By Kailyn Huynh
For a field that elicits the observation and understanding of human society and culture, it may come as both a shock and concern that for many colleges, this study is on the brink of survival. Yet, the silent demise of the humanities was not entirely unexpected and has been driven by various factors which have grown over the years. Even so, the issue has become exceedingly prevalent and more worrisome now than ever.
In a survey done by the Harvard Crimson, the data found that 12.2 percent of students for the Harvard class of 2020 reported an anticipated concentration in the arts and humanities. When The Crimson conducted the survey again, just a few years after, this percentage of students had dropped to 7.1 percent.
Typically, the humanities are enlisted as a part of the general education requirements. As student interest and demand in this field fell substantially throughout the past few years, some universities, such as Marymount University, removed their humanities department altogether. Marymount, specifically, removed majors like English and history from their courses as an adjustment to the lack of student interest.
English teacher Jonathan Lloyd believes this has to do with a shift in career focus.
“I think it’s probably a reflection of the job market, the type of jobs people are looking for [and] the push towards more analytical learning,” Lloyd said.
With a growing technological industry, those pursuing careers like computer engineering or computer science have seen an increase in the past years. As more people turn towards these majors and adapt to the current line of work, there has been less of a push for academic disciplines such as philosophy, English and history.
If that’s the way that things are flowing, there’s no sense in trying to fight it too much,” Lloyd said.
Additionally, those that do pursue humanities degrees typically take a longer time to jump-start their careers, in comparison to peers in other disciplines. On average, humanities graduates have lower salaries at the start of their occupation and pay-off only becomes visible in later years. Where wealth is a major motivator, it is no surprise that many turn away from this profession.
While Lloyd finds the decline of the humanities to be slightly saddening, he does not see it as a major concern.
“I predict that the humanities will live on, but I do think that there’ll be a tapering off, and I don’t think that it’s ever going to rebound as strongly as it ever has,” Lloyd said.
Despite the current trend, passion for the humanities and arts prevails. For some, studying the humanities is much more rewarding than the pay, and many scholars still believe it to be a worthwhile study. So in short, no, this is not quite the end for humanities.
