Lot's Wife Edition 6 2015

24
STUDENT AFFAIRS
By Georgia Cox
Some Degree of uncertainty?
My dad still wants me to become an accountant, but I can’t
count. In seeking the answer to one of the big questions in
life - is my Arts degree worth it? - I went to the ‘Arts in the
Real World’ held by Monash during July. Upon hearing of this
event Dad laughed, "it’s funny, the name; Arts in the ‘Real
World.’" Probing him I inquired "Why?" to which he responded,
"because, well, is there really such thing as Arts in the real
world?"
So an arts degree is a waste of time, right? Monash held
the event because, sadly, that is the overwhelming sentiment
held in our society. While most Arts students tend to enjoy
studying their discipline, many fear that they
won’t find a decent career after 3 years of
arduous study and paying back $20,000
that they don’t actually have. Students
of Law, Commerce, Engineering –
pretty much any discipline other
than Arts – laugh scornfully at the
supposedly imminent demise of
the Arts graduate.
In response to this trend,
Monash designed the conference
to remind students that the
world could not function solely
with accountants, doctors, lawyers,
bankers, computer technicians, and
so forth. People tend to not only forget
that the Arts are important, but also that
we actually need the humanities disciplines
in our society. It should seem obvious, really;
humans need the study of humanity in order to progress
as a community.
Jan McGuinness a journalist, editor and news producer,
as well as a professor at Monash’s school of Media, Film and
Journalism, reminded students that we live in "a changing
and ambiguous world" where we need to continue to make
connections between humanities and contemporary issues.
As an Arts graduate and the vice-president of the
organisation Humanities 21 (humanities21.com.au), Jan
advocates for people to "stop apologising for their Arts
degrees". Humanities 21 aims to educate the corporate world
about Arts graduates and seeks to build bridges between
them and newly graduated Arts students. The not-for-profit
organisation boasts a database of 150 academics, hosts
events, exhibitions, seminars, and posts e-newsletters, to
project to students, academics, and businesses what’s going
on in the world of the humanities. Their underlying idea is
that, "if businesses are on board, jobs will follow".
Professor Rae Frances, the Dean of Arts at Monash,
is also passionate about the Arts because people need
to understand "what it means to be human in its many
"People
tend to forget not
only that the Arts are
important, but also that we
actually need the humanities
disciplines in our society. It
should seem obvious, really;
humans need the study
of humanity in order
to progress as a
community."”
dimensions". She highlights the necessity of understanding
why humans "think and act the way they do; how they
express themselves intellectually, artistically and socially;
how they interact with each other and with technology and
the natural environment."
We tend to forget that an education in an Arts field teaches
students to be analytical and flexible, which is so important
because "almost every problem has a human dimension as
well as a technical one," Professor Frances explains.
An Arts degree offers breadth by delivering training in
many skills including research, analysis, critical thinking
and ultimately communication, which, according
to the Dean, are "extremely useful in the
modern workplace and highly valued by
employers."
Refreshingly, she envisions that
the Bachelor of Arts qualification
will become more popular in the
near future. The generic and broad
skills that the BA teaches are
becoming increasingly soughtafter
because the nature of
work is changing so quickly, so
adapting to new situations and
workplaces is vital in order to apply
knowledge in ever-changing contexts.
It is exactly because the BA is such
a broad degree that students can seek
broad vocational experience. Rather than
restricting you to one domain of work, an Arts
education will widen your "Real World" prospects.
As globalisation will continue to steadily advance thanks
to the increasing rates of digitalisation, tourism and
migration, students will need to adapt to participate in
a global workforce in order to attain the best possible job
prospects. The BA fills the gap of international experience
and intercultural skills that is often lost in more vocationalfocused
disciplines.
So what should you do if, like me, you can’t count, fathom
the idea of chemistry, or fall asleep at the idea of studying
torts? Professor Frances encourages students to take
advantage of Monash’s offerings of international study
experience. Likewise, being such a large university, the
networking opportunities at Monash are boundless. Whether
you study another language, criminology, politics, literature,
or behavioral studies within your Arts degree, "accessing
another culture and world view", as Professor Frances puts it,
will ultimately open your eyes to the world beyond university,
and expand your version of the real world.
In the meantime, at least my dad will continue to teach me
all he knows about Excel spreadsheets.