Liberal arts degree still useful in tough job market

Liberal arts majors remain popular, even in a tough job market, according to a recent survey conducted by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

The survey’s findings are reflected in the UNC student body: 70 percent of undergraduate students are declared as liberal arts majors.

University officials are teaching those students how to apply their degrees to different fields to broaden their job prospects, said Jeff Sackaroff, associate director of University Career Services.

Career Services held a panel called “Business Careers for Liberal Arts Majors” on Saturday to help students realize that the skills learned in liberal arts majors can be applied to the business world as well.

“Recruiters who come here don’t recruit for specific majors,” Sackaroff said.

“Many (students) have interests in business but don’t know if they’re qualified and how to go about making that connection.”

The panel featured UNC-Chapel Hill graduates who have entered the business world in jobs related to everything  from entrepreneurship to finance to management after liberal arts studies, Sackaroff said.

The liberal arts education is built on several pillars that makes it attractive to recruiters across the board, he said — communication, honesty and integrity, teamwork, interpersonal skills and motivation and initiative, Sackaroff said.

One of Saturday’s panelists was Josh Anspaugh, a 2008 UNC-CH graduate in management and society who is now employed as a deal agent at an international investment bank.

Anspaugh said that while interviewing for his position, he emphasized specific parts of his education, like economics and calculus.

“The most essential part of my job is being able to communicate clearly with clients,” he said.

“This is where I can speak about the merits of a liberal arts degree.”

The path to employment is not necessarily entrenched in what’s printed on a student’s diploma.

“Employers are looking for graduates that can demonstrate creative problem-solving skills, are critical thinkers and excellent communicators,” said Michele Tracy Berger, associate professor in the department of women’s studies, in an e-mail.

According to a survey conducted among 2009 UNC graduates, of those who responded, 64 percent said they had secured jobs and 28 percent said they were headed to graduate school, Sackaroff said.

However, the response rate to the survey was just 40 percent, he said.

“I’m hesitant to say 98 percent of our students have plans,” Sackaroff said.



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