The practical value of philosophy in the workplace

“What are you going to do? Get a job at the philosophy factory?” 

As president of the Philosophy Undergraduate Association (PhilUA), I’ve attended the philosophy booth at the university’s Open House for the past two years (as well as the arts student orientation this year), and I’ve quickly noticed a pattern. A lot of incoming students interested in philosophy are pessimistic about a ‘return on investment’ for taking even a single philosophy class, let alone getting a degree in it. Of the dozens of students I’ve talked to, every single one (sometimes incredulously) asked what jobs a person could possibly land with philosophy. 

This leads to an important question: should philosophy students be worried?

To answer this, it’s important to remember what you get out of philosophy: you read a lot, write a lot and think very critically about what you read and write. While there is a perception of philosophy as little more than having your head in the clouds (dating back over 2,000 years; see Nephelai by Aristophanes), in practice, you’re gaining a lot of skills in problem-solving (often for problems many others haven’t noticed). It can be easy to undervalue this skill, but with automation and AI on the rise, it’s needed more than ever, and the data backs it up.

In the Job Outlook 2024 survey from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), they found that nearly 90% of employers indicate that they are seeking evidence of problem-solving skills when hiring recent students (article link here). Over 70% are seeking strong written communication skills, and over 65% are seeking strong analytical skills. 

The prior survey is not alone in valuing the skills of philosophy. A collaborative report of four major human resource agencies found that of 20 different areas of knowledge, the top skill expected to increase in importance in the next 5 years is critical thinking/problem solving (with creativity/innovation not far behind at number 4) (article link here, page 49). While this survey is slightly older, the prior survey clearly affirms that these trends in skills of interest hold true.

So, what jobs can you pursue with philosophy? You can work in law, academics, public relations, human resources, policy research, government, editing, business consulting, fundraising and many more competitive areas, flourishing with your strength in communication, critical thinking and problem-solving.

As a result, the answer to my previous question is: no, philosophy students do not need to be worried.

There’s still an underlying issue to be addressed. Why do I feel the need to write this article at all? Why does the arts feel more pressure to justify itself in terms of employability? It seems to be an unfortunate reality that this is the metric students are worried about, and the current zeitgeist seems to forget that creativity and dynamic thinking have value unto themselves. 

With increasing automation and AI tools rapidly restructuring technical professions, critical thinking may remain one of the last skills necessarily human. Looking at the survey data, it appears that employers have already started to realize this.

If you're interested in finding out more about what you can do with your degree or looking for tips on entering the workforce, be sure to come by the Career Centre! Appointments are free for all current students and recent graduates (within a year). Our office can be found at SUB 2-100, open from 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. from Monday to Friday. Feel free to come by in person or contact yourcareercentre@ualberta.ca.