Humanities Departments and Workforce Preparation
Findings and Trends
- About one-third of humanities departments had a professional program (such as a teacher credentialing program within a history department or a journalism program within an English department, Figure 1).
- Disciplines with a substantial presence in the secondary school curriculum had the highest proportions of departments offering professional programs to their students. While 48% of the English departments and 40% of the history departments offered a professional program, only 5% of philosophy departments reported offering similar programs.
- The HDS-2 asked departments to indicate whether they offered—or went further and required—various types of occupationally oriented activities for students. Fifty-eight percent of departments offered their undergraduates employment-related presentations by employers, employees, and alumni; 62% offered undergraduates internships in an employment setting; and 44% offered occupationally oriented coursework or workshops (Figure 2). A small fraction of the humanities departments required their students to engage in occupationally oriented activities. The activity required by the largest share of departments was an internship, a requirement of 10% of the departments. Among the traditional humanities disciplines, only in English and religion did 10% or more of the departments require an internship. In comparison, 36% of the communication departments required this activity.
- A majority of departments with humanities PhD programs provided experiences designed to prepare their doctoral students for nonacademic employment, with 59% offering presentations by employers, employees, or alumni; 65% offering their doctoral students internships in employment settings; and 55% offering occupationally oriented coursework or workshops (Figure 3).
- Seventy-two percent of humanities departments were housed within an institution with a professional school. Of the humanities departments in these institutions, 21% had faculty members who taught courses in the professional school (Figure 4). Among philosophy departments, although only 5% had a professional program, 24% of those at colleges and universities with a professional school had faculty who taught courses in the professional school.
- Humanities faculty and graduate students taught approximately 11,210 courses in professional schools during the 2011–12 academic year.
Departments with Professional Programs and/or Instruction in Professional Schools, Fall 2012 Term
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
Occupationally Oriented Activities for Undergraduate Students, 2011–12 Academic Year
* Includes job fairs geared to the interests of the department’s majors.
** The survey offered three choices (“Activity is not offered,” “Activity is offered,” “Activity is required”); respondents could choose only one. Thus, the total proportion of departments that participate in the activity is the sum of the two columns; the difference between this sum and 100% is the proportion of departments that do not offer the activity.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
** The survey offered three choices (“Activity is not offered,” “Activity is offered,” “Activity is required”); respondents could choose only one. Thus, the total proportion of departments that participate in the activity is the sum of the two columns; the difference between this sum and 100% is the proportion of departments that do not offer the activity.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
Occupationally Oriented Activities for Doctoral Students, 2011–12 Academic Year (Nonacademic Employment Only)
* Includes job fairs geared to the interests of the department’s majors.
** The survey offered three choices (“Activity is not offered,” “Activity is offered,” “Activity is required”); respondents could choose only one. Thus, the total proportion of departments that participate in the activity is the sum of the two columns; the difference between this sum and 100% is the proportion of departments that do not offer the activity.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
** The survey offered three choices (“Activity is not offered,” “Activity is offered,” “Activity is required”); respondents could choose only one. Thus, the total proportion of departments that participate in the activity is the sum of the two columns; the difference between this sum and 100% is the proportion of departments that do not offer the activity.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
Percentage of Humanities Departments with Professional Programs, by Discipline, Fall 2012
* A combined department is one that grants degrees in English and also in languages and literatures other than English.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions, Table 19, p. 28 (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions, Table 19, p. 28 (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
Percentage of Humanities Departments Offering or Requiring Occupationally Oriented Activities for Undergraduate Students, by Activity, Academic Year 2011–12
* Includes job fairs geared to the interests of the department’s majors.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions, Table 20, p. 29 (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions, Table 20, p. 29 (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
The question on the HDS-2 that inquired about the occupationally oriented activities offered or required by departments:
(28) Below is a list of activities intended to prepare students in doctoral programs in in your department or program for non-academic employment. Please indicate which of these activities your department or program (in any of its programs) offers, either on its own or jointly with the institution’s career services unit in academic year 2011–2012 (including the 2012 summer term).
Occupationally-oriented presentations by employers, employees, or alumni (includes job fairs geared to the interests of your department’s or program’s majors)
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
An internship in an employment setting
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
Occupationally-oriented coursework or workshops (credit or non-credit)
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
Occupationally-oriented presentations by employers, employees, or alumni (includes job fairs geared to the interests of your department’s or program’s majors)
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
An internship in an employment setting
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
Occupationally-oriented coursework or workshops (credit or non-credit)
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
Percentage of Humanities Departments Offering or Requiring Occupationally Oriented Activities for Doctoral Students, by Activity, Academic Year 2011–12 (Nonacademic Employment Only)
* Includes job fairs geared to the interests of the department’s doctoral students.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions, Table 21, p. 20 (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions, Table 21, p. 20 (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
The question on the HDS-2 that inquired about the occupationally oriented activities offered or required by departments:
(28) Below is a list of activities intended to prepare students in doctoral programs in in your department or program for non-academic employment. Please indicate which of these activities your department or program (in any of its programs) offers, either on its own or jointly with the institution’s career services unit in academic year 2011–2012 (including the 2012 summer term).
Occupationally-oriented presentations by employers, employees, or alumni (includes job fairs geared to the interests of your department’s or program’s majors)
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
An internship in an employment setting
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
Occupationally-oriented coursework or workshops (credit or non-credit)
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
Occupationally-oriented presentations by employers, employees, or alumni (includes job fairs geared to the interests of your department’s or program’s majors)
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
An internship in an employment setting
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
Occupationally-oriented coursework or workshops (credit or non-credit)
Activity is not offered
Activity is offered
Activity is required
Percentage of Humanities Departments Offering Undergraduate or Graduate Courses in Professional Schools, by Discipline, Fall 2012
* As a share of all departments housed in institutions with professional school(s).
** A combined department is one that grants degrees in English and also in languages and literatures other than English.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions, Table 19, p. 28 (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
** A combined department is one that grants degrees in English and also in languages and literatures other than English.
Source: Susan White, Raymond Chu, and Roman Czujko, The 2012–13 Survey of Humanities Departments at Four-Year Institutions, Table 19, p. 28 (College Park, MD: Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics, 2014). Study conducted for the American Academy of Arts Sciences’ Humanities Indicators Project.
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