Easiest & Most Difficult College Degrees 2024 [Ultimate Guide]

The hardest part about an English Literature degree is the need to read, a lot. Outside of that, there isn’t much to the major. Mostly students read literature, discuss literature, and will occasionally be given the opportunity to write their own literature.

As an English Literature major there are not very many opportunities available career-wise; most students go on to be authors or look into PR and marketing jobs.

For those that enjoy writing, this is a shoe-in major. The majority of the time spent working on this major is done through writing, and learning about other writers.

Most Creative Writing majors go on to marketing, or work to become a professional writer and author themselves.

Anthropology studies are not about becoming corporate, or even focused on getting a job right out of college at all for that matter. Studying Anthropology is all about the love and interest for the major; it is a major that allows people to learn about the world, and about themselves.

Many Anthropology majors won’t get a career right out of college. For the few that do eventually get a job, they typically go into business and advertising.

Learning a language for most is a fairly easy task; it is all about the art of memorization, something the human brain does very well. Those that can memorize well will do great in the major. Depending on the language studied however, the major can be considered easier or more difficult. For example; learning Spanish…not very difficult, studying Russian…a little bit more difficult.

Some people from this major go on to be translators for airlines, advertising, get into editing & publishing, or work for foreign civil services.

Research has shown that students entering this major have the lowest SAT scores, yet they still come out of the major with the highest grades. If that’s not an inclination that this is an easy major, I’m not sure what is. Many of the projects are fairly simple since the whole major is geared toward work with children.

There is almost always a demand for good teachers, which means that for those with an education degree, there are typically jobs available right out of school.

Communications majors are required to learn how to speak in front of people; be the group small or large. Aside from this however, Communications majors have opportunities to do fun projects, and a lot of writing.

Many Communication majors go forward in marketing and business management.

For those curious about religious endeavors throughout the world and time, this major may be very interesting. There is definitely a lot to learn and speculate about religion, including the history and patterns of religion. The trouble with this major is the speculate part; with religion, there may not always be a definitive answer, which makes grading a bit difficult to do.

The other trouble with a religious studies degree is what to do with it post-graduation…hmmmm that is the question.

All engineers, no matter the specialty must learn the basics of all engineering fields. Engineers are expected to learn and understand a lot of information, and quickly, so that they can move on to their specified field, and study even further.

The average number of hours per week Engineering students spend preparing for class is 19; that is the highest average over any other college major.

Most engineering courses also require students to take a lab; this means that students are not only spending time in lecture, but they must then take the extra time to sit in a lab. It is also a requirement to do homework for both the class, and the lab.

The payout for Engineers however, is a pretty decent one; according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, the average starting salary for engineers is $61,872.

This major is a difficult one because success is weighed so heavily on testing. There are weekly tests, lab tests, and of course the typical midterms and finals. Much of the students’ grades are dependent upon how well they do on said tests.

Much like the Engineering degree, Physical Sciences such as chemistry, astronomy, physics, and math, also require lab work, on top of lectures and other school work. This lab work often includes large paper write ups on the lab, and again, extra testing.

This degree is one for those that really enjoy physical sciences, math, and working hard, because the payout for such a degree is not as good as becoming an Engineer. The average starting salary for someone with a Physical Science degree is $44,000.

There is a lot of expectation that Biological Science students will keep up with materials outside of class. These students are expected to learn a lot quickly. It is also believed to be a difficult major because the majority of students move on to study at a medical school; many professors teach with this notion, and help prep students for the difficulties of the medical school road ahead. This all makes the undergraduate major a tough one to get through.

The major has a better payout for those anticipating medical school; the average starting pay for someone with a Biological Science degree is somewhere around $32,000.

The Health Professions degrees are very hands on; for many, understanding how the human body works, well enough to alter or fix it, is a very stressful notion. There is a lot of study and classroom prep work in the major, about 16 hours a week’s worth.

The average starting salary for someone in the Health Professions world can vary greatly; but it is somewhere around $25,000 a year. However, with a degree like Health Professions, there are opportunities to learn more, and earn more.

When we talk Business degree we are more so focusing on the accounting and finance degrees within the Business college. Because these degrees are so highly math based, it can be a difficult major for anyone who is not a math enthusiast. There is a lot of time spent on studying, a lot of tests to be taken, and many students find it difficult to keep up a high GPA.

The hard mathematical work is paid off in the end, with a starting salary of approximately $55,600. Logistics majors are paid the best, while management, network systems, and accounting are close behind.

Getting an Architect degree requires a lot of ambition. There is a lot of testing done in this degree, and many of said tests overlap one another. There is a lot of hand drawing required, critical thinking, hard deadlines, and the hardest part for many…”you can always do better.” Words that seem to be the motto of every architect in the business.

The starting salary for an architect is around $33,000, though a project manager can make much more.

Economics majors require students with great math skills, and the ability to quickly and easily adapt to new things. Our world, and the world of economics, is changing constantly, which means students must be able to do the same.

The starting salary for someone with an economics major is a reasonable $43,000.