The College Majors Most Regretted In America

College can bring many different kinds of regrets for many different kinds of people.

We can forget about alcoholism, sleeping through classes, or any of those decisions for today as we look at the consequences of one of the most important decisions of all: the major you choose.

The major you choose has a massive impact on your earning potential, meaning it also has a massive impact on how long you will need to struggle with student debt. PayScale has conducted a massive new study on the majors that college graduates most often regret taking. The study covers Americans of all ages, education levels, with all college majors. Most college-related regrets surround student loan debt and the disastrous effects that it has on individuals’ lives.

The first major finding in the study was that those belonging to older generations, those with more advanced education levels, and those that studied high-earning majors had the fewest regrets stemming from college. Unfortunately, most college graduates say yes to having at least some regrets. While 33.9% of respondents claimed to have no regrets, student loans were cited as the biggest regret for 27.1% of respondents, with area of study being the biggest regret for 12.2%.

When it comes to the choices in major that are most regretted, the humanities take the first place prize. These are the percentages of graduates who regret each chosen area of study:

Humanities – 21.2%

Physical & Life Sciences – 17.9%

Social Sciences – 17.6%

Education – 17.3%

Communications – 16.6%

Art – 14.9%

Business – 10.4%

Health Sciences – 9.5%

Math – 9%

Engineering – 7.8%

Computer Science – 4.3%

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5 years ago