The University of Connecticut hosted a presentation by Micah Heumann, the director of the Office of Undergraduate Research on Monday, Feb. 26. His discussion was geared towards showing students how valuable majors in the humanities are, despite what your extended family members may say when you tell them that you are studying psychology.
Heumann stated that the goal of his presentation was to “break down the myths and replace them with facts,” when it comes to what major students should choose. Previously, Heumann was an advisor for the ACES program, or the Academic Center for Exploratory Students. For undergraduates who haven’t decided what their major is, this is the program that they are assigned to. Oftentimes he’d see students choose majors solely based on the job they want, but Heumann stated “employers just don’t care what your major is.”
He then recounted his visit to Silicon Valley, Calif. There he attended conventions of various tech companies including Facebook, Turbotax and Apple. From his discussions with those in attendance, he was surprised to find that a large number of people involved with these companies majored in things like art history, philosophy or even creative writing. Heumann described what exactly employers look for. When they are reading applications, they don’t really care about what your specific major is, but instead ask, “Why did you do what you did?” Heumann said. They are looking for the specific reasons why you are interested in a job with them, and how flexible you can be.
The most important thing to employers is not necessarily your technical skills, but your transferable skills. Heumann defined transferable skills as “skills and abilities that are relevant and helpful across different areas of life: socially, professionally and at school.”
They don’t care what you’ve studied, but what you’ve done. I want to show you that a humanities degree is just as valuable as a biomedical degree, what matters is what you do with it.
Office of Undergraduate Research Director, Micah Heumann
Some examples of this are critical thinking, time management, teamwork and communication. Technical skills would be aspects that involve you needing to know how to use certain tools, computer programs or a general trade. While technical skills are important, what employers want to know is how you can help everyone in their company, not just your individual ability.
Humanities degrees are valuable because they prepare students to be well-rounded, while specific majors like the medical sciences or mathematics do not. A story that Heumann recounted was during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was speaking with a friend after receiving their booster shots, but his friend commented on how they got a bruise from the needle. Heumann didn’t experience this, and reminded the audience that there are many doctors or physicians who still believe the notion that African-Americans have tougher skin than white Americans. A belief stooped in racism and eugenics. “We haven’t properly educated our doctors,” Heumann stated. “Classes in the humanities balance your knowledge and understanding.”
To gain these important skills, Heumann encouraged students to get involved with internships or research projects at UConn. “You probably won’t hit these skills in a lecture hall,” Heumann commented. This means that even if you attend class every day and get good grades, it doesn’t make you very appealing to employers. You need experiences that display your ability to work well with others and that you can adapt.
Students can either reactively or proactively search for opportunities. Reactive searching is “applying to posted opportunities and established programs,” while proactive searching is “actively seeking out opportunities and building relationships,” according to Heumann. Research projects can be found through department, faculty or lab websites. Lincus is also another avenue for students to find opportunities. It allows students to put in keywords related to what they want to see, and it shows any faculty involved with those concepts. It’s also useful because it shows which faculty are connected to each other from these labs, and how much their research is geared towards these keywords.
To end the presentation, Heumann mentioned OUR Funding Programs at UConn that are open to undergraduates, no matter what their major. These include the BOLD Women’s Leadership Network, Change Grants, SHARE Virtual Summer Apprenticeships and the UConn Idea Grant. Many students have conducted research on topics outside of their major, which is a good sign to employers. “They don’t care what you’ve studied, but what you’ve done,” Heumann said. “I want to show you that a humanities degree is just as valuable as a biomedical degree, what matters is what you do with it.”