Humanities are Worth More

I study English and Drama at the University of Exeter, and am a constant victim of ridicule for it. I've been told that it's a ''girls degree'', a stranger once told me my subject choice was ''so cute'' and another random girl at pre-drinks questioned: ''so you're doing a degree in bullshit?!'' - and she was studying law! Isn't that a career in bullshit?!

Throughout my entire educational life my love of Drama has been a subject of mockery. Considered to be the ''dumb'' subject at GCSE, only taken by those who can't be arsed to do something ''more serious''. And yes, I can appreciate that my drama lessons may not be the most serious, but they are however some of the hardest things I've ever done. I mean, Jesus, have you ever tried to melt into the floor and breathe out the soles of your feet for three hours? It's impossible!

Yes, we're being a tree.

People often assume that I want to be an actress or a teacher. They can't comprehend that a degree in the arts would lead me anywhere else. Truth is, I don't know what I want to be when I grow up - but there is a whole range of careers which are open to me. Marketing, PR, advertising, journalism, production, directing, sales.. The list goes on. Drama is more than standing on stage and pretending to be someone else: it teaches you presentational skills, and focuses heavily on inter-personal interactions. In both English and Drama there is a heavy focus on 'words' - spoken, written and read. I am studying our language, appreciating how others use it and developing my own skills constantly. Now please, don't tell me that's ''useless''.

I'm frequently asked and told: ''Why don't you do something more serious? English and Drama... Those are just hobbies!'' The quick answer is: I can't actually do anything else. I have a real admiration for someone who can learn formula after formula, and I appreciate their hard work and dedication - but here, let me ask you, 'why do you have to do something so boring?'. Doesn't quite work the other way round does it? People have different strengths and weaknesses, it just so happens that mine are humanities based.

Yes, we don't have traditional exams. The examination process behind drama is actually really gruesome! For example: a group of 20 people were given two weeks to devise a 40 minutes performance in a style of theatre no one really understood. Those 20 people then had to perform this three times in a row, and were then all given the same mark. I repeat: for every performance you all get the same mark. No one makes you sit the same exam paper three times in a row, in front of an audience, then gives your entire class the same mark! As you can imagine, tensions arise, people don't pull their weight, people do too much and become controlling - doing a Drama as a subject will perhaps teach you the most important life skills ever. You very quickly learn how to negotiate, comprise and understand other peoples point of views.

My flatmates are going to save lives with their degrees in Human Bioscience, and Medical Science. I couldn't be prouder of their future discoveries and how this will impacts our lives, and when you look at it like that, it's easy to write a Humanities subject as a ''waste of time and money''. But humanities are worth more than people realise.