As the school year tediously inches closer to graduation, the anticipation and restlessness of college acceptance season lies heavy on the consciousness of campus-bound seniors. The fear of rejection, scholarship opportunities and student aid complications become trending topics of conversation this time of year. One of the most daunting questions is, “what is your major?”
With STEM-based majors becoming more popular due to their high earning potential, degrees in the fine arts, humanities and liberal arts tend to be the most regretted, according to ZipRecruiter’s monthly survey published in 2022. However, senior Sophia Moloch has decided to major in the fine arts despite the negative connotations surrounding doing so. While she has not yet decided on a specific college, she has been admitted into 11 universities with scholarships, including the Art Institute of Chicago, the second-ranked art school in the nation for drawing and painting. Two of her pieces were even selected for the Purdue High School Art Competition and Exhibition.
Moloch has always had a love for art. “I love being able to see a vision of what I want to express and being able to put that onto paper,” she said. “While sometimes picking up a pencil and drawing allows me to escape my surroundings for a while, I can choose where my mind goes, so sometimes it is a therapeutic process that allows me to spend time thinking about my life. I have such a love for every little part of my pieces because they reflect me. They represent time and emotion.”
Despite the discouraging statistics surrounding art majors, Moloch never doubted that she wanted to pursue art as a career. She was not even sure she wanted to attend college until last summer. She instantly took initiative and began working on her portfolio, which varies from 10 to 15 pieces. “While I know the past has reflected struggles for artists, I believe I have the perseverance to give myself opportunities,” Moloch said.

When her step-father frowned upon her decision to major in art, Moloch reminded herself that there are more opportunities provided with an art degree than he realizes. “I am aware that there is the idea that pursuing a career in art leads to ‘starving artists,’ however as I’ve looked into schools and different classes I can take, it seems that isn’t as true as everyone wants us to believe,” she said. “Businesses of all types are looking for help with advertisement, display, and marketing. Additionally, it has been noted that companies are turning toward people with creative tendencies who are able to think outside the box, bring new ideas, and collaborate with others.”
The low wages associated with liberal arts degrees have caused artistic students to choose college majors that will ensure financial security. Despite loving history, receiving all As in her AP History classes and previously dreaming of becoming a history professor, junior Fibi Par has decided to find a different path. “I’ve decided to major in computer science because it’ll give me a stable life in the future,” Par said. “It offers financial stability and as the eldest daughter of immigrants, I have to take care of my family here in America and send home money to my family in Myanmar. I have to think about situations bigger than myself.”
Par suggests that regardless of her love for history, her incentive to provide for her family dictates the future. “I’m just so sick of being poor and the financial insecurities that come with it,” she said. “It affects how I interact with my peers and friends, and how I’m able to experience life. I’d also like to provide opportunities for my brothers that I never got growing up such as Christmas presents, being in a sports team, field trips in other states and countries and more.”
Par can not help but imagine what it would be like to pursue her passion. “I would have been excited to learn about new cultures or why something came to be. Things like inventions created out of love and the relationships that humans had over the past and how that mattered then and still matters now. I would have been excited about the professor just rambling on about an event in history and how that came to be. Just the environment of the classroom and the importance of humanity throughout history,” she said.
The disappointment Par received when first expressing her desire to pursue history from upperclassmen and teachers impacted her mental health tremendously. “I’m fully aware that being a teacher wouldn’t earn me much, reminders of ‘they don’t make a lot’ or snarky comments that I’m going to need to have side jobs is so discouraging,” Par said. “This led me to feel displaced because I felt as though everything I’d been working for and all the classes I took were worthless. It was like I finally had my life on track when I decided I wanted to major in history and now… I’m on square one again.”