Renaissance Man
Father’s Day brought my husband’s family together last weekend. A few us got talking after dinner about the need for specializing in college in order to be competitive in today’s job market. My sister-in-law knew someone in a college program for aspiring designers of computer game software. That’s a major now—entertainment software design.
I think that’s great and it sounds like a fun major. But the conversation got me thinking about the heyday of the liberal arts program. Remember the fun of not specializing? The joys associated with a program so diverse you were taking psychology in the morning, ancient civilizations at noon and then sipping your way through a mid-day java with something like Intro. To Drama?
Exploration of a variety of fields is one of the great things about life as an undergraduate. Or at least, it used to be. I loved the idea of being a Renaissance man—or woman—acquiring knowledge about a broad range of subjects. Besides, deciding what career path you want to take at eighteen is a challenge. Isn’t it nice to have time to look around and explore a variety of fields first, try a few things on for size that go beyond the math, science and social studies of high school?
What’s more, I wonder if there aren’t a few career fields left where it helps to keep that liberal, broad approach all through college. Surely there must be a few jobs today that favor a well-rounded individual who knows their Greek mythology, can discuss the classics and is versed in political science.
My brother-in-law suggested you’re in trouble if you go this route today. I scoffed at this, but the point he made that worried me a little was that there is such a wealth of information available, so much information tracked, archived, catalogued and available online, that no one can be a Renaissance man anymore. A broad range of that much knowledge is almost an impossible feat.
I really hope that’s not so. I’m sure, for example, that a writer could benefit from a liberal arts program with less specialization. I wish I’d taken a more diverse program since I, too, got sucked into specializing sooner than I would have liked. But maybe that’s just because I listened to rallying cries like “crowded job market” and “find your niche.” If I had it to do all over again, I’d definitely ditch one of those accounting courses for something a little more colorful. Myth and Morality in the Modern Era, anyone?
***Do you know of any fields that still call for a truly broad-based education? What was the most fun college course, workshop or continuing education class you’ve ever taken? ***
Join Joanne for a discussion on the boards for a chance to win her new Mediterranean Nights continuity book, SCENT OF A WOMAN. A random poster will be chosen Monday morning.
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