I want to get a degree in African American Studies... but

I want to get a degree in African American Studies, my parents tell me it is useless. When I tell my friends they also tell me that it is the most worthless degree there is. They don't understand that I want to know these things. What should I do?

Yep, sounds worthless.

It is useless, unless you want to become an african american studies teacher.

Why is it useless?

get a degree in history sounds much better then a master degree in african american studies or any topic of your choice

What does he do?

if you haven't done much school then you can always change your degree, if you want to learn these things then get a library card and read some books in your free time

How many jobs can you name that require a degree in african american studies?

@deeliman: Why would I compromise what i want to do for a job? I can get any shitty job if I have to.

harvard (and probably a few other schools) offers free online courses with no acceptance requirements. check with them to see if they have something on that topic and take the class on the side. get a degree in something you are more likely to get a job with.

Why do you want to get that degree?

i'm getting a doctorates in white power

And what is that exactly?

why would you wanna work minimum wage?

So he didn't use his degree. Then for all intents and purposes...it was useless.

You could get a degree in history then take some classes in African American Studies. That'd be the smarter thing to do.

No more thegerging please

He wouldn't have been offered the position if he didn't have a degree or the particular degree that he has?

You don't have to attend a university to learn. It's called reading, and you don't have to pay thousands a year to do it.

i recommend either getting 2 degrees or minor in African american studies or add a non related minor to that

You were involved in the hiring process? I thought you said he OWNED a marketing company. You seem to be very confused.

I'm not the one that's confused. And as you weren't involved in the hiring years ago.....you also seem to be talking out of your ass.

But he's just working with what you're saying, which changes completely from one post to the next. Why did he need to be hired by the company he owns?

because you're all drinking thegerg's koolaid.

Ding ding ding!

Great answer. That is what I was going to recommend.

thegerg you win this threads award for most stupid user.

Why is everyone going full gerg itt? Never go full gerg...

I'd second getting a history degree (English could work as well) and then just getting a minor in African American studies to go along with it. You can do more in graduate school if you want after that.

Do you have a solid plan on what you are going to do with it? Or are you just pursuing it as an interest?

That's not really a fair statement since what a person studies can in many ways make them the person they are. A well rounded knowledgeable person is also a more attractive applicant in many instances. I would argue that studying something too specific is in many cases a bad decision.

@donquixote:

What exactly do you want to do with a degree in African American Studies? And what led to your interest in it?

If you're that serious about it, then you could do it as a minor or just do a double major if you can manage that.

But seriously, in this economy, a degree in African American studies isn't very marketable.

You should go for a degree that is more marketable.

You were chased out of Compton?

Seriously though, there's a reason that everybody is telling you that degree is worthless. It is. There is literally no profession that would require that degree, except being an African American Studies teacher. Do you want to be an African American Studies teacher? Is that what you want to spend your life doing? Is that the career you want? If your answer is anything but an enthusiastic "hell yes I want to be an African American Studies teacher", then that degree is worthless.

If you're just personally interested in the subject, and would be fine with "any shitty job", as you implied, why would you spend money getting a worthless degree? The degree means absolutely nothing, and you're an idiot for wanting it, unless you actually intend to be an African American Studies teacher. If all you want is the knowledge you would acquire in the process of getting that degree, then save yourself thousands of dollars, and go hit up the library and/or wikipedia. Spend your college money getting a degree that won't get you laughed out of a job interview.

Your parents and friends are right, and are looking out for your best interests. They probably don't care why you want to know these things, because that doesn't matter. If you don't want a career as an African American Studies teacher, the degree is a worthless waste of time and money. It's pretty obvious that you're some teenager, fresh out of high school, and you probably think your parents "just don't get it". You're wrong. They do. Hopefully they have the willpower to refuse to pay for your college if you insist on that degree. You'll thank them some day.

I say do it if your already studying something else.

There are so any stupid people in the States and it's ridiculous.

Do for the sake of being educated.

..... beyonce is blonde .... why waste time?

IF you goal for education is employment then it isn't going to help him much unless he gets a teaching degree as well. Then he can teach....but it won't do much for employment beyond that.

Why don't you just do African studies instead? Much more history and culture in that field. Very interesting continent. Much more enriching. African american studies is just slavery->MLK->basketball->hip hop->the end.

pretty much.

For all intents and purposes, it's useless. Ideally you should study what ever you enjoy, but you also have to be realistic. There are an incredibly small amount of jobs that that degree would give you access to. If you are really hung up on the subject, you should probably take a more general degree like History or Sociology then specialize in African American Studies or take it as a minor. Otherwise, just buy some text books and learn about it on your own time while you take a more useful/applicable program.

Stop it already.

I'm not the one being a thegerg.