This could be a reversion to the mean. Historically the arts, science and philosophy were mostly hobbies of the wealthy - either doing the work itself or sponsoring it. Not really a "money-making" activity but a hobby or clout-chasing activity.
this is the answer, STEM could easily fund itself in a free market. The same can't be said of the many other college degrees that are now funded mainly by student loans. Government created a distorted market that ruined many people's lives by trapping them with debt for a degree that provided no real world value
STEM covers a lot of ground. Undergraduate biology and mathematics degrees probably don't confer any great employment advantage other than as a generic degree that demonstrates you have some facility with technical stuff--which isn't necessarily that much better than an English-adjacent degree depending upon what you want to do.
Undergrad math degrees pay off pretty well. As a group math degrees are second after engineering degrees for highest median starting and lifetime salary for people with only an undergraduate education.
Relevant graphs on pages 12, 13, and 19. Math, statistics, and computer science are lumped in together on pages 12 and 13, but the graph on page 19 shows that the median salary for all three is very similar.
That makes sense I guess. Even if you don't go on to do grad-level math or physics, it's a good foundation and preparation for a lot of other quantitative occupations. Whereas chemistry and biology have often been considered being "pre-med" majors to a non-trivial degree. They're less of a foundation at the undergraduate level for well-paying jobs.
>the median salary for all three is very similar.
Though note that this data is almost 10 years old. It wouldn't surprise if computers rose more than the average.
if you have a math degree you can do pretty much anything you want. Pure math as an academic probably isn't great pay but FAANG and hedge funds will pay massive money for people good at math who are willing to learn to code
I feel like the student loan issue wouldn't have been so bad if they were mandated to be used in state for public schools. You aren't going to be six figures underwater with an in state tuition bill of what like $14k before any aid or scholarship at UCLA. If you work full time in the summer you can put a huge dent in that too. Landing a favorable internship in a summer can actually net you ahead.
