Originally published on March 27, 2023 at 4:00 AM (Episode 309)
Introduction
“So,” said an uncle to a student of mine, “you’re getting a history degree, huh? When you graduate, you gonna get a job in a history store?”
Jokes like that have bite when humanities majors are shrinking and AI can draft a passable term paper in seconds. In this conversation, Brent Orrell and I take the question seriously: what are liberal-arts degrees for in an era of ChatGPT and rapid automation?
We look at the numbers behind the decline, the anxieties driving it, and—more importantly—the skills employers actually seek: reasoning, writing, judgment, collaboration, adaptability. Orrell argues that the very capacities AI struggles to replicate—meaning-making, ethical sense, cross-domain synthesis—are the comparative advantage of the humanities.
We also talk about assessment and pedagogy in an AI world (less take-home essays, more oral defenses, iterative drafting, and source criticism), and how colleges can help students translate liberal-arts learning into work by wrapping it in internships, labs, and project-based experiences. The episode closes with practical advice for students and faculty on thriving with, not against, emerging tools.
About the Guest
Brent Orrell is a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where he studies workforce development, career pathways, and the future of work. He is host of the podcast Hardly Working and previously joined myself and David Staley in a conversation about history and the future.
For Further Investigation
Brent Orrell, “Brave New Technology” and “The Federal AI Shambles”
HUMANITIES WORKS: Myths and Realities about Humanities Majors
Apple’s “Knowledge Navigator” (1987) thought experiment: even in 1980s videos professors have much nicer offices than in reality.
Related episodes
Episode 169: Brent Orrell on work, vocation, and skills
Episode 111: David Staley on alternative universities
Johann Neem on why universities shouldn’t offer vocational training
💬 Listen & Discuss
How should humanities departments talk about outcomes without becoming vocational programs? What have you changed in your classroom or study habits since large-language models arrived? Weigh in below—and share this episode with a student (or an uncle) who needs a better answer for future careers than “history store.”
