NORFOLK — Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education has been at the forefront of education heavily within the past fifteen years. With the rise of STEM, the importance of the humanities has begun to fade because of society’s view and the cost of education with little payout.
STEM education has appeared heavily in the American school system, so that young students could find high earning careers. With lack of importance placed on humanities in school, the number of students pursuing writing, English, art and media degrees has plummeted in recent years.
In an article published by The New Yorker, Arizona State University’s (ASU) enrollment rates were analyzed displaying the drop in humanity-focused degree enrollment.
“English majors on campus at Arizona State University fell from nine hundred and fifty-three to five hundred and seventy-eight,” The New Yorker’s Nathan Keller reported, “records indicate that the number of graduated language and literature majors decreased by roughly half, as did the number of history majors.”
The decline of these majors is not only a problem for ASU. Robert Townsend, the co-director of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators project, spoke of the similar hit he has noticed.
“From 2012 to 2020 the number of graduated humanities majors at Ohio State’s main campus fell by forty-six per cent,” Townsend found, “tufts lost nearly fifty per cent of its humanities majors, and Boston University lost forty-two.”
The cost of education has risen exponentially over the past decade and is one of the reasons humanity degrees are not being heavily sought after like before.
According to the 2023 NACE Salary Survey, “Those with a bachelor’s in engineering are projected to earn $74,405. Computer sciences are projected to earn $72,843, math and sciences $67,199.”
NACE also reported, “humanities are only projected to earn $52,938, which is about 29 percent less than STEM majors and that’s only starting salaries. The average cost of living in the US is about $30,000 to $42,000, according to Edvoy.”
Clarita Herce, a middle school art teacher spoke to Valor Dictus about her view on humanities in relation to the cost of living.
“We all want to make money,” Herce said, “welcome to America, right? Because if we don’t make money, we’re going to end up on the streets. STEM careers are secure and they’re so important because science and technology build our lives.”
With the age of innovative technology, many people believe that art and literature are outdated and do not improve society. But even though its importance is more abstract, the humanities serve a vital role in society.
“The humanities and the arts not only pay attention to society and reflect it, but it also shapes society. The arts teach us what to value, and they show us what our world can be,” Herce said, “the arts are so powerful because they help us imagine a world of possibility- without the arts, we, as human beings, lack vision and have no sense of direction of where we are going.”
To reduce the risk of humanities slipping away in our society, it is encouraged that people read, support artists, write and share their creativity with others in their lives before it is too late.
