Almost Half of Job-Seeking College Graduates Regret Their Major

• Almost half (44%) of job-seeking degree holders regret their college majors, according to a new survey by ZipRecruiter.
• Journalism is the most regretted major, according to a survey.
• Regret is heavily influenced by salary.

Another economic survey shows that lots of college graduates regret their major.

Economists at ZipRecruiter last week released their survey of the most regretted college majors. The takeaway: Almost half (44%) of job-seeking degree holders regret their college majors.

The top three regretted majors, according to ZipRecruiter, are journalism (87%), sociology (72%), and liberal arts and general studies (72%).

The top three regret-free majors, all above 70%, are computer and information sciences, criminology, and engineering.

Graduates strongly tied their sentiments toward their majors to job prospects, ZipRecruiter found. They're also less likely to regret pursuing quantitative fields.

In contrast, humanities fields fill most of the top regretted majors, ZipRecruiter found.

Those findings mirror a May 2022 report by the Federal Reserve that found almost half the college graduates who majored in humanities regretted their major.

Should students skip studying humanities? Not necessarily, according to BestColleges senior writer Mark Drozdowski.

"Yet there's no denying that abilities honed through the study of humanities — critical thinking, written and oral communication, ethical reasoning, and persuasive argumentation — are highly valued in today's workplace," he wrote. "Students passionate about studying humanities but worried about employment prospects can craft an academic experience that satisfies both desires."