I heard every joke imaginable when I tell people that my major is Human Communication. “So, it must be different from animal communication.” Yeah, that one never gets old! But there are many reasons why we choose our majors in college, especially Linguistics and Communication Majors. At the surface, our major is basically just studying how we talk, but if you look further, underneath the surface, you will see how intriguing and important learning these subjects is.
First, let us discuss the fundamental difference between Linguistics and Communication. Linguistics is the study of human language, i.e. sounds, words, and meanings; while Communication majors study how we communicate, as well as the process of human communication. They are completely separate topics of study that ultimately fall under the same criteria: TALKING. (Although communication also deals with nonverbal communication but I do not have the time to explain.)
So why DO Linguistics and Communication majors CHOOSE to study these fields? It’s the same for all majors, we thought it was interesting, and then fell in love with it… and some other reasons:
We are studying one of the most important aspects of being human
Communication is about 75% of the human experience. (I’m probably exaggerating a bit). Whether it’s verbal, nonverbal, or the language, or how we are saying certain words, we can’t have social interaction without these elements! So it is up to us to study and learn and to understand the most important part of social interaction.
Math courses suck!
I don’t know about you, but I HATE math! Yes, we still use math on a fundamental level, especially in "talking majors," but in all honesty, we don’t really touch the topic of numbers if it doesn’t involve case studies.
It’s science without it having to be science!
Yes, talking has some element of science involved. There are experiments, theories, case studies, data, etc. How it works is we think of something along the lines of "do people who hate oranges, also hate the color orange?" or "do people have a different meaning of the same word, like the English word orange- the fruit and orange- the color?" And we do a case study from there. Okay, there’s a bit more thought put into it, but you get the point.
The case studies and classes are very interesting
I sometimes forget that communication is considered a science major. Well, a social science, but you get the gist. There are actual case studies and experiments that center around how we communicate.
It is a VERY versatile field, for communications anyway
When I changed my major… like the tenth or so time, I had looked into communication and I did the most unequivocal research study (i.e. Google) to find out what I can do with this major. Apparently, I can do anything! I can work for an HR firm for companies or work as a professor for a university. The possibilities are endless, which I’m not sure is a good thing or...
It widens your perspectives of human languages and communications
I have learned so much about what it means to communicate since I’ve started taking communication classes. It has completely changed my view on other cultures and their values and societal rules. In Linguistics, we learn the varieties of accents in cultures. Like how English speakers don’t all sound the same and can fluctuate over different locations. It’s so cool!
You never know what you’ll learn next
Every class is different and I learn a new skill or study or theory from every new professor. A case study in the field of communication and linguistics teaches us how we can communicate better with one another and can teach us more tolerance and understanding of other cultures.
It is A LOT more than just talking!
Yes! Communication is all about talking, but not really. Linguistics also learns why a word sound like it does and how we use sound like grunts or sighs to communicate. In communication, we learn about the fundamental dynamics of how we communicate either in groups, face-to-face, and even online or to an audience. We learn about the complete basis of what it means to communicate, and I think that’s pretty cool.
There are probably many other reasons why my fellow "talking majors" chose to study human language and communication. Talking is a huge part of the human experience. It is how we verbalize our ideas, run society, and connect with others. Studying "talking," in my opinion, is one of the most important fields of study in college. These majors focus on a vital part of the human experience and it is important that we have those who study it.
