain real-world exposure. This combination of classroom instruction and real-world experience helps people become more adaptive and ready for workplace challenges.
People who have received a well-rounded education are more capable of navigating life’s challenges, making wise decisions, and making significant contributions to their communities.
Beyond its effects on the economy and society, education is essential for producing knowledgeable and responsible citizens. A population with higher levels of education is more likely to participate in democratic processes, support community development, and get involved in civic activities. Education builds a foundation for a society based on knowledge, tolerance, and understanding by fostering a feeling of civic responsibility.
Understanding Job Demand
There is abundant evidence that having a college degree dramatically increases one’s chances of finding work and earning potential. In addition to making $1.2 million more on average over a lifetime, a group of economists found that people with bachelor’s degrees are half as likely to be unemployed as their peers with only a high school diploma.
After analyzing outcomes data from over 30 million students, they also discovered that public universities provide the highest opportunities for upward economic mobility.
However, not all degrees are created equal, and some may encounter challenges in securing employment due to various factors.
Technological Advancements
The rapid pace of tech advancements poses a real challenge for college degree programs that may not align with current industry needs. According to a study, skills and knowledge that were once in demand can become obsolete as new technologies emerge.
Degrees that fail to adapt to these changes may find their graduates facing diminished job prospects as employers prioritize candidates with the latest and most relevant skills.
Major companies are looking for people with specialized technical skills, such as cybersecurity, data analysis, and coding, to keep ahead of the curve and remain competitive in the market.
Economic Shifts
Economic downturns or shifts in market demand can profoundly impact the demand for specific skills or services. Degrees that were once highly sought after may lose their relevance in changing economic conditions.
Graduates holding degrees in fields affected by such shifts may face a more competitive job market with fewer opportunities.
Lack of Practical Application
Degrees that emphasize theoretical knowledge without a practical application component may struggle to meet the demands of employers. Employers today are increasingly seeking candidates with hands-on experience and real-world problem-solving skills.
Degrees that do not provide opportunities for practical application may leave graduates ill-prepared to meet the expectations of prospective employers.
Limited Industry Relevance
Some degrees may not align with the needs of industries experiencing growth or high demand. Graduates holding degrees in fields that are not aligned with current industry trends may face challenges finding suitable employment opportunities.
Understanding the demands within various industries and aligning educational pursuits with those demands is crucial for ensuring better job prospects.
15 College Degrees with Low Demand for Workers
Art History
Understanding our past and present through the lens of artistic creations is the essence of art history. Understanding the evolution of art over time is another aspect of art history. Students pursuing a degree in art history typically enroll in courses covering art composition as well as other periods of art history.
However, as we delve into the contemporary landscape, the relevance of an art history degree has come into question. Undoubtedly, if you don’t have another degree or a valuable skill set to support it, art history might be a challenging degree to work with.
While art history fosters critical thinking, research, and analytical skills, it may not align as closely with the specific needs of many industries, making graduates from this discipline face challenges when entering the workforce.
One of the most common pathways for undergraduates in art history is to become museum curators. The Labor Statistics data indicate that curators will experience a 10% job growth from 2022 to 2032. Considering its expected growth and the $53,420 median annual wage, this might seem like a good degree to invest in.
However, in this time and age, curators need master’s and PhD degrees to become competitive in the job market. Even then, you’ll be having a hard time landing jobs. The majority of art-focused organizations request to view a long CV with lots of experience.
A Ph.D. is required if you wish to teach at the university level (in addition to years of post-doctoral research and consistent publishing) to get tenure.
Biology
As a STEM major, biology may make you think it’s a good major for a high-paying career. But this is not at all true. You should reconsider if you’re studying biology and hoping to land fast-growing and high-paying jobs. As versatile as this major can be, it is a fairly worthless major for those depending on their biology degree to secure a relevant position.
Bachelor’s degrees in biology are geared towards theory rather than practice and research. As a result, the knowledge and abilities you acquire as a biology student will leave you with few possibilities and a somewhat dismal professional outlook.
You will face stiff competition for the few available employment if you only have a biology bachelor’s degree. It’s not ideal to be in this circumstance. You will likely need to obtain a graduate degree, a more marketable/in-demand certification, or an area of expertise. It’s not a worthless major, but it does demand more work.
Furthermore, biology overlaps with more industry-specific fields, such as Clinical Laboratory Science. Pursuing a CLS degree instead of a biology degree may lead to more successful career opportunities.
Another alternative for this degree is a medical laboratory program, which leads to more thriving positions. You can work as a lab technician, equipment salesperson, or CSI, among other professions. It is also an even better prerequisite for medical school than biology.
Nevertheless, having a degree in biology will undoubtedly aid in your admission to graduate or medical school. If you’re unsure about graduate or medical school, you may want to look into more specialized fields, such as the majors mentioned above or biomedical engineering and bioinformatics.
Communication
Communication is a very dynamic major encompassing several fields, such as public speaking, broadcasting, communication theory, and writing. We use communication daily for our entire lives. Whether obtained on campus or virtually, a bachelor’s degree in communications can provide you with a wealth of resources to help you excel in various careers.
According to official Labor Statistics data, media and communication employment is expected to proliferate. The only problem is that most media and communication jobs have career-focused degrees. This means these positions are more likely to hire graduates who have taken career-focused majors instead of broad majors like communication.
Moreover, the field of communication has evolved significantly with the advent of digital technology and the rise of social media. While traditional communication skills remain essential, the landscape has expanded, and individuals are expected to be proficient in digital communication, content creation, and social media management.
Traditional communication degrees may not adequately address these contemporary demands.
Some positions, such as PR managers, media marketers, journalists, and reporters, no longer need applicants to have bachelor’s degrees. An increasing number of companies, large and small, are hiring remote workers for their skills rather than mainly for their degrees.
While communication skills are universally important, today’s globalized world requires individuals to possess cultural competency and an understanding of diverse communication styles. And that’s the problem with most communication degrees—they don’t strongly emphasize cross-cultural communication and global perspectives.
While there’s no shortage of jobs that need people with excellent communication skills, obtaining a bachelor’s degree in communication can be too expensive for its broad curriculum with no specific focus and low ROI. Consider and mix your interests with various career-focused abilities to excel in today’s globalized and technologically-driven market.
Creative Writing
We all have a story to tell, but some of us want it published and expressed to the public for reading. Some writers are naturally gifted, while others have developed their skills with a backlog of writing courses. A lot of inspiring writers question if a creative writing degree is worth it. Well, for the majority of writers, a college degree in the field is not relevant.
The goal of a creative writing degree program is to help students advance their writing abilities in fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and other creative literary genres. This kind of degree gives budding authors a disciplined curriculum to polish their writing skills, get advice from knowledgeable instructors, and experiment with different genres and styles.
However, despite the immersive and enriching experience that creative writing programs offer, graduates often face the reality that the direct translation of their passion into a sustainable career can be challenging.
Creative writing degrees might not have well-defined professional trajectories, in contrast to more vocational degrees that are explicitly related to particular occupations. Since traditional full-time jobs dedicated exclusively to creative writing might be hard to come by, recent graduates may look for other opportunities to put their talents to use.
If you’re in it for the ROI, don’t expect much. The only way you’re ever going to get a return on your college investments is if you publish a best-selling novel or children’s book. However, the publishing and writing fields are very cutthroat. It can be difficult to break into well-established literary markets, land book agreements, or land-desired writing employment.
Culinary Arts
Culinary school is among the most expensive in the American higher education system. The significant money and time you’ll spend pursuing a culinary arts degree is deemed unnecessary and very taxing. A culinary education costs the same as other well-paying tech-driven degrees, but graduates earn a minimum wage of $19 per hour for entry-level jobs involving peeling and cleaning produce unless they secure better restaurant groups.
Plus, these degree programs are known to have instructors who will break your soul.
So, unless you come from a wealthy family and are rolling cash, culinary school will leave you with unbearable and often unpayable amounts of student debt.
But this is not to say that culinary arts have no advantages. Students who enroll in culinary schools can study under renowned instructors, including Michelin-starred chefs, and gain proficiency in cutting-edge traditional methods. Through internships at upscale eateries, they give students practical experience, strengthening their networks and skill sets for future employment.
There’s no specific requirement to become a chef—not by earning a degree or certification. Skills and talent in cooking are often a natural gift, and years of experience and strenuous effort. Some of the best chefs in the world, such as Heston Blumenthal and Gordon Ramsay, did not attend culinary school. However, other well-known figures did, including Christina Tosi of Milk Bar, Anthony Bourdain, and Alton Brown.
It’s also well-known that chefs are more likely to hire applicants who haven’t attended culinary school. Traditional culinary education often leads to stubbornness and inflexibility, hindering adaptability in the industry. Non-culinary education fosters open-mindedness and acceptance of different styles and techniques.
Fashion Design
Fashion design degrees are obtained by people who want to gain skills in designing ready-to-wear apparel. These degrees equip you with a deep understanding of the worldwide market segments while receiving mentoring and encouragement to build your own vision and design philosophy.
However, the field of fashion design indeed presents unique challenges, and aspiring professionals must approach it with a realistic understanding of the industry dynamics. Hurdles often mark the transition from academia to a successful career in the fashion industry.
Due to market saturation, many recent graduates in fashion design frequently have to compete fiercely for few available positions. The BLS projects that fashion design is projected to grow only 3% over the decade, with only 2,300 openings each year.
Establishing an individual brand or landing a desirable position in the fiercely competitive fashion industry might be difficult. Since few employers regard fashion design degrees as relevant, many students who graduate have difficulty finding employment in another profession.
Some of the world’s known designers for the “elite” didn’t even go to fashion design school. For instance, Coco Chanel left school at 18, Karl Lagerfeld studied a different major in Rome, and Miuccia Prada held a PhD in political science.
Other examples include Donatella Versace, Manolo Blahnik, Giorgio Armani, and Vera Wang, among others. These fashion designers have degrees outside the fashion industry.
But this is not to discredit fashion design schools. One benefit of attending these types of schools is the connection you can make, which is essential if you want to break into the industry.
Journalism
Journalism covers several topics, including the fundamentals of journalism that teach you how to research, write, and report news stories. In the old days, this degree was taken by those who wanted to participate in newspaper and printing.
But as the world becomes invested in hearing and reading news on social media platforms, the newspaper and printing industry faces a tremendous decline in production.
Indeed has published an article that guides aspiring journalists towards a flourishing career without needing to commit to a full-time bachelor’s degree in journalism.
Liberal Arts
A liberal arts education provides students with a broad intellectual foundation in various humanistic studies. It develops your ability to read critically, write persuasively, and think broadly by investigating topics, theories, and approaches from the humanities, arts, and scientific and social sciences. The goal of these degrees is to equip you with the skills required to handle the most challenging problems in the world.
Liberal arts is not dead, but it is not as lively as it used to be. Students worry that liberal arts degrees are not worth the high cost in light of growing expenses. As a result, there is a declining interest in the liberal arts and humanities, and its educational value could be limited to affluent elites with a wealth of material resources, both cultural and otherwise.
Wall Street Journal said that the liberal arts are declining, with a 29.6% decline in humanities graduates from 2012 to 2020. According to the article, students seek strong returns on investment, career opportunities, and diversity, which are combinations in liberal arts studies. According to Zippia, the average median annual wage for liberal arts majors is $39,349. If you compare this yearly average to the increasing cost of higher education, you’ll see that this is not one of the best degrees intended for a high ROI.
Library and Information Science
Professionals in library and information science connect people, information, and technology. The main goals of this initiative are to help clinicians find health information in emergency circumstances, assist scholars in finding resources, and build knowledge-organization systems.
Librarians and other information professionals are essential leaders in the struggle for our democracy. And in this time and age, where social media gatekeepers are doing little to stop misleading information from spreading online, these professionals are supposed to be growing in demand. But it’s not. Librarians’ jobs are growing increasingly complex.
Librarians must negotiate more complicated digital rights management agreements and rethink physical locations to serve users’ demands better. They also must create engaging programs to keep patrons interested as print circulation drops and facility usage shifts.
Public organizations face challenges from declining budgets as well as from having to appease a wide range of constituents. Public libraries and schools “fight for their very existence” in some towns.
The unemployment rate for those with degrees in library science is 15%. There’s a good chance that you won’t be able to find employment even with a four-year degree. You can raise your chances of finding a job by concentrating on something other than library science.
Music
A music degree offers an education in music history, theory, practice, and business administration. It can be combined with other courses in music therapy programs. A degree can prepare individuals for various roles in the music industry, including composition, teaching, copyright expertise, and sound engineering.
The music industry, however, is small. According to the Labor Statistics Bureau, musicians and singers show little or no change over the next ten years. Over the past fifteen years, the music industry has experienced a radical transformation driven by the emergence of the digital age, technological breakthroughs, and changes in consumer behavior.
For musicians, record companies, and music lovers, these developments have ushered in a new era by altering how music is produced, shared, enjoyed, and made profitable.
The majority of famous people in the music industry have no music degree at all! Instead, they got where they are through their love, passion, and talent for music— or, in some cases, through their famous parents, relatives, or generational wealth.
Since music majors are restricted to the field, graduates apply for teaching and church roles. And we all know that these career paths will barely make ends meet, with low pay and no benefits guaranteed. If you have a family to attend to, this is not one of the best careers for you.
Philosophy
Philosophy studies existence, knowledge, truth, and ethics, enhancing reasoning, argumentation, and critical thinking. It challenges assumptions and explores topics like human nature and free will. Science has replaced philosophy in the modern era, leading to job opportunities in non-related fields.
As intimidating as the subject seems, most graduates wound up trying to find employment in law-related careers, as well as in business, medicine, marketing, and other non-related industries.
Philosophy is a tough market to break into. There’s a one-in-a-million chance that you’ll get recognition for your work as highly as Plato and Aristotle. This is especially true if you’re not planning on pairing your bachelor’s degree with a Ph.D., which entails more money, time, and effort than you originally invested in your philosophy degree. Therefore, your best chance could be to choose a new field from the beginning.
Religious Studies
Religious studies examines the many facets of religion from a critical and comparative standpoint. It entails a methodical and analytical analysis of religious doctrines, rituals, practices, beliefs, and the effects of faith on people and communities. Religious studies aim to examine and evaluate spiritual occurrences objectively, not to support or advocate for any one religion.
This degree will not work for you unless you have nothing planned in your life other than participating in religious studies. Religious studies degree programs limit your job options.
In the last 150 years, the world’s religious landscape has seen significant transformation. Churches have seen a decline in regular churchgoers, and not many people consistently attend religious activities and services. Thus, you’ll have a hard time finding a job supporting a comfortable life.
You’ll even have a hard time landing opportunities that will fulfill your soul and mission since the population of atheists in America is increasing.
Furthermore, this degree program is frequently offered by private schools, which are known to have tuition and fee costs that are through the roof. Once you graduate, you’ll be left with high student loans with little to no possibility of paying them back.
If you want to become an independent preacher, you don’t need a high-cost degree. You also don’t need a degree to study various religions and preach what you believe in. One of the best ways to truly study religion is to travel to different places and learn about their culture.
Studio and Fine Arts
A studio and fine arts degree equips graduates with comprehensive knowledge, skills, critical thinking, visual communication, technical competence, and ethical practices responsive to industry and global standards. While formal education provides a solid foundation, the true essence of artistic prowess often lies in one’s innate abilities and the relentless pursuit of self-improvement.
Many believe that this degree is not worth the trouble. Success in art is frequently elusive, and the field is infamous for its unpredictable nature. Investing huge amounts of money in an education that could not yield financial returns can be risky. Many known artists without a degree in the field have achieved professional success.
Freelancing creative talents can provide a secure income source while developing a portfolio and potentially turning artistic skills into a viable business.
Theater Arts
Theater Arts is a performing arts branch that creates and presents live performances. It involves creative elements like acting, directing, stage design, lighting, costume design, makeup, and sound to tell stories or convey messages.
Many students pursuing a degree in this area intend to have a career in acting. However, it’s well-known that you don’t need a college degree to act on stage or cam. What you need is pure talent and skills.
Moreover, landing an acting career is very complex. It may take years, or never, to get nationally discovered, especially with all the nepotism babies surfacing today. If you really want to have an acting career, we suggest pursuing workshops instead of costly degree programs.
Graduates in the theater arts have few work options after graduation, which makes them highly unlikely to pay off debt. And because theater arts are not as versatile as other degrees, you’re likely to get rejected by many employers in upscale companies.
Travel and tourism
Adventurous souls who want to explore other parts of the world are best suited for travel and tourism degrees. But do these people need a degree to make a living doing what they love, such as traveling? Well, no.
For one, you can make a living out of traveling by posting vlogs of your travels online. You can upload it to your Facebook and Instagram reels, YouTube channel, or TikTok account. These social media platforms allow you to monetize your uploads. You just need to set up your online profile and research how to make engaging and unique content. Traveling and leisure is a big hit on social media platforms.
If you’re aiming for a desk job, you may want to enroll in other relevant and in-demand degrees and minor in travel and tourism to gain knowledge about the field. This move will help you expand your horizons in the job hunt and not restrict you to employment in a sole industry. Besides, travel agency employees often complain of their meager pay, irregular work schedules, and subpar employee treatment.
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