IT Industry people, step in plz

[G.Irish]

And yes, all grads who aren't in school to train an actually marketable skill are going to be fucked more and more. If you are one of them and happen to be reading this, do your parents and yourself a kindness and change. That extra year schooling may take due to being pointed in the wrong direction will pay itself off in a couple of years when you actually have a job.

So just out of curiosity, what majors/skills do you think fit that bill. I don't disagree with the point I think you're trying to make, but there is also something to be said for studying something your interested in and working to make connections, get internships etc. If you are a middle of the road history major is it going to be harder to get a job than a middle of the road CS major? Absolutely. But if you major in History, get mostly A's, work to get an internship at the Library of Congress or Army Corps of engineers (or wherever) that can certainly work.

I guess all that is to say don't spend four years studying something you hate, and then another 40 years doing it, because you're worried about that first job after graduation.

I'd say that one should balance interests vs. earning potential. So don't go into something you absolutely hate because of the job opportunities but don't study something that you love but will leave you broke. For me I was looking at Biology, Art, or Computer Science. I figured that even though Art, Aerospace Engineering, Biology would be fun, but Computer Science had a lot more career opportunities out there. Aerospace in particular was one that probably would not have paid quite as well, and I would be a bit more limited in where I could find work (the Southwest, Seattle, etc).

You can definitely make some liberal arts majors work for you if you're a go getter but you're still playing a game of odds.
Then you've gotta ask yourself some questions about what lifestyle you want to live. How much student loan debt will you end up with? How long will it take you to pay them off with your chosen career and what sacrifices will you have to make? What's your lifetime earning potential? Where will you have to move to find work? Will this career give you the flexibility you're looking for long term? How stable will your field be over time?

With C.S. I knew the job opportunities, job locations and income potential were there but I didn't really give any thought to the flexibility the career gives me, which is a humongous plus.