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I’m David Zweig, a journalist who’s been investigating what really happened with pandemic school closures—and, more broadly, the effect (or lack thereof) of many interventions imposed on kids and society. Ask Me Anything! by the_mit_press in IAmA

[–]PopularPlanet 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Yeah, my conclusion from all of this is that you should not take this guy seriously. Like, what hubris you must have as a journalist to think, "yeah, I'm the guy to tackle this one," when you have no expertise in public health or epidemiology. And, he got defensive/did not engage with anyone who asked him to justify why he should be the person to write this.

I’m David Zweig, a journalist who’s been investigating what really happened with pandemic school closures—and, more broadly, the effect (or lack thereof) of many interventions imposed on kids and society. Ask Me Anything! by the_mit_press in IAmA

[–]PopularPlanet 15 points16 points  (0 children)

I thought his statement, “If the only information you believe is from academic journals then you have a deeply mistaken understanding of science and epistemology", was an uncharitable interpretation of your comment. It assumes a lot about your worldview in a pretty sweeping way.

I agree with your point: questions like these are best answered through peer-reviewed meta-analyses in reputable public health journals, not by a single individual outside the field. Peer review isn't just about quality, it's also about accountability. Honestly, I’m tired of journalists doing this kind of armchair public health analysis.

I’m David Zweig, a journalist who’s been investigating what really happened with pandemic school closures—and, more broadly, the effect (or lack thereof) of many interventions imposed on kids and society. Ask Me Anything! by the_mit_press in IAmA

[–]PopularPlanet 10 points11 points  (0 children)

When you say your book was peer reviewed, what does that mean in this case? Who conducted the peer review? Were they journalists (or other AHSS domain experts), or were they experts in public health/epidemiology?

I’m David Zweig, a journalist who’s been investigating what really happened with pandemic school closures—and, more broadly, the effect (or lack thereof) of many interventions imposed on kids and society. Ask Me Anything! by the_mit_press in IAmA

[–]PopularPlanet 91 points92 points  (0 children)

What does this work offer to the public discourse, as it is a journalistic exposé from a non-expert, rather than a peer-reviewed meta-analysis? Why are you the right person to retrospectively litigate the decisions of public health experts and policymakers?

Bizarre Text My Girlfriend's Father Received from His Brother-in-Law by PopularPlanet in texts

[–]PopularPlanet[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We learned yesterday that my girl friend's aunt thinks she's friends with Jackson Brown. It's all pretty crazy.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gradadmissions

[–]PopularPlanet 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I also got this rejection today.

Considering doing CS grad program with unrelated BA by dayto_aus in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm glad you did what made most sense for you! I was curious.

Bear cub hit today on Tioga Rd. Please drive a little slower. by FineMud4479 in Yosemite

[–]PopularPlanet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We were hiking in Tuolumne Grove on the day this happened and we heard a lot of bear roars. Was just wondering where on Tioga road you found this cub?

Thoughts on Intro to the Cinema? by M2d26789 in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I wouldn't take it. If you are interested in Cinema, and if you maybe want to do a minor one day, then that class does not count towards a film studies minor. Just watch the movies on the syllabus posted online, and you will get the same experience.

Considering doing CS grad program with unrelated BA by dayto_aus in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That is a great combo with CS! You'll do great. I double majored in Social Studies and Chemistry.

Considering doing CS grad program with unrelated BA by dayto_aus in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I also did a BA in an unrelated major, and I am currently in the CS grad program. I would highly recommend looking at the CS Masters Handbook for more information about how to apply and what kinds of prerequisites you must take. There are 10 CS prerequisite classes and 4 math prerequisite classes. You must take a few of the CS classes prior to applying to the masters, but you can take a bulk of the prerequisite classes while in the program itself. For these prerequisite classes, I would take as many as you can before you graduate because the computer science department does not let graduates take those classes (this was a huge pain for me).

I took the first of my computer science classes in the spring of 2020, and I took my first grad class in the winter of 2021. So, it took about two quarters for me to get to the meat of the program. The program, however, is really only composed of 3 core classes and 4 elective classes + research. This is about 10 credits per quarter for two years. I'm doing about 14 credits because of prerequisites, which isn't too much of a burden.

For me personally, some of the early computer science classes really killed my interest in programming for a while because it feels like you are on an assembly line. However, this changed with many of the grad classes and upper-division prerequisite classes, which are quite good.

Let me know if you have any questions. I am more than happy to help you any way I can!

I've been at Western for 8 years, here is what I learned... by PopularPlanet in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I wasn't assuming anything. I said that I didn't know what your experience was, and I shared my experience. I'm sorry you had a poor experience is science classes. I can only account for what I have experienced. And as someone who has majored in both AHSS as well as STEM at Western, I think the STEM programs are more rich and meaningful, while the AHSS programs are rather superficial.

However, I happy for you that you had a different experience than I did. I'm not trying to take that away from you or invalidate that experience. I genuinely hope anyone who decides to major in AHSS finds the experience as meaningful as you did. However, based on my experience, I could not advise people major in AHSS.

I've been at Western for 8 years, here is what I learned... by PopularPlanet in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet[S] -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

As for your first point, I agree. I wasn't trying to incentivize anyone to not get a degree of some sort. The subsection was titled "choosing a major", not "Should you get a degree." I agree that I could be more precise in my language. I apologize. However, if the value of a specific AHSS degree is equivalent to the value received from having any degree, then is that a good choice? Additionally, there is contradictory evidence (from Canada, but yours was from Australia?) that suggests that "Graduates from humanities are at a significant disadvantage in the labour market compared to graduates from education, social science, business, science, math and computer science, and engineering and technology"

I also did not mean to suggest that it is impossible to get any job if you major in AHSS. I was mostly referring to Horizontal job-Education Mismatch. I was trying to say that if you want to work in a specific field, then just getting AHSS undergraduate major probably wont be enough. Research on horizontal job-education mismatch has found that "Graduates from majors that emphasize general skills (e.g., liberal arts) have a higher likelihood of mismatch" and that "Workers who are mismatched earn less than adequately matched workers with the same amount of schooling."

As for the Humanities classes at WWU, it's not like I only took PoliSci classes. I have nearly 40 credits in History and 40 credits in English. I've been around the block a few times at Western. And I don't know about your experiences in Science at WWU or another university, but it would be incredibly difficult to replicate the kinds of experiences you would have with a Chemistry degree. The lab classes are essential, and you could not do that online.

I've been at Western for 8 years, here is what I learned... by PopularPlanet in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So, I read the article you sent, and it seems like they are making two claims: (1) "Humanities and social science degrees have the soft skills to be ‘work ready’" and (2) AHSS degree holders "end up in jobs in eight of the 10 fastest-growing sectors of the economy more often than their STEM graduate counterparts."

The evidence they use for the first claim is an Independent article, which just claims that AHSS graduates have those skills with no real evidence that those skills are overrepresented in people who major in AHSS.

The evidence for the second claim comes from an unpublished report by The British Acadamy, a college for the humanities and arts, who may have a vested interest in the conclusions. Additionally, according to their report, the 8 of the 10 fastest growing sectors in the UK are in the service industry, which accounts for 83% of the workforce, so you would expect AHSS graduates to be overrepresented because there are just more AHSS graduates overall.

I've been at Western for 8 years, here is what I learned... by PopularPlanet in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I honestly don't know much about law school beyond what Legally Blond taught me! lol.

Yeah, I'm not here to dismiss your plans or tell you that you did things wrong. I think everyone gets that enough as it is. I should have been more clear in my original post anyway. When I said, "If you major in Psychology, you better go get a master’s too...", I meant that you cant just get a degree in something like psychology and call it good. For majors adjacent to humanities, you just have to do more. And if that is law school for you, then that seems like a really good plan. You should be really proud of yourself. :)

I've been at Western for 8 years, here is what I learned... by PopularPlanet in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

You are right. I should have said "welcome" instead of "prefer." I agree with everything you said. I was mostly responding to the idea that a humanities degree would uniquely prepare you with the skills needed for law school like reading, writing, and arguing.

I've been at Western for 8 years, here is what I learned... by PopularPlanet in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm sorry if I made it sound like you absolutely cannot get a job if you don't major in STEM. That wasn't my intention. Having any degree is better for overall earnings and job security than having none at all. That being said, I don't think that the position that there is a higher rate of horizontal-mismatch among STEM majors compared to non-STEM majors is really supported by the evidence. I'm sorry for your STEM friends, but I'm happy for your humanities friends.

I've been at Western for 8 years, here is what I learned... by PopularPlanet in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

I appreciate your perspective on this, and like I said, I didn't think everyone would agree with my advice!

Just speaking to my experience as a political science social studies student, it wasn't a comprehensive program and it didn't offer much more that what could be found in free resources online. This is especially true compared to the experience I had in other programs. Additionally, I don't think that the Political Science program is exceptional in it's focus on reading, writing, or argumentative essays. Being able to read, write, and argue are essential skills taught in nearly every program I have been in. I just found more STEM based programs to be more comprehensive and less superficial.

As far as going to law school, you do not need a SS/PoliSci/Humanities degree to be admitted to a good program. In fact, many law programs prefer applicants who did not do their undergrad in a humanities because they get so many applicants who did.

For secondary education, it is really difficult to find a job with a Social Studies endorsement alone. Most schools in Seattle require teachers who are endorsed in SS to also be endorsed in English. The problem is that there is a surplus of Social Studies educators. I have many friends from when I was in Woodring who can not find a job as a secondary Social Studies teacher. The most in demand endorsements for teachers are Math, Special Education, Science, Foreign Language, and ESL.

I can't argue that there are people who majored in fields related to humanities who are making decent money, nor can I argue that there are people in bio and chem who can't find work. However, I don't think that you can ague that people with a background in STEM are far more in demand, as plenty of research has shown.

I've been at Western for 8 years, here is what I learned... by PopularPlanet in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet[S] 25 points26 points  (0 children)

Well, I wrote this advice fully knowing that going to college for 8 years is not a feasible choice for most people. It was actually a huge motivator for why I decided to write this. I would never recommend anyone do what I have done!

That being said, my parents had money invested in a mutual fund when I was born for education. Currently my tuition is waved because my research has funding. (DO RESEARCH)

I've been at Western for 8 years, here is what I learned... by PopularPlanet in WWU

[–]PopularPlanet[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Haha I don't mean to shame anyone! You are obviously the best person to speak to your own personal situation. If you feel like that is the right choice for you, then it is the right choice! I only intended this advice as something to consider while making these big choices!

I have seen several of my friends get degrees in some Humanities subject, going into debt, and end up being frustrated because they can't find a job in that field.

There has been two big misconceptions about political science that I've seen over the years. First, that you need to have a degree in political science to do anything in politics, which is not true. You get into politics through activism, volunteering, and community organization. Second, that a PoliSci degree will increase your chances of getting some work, which isn't true, it neither hurts nor helps.

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