So you think majoring in Communication is pointless?
Let me enlighten you.
The amount of disrespect I have encountered as a Communication major is astounding. The list of negative things I have either overheard or been told regarding my major is endless.
Random Person: “What are you studying for?”
Me: “Communication”
Random Person: -sarcastically- “Oh that’s hard”
However, my favorite and most common question I get asked is “Isn’t Communication just common sense?” To which I now respond with “Only if explaining the difference between the primary and secondary triads of the quasi-categorical syllogism comes to you naturally.” Corny? Yes. But can you answer the question with a yes? No? I rest my case.
What I’m trying to say is Communication should be a respected major just like any other major such as Business, Political Science, etc. Don’t let the name of the major fool you. My Communication classes have been far from common sense, and contrary to what you might believe, I have learned far more than just “how to talk to people.” It would honestly make life a lot easier if my classes were what everyone else thought they were, but I wouldn’t be learning anything!
So far, I have learned:
- How to effectively build a business from the bottom up with a team
- The art of persuading anyone about anything
- The real roles media and computer mediated communication have in shaping society
- How to conduct and publish research
- How to determine what news is credible
- How to ethically run a business including how to respect and understand cultural differences
- The differences in gendered communication to reduce misunderstandings
- How to give a confident, successful public speech
- How to be a competent communicator (I won’t even bore you with what this entails)
- MUCH much more
What can one do with this “pointless” degree, you may ask? Well, this is no simple answer. The range of opportunities with graduating with a Communication degree is endless! You can pretty much do anything your heart desires. Don’t believe me? Take a gander: https://www.topuniversities.com/student-info/careers-advice/what-can-you-do-communications-degree Strong communication skills are required in just about every industry.
No. Majoring in Communication is not easy. No. It’s not common sense. Just because you can’t physically see what we study, as you can with majors such as Math, Business, Biology etc., since the majority of what we learn is theory, does not mean we aren’t learning how to make a significant impact in our communities as well as the professional world.
Next time you’re talking to a Communication major, please don’t be disrespectful. We’re going through the same amount of struggles and lack of sleep in college as you are. We didn’t major in Communication to take an easy ride through college. We chose this major because we saw the value in communicating with people and learning how to implement strong communication skills in all aspects of personal and professional life. If the world had no Communication majors, it wouldn’t be able to function properly. Just as it wouldn’t be able to if any other major was wiped from existence.