As of data collected from various Undergraduate Advising Heads and department administrators last week, slightly less than 10 percent of the Brandeis undergraduate population is majoring in Economics. To be exact, 311 students have decided to define their undergraduate academic careers with Economics.

That is almost three times as many students as Brandeis currently has majoring in Music, Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, French and Francophone Studies, Hispanic Studies and Classical Studies combined.

Economics is a fine subject, but what exactly makes it so much more popular than those other five? Are Economics majors the most qualified to go to graduate school or be hired upon graduation? Not necessarily.

The trend of students majoring in social sciences and natural sciences rather than humanities and creative arts is confusing to me. According to the data from the UAHs and administrators, just under 30 percent of Brandeis undergraduates have declared a major in Biology; Economics; Psychology; Business, or Health: Science, Society, and Policy.

We offer over 40 majors at this school, yet so many people seem to focus on just a few of them. The discrepancy is concerning and suggests that students as a whole are permitting a restricted definition for their undergraduate academic careers. I believe that the reason for this narrow focus is that many students view these types of majors as effective vehicles to obtain jobs or get accepted to graduate school.

Traditionally, Biology majors have applied to medical school and Economics and Business majors have worked in business and finance, while Psychology majors could enter the mental health field. HSSP students, although majoring in a new and unique program, could potentially work in public policy. Today, however, graduate school applications and the job market do not necessarily work that way.

Studies have shown that a wide variety of majors score highly on standardized admissions tests and are accepted into graduate school. For instance, an economist at the University of North Texas submitted a study to the Journal of Economic Education that correlates academic majors with LSAT performance. Philosophy and Theology majors were one of the three highest-scoring majors on the test, with the other two being Physics/Math and Economics.

Statistics from 2009 offered by the American Institute of Physics from the data warehouse of the American Association for Medical Colleges indicate that English majors had the highest scores on the verbal section of the MCAT, which counts for one-third of the test's final score, and did better on average than Biology, Biochemistry and Chemistry students.

Other data from the AAMC offered by Colorado College shows that non-science academic majors, such as Philosophy and History, had percentages of students accepted into medical school that were often 10 to 15 percent higher than those for Biology, Chemistry and Physics.

Lastly, on the GMAT exam for business school, 2009-2010 data from the Graduate Management Admission Council indicates that the average GMAT score of an Economics student was lower than a Philosophy major and only 12 points higher (out of 800) than an Art History major.

Additionally, the average GMAT score for a student who majored in a humanities subject was 20 points higher than the score of a student who majored in a business-based subject, such as Accounting or Finance.

These statistics reveal that humanities students perform just as well as students with more traditional majors in graduate school applications.

When it comes to finding a job, many employers look for skills and experience beyond a specific major. For example, many employers want to hire excellent writers.

As Mark Bauerlein, an English professor at Emory University, notes on a NYTimes.com opinion page, humanities coursework becomes a crucial training ground for employees who want to prove that they have communication and writing ability. Through studying literature and rhetoric, they are able to utilize the English language to its fullest capacity, students are able to "exercise their verbal muscles" and develop their writing skills early on.

An article from CNN.com emphasizes the significance of internships in obtaining full-time employment upon graduating.

Many firms look to their college interns when determining how to fill a vacant position, while other employers prefer the practical experience to theory expressed in the classroom.

At Brandeis, resources such as the Hiatt Career Center can help students find professional internships regardless of their course of study.

Students should not feel limited to a certain set of majors because they are concerned about their professional future.

The data clearly shows that students in the humanities are just as capable of being accepted into graduate school while taking classes that foster valuable job skills that are often under-recognized. Economics, Biology, Psychology, Business and HSSP are all fantastic majors, but students ought to recognize that Brandeis offers more programs than that for their benefit.