Reactions to your Major

[Save Point]

I went to the hairdressers and she asked me the same question. I said I was (at the time) starting law school. She asked me if I was going to be a police officer, with no hint of sarcasm or humor.

I've been told[1] that despite the prevalence of shows about lawyers, much of the general public doesn't know how people become lawyers or what law school is for. Now, I grew up in a pretty affluent area where everyone knew lawyers growing up and my parents are lawyers (and now, I'm a lawyer), so I find this to be surprising but my co-workers who grew up in less affluent areas have said that most people think that lawyers in the US only have undergraduate degrees and that law school is for judges and cops.

[1] AKA "I only have secondhand anecdotal evidence about this so it's pretty close to being useless.

Really? Huh, I had no idea. I also grew up in a pretty affluent area, so everyone I interact with tends to be pretty spot-on about law school, and this girl had likewise grown up in the area so I'm not sure what was going on. But it does surprise me that people get confused over it.

[zmatt]

Douglas Adams answer
I build planets. (I designed NORWAY!)

Fixed.

I should probably have been more explicit - I don't usually mind people asking me what I'm going to do, it's more the tone I tend to get. The sort of "oh-well-that's-a-completely-pointless-subject" voice. It's the difference between say, "Oh, what are you planning on doing?" and "What are you even going to do with that?"

I'm about to get my Bachelors in History with a minor in Japanese and i can 100% relate to this.

[pragmat15t]

Them: "What's your major?"
Me: "Economics."
Them:"Oh! So you mean finance and stocks?"
Me: "Er..not exactly..."

[Kizyr]

Them: "What's your major?"
Me: "Economics."
Them:"Oh! So you mean finance and stocks?"
Me: "Er..not exactly..."

Be prepared for people asking you for help with their taxes and investment options. Finance, accounting, and economics tend to get intermingled in folks' minds despite being different disciplines.
... I still do give some general tax and financial advice when asked, though, but I preface and follow it up with "but I'm not a CPA so don't hold me to this".

Japanese. The responses I get are as you'd imagine them to be.
- "Konnichi wa/Domo arigatou", or something similar.
- "Wow, but isn't that, like, impossible to read and write?"
- "So, are you really into videogames and anime and stuff"
There also usually follows a request for a demonstration of spoken Japanese.

...yeah this is pretty universal. My responses are usually:
- ...ok
- No, it's easier than it looks. (Or, "130 million people read it; it's not that hard.")
- Yes, that's actually why I got into it at first. (May as well admit it.)
And I have a habit of refusing 'spoken demonstrations'. KF

[Robot_Raptor]

Heh, when I tell people i'm an ElecE + CompSci major, I get

-"That sounds hard"
"It is"
-"oh wow, you must be good with computers"
"kinda"
and
-"Why aren't you a CompE"
<spiel about CS for AI and EE for Control Theory, and how i'm trying to cobble together a grounding in RoboE />

[Hecate]

I didn't take any Business courses this semester, so responses have changed a little:

"What's your major?"
"Pure Math, and potentially a second major in Statistics"
"So, what grades do you want to teach?"
"... I don't plan on teaching"
"Well, I don't see what else you could really do with a math degree"
" "

I'm considering switching to Applied Math; perhaps that will get better responses.

[Vito]

Me "I am studying Microengineering."
Them : "WTF is that ?"
Me : "It is mainly focused on robotics engineering." (we can also take MEMS design courses but most people don't know what's a MEMS).
Them : <Insert a comment about Skynet or robots destroying jobs opportunities>

[katethegreat]

I always make fun of my brother's religious studies major. >_>. I mean, seriously? Religious studies? It's not like he's even going to become a priest...
Oh well, whatever floats his noah's ark.



Get it? Get it? ^_^
Okay, that wasn't even a funny pun...

[B.Good]

I'm considering switching to Applied Math . . .

Take that back right now! Okay, that was a joke -- sort of.

[beyondweird]

@KateTheGreat - Grrrrrr

[cjmcjmcjmcjm]

A fairly typical conversation:
THEM: "What sort of things in you do in free time/hobbies/etc…?"
ME: "I write music"
THEM: "Are you studying music?"
ME: "No."
THEM: "What are you in school for?"
ME: "Chemistry"
THEM: Either "Why not music?" or "What speciality"

[katethegreat]

@KateTheGreat - Grrrrrr

Oh, I love my brother and it's really cool that he's studying what he finds interesting instead of business or something like that. Plus he's going for a double major with history, AND getting his masters at the same time as his bachelors. Impressive!
I just find it kind of funny because, well, first of all, we were never really religious growing up. I would expect a religious studies major to be some future clergyman or devout christian or something. Also, I'm thinking of going into engineering (and if I give up on that, applied maths or a social science of some kind). I'm not interested in studying about Origen and early Christian philosophers like he is. At all.
How do you like the theology program at Oxford? I was talking about study-abroad with my brother yesterday. I think it'd be something he'd really regret missing out on (when else do you get an excuse to travel the world?), but he loves his school so much he doesn't want to leave!

[beyondweird]

@KateTheGreat - Grrrrrr

Oh, I love my brother and it's really cool that he's studying what he finds interesting instead of business or something like that. Plus he's going for a double major with history, AND getting his masters at the same time as his bachelors. Impressive!
I just find it kind of funny because, well, first of all, we were never really religious growing up. I would expect a religious studies major to be some future clergyman or devout christian or something. Also, I'm thinking of going into engineering (and if I give up on that, applied maths or a social science of some kind). I'm not interested in studying about Origen and early Christian philosophers like he is. At all.
How do you like the theology program at Oxford? I was talking about study-abroad with my brother yesterday. I think it'd be something he'd really regret missing out on (when else do you get an excuse to travel the world?), but he loves his school so much he doesn't want to leave!

Haha, I wasn't that serious. Religious studies does have a lot of future clergymen, but it also has a lot of me-type people - which is "This is fun! Oh wait, why do people expect me to join the church now?"
Also, you managed to make me flail with joy regarding Origen! I love him! Theology at Oxford is absolutely brilliant, the tutors are all very good and enthusiastic about their subject, the libraries are amazing, and just...yeah, I love it. Origen and the other early Christian philosophers are my favourite area (Patristics) and it's won me over so much I'm considering sticking around doing a masters in it.
So yeah, it's fantastic

[TheGrammarBolshevik]

Religious studies does have a lot of future clergymen, but it also has a lot of me-type people - which is "This is fun! Oh wait, why do people expect me to join the church now?"

Theology interests me, but it strikes me as the sort of field where, like with philosophy, you're not just reading and understanding significant texts, but learning to engage with their arguments. How do you go about that if you don't actually accept the premises they're all working from?

/yet to declare a major

[beyondweird]

Religious studies does have a lot of future clergymen, but it also has a lot of me-type people - which is "This is fun! Oh wait, why do people expect me to join the church now?"

Theology interests me, but it strikes me as the sort of field where, like with philosophy, you're not just reading and understanding significant texts, but learning to engage with their arguments. How do you go about that if you don't actually accept the premises they're all working from?

/yet to declare a major

...Spoilered because I went on a ramble.

Spoiler:

It depends on what area you're working in. For instance, the modules I do and how this works for me:

God, the Old Testament and Israel - lots of questions about the dating of texts, what they meant to a culture, the development of religion. So the only premises you have to accept really are a) someone wrote these texts and b) people believed them.

Patristics - the early Christian fathers. Questions like "Did Origen deserve to be condemned as a heretic" or "What effect did persecution have on the North African Christians". So again, you engage with their theology, but you don't need to believe it.

Philosophy of Religion - questions are usually framed 'If there is a God, is it reasonable to worship him?" meaning you work within the framework, but it's not reliant on you beliving there is one. Or 'If there is a God, confront the problem of evil.'

Creation - all about different creation myths, and philosophical ideas, so for instance "Is the idea of creatio ex nihilio (creation out of nothing) supported by scripture"

The New Testament - dating the books in relation to each other, what communities they were for, and things like "Was Jesus presented as the Messiah in Mark?" So again, you don't need to actually believe in anything.

I mean, some courses probably don't work like that, but where I am there's a lot of room to manoever, with the 'if there was a god...' style, and focusing a lot of questions that require you to engage with particular areas of thought in a certain framework, without it being necessarily to be in that framework yourself.

Equally, as with Philosophy, you can just attack their premises. I mean, you obviously can't answer 'If there is a God, is it reasonable to worship him?" with no, because that's not what it's asking. But a question like, say 'Is God atemporal?', if one of the theologians you're reading is working within one concept of time, and you disagree, you can attack that with ease.
If that all made sense.

[Kaleid]

"What's your major?"
"Computer Engineering."
*stare, then look away*
"Are you ok?"
"Yeah, it's just... I'm not used to being around women who are smarter than me."


"I'm doing psychology, what about you?"
*apathetic look from me*
"Computer Engineering."
"... Are you going to work for Apple?"
*facepalm*

[gmalivuk]

I'm not used to being around women who are smarter than me."

What a stupid reaction. Mostly because of the discomfort the person has with smart women, but also I'm always annoyed by the assumption that everyone in $major must be especially smart.

[Cathy]

I recently visited a friend from high school who's getting her degree in History and something else, Humanities or something, and plans to become a professor.

Her dad came up and said "well at least SOMEONE'S getting a real degree." Bugged the crap outta me. There are people who get degrees in English/Psych/History because they don't know what else to do, and then there are people who really love the subject.

Grumble grumble.

[raudorn]

Just like with many others in this thread, conversations usually go like this:

Someone: "So, what are you studying?"
Me: "Applied Systems Science."
Someone: "Oh, okay. And what is that?"
Me:
Answer 1: "We study systems." - When I have the feeling 'someone' doesn't really care about the answer anyway
Answer 2: "We study both the scientific method of systems as well as systems in nature. For example, we look at how a change in one variable affects other variables and then transfer this knowledge to systems with a similar structure in nature or society." - When I have the feeling 'someone' is actually interested in my answer.
Someone: "Oh, okay. And what kind of job will you do later on?"
Me: "Dunno, beats me."

However, the answer to that last question should rather be: "I have a chance of one third to go into IT, one third to do something completely different and one third to look at trash and predict where it will end up, so my conclusion can be ignored and everyone can complain how nobody saw this coming."

[Cathy]

so my conclusion can be ignored and everyone can complain how nobody saw this coming."

And this is why I don't want to go into network security!

[fuzzycuzzy]

People over 35:
"What's your major?"
"I'm a music major."
"Oh, neat, what do you play?"
"A lot of different instruments, but I'm focusing on composition"
"That's cool. Could you talk to my son/daughter? I keep telling her to focus on his/her piano lessons... ramble... ramble...

People under 35:
"What's your major?"
"I'm a music major."
"Oh, cool. So like... what do you want to do?"
"I want to compose music for video games"
"Oh, you mean like Final Fantasy???
Uhh... kinda...

@$$holes under 35:
"What's your major?"
"I'm a music major."
"Sweet, you play guitar or what?"
"Ya, but I'm studying it for writing"
"But writing is just using your inspiration, it can't be taught! It'll take the soul out of your music"
"...I take it you're a singer-songwriter?"
"Ya, how'd you guess?[i/] or [i]"no but my cousin/friend/whoever is and they're great and they can't read music at all and...

you get the picture

[KestrelLowing]

People over 35:
"What's your major?"
"I'm a music major."
"Oh, neat, what do you play?"
"A lot of different instruments, but I'm focusing on composition"
"That's cool. Could you talk to my son/daughter? I keep telling her to focus on his/her piano lessons... ramble... ramble...

People under 35:
"What's your major?"
"I'm a music major."
"Oh, cool. So like... what do you want to do?"
"I want to compose music for video games"
"Oh, you mean like Final Fantasy???
Uhh... kinda...

@$$holes under 35:
"What's your major?"
"I'm a music major."
"Sweet, you play guitar or what?"
"Ya, but I'm studying it for writing"
"But writing is just using your inspiration, it can't be taught! It'll take the soul out of your music"
"...I take it you're a singer-songwriter?"
"Ya, how'd you guess?[i/] or [i]"no but my cousin/friend/whoever is and they're great and they can't read music at all and...

you get the picture

Well, to you I say "Awesome! You must work really hard!" (My mother was a music major, although she focused in band education. She has trained me well )

But seriously, especially as video game music is pretty dang near movie soundtracks now of days, that sounds really, really awesome. I wish you luck!

[fuzzycuzzy]

Well, to you I say "Awesome! You must work really hard!" (My mother was a music major, although she focused in band education. She has trained me well )

But seriously, especially as video game music is pretty dang near movie soundtracks now of days, that sounds really, really awesome. I wish you luck!

well thank you, I appreciate it! I've gotten "hired" quite a few times (notice, I put that in quotes) by Indie game startups with the slightest mention that they were also looking at some other people. Every single time they let me go AFTER I write the music. My mother was a freelance artist for over twenty years and she was making good money illustrating texts. I sometimes think that's the only reason I can still go on with it the way I do.

[Aightynine]

People over 35:
"What's your major?"
"I'm a music major."
"Oh, neat, what do you play?"
"A lot of different instruments, but I'm focusing on composition"
"That's cool. Could you talk to my son/daughter? I keep telling her to focus on his/her piano lessons... ramble... ramble...

People under 35:
"What's your major?"
"I'm a music major."
"Oh, cool. So like... what do you want to do?"
"I want to compose music for video games"
"Oh, you mean like Final Fantasy???
Uhh... kinda...

@$$holes under 35:
"What's your major?"
"I'm a music major."
"Sweet, you play guitar or what?"
"Ya, but I'm studying it for writing"
"But writing is just using your inspiration, it can't be taught! It'll take the soul out of your music"
"...I take it you're a singer-songwriter?"
"Ya, how'd you guess?[i/] or [i]"no but my cousin/friend/whoever is and they're great and they can't read music at all and...

you get the picture

Well, to you I say "Awesome! You must work really hard!" (My mother was a music major, although she focused in band education. She has trained me well )

But seriously, especially as video game music is pretty dang near movie soundtracks now of days, that sounds really, really awesome. I wish you luck!

Seconded! I'm not a music major, but I love playing [concert band-type] music. I think that some video games, quite frankly, have amazing music, and it's awesome that you want to be a part of that.

[Atomic Piranha]

There are several different types of reactions I get when I tell people I'm a math major;

-a blank/bewildered stare
-a wince
-"wow"

these are popular among liberal arts majors. My response is usually "yeah, its kind of weird but I like it". I find math beautiful and fascinating, but I realize that's a strange idea for most people.

-the well documented what are you going to do with that?/so do you want to teach?

response: I don't know/probably not

-"well, good for you!"

Coming from science majors this seems to imply they see math as similar to their field of study, but harder, so their impressed I'm willing to put in that work. In my case this is definitely not true, as math for me is easier than science. When non-science majors say this, the subtext is more like "its cool that you're smart enough to do that, but I find it incomprehensible why you would want to study math that much."

Then there are some people who say things like "hmmm, interesting". My favorite response though is something like "why does that interest you?" as that leads to interesting conversation.

[Kaleid]

"its cool that you're smart enough to do that, but I find it incomprehensible why you would want to study math that much."

Then there are some people who say things like "hmmm, interesting". My favorite response though is something like "why does that interest you?" as that leads to interesting conversation.

Most people who ask me about my major don't even say the word "incomprehensible".

[existential_squirrrel]

I went in this week for jury duty, but wasn't called to serve on a trial.
I was sitting there when someone taps me on the shoulder and asks... "What are you majoring in or what did you major in, if you are out of college?" My reply- "Chemistry with a minor in Mathematics and possibly a second minor or major in psychology" Dude just kind of had this blank stare on his face and then replied, "Gonna be a terrorist and blow up the US?"


I gave him the classic eye roll and then sarcastically said, "If you think trying to understand the mind to develop new medications for psychiatric problems is going to turn me into a terrorist, fine, go ahead and think that!"

WTF?!?!?!?!?!??!?!???

[fuzzycuzzy]

I went in this week for jury duty, but wasn't called to serve on a trial.
I was sitting there when someone taps me on the shoulder and asks... "What are you majoring in or what did you major in, if you are out of college?" My reply- "Chemistry with a minor in Mathematics and possibly a second minor or major in psychology" Dude just kind of had this blank stare on his face and then replied, "Gonna be a terrorist and blow up the US?"


I gave him the classic eye roll and then sarcastically said, "If you think trying to understand the mind to develop new medications for psychiatric problems is going to turn me into a terrorist, fine, go ahead and think that!"

WTF?!?!?!?!?!??!?!???

how many chemistry majors does it take to blow up the U.S.? let's find out...

[existential_squirrrel]

I went in this week for jury duty, but wasn't called to serve on a trial.
I was sitting there when someone taps me on the shoulder and asks... "What are you majoring in or what did you major in, if you are out of college?" My reply- "Chemistry with a minor in Mathematics and possibly a second minor or major in psychology" Dude just kind of had this blank stare on his face and then replied, "Gonna be a terrorist and blow up the US?"


I gave him the classic eye roll and then sarcastically said, "If you think trying to understand the mind to develop new medications for psychiatric problems is going to turn me into a terrorist, fine, go ahead and think that!"

WTF?!?!?!?!?!??!?!???

how many chemistry majors does it take to blow up the U.S.? let's find out...

how about let's NOT find out????

[TheGrammarBolshevik]

A week after returning to the US and going through a lot of "How was your freshman year?" reintroductions, the most common reaction is definitely "So, what do you do with a philosophy degree?"

[Sov]

My undergraduate degree was in philosophy, and my graduate work is in rhetoric. Reactions tend to fall along one of three lines:

Joe Six-Pack (I live in the South, so it's only a little exaggerated)
Joe: So, whater ya studyin?
Me: Communications
Joe: Like yer lernin' how'der talk?
Me: No, I study public speaking and persuasion.
Joe: So yer gunna be a leryer or yer gunna do perblig rerlashuns, then?

Milly the Social Scientist
Milly: So, what are you studying?
Me: Communication, [she stops listening] specifically rhetoric.
Milly: Oh! That's very interesting! What methodology do you use, and when can we talk about statistics?
Me: Oh, I mostly work in rhetorical theory and criticism.
Milly: Oh, so your work doesn't involve concrete, factual, testable, proof?
Me: Wait, are you suggesting yours does?
Milly: ...

Pat the Scientist (computer or otherwise)
Pat: So, what are you studying?
Me: Rhetoric.
Pat: How is that useful?
Me: You don't think studying the primary means of human interaction is useful?
Pat: Well, what I meant was how does that get you a job or produce something worthwhile to society like a toaster, or Angry Birds, or cold fusion?
Me: Um, well you see I want to be a professor and I think rhetori...
Pat: Ha, a professor? The humanities are going to be phased out of the university in a few years because they're totally worthless. SCIENCE AND MATH FOREVER BRO! YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH.

[Enray]

"Biomedical Engineering"

Panties drop.

[Nat]

I'm always annoyed by the assumption that everyone in $major must be especially smart.

Dunno, it doesn't really bother me when people assume I'm smart. (Well most of our math students are, for whatever reason).

[Odd_nonposter]

Yesterday, meeting my orientation room mate...

Him: So what's your major?
Me: Chemical Engineering.
Him: "Well, that blew mine outta the water!"

[Bakemaster]

At my recent orientation someone from outside of orientation (a current student) randomly walked up and asked if I was a math major.

It took me about an hour to realize that he had probably asked that question because I was wearing the "No Raptors" xkcd shirt.

I'm not a math major, though.

[Feddlefew]

My major is Biochemistry, so some of the more intresting ones from my orientation....

"Oh, wow, you must be so smart!"
"I failed chemistry."
"I failed biology."
"Do you need math for that?"
"So you're going to be a pharmacist?"
"Awesome! I'm majoring in physics!" *High-five!*

[supremum]

I went in this week for jury duty, but wasn't called to serve on a trial.
I was sitting there when someone taps me on the shoulder and asks... "What are you majoring in or what did you major in, if you are out of college?" My reply- "Chemistry with a minor in Mathematics and possibly a second minor or major in psychology" Dude just kind of had this blank stare on his face and then replied, "Gonna be a terrorist and blow up the US?"


I gave him the classic eye roll and then sarcastically said, "If you think trying to understand the mind to develop new medications for psychiatric problems is going to turn me into a terrorist, fine, go ahead and think that!"

WTF?!?!?!?!?!??!?!???

Do you mean another potential juror? Maybe they were trying to get out of jury duty by pretending to be heavily prejudiced.

[existential_squirrrel]

Do you mean another potential juror? Maybe they were trying to get out of jury duty by pretending to be heavily prejudiced.

I don't recall if he was a potential juror or not. For all I recall, he could have been someone who worked in the court system.

here's another reaction to my major.

random person- what's your major?
me- chemistry
random person- what are you gonna do with that?
me- graduate school in medicinal chemistry, then a Ph.D in psychopharmacology
random person- why not just go into psychology right away?
me- I don't want to change my major. I've already declared.

[Lady Macaroni]

I can't remember any verbatim reactions to being in journalism, but they usually wind up pointing out the decline of the print industry and therefore the usefulness of such a degree. If they know me personally, they'll also ask why I bothered with AP bio and BC calc in high school (since they have nothing to do with journalism), or why I'm going into a social-type field when I can't even look most people in the eye when we're talking.

[podbaydoor]

Lady Macaroni, are we secretly the same person?