Studies show that business majors make up around 20% of all degrees in the US. This is a very high percentage when there are so many different majors that can be chosen from. Not to mention that most small schools do not even offer a business major. So why is it that everyone wants to be a business major?
Well, business covers a variety of different topics. It ranges from accounting and investment, to management and marketing. There are so many paths to choose once you enter the business major that it feels like you cannot go wrong with this choice. Also, large corporations are businesses and built on the fundamentals learned in business classes. So it seems like an obvious choice if you want to make big bucks after college someday. Endless opportunities, a feeling of job security, and much more makes a business major sound like you really cannot go wrong with this choice.
There are a couple reasons why that is not the whole truth. The first being business is simply not for everyone. You cannot force yourself to be a business person just to make money if that is not what plays to your strengths. If you do not like what you’re learning in school, this will translate poorly to your job search and employers will see right through it. It will end up hurting you in the job search if you’re not extremely passionate about it. Next, if most business majors are looking to work at the biggest companies, this will not work either. Fortune 500 companies have about 13 million employees in the US, and that’s for EVERY position at this businesses. That means less than 4% of all Americans work at fortune 500 companies. For the illustration let’s say that only half of the business majors want to work at this large of a company. That’s still 10% of graduates every year fighting for positions that only 4% of the US population in total holds. This is a very large gap and further demonstrates why you cannot pick a business major based only on the idea that it will land you a great job after college.
The other factor to keep in mind here is what kind of business major you get. As described earlier, there are lots of routes to pursue within the business major itself. If you are going to be a business major, you should pick a specific one with a challenging course load. For example, even if you do not want to be an accountant someday, accountant majors end up with all sorts of amazing jobs and different large companies. Do not settle for the general business major. Yes, you will get knowledge on a range of topics, but this is seen by employers as people who are not extremely passionate about business. This route seems like the kids who just wanted to say they were a business major with no actual future plan.
Needless to say, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be a business major. I say all of this to warn you why the business major is overrated and how you should not fall into that trap because you think it sounds good. People with all types of majors land jobs that are completely different from their majors all the time. You should pursue what you are passionate about, not just what sounds good. So if you are passionate about business, then by all means go forth with this major. Just make sure you really think critically about your choice!
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