The disregarded value of studying the arts in university
As a third-year English student here at Guelph, every time I tell someone what I’m studying, it immediately follows with the question, “What are you going to do with that?”
Despite how simple the question is, it is something that I find immensely aggravating. Although, on the surface, it seems conversational, it really starts to come across with a judgemental tone. It’s as if to say, “This whole degree is worthless. Good luck with your future.”
I always shy away from that question, giving the traditional millennial excuses:
“I’m not sure yet;”
“I have some ideas;”
“I’m still young, so I’m working on figuring it out.”
This conversation is one that I’ve had a multitude of times over the years of my degree. I have even gone so far as to lie about what I’m studying in order to avoid it. Anytime I lie and say that I’m studying business or science, this condescending question is never mentioned. In those moments, I start to observe the stigma against the arts.
The running joke of all undergraduates is that arts degrees are useless, essentially spending a ton of time and money amounting to nearly nothing of use or substance. While a lot of my courses cover material that I will definitely never use again in my life, it would be a lie to say this only happens in the arts.I won’t get into specifics with particular fields, but I’m sure there have been moments in class that we’ve all had that unifying thought: “Why do I need to learn this?” Throughout all degrees, there are moments where it feels like particular aspects are useless to us, so why is it excusable to write off an entire program?
The existence of this stigma surrounding the arts in general is something immensely overlooked. The arts offer insight and transferable skills that can apply to a variety of fields. Aside from the basic writing and articulation skills, the arts directly demonstrate how to be insightful in the daily world by taking moments, analyzing them to their fullest extent, and applying them in the most effective manner.It’s not about just reading a book and talking about it; it’s about creating a new idea and building that idea to a point where it can be further developed and utilized.
At the very least, this mindset of treating an arts degree as something equivalent to underwater basket weaving is incredibly tiresome. In an age where a university degree is almost a prerequisite for a job, is it really that critical to scrutinize someone’s choice of studies?
To offset the animosity, let’s remember that everything has value. Just because it might not be apparent to you immediately, doesn’t mean it’s absolutely worthless. As a collective generation, we are capable of so many different things and, no matter what we do or study, it won’t stop us from bringing amazing things to the world.
Photo by Mariah Bridgeman/The Ontarion.