Call For: Worst Humanities Jobs of 2008

By Dave Semeniuk On February 28, 2008 · 5 Comments · In >archive, >creative, chatter

Science isn’t all, “Ask a question, research your topic, formulate a hypothesis, test it, observe, and redefine it.” Practicing scientists and scientists-in-training have to deal with many daily unpleasantries, including:

Things that sting
Things that burn
Things that itch
Things that poison
Things that infect
Things that nauseate
Things that kill you
Things that don’t pay nearly well enough, and
Things they’d rather be doing right now (its a love-hate thing)

Popular Science has been publishing an annual list of the world’s worst jobs in science for years now, dedicated to “the men and women who do what no salary can adequately reward.”

I’m sure, given the opportunity, humanities and social scientists could muster up a similar list. So wudyasay clinical psychologists, media analysts, classicists, creative writers, economists, and political scientists? Show us your worst.

5 Responses to Call For: Worst Humanities Jobs of 2008

J.J.S. Boyce says:

February 28, 2008 at 10:41 pm

Starbucks for liberal arts graduates?

I read an article about the high number of BA holders who can’t find anything other than the barrista jobs they already had.
Martin R says:

February 29, 2008 at 6:20 am

In the US, archaeology is a social science, so folks from there will find the following irrelevant. But anyway.

A very small percentage of archaeology graduates in Europe find jobs in their field, usually in contract / rescue archaeology, the kind that is done when highways are built. These are really bad job for the following reasons.

1. Extremely poor pay related to length of education.

2. Extremely poor job security: generally you only get 4 months at a time.

3. Originally tiny labour market very sensitive to swings in the economy.

4. Job forces you to dig dirt under all weather conditions.

5. Highway projects slalom around well-preserved and interesting archaeological sites for reasons of heritage preservation and cost of excavations.
Dave Munger says:

February 29, 2008 at 6:24 am

Teaching Freshman composition. ‘Nuff said.
Chad Orzel says:

February 29, 2008 at 7:49 am

Dave Munger wins.
Everybody drive home safely.
Sanguinetti A! says:

February 29, 2008 at 12:09 pm

I saw a philosophy/math double major graduate end up in a tiny town with nothing to do but work at Walmart.