What you choose to study doesn’t determine your intelligence level

One of the beauties of going to college is the ability for students to specialize in the area of study they’re interested in. You only have to take a few courses in areas outside of your interests before you can focus on classes within your major. Part of the reason for these general education classes is to provide a holistic education so that students can gain some level of appreciation for other subjects.

If you’re more skilled in one particular subject than another, these general education classes can be a pain in the ass because they push you outside of your comfort zone and present a challenge. I learned early on that I’m not particularly skilled in math or science, so that’s a large reason why I was more attracted to the humanities—but what you choose to study doesn’t determine your level of intelligence.

I knew early on that I wanted to study English and writing—for me it wasn’t a choice because I couldn’t imagine going to school to study anything else for four years. I decided that if I was paying for an expensive education that I had to be happy with said education. I’ve gotten a lot of shit over the years because apparently a lot of people think English majors just sit around reading and talking about books all day—which is mostly true—but there’s more to it than that. On a regular basis complete strangers tell me that it wasn’t smart to study something “useless” like English, and I’m honestly so tired of that elitist attitude. I think the only majors that get dogged on more than English are the fine arts and philosophy.

My parents always encouraged me to follow my heart when I was young, but they also taught me to be respectful of those who have different interests and opinions. You can call my degree bullshit if that makes you feel better, but your degree is no better or worse than mine. It’s a battle as old as time—the battle between those who lean toward the humanities and those who lean toward math and science. I’ve seen a lot of scathing remarks from both sides. The creative kids tell the science kids that they lack imagination, and the science kids tell the creative kids they need a lesson in logic. What if I told you that both sides are equally important? Or that both sides are intelligent? It’s mind blowing right?

I don’t understand calculus and I hated biology in high school. Fast forward to college and you’ll find me cracking a lot of jokes about the fact that I’m downright terrible at math and science, but I do appreciate people who succeed in those fields. Is it really that difficult to respect that different people place importance on different areas of study? STEM majors get a lot of flack from people because their areas of study seem cut and dry. People constantly tell them that they’re boring and must not know how to have a good time, or that being able to write up an excruciatingly detailed lab report isn’t impressive.

People jump to the conclusion that in order to be successful in STEM fields that you just have to follow formulas and instructions. How is is not creative when someone is trying to cure a disease? No one fixes a problem without testing multiple solutions, and those solutions require creative ideas. Just because you consider certain majors “easy” or “boring” doesn’t mean that the people in that major aren’t intelligent. That’s your opinion, not a fact. One of my best friends studies Engineering, and even though I might not understand a lot of things when she tells me about it, I think it’s interesting—and I can acknowledge its importance.

STEM majors design the buildings we work in, research new vaccines, treat us at the doctors office, and construct tech programs to make our lives easier. Humanities majors write your favorite books, interpret different languages for you, and report the news people care about. Both areas make crucial contributions to make our lives a whole lot easier and more enjoyable. There are different types of intelligence out there, not just one. There isn’t a clear set of standards everyone must meet before they can be considered an intelligent human being. My humanities education has given me a better understanding of people in general and what motivates them. Someone’s STEM education has taught them how things work and how to make sense of the world through calculation.

Your elitist attitude and opinions on education do not make you more intelligent than the people you criticize. So can we agree to disagree and stop slinging around the playground insults and calling each other stupid? At the end of the day we’re all just trying to do something meaningful.