Mojza Blog
Career Paths for Humanities Subjects
by Maryam Attique | 23 SEptember 2023
Doctor? No. Engineer? Uh…doesn’t feel right. Clearly, your heart is in neither of these areas if you’ve made it here. Some of us are confused about what careers to choose, and what subjects to take. Others have taken the subjects that fall under humanities but don’t know what to do with them. In any case, keep reading, as we simplify it for you.
Start-Up Advice
Humanities are, essentially, subjects that explore humanistic truths that lie within human beings. This is different from science because humanities explore the external truth. Humanities are a tricky bone to pick with, but they open more avenues for you than you’d expect. In one of our previous blogs (‘The Ultimate Subject Selection Guide’), we mentioned that it’s ideal to pick a golden subject with your humanities. These subjects include physics, computer science, business, and economics. These subjects always provide a base to your education and enhance your career paths as well.
When choosing a career path, it is important that you are passionate and interested in what you decide to do. Of course, the future is unpredictable and perhaps you might not land the exact job you want, which is why it’s important for you to start working towards the life you hope for.
Not all humanities offered by Cambridge are provided in every Pakistani institution, but the most likely ones given in O and A levels are:
- Literature
- Sociology
- World History
- Art and Design
- Environmental Management/Geography
- Media Studies
- Psychology
- Law
Let’s break down each of these choices further.
LITERATURE
Professor
The most obvious option with literature is that you can teach it. Oftentimes, a literature professor is the expected career, but the options are not limited.
Writer/Poet/Playwright
Literature gives you a flair for using words to evoke emotion and bring depth to the page which are the ideal qualities for a writer. Being a good novelist or poet comes mostly from studying literature and the understanding of stage art only comes from reading plays comprehensively.
Publicist
A publicist is a person responsible for publicizing a product, person, or company. It is important to have good communication skills and an understanding of what is being publicized to be a successful publicist, the ability to understand human complexities, and the persuasive abilities you gain from literature are perfect for this career.
Copywriter/Advertiser
This is a person who professionally writes clear, concise copies for ads and marketing materials. They aim to increase brand awareness and persuade people to take action. Similarly, advertising is used to increase awareness of something. A good way with words provided by literature is perfect for working in these jobs and helping to market products etc. And with the rise in content writing and content marketing, literature might just give you an edge over others in the field.
Journalist
Being a journalist requires you to research and present information into a news-worthy form. Studying literature will give you the writing and communicative abilities to write for newspapers, magazines, etc. You can even pick journalism as a subject in A Levels for more insights into the field, but again, the availability of this subject in your school is a challenge you might face.
Performer/Actor
Literature makes you understand how different people think through the art of storytelling. Going into theater, you must have the sympathetic ability to understand the characters you are playing; understanding the impact of voice, words, and movement is essential to breathe life into any performance.
Book Critic
Literature requires you to read A LOT, and therefore, over time, you develop a sense of which piece of writing is truly commendable. This, however, is most likely to be a side career.
Helps in Psychology
As said before, reading various stories and studying complex personalities happens in every literature class. The understanding of different ways people think and how certain personalities react comes from studying this subject and is crucial to the psychology field.
Helps in Law
Literature can offer insights into the historical and cultural context of legal systems, aid you in critiquing the flaws and limitations of the law, and contribute to legal theory. It also serves as a source of legal themes and motifs through its insightful nature as a subject. You always end up learning more than you expect.
SOCIOLOGY
Market Research
Market research analysts gather and analyze data on consumers and competitors. Essentially, they help companies understand what products people want, who will buy them, and at what price. Sociology gives you the verbal, written, and interpersonal skills needed to succeed in this career. The ability to work autonomously, in addition to team working skills, comes from studying this social science.
Social Worker
These are professional people who work with suffering groups of people and communities to help them live better lives. High emotional intelligence and an understanding of society are needed to do this job effectively. Sociology will help provide that understanding and shape students to develop logical solutions for societal issues.
Counselor
Counselors are trained to give guidance on personal and psychological problems. These individuals require an understanding of human nature, reasoning of why someone does what they do, and how to deal with the human psyche. Sociology is the perfect subject to gain insight into how individuals and communities think.
Policy Analysis
These analysts examine policies and evaluate their efficiency, all the while seeing if they match objectives, alongside suggesting ways to improve them. Sociology allows you to see the world through more than just one textbook. This exposure to societal education is crucial to being a good policy analyst.
Project Manager
These people need to lead the team, keep track of progress, solve issues, and organize everything so that the project’s objective is met to its best potential. The projects include running a marketing campaign, constructing a building, developing a computer system, or launching a new product.
Public Relations
PR professionals are rated #3 in ‘Best Creative and Media Jobs’. They develop social media programs to enhance their clients’ work and shape their perceptions. They are in charge of improving their clients’ reputation and helping spread their work.
Helps in Law and Psychology
The norms, customs, and traditions studied in sociology all come under law and help smoother regulation and formation of laws. Understanding of society helps understand the impact it has on human behavior, hence a better comprehension of psychology.
Anthropologist/Sociologist
Anthropologists teach and conduct research on campuses, anthropology departments and research laboratories. Anthropology focuses on understanding the human condition both culturally and biologically. Meanwhile, sociologists study human behavior, conduct both covert and overt research along with much more that you find out within the subject itself.
Event Manager
Planning events also comes with a knack to handle people and organize things on a large scale. Sociology allows you to deal with large scale research data and how to communicate with different kinds of people.
WORLD HISTORY
Archivist
Archivists are responsible for assembling, preserving and managing valuable collections of historical information. Archivists work with a wide variety of public and private sector organizations to be a crucial source of historical information.
Curator
A curator’s role is to acquire, care for, or develop a collection in museums. This job has high income potential and is rewarding in the sense that it never gets boring. A good understanding of history is crucial alongside an understanding of art and chemistry.
Lawyer
Skills like the ability to analyze, critical thinking, and presenting arguments are polished from world history.
Politics/Civil Service
With understanding of important worldwide events, such as the two world wars etc. gives a base for sufficient knowledge to enter politics and government bodies.
Researcher
Research can be carried out on anything, but all of it requires the ability to analyze data, collect it, interpret it, and use it to answer questions or solve problems. World History gives the necessary exposure needed to carry such tasks out.
Writer
O levels subjects not only teach you the syllabus content, but they also give you various other skills. The intensive answers of world history are what hone your ability of writing logical essays and having a solid structure in any piece of writing.
Tour Guide
Tour guides require extensive knowledge on historical events, from every small detail to very major incidents. A guide can be national or of a particular location.
Teacher
World History is a tricky subject, others might want to learn from you!
ART AND DESIGN
Architect
Without art, architecture is incomplete. The ability to differentiate originals from copies, develop one’s own design and bring about an environment of beauty and harmony are essential to an architect.
Interior Designer
If you go here, it’s up to you what furniture you put, what color walls you have and where do the ornaments go. These people need art to develop that sense of symmetry and aesthetic to know exactly what looks good.
Graphic Designer
These people work for publishers, magazines, product companies to design logos and advertisements. If you find this job at the right place, then it can be a great career.
Photographer
Doing photography professionally requires hunting for clients tirelessly, but also requires a good eye and a stable hand!
Illustrator
Illustrators are responsible for creating images that provoke a range of thoughts and emotions. These people can work from high fashion and retail environments, to computer games and even political art, editorial art, street art and mainstream publishing.
Art Teacher
Teaching, although, sounds like a burdensome career, it might turn out to be the most fulfilling.
Fashion Designer
An eye for color, balance, tone and ability to use your creativity to bring something into life comes from art and, of course, your own natural talent.
Product Designer
These people are behind coming up with new product designs that meet consumer demand. They are in charge of the whole creation process, they make design concepts, decide which one is the best, and execute their ideas to engineers, so that the product can be made.
Scenic Designer
These individuals are what brings your movies to life! They make sets and fake scenery to be incorporated into movie backgrounds.
Event Manager
We discussed this under Sociology as well. Creativity and organizational abilities are exercised in every art class, alongside teaching you what looks most beautiful to the eye.
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT / GEOGRAPHY
Environmental scientist
They put together environmental data from samples of air, water, food, soil etc. for scientific analysis.They work to figure out threats to the environment and help find ways to tackle them.
Environmental Consulting/Managing
Much like scientists, these individuals perform tests and surveys, alongside providing expert advice on matters that affect the environment. They provide assistance in managing affairs of environmental crimes such as dumping hazardous waste.
Project Manager
These subjects give you assessment and critical analysis abilities. The leadership skills and sense of responsibility that comes with taking such a subject is perfect for a project manager.
Wildlife Biologist
This job entails both staying in the lab and exploring the wild to see how animals behave in different ecosystems and situations.
Researcher
Research on environmental or other general matters efficiently, as various skills like interpreting data efficiently and problem solving are taught.
Tour Guide
Guide people through geographical sites such as wildlife centers and natural environments, with the extensive knowledge of the environment and its species.
Urban Planner/Town Planner
These people help communities and the government to decide the best use of their land. They aim at sustainability, environmental safety and solutions to social as well as economic issues. With their programmes, these planners are able to accommodate population growth and strengthen facilities.
MEDIA STUDIES
Journalism
In media studies, you learn the different aspects that impact society and learn to organize mass data. This subject is a must if you are interested in journalism which requires great understanding of social factors.
Public Relations
This subject is ideal for understanding good social behavior and developing skills that involve social interaction. It gives you the communication and technology skills needed to succeed in the real world.
Advertising and Marketing
With a good understanding of media and how it works, you will be able to know exactly what attracts people towards causes or products.
Director / Actor / Producer
In media studies, students create their own products, from planning out the idea, till the execution of the product. This subject gives a range of experience of production processes of films and what effects they can achieve through technology.
Editor
The exposure to technology, design and organization that comes with this subject is ideal to be a video editor or even a graphic designer.
Researcher
Studying the course of media studies entails a lot of research and analysis, so by the end of it you would have developed efficient research skills, making you an adept researcher already. Take that a step further and one can easily pursue that as a career. Moreover, there is a variety of research domains you can enter and thrive in too.
Publicist
Social skills, a way with people and the ability to take responsibility — that’s all you need to be a good media student and a good publicist.
PSYCHOLOGY
Psychologist/Psychiatrist
An obvious profession when you study psychology. Though, this career is very rewarding in terms of inner peace and exposure.
Counseling
This can be school counseling, couples’ counseling, career counseling, rehabilitation counseling and so much more. The interpersonal trait that is learnt by every psychology student is what makes counselors approachable and wise.
Social Worker
It helps understand human behavior in order to maximize the efficiency of the methods used to help them.
Researcher
Research requires you to interact, take interviews and dive deeper into human complexity to help find answers.
Psychology Teacher
Although self-explanatory, there might be a few elements you might have to train in as everyone can teach psychology, but not everyone can be a good psychology teacher.
Sports Psychologist
Perhaps the most interesting profession, a sports psychologist uses knowledge of psychology to help ensure the wellbeing of athletes. They develop strategies to ensure optimal performance of athletes as a team and as an individual. They advise coaches and managers as well as help athletes cope with injuries.
Motivational Speaker
The ability to communicate clearly and urge people to take action in order to better themselves are both qualities of a good psychologist and a good motivational speaker.
LAW
Corporate lawyer
These lawyers regulate rights, relations, conduct of businesses, and form legal frameworks to operate businesses in a way that is in accordance with law.
Politician
Studying law teaches you how to construct arguments, think critically and challenge policy. Holding an office in government requires you to possess these skills.
Law Fields
There are many law fields to go to if you are a lawyer e.g Criminal Law, Family Law, Immigration Law etc. Each field requires its own depth, but all fields ask for a basic understanding of all areas of law making.
Criminal Defense Lawyer
Perhaps the most daunting and exciting one simultaneously… being a criminal defense lawyer. This is because this job requires you to have excellent debating skills in order to defend people who have been accused of committing a crime.
General Counsel
These people advise the senior management and board on legal rights, and new and existing laws. They maintain the knowledge of an organization’s legal matters and operations. To earn this, you need to have a full law degree, studying law in A levels is a good place to start.
Human Resources Officer
These people are in charge of workplace safety, hiring, firing, ensuring that all employees receive paychecks on time, and protecting everyone from discrimination and harassment in the office environment or any company/organization.
Insurance Underwriter
They review insurance applications, assess client’s financial backgrounds to decide whether insurance applications should be accepted or not. A background in law helps to analyze the effect of accepting each application.
Overall, all subjects mentioned above have more than a few avenues that can be opted for. All subjects are useful, but it all comes down to your passion and what work you are willing to do. Just because you didn’t take sciences or engineering subjects does not mean that your options are worth any less!
Project Manager
Acknowledgements
Author: Maryam Attique
Proofreader: Syed Muhammad Shaheer Ali and Farheen Pervaiz
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Published: 23 September 2023
Last Updated: 23 Septemeber 2023
Written by Maryam Attique