Did you agonize over your college major, setting the course of your life at age 17 and based on what your parents wanted?

This might depress or encourage you, depending on what you picked.

Turns out, only 27 percent of graduates from four-year colleges end up in jobs connected to their college majors, according to a 2014 study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Now, North Carolina State University in Raleigh is trying to help students connect with their future careers. This fall, the university is offering workshops to help 30 juniors and seniors “design their lives ... for what the world needs more of" as inspired by a popular class at the Design School at Stanford University in California.

At North Carolina State, three college deans will teach the workshops, offering expertise in humanities, business management and design.

“I would say first, don’t worry that you don’t have everything that other people seem to have," says Jeff Braden, who will teach the humanities portion. "I think that there is a real tendency among people of our undergraduates’ generation to think everyone else has it all figured out. And they don’t.”

Watching on social media, many young people think others are doing better than they are, Braden says.

“On Facebook, you only see what I put up there," he explains. "You don’t see all the private things,” which might not be as rosy.

Braden suggests that students who are trying to suss out careers in growth sectors, look at work that cannot be done by machines or computers.

He also suggests jobs that deal with questions that are a “little fuzzy,” meaning those that require critical analysis or creativity that machines cannot yet solve.

Annette Ranft, the North Carolina State business management dean, says students should think beyond their first jobs after college. Unlike their grandparents, today’s college graduates are not likely to stay in a job for their entire lives, or even more than five years. She said she hopes students will look toward “lifelong professional goals.”

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median number of years that workers stayed on a job was 4.2 years in January 2016. That was down from 4.6 years in 2014.

“The day of someone working at the same job for his or her entire life are over,” Braden said.

According to a Gallup survey in June, 51 percent of Americans would change at least one of their educational decisions, including their degree, institution or major. (Read our report: Many Americans regret their College Choices)

The research, a collaboration between Gallup and Strada Education Network, found that 36 percent of Americans say they would change their field of study, while 28 percent said they would choose a different school or university.

Twelve percent said they would get a different type of degree.

What about liberal arts majors?

As careers in STEM, science - technology, engineering and mathematics - have taken the world by storm, students of liberal arts - literature, psychology, political science, philosophy and sociology - have worried about where they will fit into the job world.

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that engineering majors garner the highest average salary after graduation, $92,000. The major with the lowest annual salary was visual and performing arts, $50,700.

But liberal arts majors need not worry, says a report by the jobs website Monster.com.

Liberal arts majors bring needed skills to jobs in technology, marketing and business operations, among others, it says.

“That's because your studies have taught you how to think critically, research thoroughly, and write well, all of which are skills any employer will value,” the Monster.com report says.

Braden says that parents worry about their students majoring in liberal arts or humanities. He asks worried parents what their major was in college.

"I majored in English, but now I’m in sales,” Braden says, repeating the parent before responding. “OK, thank you, you just proved my point."

Did you have a hard time choosing your major? Please share your suggestion in the Comments here, and visit us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn, thanks!

The Trump administration is opening new investigations into allegations of antisemitism at five U.S. universities including Columbia and the University of California, Berkeley, the Education Department announced Monday.

It's part of President Donald Trump's promise to take a tougher stance against campus antisemitism and deal out harsher penalties than the Biden administration, which settled a flurry of cases with universities in its final weeks. It comes the same day the Justice Department announced a new task force to root out antisemitism on college campuses.

In an order signed last week, Trump called for aggressive action to fight anti-Jewish bias on campuses, including the deportation of foreign students who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests.

Along with Columbia and Berkeley, the department is now investigating the University of Minnesota, Northwestern University and Portland State University. The cases were opened using the department's power to launch its own civil rights reviews, unlike the majority of investigations, which stem from complaints.

Messages seeking comment were left with all five universities.
A statement from the Education Department criticized colleges for tolerating antisemitism after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that followed. It also criticized the Biden administration for negotiating "toothless" resolutions that failed to hold schools accountable.

"Today, the Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses," said Craig Trainor, the agency's acting assistant secretary for civil rights.

The department didn't provide details about the inquiries or how it decided which schools are being targeted. Presidents of Columbia and Northwestern were among those called to testify on Capitol Hill last year as Republicans sought accountability for allegations of antisemitism. The hearings contributed to the resignation of multiple university presidents, including Columbia's Minouche Shafik.

An October report from House Republicans accused Columbia of failing to punish pro-Palestinian students who took over a campus building, and it called Northwestern's negotiations with student protesters a "stunning capitulation."

House Republicans applauded the new investigations. Representative Tim Walberg, chair of the Education and Workforce Committee, said he was "glad that we finally have an administration who is taking action to protect Jewish students."

Trump's order also calls for a full review of antisemitism complaints filed with the Education Department since Oct. 7, 2023, including pending and resolved cases from the Biden administration. It encourages the Justice Department to take action to enforce civil rights laws.

Last week's order drew backlash from civil rights groups who said it violated First Amendment rights that protect political speech.

The new task force announced Monday includes the Justice and Education departments along with Health and Human Services.

"The Department takes seriously our responsibility to eradicate this hatred wherever it is found," said Leo Terrell, assistant attorney general for civil rights. "The Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is the first step in giving life to President Trump's renewed commitment to ending anti-Semitism in our schools."

The Times of India breaks down the most popular subjects for international students to study in the U.S.

STEM and business lead the pack. Read the full story here. (January 2025)

U.S. News & World report addresses some of the misconceptions about U.S. colleges and universities, including the difficulty of getting a visa.

Read the full story here. (January 2025)

US News & World Report details the three top factors in foreign students' decision to study in the U.S. They include research opportunities and the reputation of U.S. degrees. Read the full story here. (December 2024)