Have you ever thought to yourself, “I enjoy being creative and finding unusual solutions to visual problems?” Or, “When I see a blank page, I’m compelled to draw on it?” Or even, “Making art is the one thing I am passionate about?” If you have these thoughts or ones similar, then majoring in the arts may be for you.

The power of art is its versatility. Students are not limited in what they are able to study and can specialize in a wide variety of options, such as, painting, photography, film, animation, architecture, ceramics and more. Art is a field that allows students to explore different cultures and perspectives while also equipping them with 21st century skills needed for the rapidly changing workforce of the future. Artists create value for everyone in society by producing forms of entertainment that can be enjoyed by all. However, an artist’s creative expertise plays a lesser-known but equally essential role in many other career fields. Artists do crucial work as innovators, merging the fields of science, education, and art. For instance, artists are key to revitalizing communities through developing civic infrastructure and city beautification projects. Regardless of the schooling programs or type of degree, studying art prepares students for a career through developing and blending skills including creativity, visual literacy, critical thinking, and project management. Here are some potential pathways within the art field:

Fine Arts comprises many different areas of study and courses depending on the specific field. Students will learn about history, skills, and methodologies in their artistic field. There are five main fine arts categories: visual arts, theater and dance, film and photography, music and creative writing. Application for fine arts programs usually requires a portfolio, which is dependent on the type of concentration a student is entering.

Design majors gain a variety of skills with practical applications through their studies. It is a blend of critical thinking, innovating, and teamwork. Classes in the design field can range from exhibition or product design to fashion to illustration and even computer programming. Graduating with a degree in design can open a huge number of career paths spanning multiple fields.

Media Arts involves the study of film and videos. Students can focus on media history and visual aspects of film and photography but can also study production. Through media arts programs, students will learn versatile skills that build a foundation for a successful future. Graduates with a degree in media arts often enter the entertainment or communication industry, including advertising, film, or public relations.

An art institute is appropriate for those individuals who truly wish to immerse themselves in art. For visual artists they generally award a Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) degree and often require a portfolio, or a collection of a student’s art pieces, as part of the admission process. B.F.A. programs train their constituents for art-based careers; students may prepare for a future in fashion, auto or interior design, video game development, animation, or the graphic arts. At an art institute, students will generally start with foundation courses such as basic design and history of art, then focus on an area of concentration during the later part of their studies.

It’s important to consider, however, that studio art classes require hours of hard work and students at art institutes have little time or opportunity to get the breadth of education that is possible at a liberal arts college. Additionally, most art institutes do not offer the variety of extracurricular clubs, sports, and activities many college students seek. Therefore, if you’re interested in focusing on art but would also like to explore other interests, pursuing an art major at a liberal arts college is another great option. Although students in Bachelor of Arts programs do not get the intensity of experience that BFA graduates do, they benefit from the more rounded college-life experience available at a comprehensive institution. Both the B.F.A. and B.A. programs prepare students for graduate programs in the arts. A master’s degree is generally required for those hoping for employment in museums and galleries or for teaching at the high school level. Museum curators, directors, and college professors often have Ph.D.s.

Careers for Art & Design Majors

Fortunately, the notion of “the poor starving artist” no longer rings true today. The arts and culture sector is a key area in state-level economic growth, and 80% of working creatives are poly-occupational, meaning many hold more than one job at a time. All art majors should seek out internships to gain real-world experience. Art majors may go on to work in a variety of art-related fields. You can learn more about careers in the visual arts by using the Occupational Outlook Handbook.

Career Paths for Art and Design

· Motion Graphics Designer

· Visual Effects Artist

· Video Game Artist

· Virtual Reality Artist

· Augmented Reality Artist

· Art/Creative Director

· Fashion/Costume Designer

· Film/Commercial Director

· Graphic Designer

· Interior Designer

· Photographer

· Industrial Designer

· Production Designer

· Matte Painter

· Look Development Artist

· Craft or Fine Artist

With the widespread adoption of mobile phones and computers and the resulting huge quantities of data generated from these devices, there is now a demand for analysts to extract knowledge and insights from that data. It is now easier for organizations to learn about their users as they interact with the company’s website, social media, or mobile channels, all of which leave records that can be accessed and analyzed. Such datasets are information-rich and can help guide organizations to improve products and services. Accessing and analyzing this data requires trained data scientists, and demand for them is high. To address this demand, many colleges and universities have created programs specifically focused on data science and ancillary studies.

What is data science?

Data science is an interdisciplinary field. In this major, students learn to combine statistics, computer science, mathematics, information science, and knowledge about systems to pull and analyze data for a specific purpose. As this is a rapidly changing field, data science degree programs aim to teach students how to think about the field flexibly and to engage critically with new problems.

An undergraduate studying data science will start by building a basis of knowledge in mathematics, particularly calculus and linear algebra, and take several statistics and computer science courses. While computer science will provide the programming skills needed to extract data and use helpful software tools, a statistical background will provide students with the analytical skills needed to interpret data scientifically. In addition to focusing on these core subject areas, many data science programs have specialized fields of study:

Machine Learning is focused on using data to make predictions. To do this, students learn the basics of neural networks and artificial intelligence to mimic how neurons in the human brain work together to solve problems and arrive at conclusions.

Data Analytics uses large data sets to find trends and answer questions. Data Analytics can be valuable to businesses and other organizations not only to improve decision making, but also to increase employee productivity and help create personalized customer experiences.

Inference uses experiments, predictive modeling, and A/B testing of data to predict outcomes. Inference typically requires additional courses in statistics.

Natural Language Processing (NLP) uses Machine Learning (ML) technology to enable computers to understand natural language as humans do. Whether the language is spoken or written, natural language processing can use AI to take data, process it, and make sense of it in a way a computer can understand.

What careers stem from this major?

With an undergraduate degree, students can pursue junior-level roles as data analysts or data engineers at a wide variety of companies. While analysts focus on organizing and interpreting raw data, data engineers help build the systems analysts use. These careers can be found at both large and small companies in industries as diverse as healthcare, agriculture, technology, and consulting, to name a few.

Within the role of a data analyst, there are specialties such as risk management, market research, and business analysis. Risk management analysts tend to work for insurance companies or on risk prevention teams. Typically, the goal is to ensure maximum profit. Students may also become database administrators, focusing their skills on overseeing a company’s database.

To pursue higher-level positions or research-based careers, students may also choose to obtain a graduate degree, which can take up to two years or more while they attend full-time.

Career Paths for Data Science Majors

· Database Administrator

· Data Analyst

· Data Engineer

· Market Research Analyst

· Applications Architect

· Tableau Developer

· Operations Research Analyst

· Data Scientist

· Business Intelligence Analyst

· Risk Management Analyst

· Market Researcher

· Business Analyst

· Clinical Data Manager

· Quantitative Researcher

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