Nearly half of people regret their college majors. Do advisors?

If they got a do-over on college, many people say they would’ve chosen finance as a major, according to results of a recent survey.

But people in the financial advice profession come from a wide variety of backgrounds, and they often say that their majors, ranging from theater to engineering, are relevant to the work they do today.

People have a considerable amount of regret when it comes to college – at least in terms of what they chose as their area of focus, according to a recent report from Dreambound, a startup that helps people line up education or certification for new career paths. Among 1,000 people the company surveyed earlier this year, 44% said they would have changed what they majored in.

Regrets were highest for those who majored in education (53%), business (49%) and the humanities and social sciences (48%). Those with art majors were less regretful (40%), as well as those who focused on science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM), at 38%.

The biggest reason people say they wish they had chosen a different major is simply an interest in other subjects (56%), but 23% said they lack job opportunities and another 21% cited low pay, according to Dreambound.

The top majors those surveyed said wish they would’ve chosen were computer science (13%), business (8%), engineering (6%), nursing (5%), finance (4%), history (4%), biology (4%), law (4%) and psychology (4%).

WHAT DO ADVISORS SAY?

It might not surprise people who are in the profession – coming from other backgrounds can be helpful. In emails to InvestmentNews, advisors said that majors unrelated to finance have had benefits.

“I was a theatre major and I wouldn't change it for the world,” said Greg Vojtanek, owner of Fade In Financial. Though it would have benefited him to have take some business courses, theater helped with public speaking and active listening, he noted.

“My listening skills would not be what they are if I hadn't spent years developing that as an actor," Vojtanek said. "Listening to clients and being able to confidently talk to them are two of the most important aspects of financial planning. Also, as observing people's behavior is necessary to inhabit characters, it's also come in handy in the world of finance. By noticing certain patterns among people, it becomes easier to help plan for their future.”

Advisor Jay Zigmont, founder of Childfree Wealth, is a self-confessed collector of degrees, with a bachelor’s in public safety administration, an MBA and a Ph.D. in adult learning. The bachelor’s helped with leadership skills, and the MBA was useful in small-business financial planning, Zigmont said.

“My CFP education helped to build my financial knowledge,” he said. “In practice, I spend 80% of my time on helping people with their money mindsets and behaviors, and that comes from my adult learning background rather than my CFP, in most cases.”

PSYCHOLOGY AND LANGUAGE OF MONEY

Joe Boughan, owner of Parkmount Financial Partners, studied psychology in addition to economics.

“At times, I have had regrets about pursuing my intellectual curiosity on these subjects, which seem to held in a slightly lower regard compared to the accounting or STEM degrees, but I have stuck with these subjects in my years since college,” Boughan said. “It has helped immensely shape my career as an advisor, but also [they] were scientifically grounded disciplines that developed me personally and my life outside of work, which is certainly another lesser-considered aspect of the ‘college major’ decision.”

Lindsey Young, founder of Quiet Wealth, also studied those subjects.

“Economics focuses on rational behavior and psychology focuses on irrational behavior, and it’s useful to have a deep grounding in both of those academic perspectives when working with households and their finances,” Young said.

Although he took a few business classes, Noah Damsky, principal of Marina Wealth Advisors, had a double major in Spanish and sociology.

“I find the softer skills that I developed to be invaluable, more so than what I learned in the few businesses classes I took in college. I learned more about how we behave and how we connect with each other, which has been instrumental in business,” Damsky said.

STEMS BRANCH OUT

Carla Adams, founder of Ametrine Wealth, was on her way to a Ph.D. in chemistry after majoring in biochemistry.

“While I enjoyed being in the lab a few hours a week, 60-plus hours a week in the lab wasn’t my cup of tea. I’m an extravert and I wasn’t getting the social interaction that I need on a daily basis,” Adams said. She did a master’s thesis and then started looking for jobs, she said, noting that she later got an MBA, studying part-time.

Having the analytical skills from studying chemistry, though, has been helpful as an advisor, she said.

“I honestly just accepted the first job offer I got, which just so happened to be in wealth management. It worked out quite well for me!” Adams said. “I love having a mix of doing analyses on my computer, collaborating with colleagues and meeting with clients. And I just love pretty much everything about being a financial advisor.”

Nick Rygiel, owner of Ironclad Financial, studied systems engineering at the U.S. Naval Academy, which helped with problem-solving and decision-making, he said.

“Systems engineering taught me to view challenges holistically, considering the intricate web of interconnected factors rather than viewing elements in isolation. Another benefit has been the curriculum’s integration of computer science and C programming for building a foundation in coding,” he said. “In founding my own RIA, I’ve leveraged these skills to not only develop automation tools using the MERN stack (for full web applications with a front end and database) but also to enhance research and analysis capabilities through utilizing Python.”