Editor,
I am disappointed that Brandon Curtis would link the value of his degree of political science to finding a job that would pay his bills. The university system has never claimed that the education offered was practical. It is not the purpose of a professor to "guarantee" a job upon graduation.
The skills gained with a liberal arts degree are largely unquantifiable but when you apply to a job they will assist with critical assessment and decision making and will ameliorate hard "skills" in the long run.
If practical skills are desired, there are ample opportunities in the education fields that would suffice. Data entry, computer networking and appliance repair certifications all pay somewhat respectable salaries and are easily attained.
Mr. Curtis, as the years pass by and you settle into your job, whatever that may be, you will find that your bachelor's degree was not time wasted. I too questioned the usefulness of my literature degree but, as the era of my degree became more distant I realized that the knowledge I attained mellowed and became enriched, very much like a fine wine, after it mingled with life experience and job skills acquired outside of the degree of study.
Now, more than ever, writers such as Ernest Hemingway and Jorge Luis Borges speak to me richer and clearer than they did when I was an undergraduate.
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Embrace the knowledge that you have attained and cultivate it in addition to the job training you will need to get ahead materially in life.
Hang in there, virtually everyone questions the legitimacy of what they studied.
John Brandt
Database administrator,
alumnus and huge fan
of Arturo Perez-Reverte
