Hot, new and transferable majors
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Choosing a college major used to be a one-shot decision set in stone. But with new majors emerging, hot majors shifting, and major transfer policies loosening, are we finally seeing some flexibility in how young people shape their future paths?

Or is this a new maze with more doors but no clear signs? Coming to you live from Beijing, this is Roundtable. I'm He Young. For today's program, I'm joined by Steve Hatherly and Fei Fei in the studio. First on today's show.

Every summer, after Gaokao, or China's National College Entrance Examination, scores are released, students face one of the most important decisions of their lives, or at least the first leg of their career journey, picking a major.

But between flashy new programs, constantly evolving job markets and the rise of AI, how do you pick something that won't be irrelevant four years from now? This year, China's Ministry of Education approved 29 brand new undergraduate majors, many of which reflect technology.

cutting-edge technology, national strategies, and even new forms of storytelling in the digital age. So let's dig into the new majors and maybe provide some analysis about the industries they're pointing to. Yeah, so these new majors, the 29 new majors, was announced by China's Ministry of Education back in April.

So now for this year's Gaokao, the students can now pick these new majors when they are applying for a college or university. And basically these about 30 new majors can be categorized into, I think, four different categories. For example, there are majors that will support the broader national strategies, for example, in

There are majors called regional and country studies, which I think is with the university called the Beijing Foreign Studies.

And the reason that they are launching these majors is because before, like such studies within the international relations big umbrella, that they are focusing on different countries. For example, there is the United States studies or Australia studies or New Zealand studies. But now people are finding that you can't really look at these countries just by country.

You have to look at them also in their regional background. So that's why they're launching this regional and country studies, so that to offer a regional look at the international relationships. And then there are also carbon neutrality science and engineering, which is also quite clear that as China trying to push with its dual carbon goals,

And there are also marine science and technology and also health and medical security. And there are different, another set of new majors are trying to push forward cutting edge technologies such as

intelligent molecular engineering. And I checked, it's sort of within the material studies, which can help with, for example, medicine studies, green energy or environmental governance, or even with electronics. So there are other set of majors such as medical devices and equipment engineering, and also spatial temporal information engineering, which sounds like very high tech.

But it's definitely serving a very cutting edge and very advanced technology. I don't think right now we have a very clear picture of what really these majors are pointing at. The more difficult the words are to pronounce, the smarter you have to be to study the topic. That's what I've always believed. You've got your market-oriented majors as well.

We brought this up on a previous episode. Cruise management, aviation, sports are being created to adapt to industry needs. They'll also have majors focusing on AI, of course, in driving economic and social development, including AI education, which is a cool thing. Intelligent audiovisual engineering, digital drama, those have been added as well. And then to meet the quickly developing demands of the low altitude industry,

Six different universities, including a university here in Beijing, have been authorized to establish low-altitude technology and engineering programs, which is a sign of the times. Yes, and the majors that you guys have covered, a lot of it I think is also mirroring the national strategies in different areas, and a lot of them are very much high-tech majors.

And what kind of surprised me a little bit is there are also other new majors that are pretty much sort of like an upgrade to fit the digital era of traditional majors and

You mean by like sort of incorporating artificial intelligence with arts? Those kind of things. And I'm curious, first of all, for you guys to introduce them. And second of all, do they even sound that relevant? I mean, I know the college education shouldn't just be about finding jobs, but you kind of can't help but wonder, are people going to be able to find jobs with these ones? But anyhow, so...

announce the ones that you find interesting. Well, I think the one that I find very interesting is from, I think, according to Sun Bing, he is the Vice Dean of the School of Theater and Film and Television at the Communication University of China. And he said that the Intelligent Imaging Art major focuses on the deep integration of artificial intelligence and visual arts. I think it's very interesting because

It's sort of within the current trend in not only in majoring in education, but also in the broader academia circles is that people are pushing interdisciplinary communications. That means when you are studying arts, that means you are not only...

not be good enough if you're only focusing on arts. You also need to pick up some of the very advantaged technological skills such as using AI. Yes, and it's changing, isn't it? This wave of digitalization and intelligent transformation, it's gaining more and more momentum and you see your traditional cultural and entertainment industries like theater, like film, like gaming, of course,

and also in animation, they're changing really quickly. And it's reflected in these new undergraduate majors. Among the 29, eight are in the arts category, and six of those are closely related to the digital culture industry. And then you've got new majors like music technology and digital theater. They're getting a lot of attention too. Those programs integrate the technologies that are available to us now, like artificial intelligence and computer science and the metaverse.

and that's directly addressing the needs of mega industries like film and like gaming. Digital theater, that's a really interesting one. It features core courses including digital media art and also interactive design for digital spaces and generative AI. Students who take these courses will be able to create immersive experiences and also enable remote viewing and real-time interaction between audiences and actors

and actors and the digital performing arts design that builds upon traditional stage design and it incorporates frontier technologies like AI and virtual reality into theater arts education something that we would

never have even dreamt about, you know, 30 years ago. But here we are now. And in this case, students will be trained to design virtual stages. Now you can say, you know, as a purist, art purist, whether you love that or not, but still, it's available now. They'll also be generating digital actors. They'll be producing holographic concerts and performances. It's just a different form of art. And students will be taught how to do it. Yeah. And see, when you talk about music, you

well, they didn't say acting, but also, you know, all these like production set designs, etc. I mean, these majors themselves to start with are a little bit niche. And now you're talking about a tech upgrade of these majors. Of course, if you're someone who is so devoted into these fields and maybe your family, you

or you've got generations of family relatives working in that kind of field, I'm not necessarily pointing to NEPO babies out there, but look at Hollywood today. Anyhow, I understand you can go into these fields probably feeling that, oh, you're quite comfortable. But for an everyday average person to venture into these fields, I can understand the risk is maybe quite high. But, you know...

Of course, we're going to look at every part of the discussion with the critical eye and offer you both sides of the argument. And while new majors are exciting, they come with a degree of uncertainty. Meanwhile, some majors have constantly or consistently remained popular, especially those tied to high salaries and national policy priorities. But

Even those are starting to change under the influence of AI and economic shifts, which measures are still considered, quote unquote, hot and why? Well, I think...

finance is kind of the major that's been quite hot on the list of most of the graduate leaders days. It's just, I don't see it coming off that popular list. But I do think for with, for example, the influence of AI models and new technologies, when people are studying in major like

finance or trying to find a job in this major, they definitely need to focus on updating their skills. Yeah, that's true for finance majors. It's also true for arts majors as well. For example, if you're a student of Chinese language and literature, for example, well, you might think, oh, there's no future in that. Well, it's not to say that there's no future in that. It's just that there's a lot of influence now from

AI models, right? Chat GPT-4 or other LLMs.

will have a direct impact on how those students need to prepare for their own futures. We know now that AI can generate and summarize and analyze text, and that will impact traditional roles in writing and editing and content creation. You mentioned finance majors. Well, AI is transforming financial analysis and trading and risk management and even customer service. So I think the point here is that these majors can remain popular, and they are,

But for students to better prepare themselves for the future, they have to, I think good advice would be, and this seems to be the advice from experts, see how AI is impacting that major and then make sure that you're keeping up with how to use it and what jobs are available, what industries are using it with your set of skills that you're getting from your major.

Hmm. Like I remembered, I studied linguistics as my major when I was a postgraduate. And in those days, when you were studying linguistics,

That's already a very unpopular major, first of all. And the majority of the students will either change a totally different field for their jobs or they just stay in the linguistics sort of academia circle to be a scholar in the future. But now these days, actually studying linguistics are helping training AI models.

They're using a very subcategory within that major called natural language processing and building on the linguistic knowledges and background that you were trained back in the college and you can help companies like Baidu, like Google, like other tech companies to train their AI models. So I don't think that...

majors like linguistics are doomed in the age of AI. It's just you have to look at it from a different perspective. I agree with that. Yes, and I will once again rain on everybody's parade because we need different opinion on the show.

Well, yes, linguistics, obviously, you know, it still has a place in our economy. I do agree with that. But also, I think there are some caveats to keep in mind. One is that for all of us who are going into or for graduates of arts and humanities majors,

Um, maybe. Well, maybe if you're becoming a PhD student and you're going to become someone who's going to pursue a career in academia, then that's another thing. But for most people who are going to look for real life jobs and aren't trust fund babies, then maybe think of it like this. We're going to be performing...

jobs, we're going to find opportunities in the service sector. So gone are the days of thinking, oh, I studied government or political science, you know, international relations, you know, gone are the days of thinking about two lofty goals. It's going to be like your, hopefully your strong suit is in communication, in dealing with human connection, maybe creativity. And these are some of the things that I don't think AI can replace, but just a

The way I've seen it is really that you've got to just get off the podium and get real. And if you're an arts and humanities student, such as law, journalism...

Can't think of anything right now. Chinese lang and lit. You know, we're going to be serving people. And preferably you do something that's with a higher entry threshold. So it's not just like anybody who can blab a few words and write a couple of lines can do. And then if you can find sort of a professional direction in that way, then...

we're here to stay. We're not going to be out of a job. But it's a completely different way of looking at future jobs. And the job that you'll be holding in five years time, or 10 years time is probably not even created yet. And yeah, so I agree. It's not all doom and gloom for us arts and humanities graduates, but it's going to look very different. And if you get to choose, still

still look at engineering, look at mathematics and those kind of topics. But as a arts and humanities graduate, I know not all of us are good at those things. And it's not like we could just switch overnight, right? So what do you guys think when it comes to those who maybe have the

I wouldn't say luxury, but yes, they're still, you know, painting on a blank canvas. They can, for example, if they have the capabilities to align with the direction of national policy. Why do we keep saying this? That's because where a lot of investments are going to go to. And these are the industries that are going to see a boom here.

in the next five to 10 years. And you don't have to follow this, but it's kind of useful to know if you are looking for, oh, what are the job prospects in these industries?

Well, I think for young students, young people out there, I think the first thing is just getting to know yourself is the first step. Like, for example, like He Yang mentioned for arts and humanities students, that probably in the future, if you want to find a job in these areas, communication skills will be a very important part that you need to get, very important part of your skill sets.

And if you consider yourself not a very... not the type of people that will enjoy socializing with other people or opening up to different circles, then probably...

arts and humanities also doesn't suit you, doesn't suit your personalities. So I think the first thing is to figure out who you are and then to match. Yeah, that's a great point. And actually, this reminds me of, you know, during research stage of this topic, I looked at so many interviews and one was that, you know, for, let's stay with the arts and humanities for one more minute. One of the most popular choices of majors is law. And

So if you haven't worked in the field, you kind of assume, oh, you after years of hardcore studying and then you enter a law firm and you're being assigned cases and you follow sort of work like a apprentice.

follow an older, more experienced lawyer and do your job. But actually, in reality, in the field of law, the key or 80% of the time of a lawyer is actually to find clients. So therefore, although you think, oh, you're supposed to be doing paperwork and, you know, doing all the legal stuff, but actually there's a huge part of the job. If you're a successful lawyer, that is about communication. That is about, you know, catering towards some...

obnoxious people didn't just say that um rich people if you can find big clients and then so there's one very practical side of practicing law and do you think that you're up to snuff to that kind of thing but also you can argue well you know you're talking about an 18 year old

Maybe I'm an introvert now, but I could become a social butterfly after four years in college. And isn't it a little bit unfair to decide so early that, oh, I don't have the personality to hunt for those big clients? Well, that's been true for decades, and that's been true in many countries around the world. I think what we're seeing now is

Is that times are changing and students need to be aware that times are changing. And you mentioned that these new majors are very niche. Some of them. That's the direction I feel the world is going. Niche, right? Being good at something very specific allows you to have...

a long career. And it doesn't mean that you just learn it and then rest on your laurels. No, you have to continue updating yourself and getting better at what you do. I found something from the media outlet called Medium from late last year. And this is specific to, I think, the tech industry. But I think it applies in many different places. This is what it says. Depending on who you ask, AI is either the greatest thing since sliced bread or a looming apocalypse.

Reality check. AI isn't stealing your job. It's stealing the parts of your job that are repetitive, boring, and inefficient. Automating processes like data sorting and QA testing? Yeah, sure. Replacing creative problem solving, human intuition, and ethics? No, not going to happen. What we're seeing is a shift in the types of roles being hired. Yes, software engineers are still in demand, but so are specialists in AI ethics, machine learning operations, and even good old-fashioned data governance.

The tech world isn't shrinking. It's specializing. Companies aren't looking for people who can master these evolving tools or they're looking for people who can master these tools, not just admire them from a distance. And that's the end of it. But that was my point. Things I feel are getting more niche. So my advice to young people looking for their major, what I said before, figure out how AI or how modern day technology applies to the field of study.

And then go in that direction. Find something and don't just be good at it. Be amazing at it. That's key. You have to be very specialized. Right. Even if it's a very small niche thing. Yeah. But you got to be the best. Yep. But also, if the U.S. labor market is any indication, we're already seeing how AI is reshaping entry-level hiring, especially for fresh graduates entering fields such as media, finance,

finance and tech. And these are figures from the U.S. actually. Last month, the AI company Anthropic, its CEO, made an alarming prediction. Artificial intelligence could wipe out half of entry-level white-collar jobs in the next one to five years in the U.S. And also they're saying that in the U.S., the unemployment rate for degree holders age 22 to 27 is almost 6%, the highest it's ever been.

since the pandemic. So AI is taking, this is really not very reassuring for anyone, especially if you're a young person, because the entry-level jobs are very easy to be replaced by AI, even in the tech world. This is like the, is it ironic or what? That it's the coders that are being, the entry-level coders that are being replaced first batch. So-

It is a bit tough, isn't it? Yeah, and also that raised another question, at least for me, is that for a lot of these entry-level roles that can be replaced by AI, I think they sort of build the fundamentals for any people who want to be higher level or want to be good in their field. For example, being a journalist...

The first thing is to write to know how to write a short story. And now with AI being able to do that, and for example, if I am a entry level journalist, and I rely a lot of my work on AI, then I'm

I'm never going to learn how to write stories. That's such a great point. And this is the part, Steve, I don't know if we can find a solution or maybe we just have to roll with the punches and see what happens. That is, if you get a whole generation of students in school, they aren't writing their own essays all the time. A lot of the times it's AI. And when you enter the workforce and think about these people entering the workforce and not really getting the opportunity to

maybe even to find a job, the entry level job or the entry level job is taken over by AI, then how do you train people? How do they become qualified to do the mid-level stuff, which you still need human beings to do? Yeah. And that's part of the challenge, isn't it? Because I think, you know, knocking on the door of the company.

Hi, I don't have any strong skills yet, but I'm really eager to learn. Well, that might have worked in the 1990s, but I don't think that's going to work anymore. Companies now are looking for people with, as we mentioned, very specific skill sets. So, yeah, it's a challenge. But the whole concept that, oh, young people, forget about it, just give up because AI is going to take everything. No, it's not going to take everything. But the point going back is...

You have to keep up with the times. And that's why I think it's important for Gaokao candidates accurately understanding the direction of national policies of different industries is not just important. It's essential when you're applying for your major because the country is telling you the direction that they're going in. Listen to that. You know, I've said for a long time, follow your dream unless it's stupid.

If I want to play baseball for the New York Yankees now, I need to give up on that dream because it's not going to happen. Right. But in broadcasting, I can follow the trends in broadcasting and make sure to the best of my ability that I stay employed and connected to an audience. As a young person entering the job market or entering school university from high school, pay attention to what the country is telling you in terms of industry. Yeah.

Like Fei-Fei said before, find out where your passion lies with your own studies, overlap those things, and develop your own path. Absolutely. And let's give people a couple of directions they can go for semiconductor process engineers and equip engineers.

mechanical engineers, robotics debugging engineers, drone engineers, algorithm engineers. These are very popular jobs and seems to be jobs that continue to need people to fill. So there are still major talent gaps there, jobs that they can't find people to fill.

So there's definitely hope. Well, there's a lot of workforce shortages as well. This is from Global Times. They estimated that China faces a workforce shortage of more than 5 million people in AI, 2.3 million in big data, more than 1 million in new energy vehicles, and another 1 million in drone operators for the low-altitude economy.

So do the math. Seven, eight point three million shortage there for those specific jobs. Yes. And that's very important information to keep in mind. And now here's some good news for indecisive students or for those who change their minds later.

More universities are relaxing restrictions on major transfers, giving students the ability to recalibrate their academic path during college. What are the new rules around transferring majors and how flexible are they? Well, it's definitely getting more flexible, I have to say. Hooray! You know, back in my days in college, it is almost impossible to transfer majors in Chinese universities.

And now, for example, in the university, Xiamen University actually recently published its new admissions policy, and it mentions that a full relaxation of major transfer restrictions. And according to the university, students can now freely transfer out of their current majors, except

for those restricted by special admission programs. And they can be transferred into new major. It's just they require an assessment. And also under that new policy, students from year one to year three are allowed to apply for a major transfer twice only.

per academic year. And each undergraduate student is granted two successful transfer opportunities during their studies. So, you know, young students can still think about it, even though after they're getting enrolled into a university.

Yeah, I changed my major from economics to English literature after two years when I was in university. In Canada, it's a really simple process. And I think in America, it's really easy to do as well if you do it in that first couple of years. And that'll depend on how transferable your credits are up until that point. But I really love this.

I didn't know actually in China that it was a hard thing to do to change your major before. But I love this because as you talked about, and I agree with you, you know, an 18 year old having to make a decision on what they're going to do with the rest of their life. That's not a fair question, I think. So giving them the ability to change their mind will reduce some of that anxiety from the initial decision. And if you do make your decision and then change your mind, then cool, because you're probably going to change your mind a lot during the course of your life about different things.

So making a change about your major is okay, too. Yeah, I think so, too. Choosing a major today isn't just about job security. It's about building adaptability in an uncertain future. Whether you're chasing cutting-edge tech, switching tracks midway, or following a passion that defies trends, the real advantage lies in knowing yourself, staying curious, and being willing to grow as the world evolves.