Do Tech Firms Really Want Liberal Arts Majors?

Nerval's Lobster writes: Not too long ago, a Forbes writer declared that a liberal arts degree had "become tech's hottest ticket." At so-called 'disruptive juggernauts' such as Facebook and Uber, George Anders wrote, 'the war for talent' had moved into non-technical realms such as marketing and sales. While there's undoubtedly some truth to Anders's thesis, technology recruiters and executives aren't seeing any less demand for strong technical skills in a wide variety of roles (Dice link). When there's a need for tech professionals with 'soft skills,' at least one recruiter just recruits computer-science majors from liberal arts schools, figuring those recruits will be more 'well-rounded.' To be clear, Forbes doesn't suggest that IT employers have begun mixing liberal-arts graduates into their technical teams; the article talks more about those graduates ending up in supporting roles such as sales and marketing, or else becoming intermediaries who translate the customer's product requirements into engineering solutions. But nobody should think that a strong technical background isn't as valued as ever throughout tech companies.

Comments

No, they don't

[rsilvergun]

But if they run out of h1-bs they'll settle. A college degree is a quick n dirty way to weed out the unstable. At the very least you know the were reliable enough to make it through a four year degree Companies don't give a shit about your back story.

Re:I have one of those

[xxxJonBoyxxx]

>> Where do you think all the Java programmers come from?

I thought there was a spawn point in India, actually.

Re:YAY

[lgw]

Hey now, Cheney was responsible for the best public shooting in America - he shot a lawyer in the face with a shotgun. Props where they're due!

Re:Programming's a lot about design, so yes!

[Hognoxious]

Ooh, that was a cutting comment. You really stuck it to him!