Unemployment among university graduates is 13%

Humanities studies, although still popular, attract far fewer young people than a few years ago.

One of the reasons is the difficulty in finding your way in the labor market, greater than in the case of technical studies graduates. Students can be attracted by modern curricula, wider contact with employers when introducing new fields of study and internships in enterprises. Humanists are needed on the labor market – argues prof. Antoni Różalski, Rector of the University of Lodz.

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– Humanists find themselves differently on the labor market. It all depends on the completed field of study, but also on additional education, knowledge of IT techniques and foreign languages, one of which is at least proficient, and the other at least satisfactorily. However, it can be said that there are certain difficulties in finding a job by humanists, which is not only due to their fault – says prof. Antoni Różalski, Rector of the University of Lodz.

A report by the Educational Research Institute shows that the unemployment rate among graduates in Poland does not exceed 13 percent. The situation is therefore better than in the European Union, but a lot depends on education. People with technical and IT education find themselves better on the labor market, and economists cannot complain about the lack of work. The situation is different among humanists. Graduates of philology, sociology or political science most often find employment in companies not directly related to their education.

– Even after the war, the humanities faculties enjoyed great popularity, the decline of which was noted in the 1970s and mid 1980s. In the following period, the situation stabilized. This problem does not only concern Poland, its scope is much wider. The United States can serve as a flagship example. From the American Academy of Arts & Sciences report, only 6 percent. people obtain a bachelor degree in humanities in relation to all degrees received. This is three times less than at the end of the 1960s – emphasizes prof. Różalski.

Several years ago, several people competed for one place for some humanities studies. Currently, some universities conduct additional recruitment due to too low number of applicants. This year, according to the data of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, IT was again the most popular field of study (over 35,000 people). It was followed by management, law and psychology (nearly 22 thousand, 19.7 thousand and 19.4 thousand people, respectively). However, as the rector of the University of Lodz argues, humanists are still needed.

– It is not enough to produce something that is technically perfect, the product still needs to create a philosophy and give it a “soul”, otherwise it will be difficult to sell. Humanists are irreplaceable in this. Moreover, there is also a need to analyze the increasing amount of data needed to make long-term strategic decisions. Computer scientists play an important role here, but there is no doubt that sociology graduates are very useful in the perception of these data and their analysis, looking for causes, combining effects – argues Rector Różalski.

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Humanists can find a job in broadly understood marketing, journalism or education. More and more often, new humanities are created in cooperation with companies, such as linguistics for business. The field of study available at the University of Lodz has been very popular for several years (this year there were nearly 5.6 candidates for one place).

– It is not only about teaching foreign languages, but also about preparing graduates to represent the company, receive information and analyze it. Linguistics for business does just that. This direction was very well received by employers who very quickly asked us to increase the admission limit – explains the rector of the University of Lodz.

According to prof. Różalski, universities can attract young people to study the humanities, but under certain conditions. High school graduates should be presented in an accessible and clear manner what they can achieve after graduation. The contact between the university and business is important, as well as creating faculties for which there is demand on the labor market. Humanities studies should also meet the needs of a modern student, which means, inter alia, suitably equipped rooms and libraries, where digitization makes it possible to make even old materials available.

– An important element that should encourage humanists are internships in such companies or institutions that treat students as partners. Substantive internships are used by both interns and organizations – emphasizes prof. Antoni Różalski.