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RE: The value of studying Philosophy
I was doing an SAT practice test and there was a great article on the test about philosophy. I was always interested in philosophy, but only as an extremely interesting field that I would read about and discuss on the Internet. It really is worth studying, because regardless of the field one works in, philosophy can be applied to their job and their lifestyle. It introduces new and profound ways to think. It teaches you how to think, not what to think.
Now you mention it, I started working as a Software Engineer last year. In the Netherlands we have several traineeship programs for people with STEM degrees to learn Software Engineering. Although I did not have a STEM degree, I was still allowed to enter the traineeship, because the company that hired me thought that Philosophy students could give some 'outside of the box' perspectives to their IT teams. :)
That is actually awesome. However those opportunities are still rare. Universities should respond to the problem of philosophy graduates not having specific skills that can be of concrete use to future employers, by offering those kinds of training as part of the curriculum. I know this is not the goal of studying philosophy, but not all of these students plan on staying in academia.
I agree. Philosophy graduates are often left with minimal marketable skills. Maybe universities should give these students more options.
Thank you for your comment. Philosophy alone may not be very marketable, but philosophy in combination with practicality = awesome. :)