The glow of computer screens lights up bedrooms, dorm rooms, and apartments all over the country, as students scroll through job postings and internship listings. For those pursuing a degree in fine arts or humanities, the hunt for a job can feel like navigating uncharted waters. Opportunities are limited, competition is fierce, and a steady paycheck is far from guaranteed. Every resume submitted and every email sent is a step into uncertainty, as students wonder if their passion can actually sustain a career for themselves.
In this situation, where job security and financial stability are the top priorities, the familiar advice to “follow your passion” can feel unrealistic and risky for many. As the job market evolves faster than ever, students are weighing what they love against what will get them hired.
This is a familiar situation for many, especially Sanyi Huang, a second-year singer at Berklee College of Music in Boston.
“It’s hard to make your resume stand out from everyone else’s, and that’s really hard and time-consuming,” Huang said.
According to the United States Census Bureau, fine arts and humanities majors often face starting salaries around $53,450, far below the $121,600 typical for STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) or business graduates. However, experts stress that experience, skills, and adaptability can matter more than your degree on paper.
Huang’s story sets the stage for a larger discussion: balancing the pursuit of personal passion with practical considerations about career prospects, financial security, and the realities of the job market.
Passion versus paycheck
Huang’s love for music started early, nurtured both inside and outside school.
“I did choir in my high school and also outside of school,” Huang said. “Both choirs gave me inspiration for early singing, and I even got a chance to perform in Indiana at a church, which really ensured that I wanted to keep pursuing music and singing specifically.”
Those early experiences set the foundation for Huang’s path to Berklee College of Music, where she now continues to grow and develop her craft. However, for her and many other students, pursuing a passion-driven major is more than just loving a subject — it’s a big risk in the competitive job market.
“Especially after COVID-19, fewer people are willing to spend money on entertainment,” Huang said. “But creativity is really important in everyone’s life, and it should get more recognition.”
According to the National Endowment for the Arts, arts and entertainment employment dropped half a million jobs between 2019 and 2020, which amounts to about 604,000 workers.
Due to the scarcity of job opportunities and the unpredictability of income in the creative fields, many aspiring artists face uncertainty about their future.
“I worry a lot about what to do after graduation and where to stay, especially since the music industry is a competitive field and hard to make yourself stand out,” Huang said. “We need to be 100% passionate and also make a backup plan if necessary.”
Many fine arts majors eventually shift toward a more career-focused path, whether that means adding a minor, pursuing a certificate, or transitioning into a different industry altogether.
“It’s really hard to find work that pays well enough to live on from doing a creative pursuit,” said Adina Zinn, a certified career coach. “So you end up needing to change because you need to pay your bills and make money. Creative pursuits don’t usually pay very well.”
For many students, the reality check comes quickly: passion alone doesn’t guarantee sustainability. Entry-level roles in the arts are often part-time or short-term, and competition is high. Meanwhile, fields like nursing, accounting, and computer science provide clearer pathways, higher average salaries, and more consistent demand. That contrast forces many students to reconsider the long-term practicality of their interests and whether their passion can support their lifestyle.
The contrast: High-demanding majors
However, Huang’s experiences and worries differ significantly from others. While Huang worries about the uncertainty of the music industry, other students, like Claire Liu, a current employee at SurveyMonkey, experience the opposite: a major that guarantees a job.
Liu, who graduated from Lafayette College in Pennsylvania with a degree in computer science in 2023, had her career lined up before graduation. She had interned at SurveyMonkey before graduating and had been offered a full-time role at the company before finishing school.
“I definitely wanted a high-demand major,” Liu said. “College is a huge investment, so I was looking for a major that could help me find a job, and my own interest was more of a second consideration.”
According to the Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce, majors in Computer Science and Mathematics have an unemployment rate of 7.8% and 6%, while majors in non-technical fields have higher rates, with the Arts at 11.1%, Humanities and Liberal Arts at 9.4%, and Social Science at 8.9%.
Liu’s path highlights the stark contrast between students in high-demand majors, like computer science, engineering, and healthcare, versus those in fields with lower job demand, such as humanities, fine arts, or certain social sciences.
According to Nicole Smith, a chief economist at Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce, these high-demand fields pay more and tend to have higher early employment rates, while passion majors often require additional skills, experience, or credentials to achieve stability.
However, even Liu’s path wasn’t without challenges. With artificial intelligence (AI), the landscape of the industry is drastically changing, impacting the quantity of traditional software engineering roles in tech.
“It was starting to become more challenging the year I graduated, in 2023. Even now, it’s definitely not as easy as before to find a new job,” Liu said.
Computer science used to be one of the most stable and reliable paths after college. But now, the rise of AI has caused the industry to rapidly change, pushing even well-prepared students to adapt and adjust their skills to keep up with the fast-moving industry.
“Right now, if you have a background in AI, that is the hottest thing in the sector in the economy,” Zinn said.
The contrast between Huang and Liu reveals more than just differences in majors — it reflects two fundamentally different college experiences. While Liu can anticipate a structured career ladder and clear job titles, Huang navigates a landscape with no guarantees. Every opportunity she gets feels earned, not expected. And unlike Liu, whose major is in high demand, Huang must create her own demand through visibility, networking, and consistency.
Beyond the major
Despite the emphasis on selecting the right majors and the job opportunities that come with them, recruiters are increasingly looking beyond the label to the candidate’s skills, experiences, and adaptability.
“A lot of people graduate from college and think that a college degree is going to get them hired, but what employers really want is experience,” Zinn said.
“It’s not just about the GPA — you need experiences outside the classroom to stand out,” said Ellen Kelly, director of Career Success at the University of San Francisco. “Students should have experiences that will give them skills that employers want to hire them for.”
Even for passion-driven majors, developing skills that employers value can make a significant difference. Many students develop these skills in various ways, including joining clubs, securing a job or internship, and taking on leadership roles.
“I planned to do more performances or get in touch with more music industry people to keep myself in music,” Huang said. “I’ve also been looking for internships recently.”
According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), 79% of human resources (HR) professionals say that scores on skills assessments are as important as the traditional hiring criteria. Thirty-six percent say a job candidate who scores high on an assessment but doesn’t meet the minimum years of experience is very likely to make it on the list of final candidates.
“Understand the career pathways connected to your major, and build additional skills that increase your value in the job market,” Smith said. “Build additional skills, pursue internships, and consider pairing your major with a minor or certificate that strengthens employment prospects.”
Finding balance in the future
As students navigate the tricky balance between passion and practicality, the advice from both peers and experts is clear: it’s not just about the major you choose, but how you prepare for the career that follows.
“Following your passion doesn’t mean ignoring reality, and choosing a practical major doesn’t mean abandoning joy,” Smith said.
For many, that balance comes from understanding the broader landscape — recognizing which industries are changing, which skills are in demand, and how personal interests can fit into those shifts. Students who stay flexible and open-minded often find opportunities where they least expect them.
“Choosing fine arts means you’re doing something you’re truly passionate about, but the path is harder than people think,” Huang said. “There are a lot of challenges, but if you do what you love, you’ll enjoy it — and that happiness is enough.”
Together, these perspectives highlight a middle ground that many students overlook. A major doesn’t lock someone into one future, nor does it guarantee success on its own. Opportunities tend to open for those who combine their interests with persistence, initiative, and a willingness to keep learning.
“You don’t need to have it all figured out,” Kelly said. “Study something that interests you, gain experiences outside the classroom, and ask for help when you need it. Most people land on their feet.”
