Should we do something about Psychology majors?

Question

Despite what some people think, today's news makes it clear the US job market is incredibly tight for people with useful skills. See this quote from a CNN-Money article:

"I'm hearing across the board, across industries, companies indicating they can't exploit market opportunity because they can't find people with the right skills," said Jeff Summer, an executive at Deloitte Consulting who leads the firm's management practice. He said that there's virtually no long-term unemployment for skilled workers. "It's down to the nub already," he said. "Supply and demand is completely out of whack."

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How do we encourage young Americans to BECOME skilled workers, instead of wasting their brainpower majoring in Psychology or Marketing? (uh, no offense intended...) That would make the economy more productive. Is there something out there interfering with free market incentives, or are people just stupid?

OK OK just kidding about Psych majors ... really just wondering what can we do, and should we do things, to guide people to hot labor sectors. If natives don't do it, either work goes undone (and money is not made), or immigrants must be brought in.

(Full disclosure: I was an English Major!)

Answer 1

You don't have to do anything. The market takes care of this iteslf. When the need for a particular skill outstrips supply wages go up, and barriers to entry tend to fall.

Sooner or later even a psych major will become dissatisfied with the magnificent career opportunities open to them in the food service and housekeeping industires and go off and learn computers or become a petroleum landman or something.

Also there is absolutely nothing wrong with brining in immigrants. A) It increases our competitive advantage by adding more smart and educated people to our workforce (ones we didn't have to pay to educate incidentally) and B) it harms other countries competitive ability vis a vis us. I mean think, if the best and the brightest engineers and doctors from India, China, and Europe all come and live in California, who is left in India, China and Europe to run their countries?

Answer 2

I am appalled by the statements that you have been receiving - as I am a psychology major. In my opinion, it is a waste of time to major in something that you truly have no interest in - in order to sellout. So, if you have a genuine interest in psychology, then you should definitely go for it. It's more admiriable than following the crowd. Psychology is not always an easy major. Actually, when I tell people my major, I have heard alot of people say, "That's a hard major isn't it?" And while it was never real hard for me, the upper level classes do get challenging. It is alot of reading. And some people just plain old hate reading. It is true that you will probably need to go on to get a masters or doctorate with psychology, but if it's your passion you truly won't mind it. Ignore what those people have been telling you. They are either jealous or bitter or ignorant about what psychology truly entails. And I just wanted to add, there are a number of majors that do require you to pursue more schooling even after college. As the job market is becoming more competitive.

Answer 3

Heh...first off, I'll admit that I am a Psychology major so you can be sure my answer's going to be a tad biased. Can't help it, I'm human.:)

Anyway, people aren't mindless commodities. They aren't products whose demand increases as their supply decreases and vice versa. Products have no aspirations, dreams, and goals in life. They simply exist to be consumed. People, no matter what station in life, aren't like that. They ask, "what's in it for me?"

If you want to encourage anyone to take on a certain job, it must be fulfilling. It must be something they will like and/or earn loads from. Free market incentives just won't be enough. For instance, there's a great demand for caretakers, but not everyone finds taking care of old people fulfilling. Sometimes, not even the salary will be enough. So, you have to sweeten the deal, so to speak. And anyway, the more in demand jobs may not always be things that people can see themselves doing for the rest of their lives.

One thing that can be done is to improve the general education courses so that anyone, no matter what the major, has a certain skill set. Also, it won't force anyone to take a certain major just because the market demands it. Honestly, I wouldn't do that, not just because I may end up disappointed because I didn't go into what I wanted, but because the market is fickle. Imagine becoming a caretaker only to find that ten years from now, it will no longer in demand because of technological improvements.

Like I said at the start, I'm a bit biased, but I'll try to balance it out. There was a researcher who said that one reason colleges are not very responsive to the labor market is because they either have very little information about the labor market, or they have the information but they can't utilize it to the full because their curricula are rigid, or their funders don't approve of the direction the market is taking, or they simply don't have the resources, or some other reason. So there, that doesn't help either, and it's been found that universities are the most unresponsive--community colleges have a better feel of the labor market, especially the local market of their respective communities.

Answer 4

Capitalism is no longer available to the average worker that you are trying to build up.

In the 1920's-1940's Industry was at it's begging stage allow for a janitor to advance through different company stages --- daring to reach for ownership and entrepreneurship.

The 1950's then stabilized allowing for the USA to benefit from the fruits of the past industrialization. Socialism took over: pulling on the Social Security System, Schools, and Roads. Unions then equalized the companies. However, this socialist cost we received in the 1950's-1980's came with a high price of Oligopolies arising. Sure, Congress ripped "Bell" apart ... but world wide, we have companies that are quickly surpassing Oligopies and soon to be Monopolies.

Monopolies are similar to Dictatorships, and this is why much of the USA history has fought against Monopolies as it increases the separation of classes.

To get rid of the psychology majors, we would need to change the Tax Code (Sales Taxes), to disessemble conglomerate companies, and to allow the failure of many companies (multiply Enron by 1000) to shock the system. As a country, we would have to suffer throught this shock (as you described) and eventually, individual workers would have the hope of career advancement from the beggining ground again.

Answer 5

Well, my daughter's planning on majoring in Psychology, with the intent of going to law school...and all jokes aside, law is a skill.

It's not stupidity so much as lack of knowledge. It's drilled into kids as soon as they start thinking about what to major in that it doesn't matter, as long as your major is something you love to do and that you're good at. But it does matter!!! The real world cares!!!

What I would recommend is that as part of the admissions package, colleges include a typed sheet of statistics showing the median salary of each major from their previous graduates. They typically have this information already, but students would have to know it exists and how to get it.

I also would recommend (like it's never going to happen, but I'm going to put it out there anyway) that Labor Economics be required. Students need to learn about supply and demand anyway, but especially as it affects labor, because when they get out there, THEY are the commodity they have to sell!!!

Answer 6

As a student majoring in Psychology myself (a little offense taken :)
People are messed up. Psychologists and counselors can help them so they can be productive members of society and they can enter the workforce doing things a skilled worker does. That's what makes society productive, having healthy, functional people in it.

Answer 7

how about highschool, lots of education going on in there that isnt necessary for skilled labour jobs.. lets do away with highschool too.. and while we're at it, do kids in elementary school really need to be learning algebra, or cursive writing, or history....

*blinks* you cant be serious

Answer 8

what about those who had genuine intrest in the human behaviour and subject like psychology.Those who choose subject like this has some objective, purpose in mind.

Answer 9

No, I think psychology is important...