7 College Majors That Cannot Afford a Comfortable Retirement
Written by
Jake Safane
Edited by
Cory Dudak
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On average, going to college greatly improves your chances of financial success in terms of income, unemployment likelihood and reported financial well-being, as an analysis from the Association of Public & Land Grant Universities showed. However, your college major can make a difference when it comes to long-term financial security.
In fact, 60% of the majors studied in a report by professors Frank Smith and Ajay K. Aggarwal would not lead to earning enough to build up a large enough nest egg to afford a comfortable retirement, even with no student loan debt. Once you factor in taking on more debt to go to college, the odds drop, especially for women and minorities.
According to their findings, only certain STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and business-related majors are likely to earn enough over their lifetimes to afford a comfortable retirement. Even then, certain majors are not likely to lead to that outcome, particularly when factoring in debt.
To get to a 50/50 chance of avoiding outliving your nest egg, you need a starting income of $48,500, according to the study.
That’s not to say that it’s impossible to make up the gap later on, but below are seven majors and their typical starting pay, according to the research, which would not clear this bar:
| Major | Starting pay |
| Theatre | $34,830 |
| Hospitality management | $38,250 |
| Psych/sociology | $38,610 |
| Athletic training | $39,860 |
| English/writing | $40,050 |
| Political science | $42,210 |
| Food science | $44,370 |
These are just a few of the many majors the report found would not earn enough. Even some STEM majors, like biology and chemistry, do not have high enough starting pay to lead to a comfortable retirement typically, they find. However, variations like chemical engineering do earn enough usually, with a starting pay of $65,520.
Your Major Doesn’t Have To Define You
While sometimes you need a particular major to get into a certain field, there are plenty of ways to adapt. Plus, just because some majors like biology might not lead to a comfortable retirement on average, that can certainly be used as a jumping-off point to get into medical school and then potentially secure a comfortable retirement as a doctor later on.
Pay attention to what majors specific jobs or graduate schools may look for, but don’t feel like you’re always locked in.
“I still think that college grads can do okay with most majors, assuming they have an interest in taking a job outside their specific major field,” said Teresa Saputo-Crerend, co-founder of LaunchBreak, a networking platform for high-level women athletes.
If you’re willing to be flexible, leverage your contacts — including professors — and do the networking needed to land an internship, even if it’s remote or during the school year, you can improve your chances of reaching your goals, she added.
Plus, remember that getting your foot in the door is difficult, but it’s important to keep doing the work.
“Getting a job these days is hard and can take up to a year. Patience, confidence and resilience are a necessity, as is finding some work to bridge the gap, preferably within the field one is looking for a job. For example, work at a retail clothing store if you are looking for a job in fashion; you never know who might be your customer,” said Saputo-Crerend.
You Can Pivot
If you’ve already graduated and are in a career that you don’t think will lead to a secure retirement, or if you’re deep into your studies, it’s not necessarily too late to change direction. Pivoting is an option, said Saputo-Crerend.
“They can learn many, many different skills online,” she added. “There are so many webinars and courses offered for free online. They can volunteer. They can try to do some job-shadowing. Pivoting requires patience as well.”
Think about what skills you may have picked up along the way that can be used for this pivot too. College athletes, for example, typically develop “time management, discipline, teamwork, etc. All of these soft skills can impress someone in any industry,” said Saputo-Crerend.
“It’s the same for someone majoring in a field that won’t be lucrative,” she noted. “There is coursework in any major that teaches you skills. Psychology classes may require some coding, data analytics or behavioral research. This can all be applied to other industries.”
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