What can you do with a degree in philosophy? There is a myth that while studying philosophy might be fun and interesting, a philosophy degree has little practical value. But the available data tell a different story. Undergraduate philosophy majors have high mid-career salaries (see here and here), and humanities majors earn more than science majors in the long run (see here and here). The evidence suggests that far from being an impractical choice, a philosophy degree is a major career asset.
The myth probably persists because there is no single career path associated with a philosophy degree, unlike degrees in, say, engineering or computer science. But the truth is that you can do a lot with a philosophy degree. Philosophy majors develop skills like analytical thinking and problem-solving that are valuable in many different careers and which stay relevant over time, unlike technical skills which might be highly valued in the short term but become outdated later (see here).
So, what kinds of careers do philosophy graduates pursue? Philosophy majors might enter a postgraduate program such as law, business, graduate school, or medical school. Philosophy majors are the more likely than graduates of any other major (out of the 10 largest majors) to be admitted to law school and they perform better on the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) than any other major. Philosophy majors outperform other majors on the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) and are among the highest scorers on the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). Philosophy majors are even accepted into medical school at higher rates than other majors, including those in sciences.
You might be wondering what causes philosophy majors’ success on these tests: is it their education in philosophy, or is it the fact that people who take philosophy tend to be pretty smart in the first place? The answer seems to be that training in philosophy genuinely makes a difference, as we can see when we compare different majors’ pre-university standardized test scores (like the SAT and ACT) to their scores on these postgraduate admission tests (like the LSAT and GMAT).
A philosophy degree can open up these paths and many others, some of which are listed through UTM’s Career Centre. If you’re interested in learning more about these options, you can book a one-on-one career exploration and planning appointment with a specialist in the Career Centre.