Study cultural production and creative works in a city that is home to multiple world-class cultural institutions and where an arts event takes place approximately every nine minutes, many of them free of charge

Study literature in the first American city to establish a literary cultural district and home to literary legends including Phillis Wheatley, Henry David Thoreau, Khalil Gibran, Sylvia Plath, and Eugene O’Neill

Study world cultures and languages in a city where about 30 percent of the population was born outside of the U.S. and about one in every three people speaks a language other than English

Study history and social movements in the American city with the greatest number of historic buildings and home to leaders in the American revolution, abolition, suffrage, and civil rights movements

Many students whose interests lie in humanistic disciplines fear that pursuing a degree in the humanities will not adequately prepare them for the job market or will result in a poor return on investment. Recent studies by the National Humanities Alliance and American Academy of Arts & Sciences demonstrate the fallibility of these commonly-held beliefs. Click on each link to view data from these studies.

Myth: Graduates with degrees in humanities disciplines are unattractive to prospective employers
Fact: Employers actively seek employers with the skills that humanities students cultivate
Fact: Humanities majors out-perform their peers in several key areas
Fact: The demand for the skills that studying the humanities cultivates is projected to increase with the rise of artificial intelligence

Myth: Humanities majors receive a poor return on investment when they enter the workforce
Fact: Humanities majors earn salaries comparable to other majors
Fact: Humanities majors earn increasingly higher salaries over the course of their careers
Fact: Humanities majors are employed at rates comparable to other majors

Myth: Humanities degrees only prepare you to be a teacher or professor
Fact: Graduates with a bachelor’s degree in the humanities are employed in a wide range of fields

Myth: I need ‘real world’ skills. I should major in something ‘sensible’ even if it’s not what I’m really excited about
Fact: Studying what you’re passionate about sets you up for success in college and beyond

Dillon Bentlage (CAS ’18), Cinema & Media Studies, Film Producer and Editor 

After graduating from BU in 2018 with a degree in Cinema & Media Studies, Dillon moved to Amsterdam where he wrote and shot his first feature film, Dilettantes. The Indie Gathering International Film festival awarded the film 2nd best Drama/Romance film, and actor Luis Rizo won best supporting actor. Dilettantes was also selected for a screening at the Seattle True Independent Film Festival. 

Clarinda Blais (CAS’ 17), Philosophy, Schwarzman Scholar

Having grown up in a small town in rural New York, Clarinda Blais reveled in the intellectual opportunities awaiting her when she arrived at BU. In particular, the University’s many Chinese students exposed her to the world beyond her own. She took Mandarin freshman year, “on a whim,” she says, and while “I was horrible at it,” the challenge enticed her to continue studying about China.

Alden Burnham (CAS’ 16), History, Data Analyst, Harvard Strategic Data Project

“My career thus far has meandered through the public school teaching system, developmental psychology research, and curriculum design. Throughout these different roles, I have always maintained two tenets: a commitment to arguing from evidence and a passion for supporting children’s development. The former is something I attribute to the rigorous education I got as a Boston University history major. My coursework helped me evaluate and compare different interpretations of historical artifacts, which has been extremely valuable to me as an educator and an analyst.”

Allison Guarino (CAS ’16), History, NYC Department of Health

“The education I received and the skills I gained as a History student at BU have been integral to my success as a reproductive epidemiologist. Understanding social determinants of heath and the root causes of health inequities requires critical thinking about affected populations and historical events, and the impact of these overall health outcomes.”

Arié Haddad (CAS ’22), History of Art & Architecture, Student Muralist 

In the CFA Site-Specific Art course, Arié Haddad (CAS’22) and Mackenzie Bower (CAS’22), both architectural studies majors, decided to turn a class project into a reality. “Arié had this idea to do a mural with the phrase ‘Grow Your Future’ on it, and I was doing a similar-ish project in a different location,” Bower says.

Shannon Henry Kleiber (CAS ’91), English, Wisconsin Public Radio

As a student, Kleiber was an English major, studying writing and poetry under Professors Robert Pinsky, Christopher Ricks, Geoffrey Hill, and Rosanna Warren. She says studying under each of these professors influenced her storytelling, changing how she saw the world and laying a foundation for her career path as a writer and journalist.  

Anastasia Kourtis Kurkuvelos, (CAS ’15) Classical Studies, Middlesex District Attorney

“My courses in the Classics Department strongly emphasized public service as a value for the Greeks, and I think about that a lot in my job. The very foundation of being a district attorney is public service. I try to remind myself that I am in a position of privilege, to listen to people, and to understand that others may have a different perspective and experiences.”

Vyvyane Loh, Classical Studies Major, Transform Alliance for Health

“My deeper understanding of my patients is grounded in Classics. It helped me read people better, especially their words, and analyzing texts allowed for that. I think many of my patients tend to feel uncomfortable talking with regular health care practitioners about their mental health and I think they tend to feel more comfortable talking about that kind of thing with me because I have a certain knowledge of the things that they are talking about, like life, love, death, and suffering that comes from the Classics curriculum.”

Alexandra Mascarello (CAS ’23), Philosophy and Classical Studies, Student Playwright 

Valuing the humanities while diversifying them “reinforces each other, because they’re necessary for each other,” Mascarello tells BU Today. “In a world that may increasingly adopt a narrative that the humanities are less practical, less relevant, it’s important to remember that they encourage those ideals of diversity and inclusivity.” 

Meredith McDuffie (CAS ’20), English, AFAM Survival Guide Creator

“What I really appreciated from my time at BU and the classes that I took is that they helped my analytical thinking; they really pushed me to appreciate that analytical process, which I think is really crucial to a lot of areas of law.”

 

Danielle Momoh (CAS ’24), Cinema & Media Studies, Boston Globe Intern

“My internship at the Boston Globe opened my eyes and my mind to the possibilities of my Cinema and Media Studies major and the flexibility and diversity of journalism. It helped me think more critically about my own writing and examine different areas of writing, particularly more journalistic writing.”

Leela Munsiff (CAS ’23), Linguistics, Student Researcher

“My Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program experience taught me that the purpose of research is not just to expand human knowledge – it can also help us serve the communities we engage with. In doing field work, I’ve learned how to put the skills and resources I’ve gained at BU to use to pursue a greater cause.” 

Brandon Syms (CAS ’12), Japanese-English Translator, World Languages & Literatures

After passing the JLTP N1, Brandon decided to chase his dream and search for work as a Japanese-English translator. He now resides in Fukuoka City, doing just that. In addition to his main work, he also hosts a number of events across Japan in the cities where he’s lived to help connect foreigners visiting and living in Japan get in touch with the locals

Jennifer Tolman Schwartzman (CAS ’96), Religion, Dignity Grows Inc. 

“As a Religion major at BU, I was exposed to a wide array of perspectives. The ability to see the world through the eyes of others—a core theme that ran through the Religion coursework—has been an integral part of my career path as an educator and community connector.”

Jaiyi Wang (CAS ’22), World Languages & Literatures, Student Researcher 

Jiayi Wang received a UROP Humanities Scholars Award grant in summer 2021 to develop a guide to the Hyakunin Isshu 百人一首, a collection of classical Japanese poetry.

Emily Wu (CAS ’22), English, Co-founder of Untangle

The two friends had taken the College of Arts & Sciences Intro to Asian American Literature class together, and it challenged them to examine their experience as Asian American women. Reading books such as Cathy Park Hong’s Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning (One World, 2020) led to conversations about growing up on different coasts and how unique each of their experiences was.