How Humanities Graduates Excel at Communications

In anticipation of the release of my upcoming book The Well-Rounded Professional: Translating Humanities Skills to Career Success, I am writing blog posts about four of the critical skills developed in a humanities education. This week, I look at what might be the most obvious skill: written and verbal communications.

One of the constants in a humanities education is you have to read, write, and speak. A lot. Humanists have to be able to communicate effectively in order to graduate. Across the spectrum, from history to the languages, students need to be able to clearly structure and articulate an argument that convinces others. For English majors, the entire focus of their education is to be able to communicate and know how to use the written word clearly (and/or studying the ways in which others have successfully used the English language to the benefit of others). In history, students need to construct a sound argument and defend it.

For most humanists, the ability to communicate is, in and of itself, the end goal of their degree. To be able to write, act, draw, or speak is all they hope to achieve. There is little concern or consideration about the clear applicability of this knowledge in creating a career. However, there is a clear market for the ability to write and speak clearly, intelligently, and well in today’s business environment.

The most obvious application when working for both traditional and non-profit organizations is creating written documentation – reports, articles, briefings, etc. Humanities students, through their background and classroom experience, have a clear advantage in knowing how to put together clear, concise documents. The glaring lack of people who can put together coherent sentences and paragraphs plays directly into the strengths of humanities majors. They are the ones who spent their entire academic careers putting together persuasive arguments; now, they have the opportunity to turn all that hard work into a professional career.

Just as critical to success in the modern business environment is the application of verbal communication skills. The vast amounts of reading required of humanists provide an arsenal of anecdotes to interject into conversations and presentations. Being able to make points clearly in conversation helps with everyday communication and in meetings.

The ability to present material clearly to a group is critical in the business place and has multiple direct applications. First, people provide a wide range of presentations to management and direct reports in weekly staff meetings. These individuals lead conversations about key trends and themes, or the current state of operations within a team, department, or organization. Being able to clearly and concisely articulate an argument or present information gives the humanist the chance to make a good impression with senior leadership.

There are also a wide range of professional seminars and conferences that provide individuals opportunities to speak and present. These are great career building activities and can help position one as a thought leader in his/her field. Personally, I have developed professionally and learned a lot through being a speaker at multiple conferences and events.

For positions with sales responsibilities, client presentations and interactions require good communication capabilities. In the modern economy many clients, both individuals and corporations, see through the inauthenticity of a traditional sales approach and person. They are looking for someone they can relate to, someone authentic, for a client-focused experience. Being able to clearly get information across and engage with potential clients is critical, and something humanists can excel at.

In sum, humanists possess the right combination of written and verbal communication capabilities to make a name for themselves in the professional arena, no matter the exact field they chose. These capabilities can be a calling card and key selling point for the humanities graduate, and provide entry into a professional career.

Next time, I look at how humanists engage in data analysis and how that applies to the modern business environment.