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I suspect you English majors out there have been forced to ponder this question.  I won't even go into the questions asked of philosophy majors.   I call it THE QUESTION and it made me write my book, You Majored in What? Mapping Your Path from Chaos to Career. 

I was a sociology major.  The study of society.  Hmm...psychology lite?   Majoring in common sense?  Or just plain useless?  Just what does one "do" with that, if you don't want to become a sociology professor or social worker? 

And I struggled for many years to find the answer.  Until I realized there was no answer.  I didn't "do" anything with my sociology major.  I just "did."  I entered a variety of careers from human resources manager to retail merchandiser to school psychologist to social worker to guitar instructor to rehabilitation counselor and on and on, each time carrying my sociology major along for the ride.

Because it provided quite a ride: an interesting foundation in concepts like self-fulfilling prophecy.  Anomie.  Structural functionalism.  Concepts that helped me frame and make sense of whatever I was "doing." 

See, the question is wrong.  It's not "what is your major and what are you going to do with it?" It's "What do you want to DO?  And how can you show through your major and other experiences that you can do it?" 

Because that's the real challenge: helping an employer understand why your major is valuable.  So take a few moments and think about it.  How does your major influence your mindset?  What do you bring to your job that someone from a different major doesn't?

I suspect behind an English major is an analyst working in a brokerage firm who first honed his analytic skills by reading The Great Gatsby, a therapist who understands the human condition, a storytelling advertiser who knows the value of crafting a great image to hook a customer, a marketer who understands the different cultures of the people who might purchase the product, a politician who appreciates different perspectives, or even a pilot who sees the poetry in the sky.

Sounds good to me-I'd hire one of those.

Want to further analyze your educational experience?  See Chapter Four in my book for creative ways to enhance and express the value of your education. 

Katharine Brooks, You Majored in What, careers, college, graduation, Penguin Books