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\u201cThe foundation of democratic and liberal societies is the critical spirit, which is nourished by knowledge of the humanities.\u00a0Without exception,\u00a0totalitarian states reject the teaching of the humanities<\/a>\u00a0, and states that reject this teaching always become totalitarian\u201d.\u00a0These were the words of Takamitsu Sawa, then president of\u00a0Shiga University<\/a>\u00a0in Japan, in 2015 in response to a statement by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who believed that higher education should exclusively “produce human resources that correspond to the needs of society”. .<\/p>\n This exchange shows that the world of higher education has long operated on radical dichotomies opposing literary disciplines and hard sciences, humanities (literature, philosophy and human sciences) and STEM (\u00a0science, technology, engineering and mathematics<\/em>\u00a0), general education and training professionalizing.<\/p>\n The key criterion making it possible to arbitrate between these different pairs would be their supposed short-term \u201cusefulness\u201d on the labor market;\u00a0a reasoning long shared in the Anglo-Saxon world.\u00a0As proof, only\u00a08% of American students today follow a major in the humanities, compared to 17% in 1967<\/a>\u00a0.\u00a0History, literature, philosophy, languages, are disciplines losing momentum on the grounds that they are decorrelated from the needs of professional life.<\/p>\n It should be noted that states such as\u00a0Brazil<\/a>\u00a0,\u00a0Japan<\/a>\u00a0or the United Kingdom (through the\u00a0Research Excellence Framework<\/a>\u00a0) have also not hesitated to reduce the share of humanities in higher education, considering that they lack “d ‘impact’ both in terms of research and employability.\u00a0The humanities appear, as a result, as more and more forced to justify their existence \u2013 when they do not have to fight for their survival in higher education.<\/p>\n And yet, a paradox that should be emphasized, today it is\u00a0employers who defend the humanities<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0: in fact, 80% of them believe that “all students need a solid foundation in liberal arts (\u00a0liberal art<\/em>\u00a0)\u201d.\u00a0This common expression in the Anglo-Saxon world designates the basic disciplines such as mathematics, social sciences, history, philosophy, physical and life sciences and artistic disciplines.\u00a0The humanities are therefore a subset.<\/p>\n It is interesting to recall that the teaching of the liberal arts was\u00a0born in the medieval university<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0;\u00a0it was sanctioned by a diploma, the “bachelor of arts”, which allowed to exercise an intellectual job or to continue his studies in a specialized field: medicine, law or theology.\u00a0This model of a general and cross-cutting bachelor’s degree, possibly followed by a specialization, migrated from France to England and then to the United States.\u00a0By a curious historical paradox, this pedagogical model is now returning to its country of origin.\u00a0It should be noted in passing that it has persisted in France, under another name, in the model of preparatory classes, many of which combine literary and scientific teaching, in particular those which prepare for the top management schools!<\/p>\n Significantly,\u00a0more and more <\/a>\u00a0North American<\/a>\u00a0(\u00a0but also French<\/a>\u00a0) business schools are defending the integration of \u201cliberal arts\u201d into their courses.\u00a0Jamie McKown, associate dean of the College of the Atlantic, thus pleads for a complete education associating with directly professionalizing disciplines history, literature, political science but also traditional scientific disciplines.<\/p>\n He believes that\u00a0\u201cthe United States will lose its competitive edge\u201d<\/a>\u00a0if it takes the simplistic approach that STEM education is the only path to economic success.\u00a0Moreover, the founder of Apple\u00a0Steve Jobs was not mistaken<\/a>\u00a0when he declared, during the launch of the iPad in 2011: Furthermore, the liberal arts and humanities promote the development of all kinds of skills and, in particular, ”\u00a0\u00a0soft skills<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0“, i.e. social, emotional or behavioral skills that do not come under a academic or technical education.\u00a0This is why they are today acclaimed by employers.\u00a0A 2018 study conducted by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, titled\u00a0Fullfilling the American Dream: Liberal Education and the Future of Work<\/em><\/a>\u00a0, found that the skills most valued by employers are precisely those taught in humanities courses: written and oral communication, critical and creative thinking, ethical judgement, ability to work in a group, etc.<\/p>\n However, this same report reveals that there is a gap, sometimes huge, between the achievements of young graduates and the market needs identified by human resources managers.<\/p>\n In other words, a certain number of non-technical skills that are essential to the conduct of work are today sorely lacking in young graduates.\u00a0This lack is all the more damaging as current students will have to change\u00a0jobs on average 12 times during their careers<\/a>\u00a0.\u00a0Under these conditions, mastering basic skills, which by their very nature escape obsolescence, is the best passport to adaptation.<\/p>\n Finally, a third argument pleads in favor of the study of the humanities and the liberal arts: these disciplines, by\u00a0introducing them to complexity<\/a>\u00a0, prepare those who study them to\u00a0apprehend a world that is increasingly uncertain<\/strong>\u00a0and at the dawn of\u00a0major changes<\/a>\u00a0. in particular with the upcoming energy transition.<\/p>\n All of these elements explain why, according to\u00a0David Deming<\/a>\u00a0, at age 40, former STEM graduates have an average annual income of approximately $124,000 compared to $131,000 for those who studied social sciences.<\/p>\n A final point deserves mention.\u00a0Although\u00a0it may be doubted<\/a>\u00a0that emphatic feelings are always converted into altruistic actions,\u00a0economists<\/a>\u00a0,\u00a0philosophers<\/a>\u00a0,\u00a0sociologists<\/a>\u00a0,\u00a0anthropologists<\/a>\u00a0, and even\u00a0primatologists<\/a>\u00a0agree in recognizing that empathy is a fundamental condition, the “invisible second hand”, which ensures the stability of our societies.\u00a0The liberal arts, which are by definition interested in the human, can thus make it possible to increase the desire to live together by facilitating the discovery of those we ignore, in all their complexity and diversity.<\/p>\n Ultimately, humanities and liberal arts are neither extra soul nor disciplines that should be minimized in the name of their supposed low employability.\u00a0On the contrary, not only do they increase the professional skills of those who master them but, when implemented, they contribute to strengthening the common good.\u00a0Double reason which explains why it is necessary, urgently, to reverse the tendency and to put them forward, in particular in the establishments of higher education which form part of the elite of tomorrow.<\/p>\nA request from employers<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Better paid at 40<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\n\u201cAt Apple, technology alone is not enough.\u00a0It is the technology coupled with the liberal arts, the humanities, which gives the results we are delighted with\u201d.<\/em>
\nThe humanities are an essential complement to professional skills, and this in three ways.\u00a0First, the humanities make it possible to acquire\u00a0lasting skills<\/strong>\u00a0, unlike technical and technological knowledge.\u00a0A recent\u00a0article<\/a>\u00a0published in the journal\u00a0Nature<\/em>\u00a0highlights these achievements: critical thinking, spirit of synthesis, open-mindedness, plurality of points of view\u2026 in short, general culture.\u00a0Conversely, technical knowledge is becoming obsolescent quite rapidly.\u00a0This is why, as Harvard researchers David J. Deming and Kadeem Noray have shown, the wage premium for STEM graduates is highest when entering the labor market.\u00a0On the other hand, hedecreases by more than 50% during the first decade<\/a>\u00a0of working life due to the obsolescence of acquired skills.<\/p>\nThe liberal arts, humanistic disciplines<\/strong><\/h4>\n