College majors tend to have two broad categories: humanities and STEM. Yet, sometimes it seems like the two sides have gone to war, arguing about which field is better, especially in terms of monetary success and the likelihood of landing jobs once out of college.
In today’s ever-evolving world, STEM majors tend to be more “valued” due to the aforementioned factors. Intelligence is held in high regard, and those perceived as “smarter” and more “hard-working” tend to get the most praise.
In a 2020 report from the U.S. National Science Foundation, those in STEM fields had a median wage and salary earnings of about $64,000, compared to non-STEM fields, with $40,000. For example, in May 2023, engineers had a median salary of $91,420, while elementary school teachers — excluding special education teachers — had a median salary of $63,680. Additionally, STEM majors are more likely to land jobs. With the uncertain nature of the job market right now, this increased chance of security can be an extra factor in choosing one’s field.
While STEM emphasizes more analytical ways of thinking, the humanities emphasize more social ways of thinking, including creativity and cultural studies. With the unavoidable presence of media in our lives, media literacy is essential, and humanities majors can be more knowledgeable in that field.
However, one’s major isn’t an indicator of how intelligent they are. Success is largely determined by the skills one has that makes them the most suited for the field they are going into. Success should correlate to how well one is doing in their field and how happy they are with their work, not just the numbers on their paycheck or specific words on their degree. If a student’s skills in math or science are stronger, they are more likely to find fulfillment in a STEM field. On the other hand, if one’s skills are geared toward writing and art, they’re more likely to find fulfillment in a humanities field.
Even more tension can arise with the perception that STEM courses are harder than those in humanities. According to the Pew Research Center, 52% of U.S. adults “say the main reason young people don’t pursue STEM degrees is they think these subjects are too hard.” Long labs, lengthy reports and what’s generally considered to be more difficult subject matter can create the belief that you need to be smarter to pursue a STEM career. But again, it’s not about intelligence; it’s about where your skills lie and where you perform best. You’re more likely to work harder when it comes to subjects you enjoy, and forcing yourself into a career that you don’t want can feel like a drag and negatively impact performance.
This train of thought can easily lead to a superiority complex. If you’re told you’re smarter than another because you took physics instead of painting, it can feel like a compliment and an ego-boost. Without realizing it, you can develop that one comment into a mindset. It’s even easier to develop that way of thinking when you’re surrounded by many people who also share it.
Of course, this doesn’t mean that STEM majors are the only ones at risk of putting people down. Humanities majors may automatically assume that STEM majors are less creative, too uptight or overly boring, which isn’t true. Research in hard sciences like biology, chemistry and mathematics takes curiosity and creativity; just because you’re not interested in a subject doesn’t mean it’s not interesting in general.
An artist dedicating hours to a piece stills demonstrates their passion, just as a scientist dedicates their time to a lab report with data they’ve worked hard to collect. Both put care and effort into their tasks, and their skills shine through both ways — the only difference is the type of work produced.
Moreover, STEM and the humanities aren’t separate entities, and there’s more overlap than you may think. Having knowledge in both fields helps further one’s well-roundedness, and many Northeastern students pursue a major that uses both fields, or simply just join a club that’s more “typical” for another major — like a journalism major joining a computer science club.
Northeastern offers several combined majors that cross the two over, including biology and English, computer science and music and mathematics and philosophy. With the “categorization” of majors, the gap between STEM and humanities feels like they’ve drifted even further apart — but combined majors bring the two sides back together again, an indicator of the benefit of engaging with both STEM and humanities.
All careers are vital to the function of our society. Yes, we need doctors and engineers, but we also need artists, writers and teachers. It’s crucial to know your worth. But if the way you express that begins to come at the expense of others, it spirals into a problem.
At the end of the day, regardless of if you are a STEM or humanities major, we all go to the same school. We’ve all worked hard to get to where we are — and dedication of any type, especially in a demanding academic environment, is admirable.
Antaine Anhalt is a first-year communication studies major. He can be reached at [email protected].
