Information for Parents
Parents of UT CoLA Students
Did you know that you are one of the most important factors in your student's career decision-making process? You can help your student get the most out of their time at UT by encouraging them to use the career offices early and frequently.
Liberal Arts students have the use of two career centers on campus: the Career Exploration Center (CEC) and Liberal Arts Career Services. A link below explains the details, but a basic overview of services is that the CEC provides career decision-making (counseling & assessment) services, and Liberal Arts Career Services provides connections to the workplace (such as resume writing, practice interviewing, on-campus interviews, and job fairs).
Parents are sometimes concerned about the "value" of a liberal arts degree. They worry that it doesn't lead to a specific career. Our experience shows that our graduates succeed in a variety of careers regardless of their major. And, yes, they do find jobs after graduation! Liberal arts students are often asked, "What are you going to do with that major?" But that's the wrong question. The question to ask is, "What do you want to do? And how can you show through your degree and your experiences that you can do it?"
A liberal arts degree is timeless and eternally useful. Students don't have to worry about trends and try to speculate about the "best" preparation for their next 30 years or more in the workplace. A liberal arts degree will provide them with the basic skills and knowledge they need to develop their career. Very few students know exactly where they're going or what they will be doing in 4 years or 10 years or 20 years-- but students can think about what interests them generally and acquire summer jobs and internship experiences which will help them make up their minds. Our office can assist with this process.
Our advice to students is
- Major in a subject which interests you and where you enjoy the reading and learning.
- Major in the area where you like the professors.
- Major in the area where you receive good grades (more likely if you've followed #1 and #2 above).
- If you know the general career path or graduate school path you plan to follow, select a related major.
There are so many new and interesting paths that your son or daughter will have a chance to explore over the next few years. Please encourage them to be creative, set goals, follow dreams, take chances, and make mistakes so they can learn from them. They will all be the wiser for it.
Online Resources
JobWeb publishes several helpful articles for parents written by specialists in the field: